Page 15 of The Fighter
Even though Erika was looking down, I could still tell that she was tearing up. “Marcus was a graceful warrior and so tall and handsome. It was the happiest day of my life when he fought for me. I didn’t think twice before choosing him as my champion.” In a sudden movement, Erika pushed back her chair, got up, and moved over to open a closet. “Every Christmas he would make me an ornament for the tree.” She pulled out a wooden box and brought it back to the table and opened it. “This one was my first.” The year 2399 was written on an ornament in the shape of an angel.
“Wow, did Grandpa make this himself?”
“Yes. He was an artist and one of his preferred materials to work with was glass.”
“Wait, did he decorate it or did he make the glass angel from scratch?”
Erika lifted her chin. “Marcus made it from scratch.”
Mila was picking up more beautiful ornaments from the box. “How many did he make you?”
“He made me one every year for Christmas.” Erika sighed and looked down. “Until the year Dina died.”
For a moment none of us spoke. We just admired the artistry of Marcus Aurelius.
With a church-bell-shaped ornament in my hands, I leaned back in my chair. “Never would I have thought that an artist could go on to become the ruler. Aren’t artists supposed to be gentle souls?”
Mila looked from her grandmother to me and back. “Was Marcus a gentle soul, Grandma?
“I wouldn’t say that, but I do know that Marcus was a much better ruler than his predecessor. That man was a monster.”
“Who was the previous ruler again?” I looked at Mila hoping she had paid better attention in school than I had.
“Wasn’t it Nikolai something?”
“His name was Nikolai Wolf and he was an example of how power corrupts.” Erika was quiet before she added, “Not that Marcus was an angel, because he certainly did some questionable things that were awful in the later part of his life, but Nikolai Wolf was a pig in comparison.”
“What happened back when Marcus came to power?”
My question made Erika raise an eyebrow at me. “Raven, if you think Marcus just came to power, you are wrong. Marcustookthe power in a well-orchestrated coup and millions were happy, including me. We all celebrated the day Marcus killed Nikolai…. Well, except for his wife of course.”
“What happened to her?”
“Lord Wolf had four sons and a young daughter. It’s rare for any member of a ruler’s family to survive a coup, and many disagreed with Marcus’s decision to let the wife and her two youngest children live.”
I frowned. “Why is that? The family shouldn’t pay for what their father did.”
“Don’t be naïve, Raven. Little boys eventually grow into men who want to avenge their fathers.” Erika said it like it was a given.
“Did you see Lord Wolf’s execution?” Part of me felt bad for making her relive a traumatic past, but this felt like real police work and I was a little giddy on the inside.
“I wasn’t there in person, but I saw a recording of Nikolai Wolf’s execution.” Erika’s eyes glazed over as she muttered, “Marcus made him apologize to me.”
Mila and I exchanged a look. “Why would the dictator apologize to you, Grandma?”
“What?” Erika was blinking as if coming back from the past. “What did you ask?”
“You said that Marcus made the dictator apologize to you. Did you know him?”
“No. I don’t know why I said that. It’s all a bit blurry at this point.” By the way she was picking up new pieces from her puzzle and focusing on finding the right place for them, I could tell she wasn’t interested in discussing it further.
“We found this old article, and we wanted to ask you if you know who these two men are…” I gestured for Mila to show Erika the photo.
Erika’s hands were shaking when she reached for the article with the photo. “Where did you find this?”
“My dad had it.”
I pointed to the two men standing in the background. “Do you know their names?”
