I released an awed breath, but the sensation itself was sinful. I wasn’t certain I was ready to admit what that simple touch had just done to me.
It took several long moments until I felt composed enough to ask the question I’d been afraid to broach. It would have been impossible for him not to hear the tremble in my voice. “What about the queen?” I bit my lip, an anxious knot forming in the pit of my stomach.
Max raised an eyebrow. “The queen is safe.”
They were the last words I’d expected to hear, and I jerked upward, shoving Max away from me. “Where is she now? We have to get out of here! You don’t know what I know, Max. I’ve seen what she’s done, what she’s capable of.”
But Max put his hands on my shoulders and eased me back down. “Relax, Charlie. You’re the queen now. At least you will be once you’re officially crowned.” His eyes remained locked with mine. “My grandmother is dead.”
It took a moment for his words to sink in, but I still didn’t understand. “How could you be so sure that she was the one who’d died?” I asked. “How did you know the transfer didn’t work, that she wasn’t”—I glanced down at myself, my voice dropping dangerously low—“in here? In my body?”
Max took my hand, his fingers lacing through mine. Hot embers ignited within me, and my hand sparked with light. “You really don’t remember, do you?” He frowned, looking worried.
I met his gaze. “I really don’t.”
“She didn’t die right away, my grandmother. She lived for several moments after you blacked out, not fully conscious but breathing nonetheless.” His grip tightened. “Seconds before she took her last breath, you spoke.”
“What did I say?”
Max’s face broke into an easy grin, and once again, I found myself craving his warmth, straining to be near him. “You said . . . ‘I win.’”
I wondered how I could possibly forget something like that, something so . . . momentous. Queen Sabara was dead. She really was dead this time.
The memory of so many funerals flashed through my mind. How many bodies had she buried? How many souls had she taken?
“Besides,” Max said, his gray eyes sparkling. “Angelina assured J"0e Aured J"us it was you. Apparently she has a knack for these things.”
I smiled back at him, biting my lip. He knew about Angelina’s other ability. It felt good to not have to hide what we could do.
“What if I don’t want to be queen?” I finally asked.
Max sighed. “It’s too late for that. We need you, Charlie. The country needs a queen, and we no longer have one.”
“What about a king?” But I already knew the answer. He was right—of course, we needed a queen. Ludania couldn’t afford to be cut off from the world again; we needed to maintain a balance with the monarchies around us. None of the other ruling queens would ever respect a king born without a power.
“You know it wouldn’t work. You’re the One, it’s always been you. Just because your family was removed from the throne doesn’t make you any less suited to rule. You’re the eldest female heir. Besides, look at you. How much more special do you have to be before you believe it for yourself?” His fingertip brushed the back of my hand, and my cheeks burned. I hoped they weren’t glowing as hot as they felt.
The door to the bedroom opened without warning, and I pulled the blankets up to cover my hands, knowing I could do nothing about my face.
Brooklynn came in, with Angelina trailing right behind her. It hadn’t been a hallucination after all; I had heard Brooklynn in the hallways.
Angelina was dressed in a pretty pink gown, and an attempt had been made to braid her flyaway blond hair. If it weren’t for the dirt smudged on her chin, she would look exactly like a princess.
“I just checked on Eden,” Brook said to Max, not yet realizing that I was awake. “She’s ready to get out of bed. She’s tired of being told to rest.”
Even though I knew what Angelina was capable of, the last time I’d seen Eden she was barely clinging to her last breath. It was hard to believe that anything—or anyone—could have brought her back from that.
But it was Aron who drew my attention as he sauntered through the door behind my sister and Brooklynn. His bruises and cuts were all but healed, his skin vi
rtually unmarred. He was walking on his own now, without so much as a limp.
My heart skipped as I shifted in bed so I was fully upright. “I told you I’d never leave you behind,” I told him boastfully.
Aron beamed at me, such a familiar look, so Aron-like that I grinned back. “If I remember right, I think you said you’d leave me in a heartbeat.” His smile widened. “I’m glad you changed your mind.”
Angelina’s face lit up when she heard my voice, and she jumped onto the bed, wrapping her arms around me. “I missed you,” she declared against my ear, squeezing me with all her might, and I wondered if I’d ever get used to the sound of her voice.
Silver wisps of her hair tickled my nose and my cheeks, and I breathed them in, hugging her back, tears stinging my eyes. “I’ve missed you, too.”
When at last I released her I saw Xander, lingering in J"0e Ang in J" the doorway, watching us all with a crooked smile playing over his lips. This was the outcome he’d spent most of his life fighting for. This was the reason he’d turned his back on his family, on his country, on his queen.