I shrug. “Neither am I.”
Maeve appears beside us with a raised hand. “I hate to interrupt, but if we are going to resurrect Phantom so you can send me home today…or tonight…whatever you call this time when the moon is up, we need to get started.”
Damien reaches out and pulls Maeve into a hug, which leaves her bug-eyed and clearly weirded out. “Thank you, Ms. Gowdie, for helping us.”
“Yeah, yeah.” She pulls away and dusts herself off likehe’s given her the cooties. “I guess it’s the least I could do after my family held you prisoner for a few hundred years. Can we call it even?”
He nods and offers her a half smile, his eyes drifting to me. I know what he’s thinking. If not for the Gowdies, we would have never met, and neither of us would be standing here right now. “Even,” he declares.
“Now that that’s settled, let’s go. I’m sure Ren is worried sick.” And I need a break. I walk with her through the crowds toward the front of the castle, through the chattering voices. “We can take a rabble beast to where Phantom fell.”
“A rabble what?”
“Trust me,” I say, heading for the stable.
“So, after all that, he’s really going to let someone else lead Stygarde?” Maeve asks.
I nod. “It was never about being king for Damien. If his brother had been a just ruler, he would have happily supported him. All he wanted was justice.”
“And you? What do you want?”
I snort. “I want us to wake up in that castle a week from now, knowing we’re the reason this world is a better place. Damien is the only one with the vision to lead Stygarde into the future—and the kindness and empathy to do it with a gentle hand. I think the people can see that, and I think he’ll win.”
She gives me a reassuring nod, and we go about the business of sending her home.
42
Election
Eloise
Resurrecting Phantom is easier than I expect. We find the dragon’s spine in the Borderlands where I remember falling, and Maeve uses her magic to call to the dragon’s other bones. It’s a bit eerie to see parts of the skeleton walk themselves back into place, but I’m thankful for the help. Once the beast is reassembled, I reach for my grandmother’s hand. She must be waiting for me in the Darklands because I feel her essence immediately and the swing of the pendulum to return her and the others to Phantom’s body feels almost effortless. Or maybe it’s just because I’ve done this twice before. My heart swells with pure joy as my ancestors fill out the body of the dragon and roar back into existence.
Afterward, we return to the castle, and I gather Cassius and the vampires, thanking each of them profusely for their help. I draw the key symbol on thefloor of the library and send them all home after promise after promise to Maeve that I will visit more regularly. As I watch her and the others pass through the purple light, I’m determined to keep that promise. Friends like Maeve come along once in a lifetime if we’re lucky. We may not be related, but she is family. I don’t take that for granted.
You’re the key, darling. You can visit her whenever you’d like, Phantom says. I wipe my tears and hold on to that truth.
When it’s done, I wash the key symbol from the floor and then make my way to the throne room. There’s a line to reach the ballot box. At the front, I’m handed a quill and parchment, and my name is stricken from a list in an enormous book. I scrawl “Damien Hymir” and then drop it into the box, praying that it falls on a pile of similar ballots.
The days drip by like cool honey. Damien and I eat and drink and rest and make love as if we have no idea that the results of this election could change our lives forever. It’s a happy time, with people coming and going peacefully to place their votes, stopping only to talk to us about what efforts are happening to revitalize their communities. Nyxadora and Karyl take up residence in their old rooms, knowing that their stay might be short-lived but relishing their last chance to experience what was once home.
Jaqual moves in as well, to oversee the process. He still doesn’t trust Damien not to cheat, although Percy, Thane, Undaku, and Prandle take turns guarding the box.
On the day the votes are to be counted, Jaqual funnels to my side as I wait impatiently on the veranda, watching Phantom hunt in the distance.
“You can stay, you know,” he says out of the blue.
I glance over at his bright-purple eyes to find his lips curled in a ghost of a smile. “Stay where?”
“Here, in the castle, if I win,” he says. “I don’t plan to live here. It’s too big. I miss my wagon.” He rests his hands on the banister and stares up at the swell of the moon.
At first, I think he’s joking, but when he doesn’t laugh, I say, “Thank you. I’m not from here, but I know for Nyx, Karyl, and Damien, this is the place that feels like home.”
“Everyone should know a place like that,” he says. “A place they feel loved. A place they belong.”
“I agree. And I’m sure if Damien were here, he’d tell you that, if he wins, the Rivertoads will be free to travel your ancestral route. He understands now the importance of the caravan to you and your people.”
“Kind of him. Although I doubt such a farfetched scenario as my not winning is likely.”
