Page 132 of The Stolen Kingdom

Valda’s tired eyes drifted from the infant in her arms to Maris. Confusion raked through her as she tilted her head. “What is it, Seashell?”

Maris swallowed hard as fresh tears covered her cheeks. “I forgive you.”

Valda’s frown disappeared as the realization settled in her features. “Seashell—”

“I forgive you for what you did to my father. It wasn’t your fault.”

Valda even her breath, trying not to be loud as she struggled to breathe. “Maris… I— Why?”

Maris scoffed and shook her head. “I thought you would be happy that I forgave you. Instead, you ask me why?”

“Of course…”

Maris rolled her tongue over her lips, tasting the saltiness of her tears. “Cai killed today, for the first time. It... changed him. He wasn’t himself and I couldn’t help but see you in him. You were young, you were following orders, you didn’t know what you were doing.” She shrugged. “You did what you thought was right.”

She glanced at Valda, who nodded at her words. A heaviness in her chest lifted, as well as Valda’s. She could feel how the other woman breathed easily. “Valda, if we ever get separated—”

“We won’t.”

“If we do—”

“Maris,” Valda interrupted, her large hand gripping Maris’s thigh in warning. Her eyes pierced through Maris’s tear-clouded gaze, and she said, “We will stay together.”

Maris swallowed the lump in her throat. Forgiving Valda was important to her, especially now, she could feel how close death was to them. If she lost Valda without forgiving her— Maris shook her head, going back to Ciel. The baby slept soundly in her arms, warm and protected. Valda moved closer to her while Cerberus stood and curled up in front of both women. Valda pulled Maris into her, sharing warmth together while Struan cooed. And for a moment, the pain in Maris’s heart diminished.

29

Valda released a tired sigh as she looked down at the two sleeping babies in the makeshift crib. She had stopped their crying by wrapping them up into a tight bundle. They needed warmth and security more than anything. Putting them to bed was easier than putting Maris to sleep.

The guilt weighing down Maris’s chest sometimes proved too much for Valda. And yet, she never stopped holding her. She allowed her to cry and cling to her all night if she needed to. Now with the babies warm and asleep, Valda went back to the room she shared with Maris. She found her on the bed, covered in a thick fur blanket provided by the Vulcanians.

Valda could tell how puffy her eyes were from where she stood by the door, and her heart broke a thousand times again.

Swallowing hard, Valda walked to the bed, pulled on the covers and slipped under them, cradling Maris in her arms and hugging her tightly from behind. Maris shuddered, grabbed Valda’s arms and brought it to her face. She pressed her wet cheek to it before kissing it and leaning on Valda’s chest.

“You are awake,” Valda said, pulling away enough to allow Maris to turn to her.

Maris pressed her nose to her shoulder. “I can’t sleep.”

“You have to,” Valda whispered back, her lips brushing Maris’s hair. “You need rest, Seashell. You can’t take care of anyone if you’re not well.”

“I can’t,” Maris said, her voice trembling. “Every time I close my eyes… I see them. Alive. Smiling. Holding the babies. And then—” She broke off with a shudder. “They’re swallowed by darkness… just like my mother was.”

Valda winced, her chest tightening painfully. She didn’t need Maris to elaborate; she could almost see the nightmares herself.

“Asclepius didn’t bless me, she wanted me to be blessed so badly, she wanted to teach the babies to be worshipers, to be blessed and…” Maris shook her head. “I denied help to Kenna when she needed to be healed. I was angry at her for hurting you and hurting me, for being hardheaded, and Melvian told me—” A hiccup interrupted her ranting, but Maris took a deep breath, pressed her eyes closed, and continued. “Melvian told me that’s not the way of the Asclepius worshiper. We don’t pick who to save, we just do, and I didn’t care—”

“Maris, don’t do this to yourself.”

“But I have to! Because every time I close my eyes, I see them and then I see you,” Maris continued, her grip on Valda’s blouse tightening. “Drenched in blood. Hurt. Crying for help… and I can’t do anything to stop it.” Her voice cracked, and she shook her head against Valda’s chest. “I see you fighting with Eris, and she takes you from me. She takes you, Valda.”

Valda closed her eyes tightly, burying her face in Maris’s hair as she struggled to suppress the lump in her throat. She inhaled deeply, but the sharp sting of her own emotions was impossible to ignore. Maris shifted in her arms, pulling away just enough to meet Valda’s gaze.

“Did… you fight Eris?” Maris’s voice was barely above a whisper, her blue eyes searching Valda’s with quiet desperation.

Valda froze, her breath catching as the weight of the question pressed down on her. There was no point in lying. Not when Maris was looking at her like she already knew the answer.

Valda sighed, her shoulders sagging under the weight of Maris’s gaze. Her eyes softened as she reached out to brush a stray strand of blue hair away from Maris’s damp cheek. “Ididfight her alongside Kenna,“ she confessed. “But I’m here. I’m alive, Maris. She didn’t take me.”

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