Page 88 of Rise of the Queen

“Viktor, your kid is forever linked to you now. Whatever Karma that little soul cleared by dying the way it did, it must’ve been a lot, because that soul is forever grateful to you now. It’s trying to thank you. The dreams are a way of trying to give you back what you lost,” I said.

“His kid has also agreed to not come back so it can stay and help Viktor. Can’t remember if we told him that already or not,”Adrik said.

“Now that all this has happened with all of us, your kid has made the decision to not come back, specifically so it can always be there to help you.”

Viktor inhaled deeply. “I know. He told me last night.” He looked at me, almost like he wasn’t sure if I’d believe him. “We were going to name him Konstantin if he was a boy. We were both hoping for a boy. We never found out if he was a boy or girl before they died, but he’s always a boy in my dreams. I can still hear my wife calling him Kostya as she would rub her belly. I guess he decided to keep the name.”

As Viktor was talking, I felt Sephie’s sadness coming on strongly. I couldn’t feel her in my head, so I wasn’t sure she was listening in with Boss, but I could feel her sadness.

Viktor continued, “He came to me last night in a dream. He told me everything. It was like you and I talking right now. Everything was so clear. He also told me Ilya needed my help, just like Misha showed me. He said it was him showing me, not Misha. He knew I’d been avoiding Sephie too, so he used Andrei, Misha, and Sephie to force me to realize my gift.”

“He’s still focusing on the tragedy more than the good that’s going to come out of it,”Adrik said.“I don’t know if you can feel the sadness, but it’s not Sephie. It’s him. Her eyes are amber, but this is not her sadness.”

“Viktor, I think you’re still focusing on the tragedy more than you’re thinking about all the good that’s going to come from this. Your gift is what you do anyway. It’s just to a new level. You always make sure everyone has everything they need, that we’re all taken care of, and you do it without most of us realizing it most of the time. Your gift really isn’t that different. You’re justmaking sure their souls are taken care of, instead of just their bodies. I can see if Sephie and Misha can show you what I see when I see demons trying to get in and what it looks like once they’ve gained access. It’s not pretty. It’s not something that anyone should have to endure. You’re making sure that doesn’t happen.”

He was quiet for a few minutes, before finally saying, “I’ve been focusing on the tragedy for so long that I don’t know how to stop.” He got up, without another word, and walked to his room.

“When is his brother coming? Sephie showed me what Misha showed Viktor. It’s going to take that happening before he comes to terms with everything,”Adrik said.

“We just talked about it earlier. He’s coming next week. He seemed like he was better when we were at the lake. We talked about his brothers and he seemed like he was slightly better.”

“It’s going to take time, Ivan. I was going to ask if we should come to the house too, but I think it’s better that he’s there with you.”

“Yeah, I agree, even though I feel like I have no idea how to help him.”

“I think he just needs time and reassurance. It appears you have help from multiple angles, so hopefully between all of us, we can get him through this.”

“I think he needs a few more days. You’re still okay without us?”

“Yeah, you guys can stay through the weekend. We’ll manage.”

“He did say he needs to make sure that Sephie knows it’s not her he’s been avoiding. He asked if she was mad at him earlier.”

“She’s not mad. She’s more hurt than anything. She’s also worried he’s scared of her.”

“That’s what I told him too. At some point, he’ll make that right again.”

“It’ll all work out. This is all a bit much for all of us to deal with. It’s understandable.”

“If you guys come up with any insight on what to say to him again, let me know. I can use all the help I can get right now.”

Viktor stayed in his room most of the day. This was going to be a long few days …

Chapter Thirty

Adrik

I looked at Sephie’s ambereyes as she stood in front of me. She’d just heard the last bit of the conversation between Ivan and Viktor, as well as me and Ivan. I knew she felt Viktor’s sadness. It was very different from anything I’d ever felt from her. I didn’t realize Viktor was struggling with it as much as he clearly has been for the last few years. Even Sephie was struggling to get a handle on it.

“I didn’t realize he was struggling this much with everything,” she said quietly.

“None of us did. I think we know now why he always kept so busy. I can feel his sadness through you. I can also feel that you’re struggling to deal with it, the same as him,” I said, pulling her closer to me.

She rested her head on my chest. “Yeah, this is a lot.” She folded her arms up in front of her, pressing her body even closer to mine. “I feel really cold.”

“Come. We’ll go upstairs and get one of my sweatshirts for you, and I’ll make you something warm to drink.”

“Your meetings are done for the day?” she asked, following me out of my office. I nodded, my heart threatening to stop at the smile that stretched across her face. “Good.”