“Joss, I don’t th—”
“Can you do this for my parents, for me?” The silent ache that I saw deep inside him silenced any forthcoming arguments and all I could do was nod my head in agreement. He reached out and cupped my cheek, placing a quick kiss on my forehead. “That’s my girl.”
What was wrong with me? I must be the only girl my age not dreaming about finding a lifemate and starting a family. Maybe everything that had happened to me in the last year has made me more wary of happy endings and true love. Learning my mother was murdered when I was a child, being kidnapped the same day that Fenri asked to be my lifemate, and being tortured and almost killed on numerous occasions could definitely skew a young girl’s heart and mind.
Sighing in defeat, I grabbed a crate of fruit and followed Joss up the stairs. It was only when I saw that I was carrying passion fruit that I felt a pang of remorse that I never got to say goodbye to Avina and Berry or tell them why I had left to follow my father. Concentrating on them must have somehow conjured them because when I entered the Jesai family’s main hall I heard two screams fill the air. Shocked, I dropped the crate and watched as the passion fruit rolled across the floor to stop right in front of Avina’s boot.
“Thalia!” she screamed and ran to hug me.
“What? How?”
“Joss sent a messenger to the castle to get us,” Berry spoke up, coming to give me a hug as well once Avina had disentangled herself from me. “Although he never told us why.”
“Yes, Thalia, is everything all right?” Avina stopped flittering about the room and paused.
“Why, umm yes, I mean no.” I stumbled over the right words to say. But Joss came to my rescue and wrapped his arms around me, placing his chin on my head.
“Why, of course it is. We couldn’t have an engagement celebration without Thalia’s friends here, now could we?” More screams filled the rooms as they both jumped up and down in excitement, congratulating me.
“You’re going to let me make the dress for the ceremony, right?” Berry trilled joyously.
Avina and Berry chattered together and not much could be understood between the two as their excited, buzzy babble faded to the background. I saw Mona on her hands and knees picking up the passion fruit I had spilled. Her back was to me but it was stiff in anger. Apologetically, I quickly dropped to the floor and started to help pick up my mess that I had created. Gently, I touched her shoulder to hand her my fruit to put in her basket. But she stood up abruptly, turned on me and I saw hate burning there.
“Don’t touch me!” She snarled and whirled out of the room, her dark braid swinging after her. Mona must know about what happened to her brother, or she is jealous about the celebration tonight. I scanned the room for Joss and saw him and Hemi deep in conversation and I could see the pale look on Joss’ face. Hemi must have just told him the events of this morning. Joss’ worried glance towards me that dropped to my torn shirt confirmed it.
“Girls, we have much to discuss but I think it would be better if we went to my room first,” I said.” The whole way up the stairs they couldn’t stop talking. They found everything fascinating.
“Can you believe the giant bird that flew the Skycage up to the city? I positively thought it was going to eat me for dinner. I have never been more scared in my life,” Berry gushed once we had entered my room.
What had started as a joyous reunion turned solemn as I explained the long chain of events that have led me to Skyfell and to lie about being engaged to Joss. It took hours and the afternoon sun became twilight.
“Oh, Thalia, we didn’t know,” Avina sympathized.
“Not many do, but I think we are close to finding the Septori and what happened to Tenya. I don’t know how, but I feel it in my bones.”
A knock came at my door. Avina rushed to answer it and came back with a sour expression on her face.
“Who’s the girl with the dark hair and eyes, the pretty one?”
“Mona?”