Page 103 of Whispers of the Elderoak

Thorne cleared his throat before speaking. “Ava,” he said as he turned to her. “After last night, we must know everything. Start at the beginning and do not leave anything out.”

“Alright,” she said.

She told them about moving to the farm after inheriting it from her grandfather. About how she and her mother had moved around as a child, seemingly running from something. She described her mother’s magic and how they kept everything from her. Then she explained the strange things occurring including the figures, the journal and the book. She also told them about her dreams of the tree and someone calling her name. They all tensed when she said this and she stopped, looking at them. “What?”

“I was having dreams as well,” said Thorne. “Dreams of running after someone. Then I would shout her name, calling after her.”

She went still, looking into his eyes. “What was her name?” she whispered.

“Ava.”

She shook her head. “Are you sure?”

It was him. The voice from her dreams her mother urged her to find. It had been the king this whole time.

“I’m positive,” he spoke as he looked around the table. “Please, continue. How did you end up in Eorhan?”

She readied herself to tell them the part she dreaded most. “When I was living on the farm, I met a man…” she glanced at Raine for support, and he nodded, encouraging her to continue. “His name was Henry… at least that’s what he told me… and he… I don’t know, I started to fall for him…”

“We don’t care about your love life,” Quinn interrupted. “Get on with it.”

Raine bit back at his friend. “Let her finish.”

The rest of them tensed, watching Raine with surprise as Quinn glanced at him with irritation before looking back at Ava.

Ava fidgeted with her cloak and stared at the table, unable to look at them as she spoke. “Like I said… I was falling for him, and then he… He wasn’t Henry anymore. He was Andras.”

Ava paused, glancing around the table. She could feel the tension at the mention of Andras’ name. “He had tricked me. There was a portal on my property, and he had tricked me into leading him there. Into finding the book and the map. And someone else was there with him…” She took several breaths, tamping down her panic before continuing. “Deidamia.”

“Shit,” someone muttered.

“They kidnapped me, cut my hand open, and used it to open the portal. Then they shoved me through and held me prisoner. Eventually I escaped and then ran into you all.”

The table was silent, no one sure what to say or how toreact. “I’m sorry,” she added. “So sorry. I didn’t know who they were. I didn’t know…” she whispered.

Quietly, Casimir whispered from across the table, “Bullshit.”

She looked up at him. “What did you say?”

“I said that’s bullshit. You’re sorry? You’re responsible for leading our enemies to our gates and you’resorry?” he seethed.

“Cas…” Raine attempted to interject.

“I was tricked.”

Cas leaned forward. “Tricked? You were blinded by your lust. By your own pride.”

“I wastortured. For weeks! You think I wanted that? Accuse me all you want, tell me I’m stupid and naïve, that you loathe me, but there is nothing you can say to me I haven’t already said to myself.”

“Oh please,” Casimir continued. “You want us to feel sorry for you? The poor woman that got mixed up in that which she doesn’t understand and may be responsible for thousands of deaths?” He narrowed his eyes. “Those daemons came for you last night. They endangered the whole city.”

“Enough,” Thorne’s voice boomed through the dining hall. “Arguing will get us nowhere. Blaming Ava doesn’t change anything,” he said as he looked at the group. “You all know as well as I do the armies were already encroaching on our land. We haven’t been living in peace for over a hundred years.”

Ava leaned back and crossed her arms, holding back tears. She wasn’t going to let Casimir’s words make her cry in front of everyone. Raine reached under the table and squeezed her knee in support.

Thorne sighed. “We must learn who your parents were. Can you tell us more?”

“All I know is my grandfather and mother fled to the human world while she was pregnant with me,” she answered. “And I have an animal companion.”

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