“You deserve it more than anyone, Ma,” I said. “And truth be told, if you hadn’t, I’m not sure if any of us would be here right now. Because you’re a fucking badass. I know exactly where I get it from.”
Her eyes softened in their wetness, and she looked at the floor. “The love of your child will make you the most powerful person in the room. You’ll see, Constantine. You’ll see ...”
I found Aurelia sitting on a bench in the courtyard at the clock tower. She must have slipped off on her own to get some space. She was still in her bloody wedding dress, Medusa sitting on one side of her, while Rocco sat on the other, his arm wrapped around her shoulders like he was consoling her in my absence.
When I approached, Rocco shared a look with me, then a nod, to let me know she was doing okay. He wordlessly left the seat, patted me on the arm, and then walked off.
I took the spot next to her, wrapped my arm around her shoulders, and pressed my palm to her belly like my hand was bulletproof.
“How’s your mom?” she asked.
“She’s okay. The adrenaline and rage are fading, and reality is creeping in.”
“I’m glad she killed him. She earned that.”
“Yeah.”
I rubbed her arm as I held her close, the night cool as the ocean breeze blew over the cliffs and into our hair. “I’m sorry about all of this. I should have done more. I should have known ...”
“Con, it’s okay. It’s over now.”
“But friends as good as family are dead ... and our wedding day is ruined.”
She stared toward the ocean, the lights from the mainland distantly visible on a clear night like this. “Our wedding was in that church in the eyes of our friends and family and God. It was beautiful and special, and I’ll never forget it. That was our wedding, and nothing could ever tarnish it. I’m just grateful that the outcome of this night wasn’t worse. A lot more people could have died, and at least now he’s really gone. Our country can start to heal from the wounds he inflicted. The Republic is secure under a new emperor. And you and I can raise our baby in this beautiful village without having to look over our shoulders. I know it hurts right now ... everything hurts ... but it’ll be okay.”
The heaviness continued through the week, through the joint funerals, and it was only then that people started to move on from what had happened. Taormina was a quiet and safe place where nothing violent or dangerous ever happened, so I knew the village would be forever scarred by what had taken place.
I carried that guilt with me every single day, but I knew I needed to move on.
My mother asked me to visit Edric with her, so Aurelia and I went along. It was Aurelia’s first time visiting the grave, and we all stood together in silence as we looked at the lettering on the headstone.
Now that I knew his remains were there, I felt closer to him than I had in a long time. I felt like his spirit could truly be free, knowing what was left of him had been honored. He wouldn’t want us to be sad over his death. Would much rather we move on ... especially my mother.
She stared at the headstone in silence, the flowers cradled in the crook of her arm, not a hint of a tear on her face. Then she stepped forward and placed the flowers on his grave before she kissed her palm and placed it on the top of his headstone. “I hope you can find peace now, baby.” She heldher hand there for a long time before she stood upright and moved back. “Every day I’ve visited him, I’ve cried myself dry. The wound has always felt so raw, years and years afterward. A part of me wonders if I always knew he wasn’t here, that I couldn’t rest or truly grieve until he was exactly where he belonged. Because the moment I came here and felt the disturbance in the ground, it felt different. Felt like someone else was here with me. And now ...” She took a breath, the breeze moving through her hair. “I feel like I can finally find peace.”
I sat on the couch on the patio with Medusa beside me, staring out at the sea in the distance, the wedding band on my left hand where I would keep it forever, night and day, in the gym and at work. And even though I was happy, I wasn’t quite healed from what had happened. It might take longer than a week ... or a couple weeks.
Medusa turned when the back door opened, and she immediately leaped down to greet the person.
I knew it wasn’t Aurelia because Medusa wouldn’t jump off the couch if it were, not when she’d just seen her in the house a couple minutes ago. I turned to get a look at the person and saw it was Rocco. “What are you doing here?”
“Decided to drop by and catch up.” He gave Medusa a quick rubdown before he sat down on the couch across from me.
“Just decided to drop by?” I asked suspiciously.
“It’s only an hour flight. As convenient as it gets.”
“You gotta get there two hours early, and then it’s an hour drive here—”
“Not when you fly private.”
“But still,” I said. “It’s notthatconvenient. So why are you really here?”
He sat forward slightly, rubbing his hands together, and then gave a slight smirk. “Your wife texted me.”
I gave a slow nod in understanding.
“She said you’ve been down lately.”
