Chapter 90

The King’s men swoop in and yank Doc’s arms behind his back, apprehending him with much more force than is necessary for such a gentle, old man.

I feel sick.

They drag us both through the hall. We pass rigid-standing guards with flat expressions and dozens of stunned hospital workers.

We enter a stairwell and the guards begin to pull us down the stairs like we were a couple of rag dolls.

“Let’s be civilized here,” Doc says, his voice echoing in the stairwell.

I’m proud to call him my friend.

We get outside and the guards drop me so fast, that I’m knocked down, tumbling onto the sidewalk, scraping the skin off my knees. I look up and they’re taking Doc away.

I get up and race after them, but three gammas, stationed outside, rush to block me from reaching them. I crane my head past them to see. I catch sight of Doc being pushed into a car.

“Doc -“

The car doors slam.

I’m so sorry.

“Fuck!” I scream without caring who hears.

“Get off the property,” one of the guards says. “Now.”

I clench my fists. All my muscles tense. With every fiber of my being, I want to attack. I want to shift into my wolf, sink my teeth into their skin, and shred them apart.

No.

Ada knocks me with the deeper truth. I feel it, like a hit to the stomach. She floats me an image of Ansel, helpless in the hospital bed.

Go, Karin.

I unclench my fists. I open my mouth to curse at them, but I find myself tongue-tied. She won’t let me speak.

You have to go.

I storm away. I’m a block from the hospital before I look back and find that they’re no longer watching my retreat. My knees are searing with pain.

There is an incredible sense of urgency about Ansel’s vulnerability that leaves me panicked. I don’t get the logic behind the concern Ada’s directed at Henry, but now, I can’t go back to the hospital, and now, Doc won’t be there to help him - to disallow visitors or to be on watch.

Ada takes over, since going to Joy’s on-foot is the only option now. She flies down back alleys, leaps over hedges, and careens past cars and houses, till I’m at Joy’s back door.

I knock and Joy opens the door right away.

“Karin!”

Instead of letting me in, she squeezes herself out through the door, stepping onto the porch.

“There’s someone here to see you,” she says, quietly.

“How do people keep finding me here?”

Joy looks ready to burst with anxiety. “It’s the Moonshadow Luna. Queen Abigail!”

I widen my eyes in surprise. My stomach churns.

“Yes. Really,” Joy says. “Sitting in my freaking living room!”

“What the hell does she want?”

Cherry’s mother is probably the last person I’d ever want to speak to, except for Cherry, herself.

“I don’t know,” Joy says. “Let’s get this over with.”

She starts to open the door, but stops when she notices the distress on my face.

“Joy, they arrested Doc,” I say, blurting it out.

Her face is lined with confusion.

“King David ordered his arrest.“

“You can’t be serious.” Her pallor whitens.

“I wish I wasn’t. Doc was defending me. We were at the hospital. The King was there and wanted me thrown off the property.”

“Oh my God.” Joy puts both hands to her forehead. “What do I do?”

“I don’t know. I -“

“I have to go up there,” she says. “Maybe they’ll let me talk to him. Do you think?”

“Maybe,” I say, not feeling sure at all. “I’m sorry, Joy.”

“Come in,” she says, throwing the door open.

Meekly, I step inside.

Two men in suits are standing in Joy’s living room. Next to them, sitting on the sofa, is a beautiful woman in a light pink dress.

“Excuse me, but I have to leave,” Joy says, curtsying hurriedly.

She starts to rush away, but then darts back and throws her arms around me in a hug.

“There’s an extra key in my dresser,” she whispers. Then, she speeds out of the room. I hear her rustling for her things, and her keys jingling, before the front door opens and closes.

I turn to Queen Abigail. I bow my head, then look up at her. She stands and walks to me.

I have to catch my breath. The resemblance to Cherry is stunning. The resemblance to me is stunning. She has raven black hair, warm brown eyes, and the same button nose.

She takes my hand and brings it between both of hers, clasping it warmly. She smells of water lilies and something all hers. I take it in. I feel a pang of heartache, although I don’t know why. Ada’s paying close attention to her scent, trying to figure it out.

“Karin,” she says. “I’m glad to meet you at last. I’m here to ask for your help.”

“My help?”

“Yes,” she says. “My daughter, Princess Cherry, is facing serious repercussions for what happened to Prince Ansel.”

“It was me she tried to kill,” I say, spatting it out. I should be more diplomatic with royalty, but I don’t have many more fucks left to give. “It was me,” I say again, “And she should be in trouble for it.”

Queen Abigail purses her lips. “It’s bigger than that, Lady Karin. Way beyond it. King David is distraught over his son. He’s blaming her for this - for the Prince being in such a vulnerable position, where an assailant was able to find him and injure him so easily. That’s the way he’s looking at it.”

“Well, that’s what happened,” I say, crossing my arms. “He was thrown into a vulnerable position and someone used that to sneak up and shoot him. Yeah. That’s pretty much it, point by point - your Highness.”

“Lady Karin, I recognize the trauma you’ve been through. At the same time, I’m begging you to have some remorse for my daughter. King David wants her dealt with. I’m sure you can imagine what that might entail, and it won’t be a comfy prison cell.”

Queen Abigail takes a breath. “Princess Cherry, too, is grieving Prince Ansel, and her role in this. And,” she says, “She was the one who called for the help that arrived to you both that day.”

I guess that makes it all better. I stifle an eye roll.

“What do you want me to do? I’m nobody,” I say. “I don’t have any sway with King David. The opposite, in fact.”

“You’re not nobody to Prince Ansel,” she says.

“He’s in a coma,” I say, barely holding back from shouting it. “You want me to promise I’ll talk to him, to get her out of trouble, when no one even knows if he’ll survive?”

“I’m sorry,” she says. “But yes. I’m begging you.” She looks on the verge of tears. “If there’s a chance at all you can save my daughter, please. Please help her.”

“Why would I do that?” My voice is raised now, I can’t stop it. The gammas are watching me intently, ready to jump in.

Queen Mia claps her hands together. “Because,” she says. “I’ll help you, if you promise to help her. I know about your father. I know you wanted help getting him out of jail.”

My heart skips a beat. “Yes,” I say, quietly.

“If Princess Cherry is safe, I will make sure he is freed.”

I can feel my insides beginning to boil. “I think your daughter owes that to me,” I say, flatly. “I did what she wanted.”

“She’s not in a position to help you now,” Queen Abigail says. “I am.”

I lower my head, staring down at my feet and the wooden floor underneath me, but all I see is my father’s face. I see his gentle, loving expression, the silly look he gets on his face when he teases me, and the way I saw him last - ill and depressed, left to rot, behind bars.

“I’ll ask Ansel,” I say. “If he lives.”

“Karin,” she says. “Your father is lucky to have such a daughter.”

Tears spring from my eyes. “Maybe,” I say.

The thing I’ve set out to do is to save him, and I’m still nowhere near it, no matter what I do.

Queen Abigail purses her lips together and clutches her hands in front of her.

“I wish I had been there for you,” she says. “To know you. To see you grow up.”

She straightens her back and puts her arms down by her side.

“I don’t understand,” I say.

“You and Cherry look so much alike. You’re half-sisters,” she says. “You’re my daughter, Karin.”

I shake my head. “I don’t believe it.” But I do.

I’m so shocked I can barely breathe, but it clicks in place, like a missing puzzle piece.

“The truth is,” she says. “I was very young when I had you, and just not ready to be a mother. I hadn’t really lived in the world yet, done anything yet. Your father and I were high school sweethearts. We got married right after we graduated and found out I was pregnant with you.”

Queen Abigail frowns.

“You were a beautiful baby, but I was scared - and restless. I left you and Matthew. It was selfish, but I was just a child myself. I hope, someday, you can forgive me… but I understand if you can’t.”

She waits, expectantly. I cross my arms. “Why didn’t you ever try to find me? Contact me in any way?”

I don’t believe her. I don’t believe she cared at all.

“I didn’t want to disrupt your life - and also, it was very painful. I’ve felt so much shame for leaving you. I didn’t want to face it.”

She smiles fondly, and brushes back her hair behind her ear.

“I’ve watched you dance,” she says. “I went to the ballet to see you. You must have been about 18. I sat in the royal box. Do you remember?”

I nod. It was Giselle. They’d announced her and her husband’s attendance.

“You broke my heart with your performance. It was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.”

She turns to her gammas and nods to them.

“I should leave,” she says. “Thank you, for helping Cherry.”

They walk through the living room, towards the front door. She doesn’t turn around, or say another word.

I pull the lace curtains in the kitchen to watch her go. I wait until the car pulls away to let myself cry.