Extending a large hand, he hands me an elegant ballpoint pen, and I write.
Why are you like this?
He purses his lips. “I care deeply about the members of my family, Helena. You seem to be the best one I’ve been fated to yet.”
I blink away tears, and I squeeze his forearm. Many words flit through my mind, and I translate them into lines on paper.
You have taught me so much. You are the first person I have seen successfully lead your people while still remaining kind. You healed something that I thought could never be repaired.
His eyes mist, and I look away. More scratching fills the silence, and I pass him the next note:
Phaedra?
He lets out a long, shaky breath. “She’s at the hospital. The healers are hopeful, but only time will tell,” he says through gritted teeth.
I nod and then write again.
Can you help me with a few other things?
He looks at the words and nods.
I write down everything… about the stolen clothes, the chimera, my father. The things my father said. The way he threatened Erik and me. My heart squeezes in my chest when I write about Elva. My best friend.
My uncle watches me patiently as I write. At this moment, he doesn’t look frightening at all. He looks... kind.
When I’m finished, tears still slide down my cheeks, and I’m torn up for all to see. He reaches into a drawer and withdraws a disposable tissue. When he hands it to me, he holds my hand gently.
“Todd, please tell the captain that Helena will be up soon.” Aidoneus makes a quick call on his FaePhone before looking back at me. “Helena, I know that life has given you and me a terrible lot. My mother is not a gentle woman… Fate can be both sweet and cruel.”
I nod, dabbing my eyes with the tissue.
My uncle scratches his chin. “All my life… I’ve been straining to hear the ancient refrain coded into this world. The songs that are sung for families. I cannot have… offspring of my own. But I believe that we never have to be alone. There is no end to us, even when we go on.”
Both of us are crying now. The formidable Daemon before me dabs at his own eyes as silver tears run down his cheek. I have never seen a male cry, and it makes me respect my uncle all the more.
Crying is not weak. It is a part of life. Aidoneus is all the more powerful to allow his emotions to run freely. He says, “There is a hand that guides the threads of light in our lives. Will you weave your old uncle into your life? Will you let me into your family?”
There are no words to express how safe I feel. For the first time, I am confronted with just how fragile I am. I have spent so long being nothing but strong. Ever since I met Erik, I realized I am capable of breaking. Not only that, but I have learned so much about myself. I need others. I need shelter. Love. People who care about me enough to put me back together again when I break.
And I have found it.
I nod, and Aidoneus stands. This male, this uncle of mine, is no ordinary man. He is a being from the most powerful family in all of Aranthium’s history. A family full of trauma and dysfunction. And he is looking to change the future.
I would love to be a part of that.
When he hugs me, I feel small. Like a child. As if I can reach back through time and space and see myself as a Merling. The ice that encases my heart cracks and then boils away, billowing steam into my chest and warming the room. Now is not the time to fight my father. That will come very soon. But first…
I am ready to embrace the flames in my life.
I am ready to be a member of a family. I want to start my own, and I already know where I will begin.
With a full heart, I take leave of my uncle.
* * *
Erik has already foundhis way to our shared apartment. Toth’toros is standing outside the door and nods towards me as I enter. I glare back at him.
The TV is on, and Erik is sitting in nothing more than his boxers. He is clean, which is more than I can say for myself. As soon as he sees me, he grins, unashamed by his state of undress.