Page 86 of Trust the Fall
My cheeks heat, recalling how I’d called them just that not long ago.
“It seems our plan has worked,” he chuckles.
The farther we travel outside of the city, the closer we get to the enormous castle that had been visible from our arrival point. It’s perched on top of a small mountain.
The front is lined with trees that appear to be pine, but they’re far taller than any pine tree I encountered on earth. They’re easily as tall as a New York City skyscraper.
“Wow,” I say, because clever words elude me.
The entire castle glows as if made from gold.
My head snaps to River to ask, but he’s not looking at me. His gaze is trained on the castle with something so close to longing that it couldn’t be anything but that.
“I hope you take my advice, River. I can tell how happy you are to be here. If this place makes you that happy, you should stay.”
He offers me a crooked smile but doesn’t say anything else.
“So what’s the plan? Are we just storming in there and going straight to the queen? Or do I get to change out of this?” I ask, looking down at the red monstrosity I put on back in Hell. “I don’t buy for one minute that I am the missing reaper princess, but I surely don’t wish to meet your people looking like something straight out of the bowels of Hell.” My nose is scrunched in revulsion.
He snickers. “I can’t say I blame you. That outfit is s—”
“Shut it,” I snap.
“I was just going to say slightly revealing.”
I curl my lip in what I hope is a warning before deciding maybe a different route will have a better outcome. “Please let me change. This is highly inappropriate and utterly embarrassing.”
He nods. “I’ll arrange for someone to get you situated while I inform the queen of our arrival.”
I don’t know why, because I maintain that I don’t buy into my being a reaper princess, but my stomach flips and flops with nerves.
I’ve never thought about what having a mother would be like. My father was always God; angels are created by the Creator himself. We’re not born of a woman’s womb. At least, most angels. I, apparently, am one of the exceptions.
But all the talk of the queen being my mother has foreign feelings flowing through me. I feel uncomfortable and clammy. Oh so clammy.
There’s perspiration building on my forehead, and my hands are damp. I wipe them on the little material I’m wearing, but it doesn’t last long.
“Calm down, Victoria. Everything will be all right. The queen is... well...” He shuffles his feet, looking boyish, and embarrassed.
“Come on, lover boy. Out with it. The queen is...?” I tease, and his face quickly turns into a scowl as he kicks a pebble out from under his boot.
“She’s brilliant. Beautiful. Incredible. You’ll like her and she’ll like you.”
My lips purse in mock revulsion at his profession of adoration for her royal highness.
River turns away from me. “You look a lot like her.”
I close one eye and narrow the other at the side of River’s face.
“As soon as you meet her, you’ll know it’s true. I know you are her daughter, Victoria.”
“That makes one of us.” I sigh. “We’ll see. For now, I just want to freshen up. It’s been a long damn day.”
He bobs his head. We walk for several minutes in silence, both lost in our own thoughts. Mine are firmly on the man I left behind.
He might’ve forced my hand, but in the end, I chose to leave.
“Victoria,” a woman’s voice shouts, and both River and I turn to find Leeanna heading toward us.