“They were in my visions.”
His visions.
She’d almost forgotten that he was a seer. She couldn’t help but wonder what else he had seen. Of her future. Of his. Does he ever forgive her? Does she ever become a person worthy of being queen? Worthy of a second chance with his heart?
“The stones lead to the burial grounds of Queen Eleanora’s daughters and the three mountains that buried the ancient city of Yakura. The area is believed to be cursed.”
“Is Queen Eleanora I buried there as well?”
Elea shook her head slowly and patted her skittish horse’s neck again. “The ancient queen was a celestial being. She never died. And neither did he. She and her husband, Brendan, were taken straight to Dhachaigh. The highest of the three realms by the hand of Màthair.”
“Have you ever been to their daughters’ burial mounds?”
“The cairns?” she said, shaking her head. “No. People who try to go to the Three Sisters Mountains, looking for the lost city of Yakura, tend to not return. Those who do, go mad. They call it gold fever. The price of greed is high.”
“You’re not making this ride any more pleasant for me.”
Elea laughed and felt a small spark of hope when Gerard joined her. “Prophecies are rarely pleasant.”
He pointed forward. “I see one of the mountains in the distance.”
She strained her eyes following his finger. The Three Sisters Mountains were easily seen from most of Urka. They were large and intimidating. But Gerard was right. There was only one mountain now. Impossible! Two of the mountains were gone: Orla’s and Aine’s.
Eimhir’s mountain was still standing. Elea brought her free hand to her mouth to hold in her scream.
The earth shakes—they must have been the mountains falling. Aine’s fell when Gerard returned to help Elea after being scorned. His sacrifice was deemed worthy enough. Orla’s mountain would have fallen when Nora died in Elea’s place as a prisoner. She had been willing to give everything for her cousin, queen, and country. Still, one mountain remained. The largest and the most daunting.
Would Elea have to die for Eimhir’s mountain to fall?
“Is something wrong?” Gerard asked, his voice softer than before.
Brushing her hair from her eyes, she turned to him. “Have you ever felt like a colossal failure?”
“My father gave me the surnameillegitimate,” he said, the bitterness returning to his tone. “So, yes, I know what it is to feel like a failure. To be unwanted.”
And she had pushed him away after he had protected and helped her. It was no wonder that he didn’t forgive her after a few words. She had hurt him in the same way that his father had. She’d been embarrassed by him. She’d wanted him to leave. An illegitimate son was not worthy of a queen.
Oh, how she ached for him and for her own terrible choices.
“I know that I u-used you,” Elea said, choking on the word. “And I am not making excuses for myself. . . . I only want you to understand what it is like to have a mountain of expectations on your shoulders. To be told your whole life that you are the most important person in the world. That you will bring freedom and prosperity to all of your people. That you’ll fulfill a prophecy that is five hundred years old. To have countless courtiers and people expect you to be special. To be different, in a good way. And then to disappoint them at every turn because you are not special. You aren’t what your people want. Or even what they need. Your gift, instead of a blessing, is a curse. You know everyone’s darkest secrets and you cannot trust anyone.”
He didn’t say anything for several minutes. She breathed in deeply, trying to find his scent over the smell of her horse. All she could decipher was a hint of mint. He was unsure. Of his part in the prophecy? Or of his feelings for her?
For the first time, it was impossible for her to tell. Perhaps she was too worn from her journey and the beating she’d received at her uncle’s hands.
Gerard cleared his throat. “The weight of expectations is a heavy burden.”
Elea couldn’t tell if he was talking about her or himself. But the weight on her own shoulders seemed to grow the closer that they traveled to the lonely mountain. She was the only one who could bring it down and she didn’t know how to.
They rode in silence for hours, but Gerard kept his horse beside hers. It was a small comfort and helped keep Elea on her horse. Her body ached with each jostle. She forced herself not to think of the pain but to focus on Eimhir’s mountain before her. The closer they came, the more it loomed above them.
What must she sacrifice?
What would the goddess require of her?
What if she was unable to do it?
Would the prophecy fail?