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“I doubt I’d ever forget it either. She stabbed me. Twice.”
I bobbed my head.
“But do you think she was telling the truth? Has she really changed?” she asked.
“No. Impossible.”
“But look at you. You were pretty damned dark and ruthless before.”
True. “I still am.”
“King, come on. You say that, but then how come you stayed alive for three thousand years just to see me and your kids again? An evil man would’ve moved on and found someone else. Ordinary men do it all the time.”
I gave it some thought. “I suppose the only explanation is that my love for you superseded everything else.”
“So what’s going to happen to the Seers now? That is, if you’re right and Jeni’s going to end up on Team Ansin.”
“You are worried for Ariadna.” Ariadna, our daughter, was with the Seers now. She was a troubled soul filled with resentment because she never got to live her life. She felt robbed and blamed me for it as much as she blamed Hagne. I could not fault her.
“Of course I’m worried,” said Mia. “She’s my daughter. I love her.”
“Mia, I would lie to you and say I know what will become of our daughter, but I am done with lying. The truth is that I do not know. She is with the Seers, and there she will stay for eternity.”
“But will she find peace? Because I can’t see how. The Seers are so toxic now. And what happens when Jeni dies? She’ll rejoin the Seers and be Hagne again,” Mia argued. “She’s a hundred times more powerful than she used to be. Then what?”
Mia was concerned that the Seers, Hagne specifically, would never give up seeking more power or making a comeback.
“I took care of it.”
“How?” Mia’s golden brows arched.
“Let us just say that I solved the problem.”
“How, King?” Mia’s voice rose.
Christ. Did I have to tell her now? I’d hoped for a few decades of bliss before breaking the news.
“King…?” Mia warned.
“Very well. I made certain Jeni would be persuaded to reject the Seers as you have.”
“I didn’t reject them. Not entirely. They made me trade my gifts to stay alive after Hagne stabbed me the first time. But what the hell is your point?”
“The Seers have lost their most valuable player.” I lowered my voice. “Also, when Jeni dies, I believe she will come looking for me.”
Mia’s eyes lit up with anger. “What the fuck, King?”
“She will search for her heaven.”
Mia glared. “That wasn’t funny.”
Nor was it meant to be. Jeni would die someday, and Ansin would, as well. However, he would join the Bastuli in the afterlife. She would not. They would never accept a Seer, even if she gave Ansin children. The Bastuli were far too distrusting of the Seers and for good reason.
“Jeni will wish to be with Ansin in the afterlife,” I said. “When she discovers it is nearly impossible, she will seek my help.” Not that I would provide it if she found her way to me. This was Mia’s and my heaven. Not hers.
“If she gets anywhere near you,” Mia walked toward me and threw her arms around my neck, “I’ll kill her.”
I loved that she actually meant it. But we were already dead. Her, me, everyone who crossed over. “I love you, Mia. And I am looking forward to spending eternity showing you how much.” I kissed her soft lips.
She pulled away. “Stop. No time for that. Your family is waiting.”
“My family?”
“Yep. Mack, his wife Teddi, their children, and your parents are all in the great hall. Oh, and Arch is there, too, of course.”
If I were not such an evil bastard, I might cry. “But-but how?”
“Ah… You may have been the all-powerful King in the world of the living, but this is my domain. I know all the tricks.”
“Really, now?” I smiled. “I am going to enjoy this.”
She kissed my lips. “Just promise me, King, that you’ll stay dead this time? I don’t think I could handle losing you again.”
“I have waited my entire life to spend eternity with you, Mia. I am not going anywhere.” My journey had finally come to an end, and I was a king no more. I was simply King. I am home.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Ansin
“What do you mean I ‘cannot marry her’?” I said to my mother. Jeni was going to give birth to the first Bastuli in over two thousand years.
“Jeni is a Seer. You cannot bring her into our house.”
What house? They were dead. Their souls resided in a communal dream state. “She has broken ties with them, and I do not see how this is even your decision. I am a grown man.” And had been for a few thousand years. Couldn’t get any more grown than that.
“If we allow you to perform the marriage ceremony with her, she will be bound to you for eternity. She will come here and join us when she dies.”
