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"But don't worry," Nikolas piped in, "we'll be here until after the ceremony, and I assure you"—he made a point to look at Castor as he said this—"one of us will find time to come check in with you at least once a month."
"I'll look forward to your visits, then," she said.
Ianora seemed brightened by this news, and Castor couldn't find it in him, right then, to contradict Nikolas. It would be up to him to decide if Ianora saw any of them, but he didn't see any harm in giving her that hope for the time being, especially if it made her more pleasant during the ceremony.
"That's it! Time's up!" the female servant came into the room again, then she spotted Castor and blanched. "Your Majesty, we must continue the preparations if she's to be ready in time."
"As you say," Castor agreed, and looked at Ianora expectantly.
Ianora sighed heavily, but she didn't protest. She stood and hugged each brother in turn once more. Her face pained but resolute as she prepared for what was coming next.
Castor could only watch silently from the sidelines. He couldn't help but feel a deep sense of loss, knowing that he would never have what Ianora had—a real family who loved her fiercely and unconditionally. Perhaps it was this oversight, his failure to make a family by blood or otherwise, which had hurt him so much when she, the only woman he had ever loved, abandoned him.
There was a sadness in Aleister's eyes, but he seemed resolved. He squeezed Ianora's hands. "Don't worry. We’re not leaving just yet. You have a big night ahead of you."
Ianora nodded, wiping away her tears and giving them a small smile. "I love you all."
Castor couldn't help but feel jealous of how quickly they had comforted her, how easy it was for them to support her when he never could. But maybe that was just his own selfishness talking. Maybe Ianora needed this time with her family more than she needed him.
Despite his envy, there was no denying that their presence filled the room with warmth and hope for the future.
When Ianora's brothers left, it was just Ianora, and Castor left. He didn't know what to say to her, and it seemed that, for a moment, neither did she.
Her eyes were hard and wet with tears, but finally, she released a shaky breath and pulled herself together. "Thank you," she whispered.
This surprised him more than he expected. "I couldn't have denied them even if I wanted to," he said with a chuckle. "But I made a promise to you, and I intend to keep it."
Without another word, Castor left Ianora to finish getting ready, and he himself went to change, too. His step was lighter with the knowledge that, no matter how small it was, he had done something good for Ianora today.
Before long, the ceremony came. A deep organ blasted from within the hall, where four hundred vampires sat in pews, filling the chamber from end to end. The ceiling of the temple, high above them, was painted like the night sky, a map of the constellations, the zodiac, and other celestial bodies. Near the dome, a crisscross of white lights hung from the rafters, like solar systems frozen in time. Candles and incense burned at every corner.
Castor stood at his place at the altar, beneath wreaths of bleeding roses and thorns. He tapped his foot anxiously as the music went on, and she still hadn't arrived. What was happening? He'd lost sight of her for too long, surely. Had she escaped the guards? Made a run for it?
This wasn't a job he should have left to insignificant underlings. If Ianora had escaped, there would be hell to pay.
But then the doors opened, and when he saw her there, the world slowed to a crawl. Castor had picked out Ianora's dress, and his breath still caught in his chest when she began her walk down the aisle toward him.
It was made of light and shadow, of stark contrasts and subtle hues, just like her personality. The skirt's fabric, a winding river of dark blues, slowed as it descended, becoming wrinkles and creases, and then pooled around the length of Ianora's alabaster legs as she strode from the entranceway toward the altar. The fabric took on the appearance of a field of stars in the night sky, some sparkles on the bodice twinkling brighter than others, and the patterns and arrangements were ever-changing.
Ianora and Castor had balanced on a knife's edge since her arrival in Pheazar. Love and hate intertwined, twisted into something unrecognizable. Looking at her, right now, it was as though Castor was experiencing a moment of clarity for the first time in three decades. Like he had lived for so long with cloudy glasses, the world was no longer the same when he switched out the lens.
He couldn't be imagining that sense of wonder in her eyes, could he?
Ever since her arrival, her anger and fear had been palpable, as had his. But in rare moments such as this, where their twisted love and hate separated enough from each other to become distinguishable, where he saw beneath the thick layers of armor Ianora had over her heart.
Where he felt the love he had always coveted for her reflected back at him.
He loved seeing her like this. The way the light flickered in her eyes, the way her chest rose and fell with each breath. He loved the feeling of finally being able to let his guard down around her. She was his match in every sense of the word. He could not imagine a better partner to spend eternity with in both the good times and the bad.
But could she ever love him again?
Whatever had driven her away, it had broken his heart and soul, driving him into a frenzy of hate that clouded his senses for far too long. But with her here by his side again, the clouds had parted, and the sun shone through.Shewas the sun.
As she came to a stop in front of him, and he took her hand in his, he knew he had already forgiven her for abandoning him all those years ago. Regardless of the reason and the lies, he wanted to start over.
Castor could see the thrumming pulse in her neck as the officiant began to speak. It matched the pace of his own heart. He found it hard to pay attention to the proceedings. All he could focus on was Ianora. The way she looked at him with those bottomless eyes, the way her lips parted ever-so-slightly as she breathed.
He wanted to kiss her right then and there, but he knew that they had to wait. Just a little while longer, and then she would be his wife. His immortal wife. And they could spend eternity together.
