*Isla*
“Masina Atuafafine?” I repeat as I try to process everything that Mystica has just said to me.
“Yes, that’s what we call the Moon Goddess in our ancient language. Most people speak the same language there as is spoken here, but some of us remember the ancient terms for the Moon Goddess and for royalty.”
I nod, wishing I had some inkling of what she is speaking about, but I am lost. “How do you know that my last name is Masina, though?” I ask her.
“Because… the scene you described let me know who you are, dear.” Mystica sits on the side of my bed, and my eyes wander to Poppy. She looks just as confused as I feel. “You probably spoke both languages at one time, honey, assuming you were old enough to speak when you left. How old were you, three? Are you the youngest child?”
I shake my head. “No. I have two older sisters, but I have five younger brothers. They were born after we moved to Willow pack.”
She nods. “So you are the youngest of the girls who fled with Tupu Daniel and Masiofo Constance. You are Tama’ita’i Isla.”
“What does that mean?” I ask her, but rather than answering me, she reaches into the top of her shirt and pulls out a locket.
Opening the locket, she shows me that each side has a golden wolf in it. One has a red eye and the other a green one. My eyebrows furrow together as I realize I’ve seen those wolves before.
“Do you recognize this?” she asks me.
“Yes,” I tell her, nodding as she takes it off and hands it to me. In my palm, the wolves look small, but I would recognize their form anyway.
“This is the royal seal of our kingdom, Maatua, which has two translations. One means ‘parents’ because we think of our kingdom as our family, but the other means ‘stone back’ or gems. Our island was full of beautiful gems like these. For centuries, they were used to adorn our palace, as well as common homes. Then, the kings and queens began to trade the gems for other necessities. Eventually, greed set in, and when the royal family refused to continue to trade away what made us special, there was a great war, a revolt.”
I stare at her, wanting to hear the history of my homeland but also feeling nervous. Obviously, this story does not have a happy ending.
“The royal family, and other important leaders who had a conscious were forced to flee. Otherwise, the greedy powers taking over would’ve killed all of those people. Many of the citizens fled as well.”
“Where did they go?” I ask.
She sighs and looks down, “To all ends of the earth. No one kingdom could’ve absorbed all of them, though Maatua was a small kingdom, only about ten thousand people.”
“That is small,” Poppy agrees. “We have millions of people here in Crescent Falls.”
Mystica nods and then continues. “So… my family came to join me here, though I was already a part of the royal healing group here. My powers were recognized by King Maddox’s father during a visit he paid to Maatua, and he told me he felt that I could benefit many people if a revolution came about. At the time, I had no idea Maatua would also have a rebellion soon enough.”
“So you came here?” I clarify, and she nods.
“I did. And then, when war broke out in Maatua, I couldn’t make it back there in time to help, so I welcomed as many people into Crescent Falls pack as I could. No one knew what happened to the king and queen and their daughters.”
I feel a fluttering in my gut as I try to process what she is saying to me. “The king and queen… and their daughters?”
She nods and reaches out to smooth back my hair. “That’s right, dear. I believe, I now know where they are.”
“Wh-where?” I ask her. My mind will not allow me to fill in the blanks on my own. It’s all too much for me to accept.
Mystica opens her mouth to respond, but she is interrupted when my door swings open and Maddox rushes in.
I start to get up, alarmed at his hasty entrance. “No, don’t get up,” he insists. “I’ve just come to tell you I’m leaving the castle for a bit.”
“Why?” I ask, the idea of him going out now, when it’s late, and he’s been through so much, makes my heart hurt.
He comes to stand next to me, and Mystica moves so that he can have a moment. Poppy holds her seat, her eyes wide as she listens in.
“We have some issues that need resolved immediately,” he tells me. That’s his way of saying that he doesn’t want to tell me the truth.
“Did something happen?” I want to know.
Maddox sighs and drags a hand down his face. He sits down next to me. “Zabrina got away.”
“What!” Poppy exclaims. We both turn and look at her, and she sinks back into her chair, realizing she is a terrible eavesdropper.
“She got away?” I repeat.
He nods. “She escaped and took Wylie with her. Both of her parents are gone as well. We’ve rounded up her remaining soldiers and are interrogating them now because we are afraid they might hurt people.”
“Hurt them how?” I ask.
“It’s a long story,” he says. “I will explain when I get back.”
“Are you going to look for her?” I ask him. “You don’t know where she’s at yet?”
“We don’t know, but we have posts on all of the roads so that we can find her easily. Don’t worry. I’m certain she’ll be located soon. Hopefully, we will catch up with her before she’s able to harm anyone else.”
“All right,” I say. “I understand.”
“I feel that you’ll be safe this time, now that she is gone. I’ve assigned Commander Taylor to watch over you, and he is very trustworthy, but if you want me to have Seth stay you—”
I cut him off. “No, it’s fine. I’ll be all right.”
“Okay.” He has a hint of sadness in his voice, and I understand why. I was hoping he could hold me all night. But now, he’ll be out chasing around that witch.
“I have to go,” he says. He leans in and presses his lips gently to mine, like he is afraid I’m made of glass and might shatter.
When he pulls away, he starts to stand, but I grab hold of him “Hold on a minute,” I say. “I got something for you at the village this morning, and I want to give it to you.” Was that this morning? It seems like a million years ago.
“You got something? For me?” he asks, and I can tell he’s shocked. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“Well, technically, it was your money,” I tell him, “but I did pick it out for you.”
He chuckles at me. “My money is your money, Isla,” he tells me.
“If that’s true,” Poppy chimes in, “I think I need a raise!”
Maddox turns and stares at her. “Perhaps you should be let go for poking your nose in where it doesn’t belong.” He cracks a smile at her, and she blows out a hot breath.
“I guess my moments of appreciation for helping earlier are over.” She waggles her eyebrows at him, and I can tell they are both teasing, though I also wish that Poppy would’ve given us some space, like Mystica did.
“Let me get them,” I say, starting to get up, but all three of them protest.
“No! I’ll get the gift,” Poppy says. “Where did you put it?”
I don’t want her to know about my secret hiding spot because then I won’t be able to use it again, but I have no choice. Even if I got up to fetch them, she would see. “In the window sill,” I tell her. She stands, forehead wrinkled in confusion, and walks to the window. “The board pops up on the left side,” I tell her.
Eventually, she discovers what I am talking about and brings me the box. She hands it to me, and then, miraculously, she backs away, going to stand by the door near Mystica.
I clear my throat. “I hope you like these.” I realize what I am holding in my hand now before I even explain to him why I chose them. “When I saw them, I thought of you immediately. They look so regal. But then… the man at the store said that they were found in an abandoned palace in the islands.”
My eyes go to Mystica, and she is listening, though she doesn’t come closer.
Maddox opens the box and sees the cufflinks that match the wolves in the locket I am still holding perfectly. Rubies, emeralds, golden wolves….
But Maddox doesn’t look happy. “Uh, thank you, darling,” he says. “These are… nice.”
“You don’t like them?” I ask him.
“No, I like them,” he says, but I can tell he’s lying. “I like them a lot. And I love that you thought of me.” He leans down and kisses me. “I have to go now, though, okay?”
“Okay,” I say, not convinced that he hasn’t hated my gift. I wonder what it is about them he doesn’t like.
Maybe he doesn’t know they are from Maatua.
He certainly doesn’t know that I am from there.
“Be careful,” I tell him.
“I will be. And I’ll be back as soon as I can be.”
I know he means he’ll come back not just to the palace, but to me. As he approaches the door, he says to Poppy, “Can you give these to Teressa, for safekeeping?”
Teressa is one of his maids.
“Yes, sir,” she says, taking them from him. I can tell by her face that she is also confused that he didn’t like the cufflinks.
Maddox waves at me, smiling, before he leaves, but I feel even worse to see him go now.
He didn’t like my gift, and I have no idea why.
Mystica has a strange look on her face before she says, “I can’t blame him for not wanting those.”
“Why is that?” Poppy asks her, holding the box in her hand.
“There’s a reason they were left behind in the palace in Maatua.” Mystica has an uneasy expression.
“Why did they leave them behind?” I ask her, feeling my heart beginning to thump against my rib cage. Maybe I don’t want to know.
Turning to look at me, she says, “Because they are cursed.”