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LEAH WOKE THE NEXT MORNING to a soft kiss on her bare shoulder.
“Good morning, gorgeous,” Marcus whispered, his voice groggy.
She moaned. This wasn’t a dream, but it sure felt like it. “Good morning.”
He kissed her shoulder again. “Are we still on for our plans today?”
Drawing a deep breath and stretching, she finally opened her eyes. A soft glow from behind the curtains lit the room. She turned to face Marcus. “Yes. We have to hope Kaylah can get an exception for us. I don’t want to derail everything.” Leah didn’t want to talk contingency plans.
He slid a hand to her hip. “Okay. And you’re sure you don’t want to just write your mom a letter?”
Leah’s heart was heavy. She wasn’t really ready to see her mom, and didn’t want to lie to her. But Beata had to be lonely and worried that Leah hadn’t come to visit in months. And the couple didn’t know how long they were going to stay in the human world.
“I need to see her. I just have to.”
“Okay.”
“And I promise, no funny business with rifting,” Leah added. The prison was quite a ways away, but Kaylah and Eric trusted that Leah wasn’t a flight risk at the moment, and a cave rift would be the quickest way to get there. Eric and a couple of their bodyguards would be escorting her.
Marcus gazed into her eyes. “I trust you. I look forward to seeing you again tonight.”
***
Dressed in a shirt that did a decent job of concealing her growing belly, Leah set out on the daunting trip to visit her mom. The shirt hid her stomach well enough, and didn’t scream ‘I’m a maternity shirt hiding something.’
Preparing to walk into the public gaze, Leah had slipped her engagement ring into her pocket, and was ready to exhaust every ounce of her Ivy energy, if needed, to engage her core, to suck in her gut as far as possible, to appear completely normal.
Eric did a good job soothing her nerves on the ride to the cave, shooting the breeze about the weather, about recent scientific discussions the United Green Folk Alliance had been working through with some humans.
Leah tried not to be insulted when the employees didn’t let her create her own rift at the cave. Since the destination a person rifted to was determined by what the rifter envisioned, what they mentally dialed in when rifting, the cave employees had no way of ensuring Leah wasn’t leaving the realm, wasn’t disobeying Catrina’s ban on her going to the human world.
So, Leah and Eric went through the same Seeder-created rift, exiting at a familiar cave nearest the prison her mom was being held in. Luckily, Cheryl was locked up to rot elsewhere.
Leah’s heart beating wildly, her hands clammy, she straightened her shirt, made sure she was still standing tall and sucking in her gut, and strode alongside Eric to the prison. He gave her frequent calm, reassuring smiles.
More there for support and security than anything, Eric stayed in the waiting area. Leah always visited her mom alone. The guards guided her into the visiting room, with one stationed in the corner. They didn’t usually require that, but perhaps that had been another of Catrina’s requirements. It was Beata who had told Leah about the palace’s secret passageways, after all.
Leah paced the small room—like most buildings in the Ivy Kingdom, it was built of stone. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all grey, depressing. A water spigot and glasses were situated on a ledge in the corner. Sweating, nervous, Leah filled a glass for herself and sipped.
“Sweetheart!” Beata said from behind, all excitement and warmth.
Setting her glass down, Leah turned and gave her mom a hug. Suck it in. She can’t notice.
It didn’t exactly feel good to hug her mom, but bittersweet. “Hey, Mom. Sorry I was away for so long.”
Her mom squeezed tighter. “You have a life to live. That’s okay. I’m just glad you’re alright.”
After a minute, they finally broke apart and sat at a small wooden table. Leah wasn’t too fond of having the guard still in the room, having eyes on her, but she didn’t have much choice in the matter.
Beata took Leah’s hands in her own, a mirror image of Leah, only older and with dark brown eyes. And she did look older, like she’d aged more than she ought to have since Leah’s last visit, but that might have just been Leah’s guilt tricking her senses.
“You are okay, right?” Beata asked.
“Of course. I’d tell you.”
Beata’s hesitant expression implied she knew Leah better than that, that they were both inept at baring their souls.
“I’m good,” Leah calmly stressed. “How are you?”
She always tried to listen to her mom, tried to show interest. The modern Ivy prison system was strict on making sure prisoners were treated fairly, that fights didn’t break out, that there wasn’t abuse. Leah didn’t worry about that so much anymore. Her mom was allowed to work on projects within the prison for community service during her life sentence, as a small way she could make amends for her crimes, as a way to keep busy and have meaning in her life. But it was dull, day after day, life on repeat.
Her mom summed up the past few months, and Leah did her best to listen, despite her nerves, despite the strain on her energy to keep her facade and keep her stomach tight.
“I want to hear more about your adventures, though!” Beata said.
Leah slowly exhaled. “I’ll have to tell you more next time. I hate to say it, but I have somewhere I have to be later today.”
Beata frowned.
It killed Leah to do this, to lie straight to her mom’s face. It was just like she’d done when running away to this realm, and now she was doing it to run back to the human world. Running away with Marcus.
“Either way, I’m always glad to see you.” Beata gave her a smile.
“Me too.” Leah gathered her courage, and leaned in a bit. Hopefully not so much that the guard caught on that it was a conspiratorial stance. “I know I haven’t been able to visit for a while, and I’m ... going to be gone for a while again...” She cringed.
Beata looked confused. “More traveling? You’ll send word?”
Leah swallowed the lump in her throat. “Well, um... I changed my plans, and I got accepted into a university in the human world.” She quickly whispered, “Please don’t say anything.” She indicated with her eyes that she meant the guard, that she didn’t want anyone to know.
“Oh.” Beata searched her expression. “I know you’ve had it rough because of your father and me, and the ‘incident,’ but you... Why over there?”
“I miss it. You know... Electricity, meat, cars, human holidays. I thought I’d give it a try.”
Beata nodded. “It’s what you grew up with. But you’ll still write? Come back when you can on school breaks?”
Leah’s stomach knotted. She and Marcus were separating from the family for now—a full cutoff. “I ... might not.”
Profound sorrow filled Beata’s eyes, torturing Leah. Leah pitied her so much. “I’m sorry. I don’t know. I’m not sure when I’ll be back or send word. It may be sooner than not. I just wanted to give you a heads-up.”
Beata rallied a weak smile. “Okay.”
Taking a shallow breath, desperately fighting to both breathe and relax while simultaneously clenching her muscles, Leah prepared for the second part of what she needed to say. “I’ve told you Marcus and I have talked about marriage, right?”
They didn’t discuss Marcus much on their visits, mostly to avoid contention.
Looking down at her hands, Beata cleared her throat. “Yes, you’ve mentioned it.”
“I don’t have any official announcements, but I need you to ... get on board. Because I love him, and he’s going to continue to be in my life.” Leah knew her mom could do better, could become a better person, could grow and overcome her prejudices. And Beata hating Marcus for being a Boman was one thing, but the thought of her hating their child? Leah couldn’t handle that. It almost destroyed her knowing her own mom might have regretted or resented her growing up.
Beata didn’t reply.
“You say you want me to be happy,” Leah said.
“I do. But can he protect you? Are you equals? Does someone without powers even understand you?”
Leah’s jaw tensed. “He makes me happy. He understands me and is equal to me in different ways. Were you and Dad equals?”
“That was different.” And it had been. While many still didn’t believe it, didn’t want to believe it, Leah was convinced Soren had been a rare form of Ivy, born with extra powers like King Stephan was.
“Not really,” Leah replied. She sighed, unhappy with the way the conversation was going. She wasn’t there to convince her mom, just to hopefully point her in the right direction, giving her a nudge to reconsider her prejudices, so she’d be prepared for the big news down the road. Because the road was short, and permanent decisions hung in the balance. “I’m asking you to try to see things from a different perspective, okay? That’s all I’m asking. Because someday when I come to visit, I’m going to have a ring on my finger, and when that day happens, I don’t want to have to choose between you and Marcus.” And it’s going to be a heck of a lot sooner than you think.
“And I might have his kids someday. We know they’ll look like me.” Leah looked so much like her mother because of the family genes in their line, because of the ancient clan they’d descended from. “But they would be like Marcus.” She searched her mom’s dark brown eyes. “Will you hate my children? Will I have to tell my children their grandmother hates them?”
Beata averted her gaze, her mouth open for a moment. “I couldn’t hate any part of you, Eleana. I will always love you.”
“That’s not true if you hate Marcus.”
“Then maybe you should reconsider your choice. I’m sure there are tons of nice Ivy guys out there who aren’t stunts.”
Leah bristled. Stunt was an old term—stunted—and not a kind one. “Bomen, Mom. They’re called Bomen.”
Her mother looked her dead in the eyes. “Why are you so determined to make your life harder? Loving one of them, with our family history? You will never be accepted into their little circle.”
It hurt that it was true. Bomen were a tight-knit group. And Leah wouldn’t just be another standard Ivy with powers going to playgroups with other moms who had Boman children. They wouldn’t be soccer moms hanging out. Not with Leah’s family history. But she’d loved Marcus too much to consider the easy path. Nothing in her life had been easy.
Sitting taller, Leah gathered herself. “I came here to let you know that I’m okay. That I’ll be gone for a while. And to give you the courtesy of knowing that I would still like you in my life down the road. But if you ask me to choose...” Tears threatened to emerge. “If you ask me to choose, you may not like my choice. Please don’t make me choose.”
Beata studied her, not responding. She had to know that something was in the works, that a proposal was imminent if Leah was broaching the topic. She even glanced at Leah’s hands, checking for a ring.
Leah guzzled the rest of her glass of water. “Like I said, I’ve got somewhere to be.” She stood, and her mom followed suit.
“I love you,” her mom said softly, awkwardly opening her arms.
Leah gave her another hug. “I love you too.”
She couldn’t stay long, couldn’t handle the stress, and she refused to cry, refused to turn into a ball of mush in that visitors’ room. She released her mom. “Sorry I couldn’t stay longer, but I really have to go.” She added a little more uncomfortably, “Happy holidays.”
“You too, sweetheart.”
As Leah reached for the door, Beata spoke again. “Your last letters came from Kaylah’s estate...”
That was a can of worms Leah wasn’t about to open. “Long story. I’ll tell you all about it when I come next time. Love you.”
And then she left, clicking the door closed behind her. As a guard guided her back to the waiting room, Leah fought tears with every step. That hadn’t gone well, and would probably make her mom worry even more. She hadn’t even told her what she’d planned to study at this fictitious university. Hadn’t explained herself. The brevity of the conversation hadn’t been reassuring to her mom at all. But at least there was something, and hopefully some kind of a seed planted about changing her thoughts on Bomen?
When Leah entered the waiting room, Eric stood to greet her. His two bodyguards and a prison attendant were in the room as well, on the other side.
Leah faced the wall, releasing her tense muscles for a minute, angled away from the others who might notice too much. She tried to catch her breath, tried to not hyperventilate. Eric slid an arm around her shoulders. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” She gulped for air. “I’m fine. I’ll be fine.”
“Do you need anything, Your Highness?” one of the others asked.
“No thank you,” Eric answered.
Grateful for his support, Leah took another minute to gather herself before setting out again, heading straight back to his and Kaylah’s estate.
***
Leah ambled along that last stretch of the path to Kaylah and Eric’s home. Once they were within the gates at the end of a long dirt drive, she assured Eric she’d prefer to walk by herself, taking her time, that she was grateful for his support but no longer needed the escort.
Rubbing her belly, glad to not have to be sucking it in unnaturally anymore, she pondered on the last thing Eric had said to her at the prison before they’d left:
“Ready to go home?”
“Yeah, let’s go home,” she’d said. “Well, to your home.”
“Your home too.”
She wore a thoughtful smile. It was a transient home like any of the others she’d lived in her entire life. But she did like the way it felt there. It felt like a home. Yes, there were servants and visitors, but not the way there had been at the palace. And even with Marcus, they had enough privacy in the eastern wing to enjoy each other, but were close enough to be near family to chat or spend dinner together.
It wouldn’t last forever, but it was nice.
Once she arrived at the house, a servant told her Marcus could be found out back at the pavilion. His primary task of the day had been to rift to the apartment he’d been staying in during his internship, pack up his things, and have them shipped here for safekeeping. He’d also collected his remaining pay, telling them he wasn’t sure how long he’d be gone.
Strolling to the backyard, she found him at the pavilion, where he worked away at the other task of the day: writing letters.
“Stealing my favorite writing spot?” she asked on her approach.
He smiled wide, his gaze still fixed on his paper. “Great minds...”
She stepped up, slinging an arm around a pillar. “Do you want privacy?”
“You’re fine.” He glanced up. “Do you want to talk about your visit?”
She twisted her lips. “Hmm...”
He set the paper and pen on the bench next to him, holding out his arms. She smiled and accepted the offer, sitting on his lap.
“You okay?” he asked.
“I will be.” I hope. “How was it, settling things up north?”
He shrugged. “It was fine. It was a little weird when they tried to pry, asking if there was anything wrong. It just felt like they wanted dirt on the family, you know?”
Leah wrinkled her nose.
“And...” He rubbed her thigh. “They reassured me they’ll keep the position open for me, because I’m such a valuable asset.” He rolled his eyes.
“You are.”
He raised his eyebrows. “I’m a beginner intern.”
“And you’ll be brilliant in what you do someday. Even if your career has a ... gap in it.” She frowned, intertwining their fingers.
“Worth it.”
Giving him a hesitant smile, she studied his warm brown eyes. “Are you sure you’ll be okay with working construction in the human world? That’s hard work.”
“It pays well, doesn’t require as many fancy fake IDs, and it’s pretty much the only skill I can think of that can get me a job right away when we go over there.”
His father had worked in construction before the war ended, and built the house he and Rachel now lived in. Marcus had been too young to help with that, but he had enjoyed spending time with his dad learning some of the basics with renovations over the years and improvements to the tree house.
“If you say so,” she replied, kissing the palms of his hands.
“Is that it? You’re afraid I’ll get callouses? You don’t want rough hands on your body?” He grinned mischievously.
She leaned in, brushing her lips against his ear with a sensual whisper that would have made the songbirds in the distance blush. “I’ve never complained about you being rough with me, have I?”
He groaned. “We have a lot to do today, and you are not going to make it easy on me.”
“I bet there’s a nice cozy spot out in these woods. I’ve never made love out in the open.” As she whispered, his breathing became labored, and she poked out a vine, slithering it up his shoulder, to his neck, and then tickled his ear.
“Ack!” He wrenched his head away, and she giggled.
He threw her a dirty look, and she got off his lap, settling on the bench beside him. “There is a lot to do.” It was already nearing dinnertime, and she had letters of her own to see to. They were both taking the day to write to Catrina and his parents—apologies, explanations.
After fetching paper and a pen for herself, Leah rejoined him, and they worked in silence, side by side.
Kaylah was gone all day, running errands, personal and official, with her charity work.
The next morning, Marcus and Leah ate with Eric. He said Kaylah had been delayed, but would be there by lunchtime.
Leah was a bundle of nerves, pacing around. She offered to pack up her things so Kaylah and Eric could have their guestrooms back, but Eric insisted it wasn’t a bother, and it was something that could be dealt with when she and Marcus returned and had decided what they were going to do.
Kaylah returned right in time for lunch, and they all sat down together. “Some of your favorites.” She smiled, gesturing to the dishes One was loaded with mashed potatoes, another with sliced moon melon.
As they ate, they discussed their plans for the evening. Leah was ready to get it over with. When the time came, they handed their letters to Kaylah, who promised she’d deliver them once the couple was out of the realm. Leah dressed in clothes that would help conceal her stomach, though she still planned to suck it in while in public. She and Marcus tucked away his internship earnings and anything else they could use that would fit in their pockets.
And they were set to go. Eric and Kaylah stood ready in the entryway; Eric planned to stay at the estate to help the group keep a lower profile.
“Before we go, Eric and I have something for the two of you,” Kaylah said. She held out an envelope sealed with her official insignia.