“It’s good to see you free at last,” Phillen said quietly. “I’ll never forget what you—” But he swallowed his words that were thick with emotion.
I met his eye and nodded. I knew what the guard was referring to. Because of what I’d done, not only was Jax still free, but all of them were too. Since the fact that I’d twisted fate had come to light, Jax had told his band everything about what had occurred in the initial reality I’d saved us from. Phillen knew he was to be hanged and that his son would have grown up without a da.
“No words need to be said,” I replied.
Phillen bowed, Lars doing the same, and the rest of our friends followed, each and every one of them bowing to me, and that simple act portrayed so much more than any declaration.
Lillivel and Esopeel both rushed forward after my Stonewild friends moved out of the way, and I bent down to hug Lillivel and then take Esopeel’s tiny palm in my hand. “I cannot believe you both stayed for the entirety of my trial. I shall always remember that kindness.”
“Oh, Elowen, I’m just so pleased to see you free and happy.” Lillivel hugged me again, and I realized she truly was my friend, and she cared for me even though she’d been paid to be my attendant.
Pulling back, I gazed down at the small cerlikan. “And, Esopeel, you actually left the Wood to be here.”
She shrugged her furry shoulders. “It was a small price to pay for all that you’ve done for us. Finally, the caverns in the Wood have been wiped clean of that horrible dark magic and returned to normal once again. And the half-breeds you saved...” She sighed. “The realm should be thanking you.”
We all embraced again, and I spoke to them for a few more minutes, but when I began to sway from fatigue, Jax helped me stand, and I finally said my goodbyes.
“Don’t forget to visit every time you’re in Faewood!” my wildling friends called.
I waved one last time. “I will, I promise.”
With my goodbyes complete, Jax kept his arm locked around my waist. “Let’s get you home.”
He flicked his fingers toward an attendant, who summoned an enchanted carpet, and when we were finally seated upon it, my mate enacted his right as a royal and commanded the carpet to rise high in the sky, drifting over the buildings and homes as we sailed clear over all of Jaggedston. The pale-green sky shone above, and intermittent pastel clouds dotted the horizon.
The ten Houses north of the city came into view, the glittering Adriastic Sea to our right, and the palace dark and foreboding off to our left, standing taller than any building in the capital.
My stomach twisted slightly as the palace grew closer. Trying to veer my mind away from what lay ahead, I asked, “How’s Bastian doing?”
Jax’s crashing blue eyes met mine, and his fingers curled around my hip. “He’s well. He wanted to be here, but we all decided it was best that he wait to see you until after your trial.”
I nodded, knowing that for all of us to be seen together in public would require many things to change first. Changes that likely wouldn’t occur until Jax took the throne.
“And is Bastian back with Anna?” I asked as the others spoke quietly behind us, and the palace grew closer with each second.
Jax nodded. “He’s not only back with Anna, but he’s back to work and back to his everyday life.” A look of regret cleaved his face. “He so wished he could have been down here for your trial. He asked me multiple times to convey his apologies.”
I gave him a sad smile, and while I knew that we’d done so much to help our continent and all of the fae on it, laws were still in place that didn’t protect everyone.
“And the enslaved half-breeds? What’s the latest update on them?”
“Saroly has removed anklets from most of them. Those half-breeds have been returned to their homes. Norivun thinks she’ll have the rest removed as well in the coming weeks.”
“Do the authorities know about their illegal children?”
Jax’s expression turned grim. “They do, but given what was revealed in your trial, at least the courts understand why those children exist. Still, I’m not taking any chances. I’ve hired magistrates to represent all of those who birthed children.”
I sighed heavily. “I shall pray each night that none of them are executed.”
A moment of silence passed over us as I thought of all of the half-breeds on our continent and what they still endured. “Do you think you’ll ever be able to acknowledge Bastian as your true brother for the entire realm to know?”
The wind brushed against Jax’s face, pushing a lock of hair into his eyes. He feathered it back and shook his head. “While my father sits on the throne? No. But one day, when the crown has passed to me, I plan to let the entire realm know that my brother is a half-breed, and a powerful one at that.”
A smile spread across my face, and my love for Jax magnified a thousand times over. “And your role as the Dark Raider? Is it truly over?”
He folded his hands together and nodded solemnly. “Fully over. I’d already made up my mind that I was done, but after seeing what you’ve gone through while being imprisoned, on top of what you went through the six weeks prior to that on the Isle of Song...” A sharp rise of his aura pounded out of him. “I will never do anything that could put you in such a position again.”
I squeezed Jax, and his long fingers closed over mine. “I would do it all again in a heartbeat, you know. Even if it meant I ended up back in that prison again. I meant it when I told the Queen Justice that I have no plans to twist fate again, but if I had to go back in time, if I had to do what I’ve already done all over again, I would still command the fates. You all have to know that I could never allow you to hang when all you’ve tried to do is make our realm a better place.”
