Except Dhalia wasn’t breathing.
Alissa’s world turned as her worst nightmare unfolded before her. It had all been in vain—all of her efforts, all the killing, Freyah’s death, Mrs. Weller’s sacrifice.
All of it.
She cradled her daughter’s motionless body in her arms, helplessly weeping on Eldric’s shoulder.
How could she have believed she was capable of ending such a curse? How could she have allowed herself to become attached to the hope of saving the girl when she could barely save herself?
“Don’t cry.”
The sweetness of the voice Alissa knew so well pulled her back to her senses. She looked down to see wide brown eyes staring up at her, accompanied by a smile that washed over her with a wave of relief. Alissa held the girl tightly in her arms. Eldric soon joined their embrace, his throat tight with emotion.
“I missed you, mommy,” the girl whispered.
Alissa watched her child with her heart full, glad her innocence remained intact even after the curse. She admired every little piece of her girl, everything that made her who she was.
“I missed you too, baby.”
Dhalia was finally safe.
After six long months of struggle, Alissa could finally breathe again.
It had all been worth it in the end.
Chapter 40
The Power of Time
One Month Later
Never before in her life had Alissa thought she would walk the streets of Bryniard and not have a glimpse of the giant wall surrounding the town. She never considered that one day she would not see people encircled by the black and white threads of the Senectus Subita, yet this was her reality now.
The wall was gone, and so was the curse. The people were finally free from the evil that killed so many generations before them, the walls that held them hostage to a crown, and the dreadful siren, which would never ring again.
Alissa had revealed the truth to the whole town. She told them about Heldraine and what awaited them beyond these lands. She explained the wall’s true purpose and the story of Senectus’ origins. Some called her “the hero of the era,” but she loathed the term. A hero wouldn’t have taken as many lives as she did to succeed. Still, half of Bryniard worshiped her like a goddess, especially after they had watched her summon magic like something otherworldly.
The others, however, lived in denial. Even though Alissa and Eldric showed proof of the truth, they remained skeptical. They believed Alissa’s usual recklessness had finally damaged her mind, afraid of stepping beyond the land where the wall used to be.
Imagine living trapped and fed with deception for a lifetime, when suddenly someone shows up, accusing everything you have ever known to be a lie. For the more stubborn of them, accepting all those changes had been overwhelming. She could only hope one day they would welcome the truth into their lives rather than choose to live in a different kind of imprisonment, the one of willful ignorance.
Bryniard was still trying to find their new normal after everything, rebuilding themselves and their town in the wake of past traumas. All the damage caused by the Iron Claws invasion and their brutal interrogations was still being repaired. Before arriving, Alissa had hoped the general had been lying when he bragged about being in Bryniard and killing Dane, but it was all true. In fact, Dane hadn’t been the only one who refused to cooperate and was killed as a consequence.
Mr. Weller’s body was buried beside his wife’s. A third grave was reserved for Freyah, to be buried alongside them. Alissa made a vow to find Freyah’s body and bury her with her parents. She would forever hold the Wellers fondly in her heart for their love toward her and her child and for their sacrifices in the end. They were her family.
Alissa contemplated for a moment how the entire lineage of the Weller’s had come to an end in just a few months, how unfair it was that her entire family had been a victim of this wicked world. Alissa hoped they had been reunited in another type of existence, hopefully a happier, gentler one.
Since saving Dhalia, everything seemed oddly quiet, but Alissa knew better than to take the peace of the past monthfor granted. She knew it wouldn’t last. It was only a matter of time before the Crown discovered that the Iron Claws stationed in Bryniard had been killed and the wall was gone. It was only a matter of time before they learned of her magical abilities. If their efforts to eliminate her had been relentless before, she could only imagine what they would do when they realized she could be the last mage alive in Heldraine.
If it came to fighting for her life and those she loved again, she wouldn’t hesitate. Not that her magic would make any difference now. Since breaking the curse and saving her daughter, her powers had failed her. She didn’t know if it was the strain of killing so many soldiers, tearing down the wall, or ending a centuries-old curse. Perhaps her magic was resting, lying dormant in her veins, or perhaps it was gone forever. It didn’t matter. If they came for her—and they surely would—she would fight with sword and arrow, the old-fashioned way.
As they helped rebuild the city, Alissa teased Eldric about how the only reason he could move rubble faster than she was that her magic was gone. He was so in love, he would take anything she said as the ultimate truth, a universal fact. It wasn’t even funny to taunt him when he stared at her with so much passion that her heart melted. Alissa, however, wasn’t the only one enchanted by his charms. Dhalia refused to leave the man’s side for anything.
Well, of course, she did; he tirelessly played like another five-year-old.
Alissa was almost jealous, going all that way to save her girl, only for her to prefer spending time with Eldric rather than with her own mother. Still, she couldn’t deny the love she felt for him, which only deepened seeing how he cared for her daughter.
“Mommy, Eldric says you have the power to make snow. Is it true?” Dhalia asked, tugging on Alissa’s trousers frantically.