Page 18 of The Stolen Kingdom

It wasn’t until Cerberus walked up beside her that Valda realized she was teetering between consciousness and sleep. The warmth of her pet pressed against her side eased the nausea from her sickness, and at last, she found solace in sleep.

4

It was the morning, the worst of it all. Waking up to an empty space next to her wasn’t supposed to hurt as badly.

When Maris woke up, instead of finding Valda’s sleeping form, she saw an untouched pillow. Tears burned at the corner of her eyes. She pushed the bedsheets off her and ignored the emptiness enough to get herself going for the day. A long dining table waited on the first floor of House of Arago with breakfast already served.

It was strange to have her needs taken care of instead of her doing all the work. She ate her breakfast in relative silence. Compared to Oberon Castle, no waiting maids stood nearby. The room was empty and quiet except for the random clatter of her utensils. She finished her meal, stood from the chair, and headed out to find Melvian.

As she exited the house, Cai greeted her with a bow. He had been standing by the door, hopefully not for the entire night. She had already told Eyphah she didn’t want the boy up during the night.

New Agenor was busy. Many were gathering the harvest of their communal garden. A group of men were fixing up a cabin while a group of women held dirty clothing and headed to the lakes. Kids played and ran around the square. Maris recognized Coljar, Lia, and Kimmi amongst the children. Being the oldest, Kimmi sat and watched everyone else play.

Maris’s lips stretched into a small smile as she walked further away from the square and over to a slightly broken-down house. Outside the cabin, a young man stood making asketch. As Maris got closer, she saw the drawing of the same house Melvian was staying in. She greeted the young man with a pat on his back before climbing on the deck. She knocked on the door, and after a couple of seconds, Melvian opened.

“Morning!” Her friend’s chirpy greeting made her stomach turn. Maris was sure Melvian was being extra happy on purpose, but deep down, she knew her friend missed her mate as much as she did.

“Good morning, Melvian.”

“Come in! I just got done with breakfast.” Melvian opened the door wider and stepped aside as Maris walked in. “How are you feeling?”

Horrible. “I am fine. I feel slightly out of place, but I will eventually settle down.” She needed to busy her hands so her mind wouldn’t trail back to Valda. “I was thinking about what you said.”

Melvian slanted her head. “Oh?”

“About being an Asclepius worshiper? What do I need to do? You said you would teach me the way, and I am really looking forward to learning.”

“Ah, well.” Melvian laced her fingers together and stood by the now empty dining table. “You want to be a worshiper?”

“I want to help others.”

“You are not answering my question. Do you want to be an Asclepius worshiper? Yes or no?”

The weight of her answer didn’t quite settle in Maris’s mind. She shifted her weight from one foot onto another until she nodded. “Yes.”

“Poseidon might not be happy with that decision.”

“You know my parents did not raise me to worship any gods. I believe I might have a clean slate.”

Melvian raised her eyebrows. “You do.” She waved her hand at Maris, signaling to follow her. She followed Melvian up the stairs and into her room, where she moved about her belongings. Melvian rummaged until she found a small book. “It’s not much, but I recommend you read through this before making a decision.”

Maris took the book and scanned through it. There were many hand-drawn illustrations of the human body and plants, but before all that, there was one page with golden writing on it. As Maris read over it, she noticed the worshiper’s pledge. Maris arched her brow at Melvian, waiting for an explanation.

“It is a lot to take in, that’s only the basic things you must know. Reading and actually putting your knowledge into practice are two different things.” Melvian pursed her lips. “Do you wish to become a worshiper to help your people?”

“Of course.”

“Yes, well. That will be a problem then. Asclepius only blesses those who wish to use his gift to helpeveryone, not just their people.” Melvian leaned on her knees as she stood up. “We help anyone in need. The pledge binds us, and we must honor it until our last breath. If you are not ready, I am afraid I cannot teach you.”

“You could’ve told me before we left Lasmeer’s place.”

Melvian shrugged dismissively. “I still need someone whom I can trust to take care of me when my child is ready to be born, and to be quite honest, you are the only person I can trust right now.”

“What about Eyphah?”

Melvian scoffed. “I don’t trust her.”

“You don’t trust your mate’s sister?”

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