*Isla*
Earlier
I’ve never felt this kind of excitement before. It’s strange, really, looking back on everything I went through to get to the point I’m at now, packing the tiniest pieces of clothing in my suitcase in anticipation of meeting my grandsons. My fingers slip over a light blue onesie embroidered with little teddy bears, and I smile, the corners of my eyes crinkling.
Maddox is somewhere behind me packing his own suitcase but for an entirely different reason. I turn to look over my shoulder at him as he pulls a suit from the closet and examines it. “It’s going to be rather hot for a suit, don’t you think?”
“Antony says it’s a black tie event. The Alphas along Maatua’s archipelago and the smaller territories in KiloKilo will be attending. I’m supposed to look the part, whatever the hell Antony meant by that.”
I smile to myself as Maddox lays the suit over our bed and walks toward our dresser, tossing a few pairs of socks into the open suitcase at his feet.
I go back to packing up the clothes I’d purchased with Poppy. She’s just as excited as I am. Her twins were born between Isaac and Ella, and while Daphne, her daughter, recently mated and married, her son is still “on the prowl” and not wanting to settle down, according to Poppy and Antony. She wants grandbabies badly.
I chuckle to myself as I remember the shopping trip we’d gone on yesterday and the jealousy she didn’t even bother to hide as I picked out clothes for the twins and several necessary items for Maddy.
I honestly can’t wait to dote on her for the next month while we wait for the arrival of her princes.
“When does your boat leave tomorrow?” Maddox asks, coming up behind me. He presses a kiss to my shoulder, his arms wrapping around my stomach.
I close my eyes and lean into his touch. “First thing in the morning. I have to be at the dock at seven, I believe. We leave at eight.”
Maddox gently rocks us from side to side, his warmth penetrating my skin. “I can’t believe we’re about to be grandparents. I don’t feel like we’re nearly old enough.”
“Well, we are getting old, Maddox,” I laugh, letting my head fall against his chest. I look up at him, at the little life lines around his eyes and mouth. He’s only grown more handsome over the last… well, we’ve been in each other’s lives for almost three decades now. He’s never been more beautiful, in my opinion.
The Goddess has been kind to us, truly. I thank her every day, even if I don’t always understand Her process.
“Have they decided on names yet?”
I turn and wrap my arms around his waist, resting my chin on his chest. “No, they’ve been bickering about it, according to Maddy. Isaac has it in mind to name one of them Thor.”
“Thor is a perfectly good name for a prince or a future king.”
I wrinkle my nose. “Can you imagine cuddling a little baby named Thor? I can’t. I have to agree with Maddy on this one.”
“What are her preferences, then?”
“She likes the name Flynn,” I tell him, the corners of my mouth tugging into a smile. “And Liam. And Declan. Colin, Forrest, Matthew–”
“So they have no idea what they’re naming these boys?”
“They’re not even close,” I laugh, holding my mate tighter as I rest my cheek on his chest. I want nothing more than for him to lay me down on our bed in the house we built together. I want to feel his body against mine, to take in his warmth and his unending love and just… be.
But I won’t see him for over a month, at least. It’s the longest we’ve been apart in a very long time.
He brushes my hair away from my face and kisses me tenderly, lingering in the kiss for longer than necessary, but I don’t mind. I don’t want it to stop.
He reluctantly pulls his lips from mine and holds me at arm’s lengths, drinking me in. “I love you.”
“I love you.”
“Maddy is going to be fine. She’s a strong woman, like you. She’s healthy, and the boys are healthy.”
“I’m more worried about our son,” I admit with a coy smile. “Maddy hangs the moon for him, and I know he’s been falling to pieces the closer she gets to her due date. He’s worried about her, Maddox.”
“I was worried about you,” he tells me, a distant smile touching his lips. “I almost didn’t make it through Ella’s birth even though you were fine. I felt like I held my breath for hours until I heard her cry for the first time and then saw you take her in your arms.” His eyes grow misty with the memory. “I want Isaac to have that, you know. To see Maddy hold his boys for the first time and not have to worry about losing his mate.”
The memory of Isaac’s birth still haunts us both. Me, because I have no memories of it besides being brought back to life by the Diamond of Faith, and Maddox for witnessing nearly losing both of us. All while a war was raging outside the castle gates.
“It’s different for them in so many ways,” I tell him, squeezing his hands. “Just think, a month from now, you’ll be on your way to Crescent Falls to meet them.”
He smirks, a playful look evaporating the difficult memories lingering behind his eyes. “Do you think she’s going to make it another month?”
“Oh, no,” I chuckle, turning back to my suitcase. “She’ll go early, especially if it’s up to her. She’s absolutely miserable, Maddox. When I spoke to her yesterday, she told me Isaac has been taking her on walks every night. They’re experiencing an early spring in Crescent Falls. It’s been warm and dry from what she said. I think the babies will be early, but not too early. She’s going to have them at the castle. That’s the plan, at least.”
“I’m happy you’re going to be there for her.”
My fingers curl around the woven set of matching baby blankets I bought for the boys as unease coiling around my heart. Maddox’s words have a double meaning. He’s happy I’m going to be there for our daughter-in-law and our son as they become parents for the first time but also because, if anything goes wrong, I’ll be there to save their lives.
It’s been so long since I used my powers for healing. It’s peace time. No war. No illness. No injuries.
But I’ve been fighting hard against my worries over her birth. I want this to be easy for her, painless, even though I know from experience it’s far from that. I can’t help but think about her mother, Sydney, and how much she suffered before dying in childbirth. The idea that these boys could grow up without Maddy guts me every time I think about it.
And Isaac… Goddess, he wouldn’t be able to carry on without her.
I close my eyes against the onrush of panic and grief that wells in my heart, thankful Maddox has gone back to packing and can’t see the turmoil on my face as I hastily zip my suitcase and drag it to the floor.
I turn to Maddox, who checks his watch and curses under his breath. “I have to meet Antony at the dock in twenty minutes.”
“I’ll come with you. I could use some fresh air.”
I follow my mate through the large, five bedroom home we built when our children were young. It was a vacation home for a long time–everything all light wood and creamy fabric. It’s airy and beautiful with big windows and doors that seem to be perpetually in a state of openness, even in the rain and storms that sweep across the island.
It became our full time home a few years ago when Isaac took the throne, and we don’t regret it, but being so far away from our son and his family does weigh on us from time to time. I allow myself to think of Ella for just a moment. We are even further away from her now. I simply can’t think about it. I miss her every moment of every day.
“I’ll be in KiloKilo for a week,” Maddox says as he pulls the shiny red sports car–his baby–into the parking lot at the Port of Maatua. “Then I have a week of meetings here on Maatua. I’d like to come to Crescent Falls after that, a bit early. Do you think Maddy would mind?”
“I’d think she’d be delighted. If anything, you can keep her mate busy while she focuses on getting these twins out of her,” I laugh as I get out of the car. Poor Maddy. She looked so uncomfortable when they were here during the Solstice, and that was six weeks ago.
Maddox and I walk down to the private royal dock where Antony’s yacht is waiting. My heart is in my throat as I watch the deck hands move back and forth, readying for departure. Maddox senses the change in my emotions and turns toward me, squinting his eyes against the sun’s glare beaming off the side of the boat. “The priestesses on KiloKilo are still working to find a way to make contact with Eastonia, Isla.”
I sigh heavily and stare at the boat. I don’t like the idea of him going to KiloKilo, but this is his job, literally. He consults for both Isaac and Anthony, acting as a buffer when pack business gets heated. Antony has been actively pissing off the Alphas in KiloKilo over trade disagreements, and this week long conference is supposed to quell whatever conflict has been growing between the two island kingdoms for some time. “I’ve asked that they stop.”
“What?”
I turn to my mate, hating that I hadn’t told him sooner, but it’s been a hard pill for me to swallow when I made the decision after Solstice. “I worry about who they might come in contact with if it’s not Ella or her mate. We don’t know enough about their kingdom.”
A tremor shivers through the air. The yacht pulls from the dock as if in slow motion, and then slams into the dock with a crunch that makes my ears ring. Maddox grabs me, looking around. “What the hell was that?”
“An earthquake?” I say, my heart pounding. I look up into the sky, which is painted a rich golden bronze from the sunset, and see what looks like stars falling into the sea. “Maddox–”
“Smoke,” he says, looking over the top of my head toward the west side of the island, where our house is settled against the now turbulent sea. “That’s smoke, Isla.”
I turn to look at the yacht and see men starting to funnel out of it, checking for damage. Maddox wastes no time pulling me back to the car.
“Your trip–”
“Something feels off. Don’t you feel it?”
I do, in fact. My heart is squeezed so tight I can barely breath as he rips out of the parking lot and starts driving toward the west side of the island. The smoke creates a soft haze over the skyline as we reach our private driveway, the gates opening automatically. People have come out of their houses to look up at the sky as we drive through the gates, everyone scratching their heads.
Did our house blow up? There’s no way…
“Maddox!” I cry out as our home comes into view.
He stops the car so abruptly I lurch forward, my seatbelt snapping into place and pinning me to the seat.
All of the windows have blown out, covering the front yard in glass. Faint wisps of smoke curl through the windows like mist.
“Stay in the car,” he commands.
“Maddox!” I hiss, ignoring his order and fumbling with my seatbelt. I finally free myself and run after him as he disappears into the smoky haze shielding the front door.
I suck in what little air I can find and hold my breath before following him through the front door, which has been blown off the hinges.
But Maddox stops and faces the living room, his body going totally and utterly still.
She’s on her knees in the center of the room, the furniture around her nothing but smoking embers. Her arms cradle a man lying limp in front of her, his blood seeping into my white carpet.
Ella raises her head, her face shielded by a glowing mask of moonstone.
I only know it’s her from her eyes, which shine like sapphires and are full of tears. She brings her shaking hands up. They’re covered in blood. His blood. Her anguished scream splits the world in two.
“HELP ME!” she screams, choking on the words. “He’s dying, Mama. Help me!”