They decided to have the conversation in the downstairs sitting area. Miza was sitting on the middle couch across from the 97” wall-mounted television by herself. Justin sat on the two-seater to her right, fidgeting, anxiety showing plainly. Valon sat to her left on the second two-seater, stoically ready to receive the full brunt of her anger, while Donnie was standing behind him at the home bar, already in desperate need of a drink.
As soon as Justin had brought her home, she called for them all to join her and calmly asked them to explain what they had been hiding, which Justin assumed she would be angry about. He was right.
Miza was livid.
As soon as the words left Valon's mouth, she felt the acidic burn of rage rise. She couldn’t look at any of them. She felt sick. She sat processing the information as the pinpricks of her emotions went through her. She must have sat for a least 20 minutes just trying to calm herself from the betrayal she felt gripping the couch cushions, trying to contain herself. She took one last deep, calming breath as she rubbed her palms over her upper arm, trying to warm herself of the chill taking over her body.
“So this entire time, you knew that my father was dead,” Miza asked, not looking up. Her voice low and deceptively calm.
“Yes,” Valon said, voice solid but quiet.
“And you knew that my siblings, except for Ricky, are being held captive by our Elder?” Miza questioned, attempting to gain clarity over the depth of the lies of her consortium.
“Yes.” Valon conceded.
“And we have a man on the inside, but you won’t tell me who.” This was not a question as much as a statement that needed to be confirmed. They could feel the weight of her condemnation despite the bind Valon had placed.
“Because-” Valon attempted to explain, but Miza calmly cut him off.
“Yes or no, my love?” She prodded.
“Yes.” He grunted out. The traces of his frustration peeking through his calm facade.
“Ok.” She replied, nodding, taking another breath.
“How many of the crews are still inside?” She continued.
“Too many.” This time, Donte interjected, his nerves bolstered by the strong bourbon he swallowed before pouring himself another drink.
“And our denblings?”
“Not everyone has made it out, and some potential casualties in the family were reported.” This, again, was Donte. This news made Miza’s gaze snap from the television she was staring at to Donnie as her brow furrowed, pain and concern coloring her features. Her eyes moved between Donte and Valon’s faces.
How are they this fucking calm about losses in our family?
She took another breath as she felt the anger rising in her again. Speaking through clenched teeth as the tears began to fall.
“How could you keep this from me? How could you just let us be here living life like people aren’t dead? And my people? The kingdom? What is happening to them?”
She continued to watch them both as she noted a hollowed look on both of their faces. She lost her last straw and stood, pacing back and forth.
“Your tethers are open. Your fucking tethers open.” She looked over at Justin, who had been watching her. He shrank back at her withering stare.
“Yes. Valon and I have always had access to controlling the tethers to a degree. It came with the power you gave him and me. Your awareness’s core is documented in the ‘Réparti.’ Mark Anthony can track you, which is why we bound you. We just didn’t tell you that we can selectively open and close some tethers with the right preparation and maturation of the tether. Peter was the only other person whose tether was strong enough to withhold the strain of distance. Which is why I suspect he chose to stay and that he didn’t get stuck. Your awareness as Goddess and, by default, ours has always been different love.”
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“Well, I didn't know that was a difference.” She snapped, sounding every bit like a disgruntled teenage princess at that moment. “Wait, you have known if Peter was dead or alive all this time and didn’t tell me. Valon! How could you?” She sneered, no longer able to pretend to have her anger under control.
“Your mission is to be the teenager you wanted to be and to leave this to us.” He shouted back. She stopped in her tracks glaring at him for raising his voice to her, for daring to think that he could speak to her that way when he was clearly in the wrong. She did not interrupt him but allowed him a moment to gather himself and start again.
“Baby, you are not a soldier. You are the Goddess. You are our princess. You are the heir to a throne. Fuck, you are the greatest love of our lives.” He gestured widely. “You may have strength, but you do not have the knowledge and skill to take down a demented king. It would be irresponsible for us to put you in that position when we are not ready. That is my mission, my responsibility as the future king of Lestania and as Liero incarnate. That is how I support you. I protect you, and to do that, this time, I had to keep information from you. Donte and I are responsible for you. We made the decisions we made to protect you. Otherwise who knows what you would be doing. Trying to traipse all over the world in search of veils to get back? Endangering your life instead of letting us defend you?” Valon fumed.
“Val -” Donnie came from around the bar to stand behind the couch he was on, placing a hand on his shoulder and lightly squeezing.
He spoke to give Valon a moment to compose himself from the challenge and the fear of how his fiance would view him after this discussion. Valon had always been sensitive to how Miza would feel about the decisions he made. In his mind, she was his empress, even when her father was in power. His queen. But no matter how they tried to spin it, she was also the love of his life, and he cared about disappointing her.
“Miza, dear one, we simply did what we thought would be the safest option for you until we created a strategic plan with the resources we have. We are collecting intel and building our strength.” Donnie stressed.
“Peter is on the inside, but Laura and the kids made it out as far as we can tell. We don’t know who all have made it to their safety cells yet. It isn’t safe to confirm yet. Peter is hidden in the capital with Unseens. He uses his shadow jumping. We thought Alex would make it to the Academy, but it was taken as well. Right now, it’s just Donnie, Peter, and I coordinating a mess while trying to keep you hidden until you have accumulated power. Be a normal teen. Follow the path you are on. Do what you need to do. Let us do what we need for you and Lestania.”
Miza was frustrated by the idea that she needed to navigate being a typical teen and that somehow that would help her as a queen save her people. Her dream didn’t make sense anymore. It seemed counter to everything that seemed to be important.
“Not all rulers are good at their job when they take over. Look at all of this as you unofficially taking on responsibilities.” Justin finally cut in.
“We still have to do the unveiling. I’m sure that while we are out here you can find something that is of use to that. Maybe our focus can be on the unveiling. But Baby, Val is right. You are not a soldier. You may be trained, but we worked hard to keep you away from that. I agree that we can do better in keeping you informed, but also we need to trust that you would not go off on your own. We need to know that you are working with us, not against us. Our goals are all the same. Because we are a part of your Nest and therefore we are all the Imperial Family. Just because you and Val will wear the crowns does not change that. Right?” Justin waited for her to confirm.
“So instead of infighting, because Valon is our Military Leader and your king, Donnie has raised you, and we all love each other and want to keep each other safe, we plan. Together. Yeah?” Justin coaxed.
He looked at Valon hoping that he could see the validity in what he was saying.
“Yeah?” Three voices echoed back.
“So we work together. We are honest with each other. We support each other. Just like we did before the Goddess decided she had plans for us. Because if we break, everyone loses.” Justin vowed.
~