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“Danu can hardly call herself a goddess,” Domnu muttered, and the snakes around her head chattered in agreement. “She’s weak, and a fool. She had a chance for power and squandered it. But that’s neither here nor there, Raven. We’re together now, and together, you and I are unstoppable.”
Raven’s stomach churned, and she tried to force herself to affect nonchalance, while her thoughts whirled in her head. Would Kellen know that she hadn’t meant to betray him? Everything had happened so fast that Raven had been momentarily stunned. When her thoughts finally caught up with her shock, she’d quickly realized she’d have to make a decision fast before the scene dissolved into chaos. And so she’d gone. Breaking his heart in the process, Raven was sure of it, but someday, yes someday, hopefully he’d forgive her.
She had to go.
That was, quite simply, the only choice.
Not only was she now the only one that could kill Domnu, but she also was the only one who was expendable. Kellen’s people needed him. And the others? They were all contributing to bettering society for everyone. But Raven? What did she really matter? Sure, she put a smile on people’s faces once in a while with a merry tune on the side of the road. But at the end of the day, she’d lived on the fringe her whole life. Nobody to miss her when she was gone.
But now?
If she had to go, then she was going to go out in a momentous way. One that changed the course of history forever on. It was worth it, if it meant that Bianca would keep smiling, and Lily would keep dreaming, and Kellen…her heart shuddered at the thought of him.
He’d be okay. He had the others. And Riker. Riker would be there for him, flying him to the waterfall to rejuvenate. Kellen would find someone more suitable to love, and life would move on.
And she would ensure that it would, by her own sacrifice.
“What’s wrong?” Domnu narrowed her eyes at Raven, and the snakes inched forward, mirroring her look. “I thought you would be happy about becoming one of the most powerful women in all of history.”
Going with her instincts, Raven decided to lean on truth more than trying to lie and pretend she was happy to be here. If Domnu was smart at all, and she likely had to be based on how many people she’d convinced to be on her side through the years, then she’d see through Raven’s act anyway.
“It’s not about that.” Raven crossed her arms over her chest and channeled the angst of an angry teenager. She’d had plenty of experience with it, what with volunteering at the youth group, and now she tossed her hair over her shoulder and glared at Domnu. The goddess raised an eyebrow in surprise. “If you want to know, not that you even give a shit, but I’m mad at you.”
“You’re…what? What did you say?” Domnu’s mouth dropped open in surprise. “You’re angry? With me? When I’m offering you unimaginable power?”
“Yes,Mother.” The word sliced like razor blades against her tongue. “I’m mad, furious, actually with you.”
“I can’t say that I understand.” Domnu’s face darkened, and Raven hastened to explain before she fell from the tightrope she was walking.
“You see, Mother, you left me. My whole life…I’ve been alone. Everybody else…they had mothers. Mothers to hold them when they cried. Mothers to tell secrets to. Mothers who brought them soup when they were sick. Mothers who ensured their daughters had a home to live in…so they weren’t forced to live on the streets with no food or money or shelter.” To Raven’s great surprise, her voice cracked, but she continued. “But where were you? I was all alone.”
“But Raven…I couldn’t keep you with me,” Domnu said, drifting closer, her face now a mask of concern. “I was in exile after the Four Treasures curse broke. It wasn’t safe for you to be with me, yet I knew one day I’d bring you back to rule by my side.”
“I was all alone!” Raven shouted, letting the anger come. Because shewasangry. For years, she’d been forced to fight for her safety, her food, daily, and for the most part, she was so used to it that it didn’t bother her.But it had never been her choice. Those choices had all been taken from her.Because this monster before her had left her. “Youleftme. You left. I had nobody. I had to figure it all out on my own. I was just a child. Just a child.” She punctuated the words with her finger, fury making her vibrate. It wasn’t that she wanted Domnu for a mother—nobody in their right mind would want that kind of evil in their lives—but she drew on every drop of insecurity she’d ever felt about being abandoned and blasted Domnu with it. “I hate you. I hate you for leaving me. I hate you for not caring that all those nights I sat in the cold, damp, darkness…shivering on the side of the street, certain that I would die in the night, that you just…you never came. You never came for me. You just didn’t care. You only care about yourself, it seems.”
“I’ve heard of this,” Domnu said, tapping her finger on her lips as she paced in front of Raven. “I’ve heard of daughters getting angry with their mothers. This is what it feels like, isn’t it? Is this…am I feeling regret? What is this feeling?”
To Raven’s shock, the Dark Goddess held her hand to her stomach and turned to Raven with confusion.
“Are you asking me what emotions feel like?” Raven asked. An idea occurred to her, as it seemed that the dynamic was shifting, and maybe she should play this to her advantage.
“I believe that I might be. I don’t think I like it.” Domnu screwed up her face as she thought about it, and Raven realized that she needed to keep the goddess in this space of confusion, instead of calculating the downfall of the good Fae.
“Well, do something about it then. You can make it up to me.” It killed Raven to say that, but if she could give Domnu another task, one that she considered worthwhile, it might distract her long enough. What she wanted was an apology, from mother to daughter, for abandoning her all these years. And…yet, when she stood here and looked at this monster, Raven realized it didn’t really matter. She’d never look at this woman and see a mother, let alonehermother, and there would be no redemptive arc for their relationship. An apology would do nothing but make Raven angry, because then she’d have to actually accept that Domnu was fallible, and frankly, as an immortal Dark Goddess, she really had no excuse to be.
“Make it up to you?” Domnu whirled in a circle, clutching her arms around her chest, clearly someone who had a flair for dramatics. “You want me to make things better with you. What an interesting concept. I don’t think I’ve ever done something like that before. What would that entail?”
“I honestly don’t know.” Raven couldn’t tell who was more startled, her or Domnu, when she laughed. This situation had reached an absurdity level that required laughter or tears, and Raven was not going to waste her tears for this woman. “You can’t just show up, tell me you’re my mother, and expect me to,like, love you. We don’t even know each other. You’re talking about ruling kingdoms together, and I didn’t even know I had magick. It’s a huge learning curve.”
“I think I’m beginning to understand this. You’re absolutely right…and this will be quite fun, won’t it?” Domnu clapped her hands together like a delighted child. “I’ll teach you everything about my kingdom and our dark magick. Of course, my love, this makes perfect sense. That was foolish of me to think that you’d be able to just step into the role of ruler. Even though it is in your blood, not everyone is suited to being a ruler.” Domnu sniffed. “Like my embarrassment of a sister.”
“I wouldn’t know.” Raven shrugged. “I only learned about the Fae a week ago. I don’t know about your sister, well, my aunt, and I guess about anything much else. Or my father even.”
“Your father.” Domnu stilled, and her eyes flashed. A chill rippled across Raven’s skin, and she worried that she might have pushed it too far.
“I’m guessing he was a jerk?” Raven decided to play the sympathetic card. It was clear that Domnu was more childlike than motherly, used to her every whim being indulged.
“The worst,” Domnu said, shaking her head in disgust while her snakes did the same.
