Tale of the Heart Queen (Artefacts of Ouranos #4)

Chapter 74

C HAPTER 74

LOR

Q UEENDOM OF H EART

W hen I’ve caught my breath, I look up. Nadir stands before me with a small smile on his face. Sunlight gilds his dark hair, and his eyes spark with emerald and violet. He’s so beautiful it makes my throat ache. I remember the first time I saw him in Aphelion and how my world changed in that moment. I could never have imagined the journey we would travel.

And now he’s mine forever.

“We did it,” I say softly.

“ You did it. And I’m so fucking proud of you.”

I choke out a sob as he takes my hand and pulls me up.

“I couldn’t have done any of it without you.”

He clasps my chin in his hand. “We make a pretty good team.”

“We really do,” I say as I break down again. We embrace, clinging to one another as I cry against the curve of his throat. I let the tears begin to heal me. I let them find a place in my heart and allow the first wounds of my spirit to finally start closing over. I have so much trauma to overcome, but now I can finally face it, and I won’t do it alone. I will never be alone again.

Finally, we pull apart to find everyone watching us.

“Thank you for your help,” I say. “All of you. I don’t know how I can ever thank you enough.”

Cedar and Elswyth, hand in hand, are the first to approach and bow their heads. “Welcome home, Heart Queen,” Cedar says. “I never thought I’d see the day.”

That stirs everyone from their shock and the tension around the circle breaks. We all burst into laughter and smiles and hugs. It’s a moment for celebration.

We didn’t just save the magic.

We didn’t just save Heart.

We saved Ouranos from Herric. It was a battle we didn’t even know we were fighting until it was almost too late.

Gabriel strides over and wraps an arm around me, tugging me close.

“I’m happy for you, Final Tribute,” he says.

I laugh and squeeze him tight.

“You could stop calling me that—I am literally a queen now. ”

“I still don’t see a crown on your head,” he says with a wry smile.

“Maybe it’s time to fix that,” Tristan says, opening the pack slung over his shoulder and pulling out a bundle of fabric. He unwraps the Heart Crown and holds it up to me. “I thought you might need this.”

“Tris,” I say as my throat knots again. After all the years of running towards this, it’s nearly impossible to believe we finally found ourselves here.

“You ready for your ascension?” Nadir asks. “That’s what all of this was for, right?”

“Should we do something?” Willow asks. “Like have a big ceremony or something?”

She looks around us at the crumbled buildings and the ruined city. The ghosts of what our grandparents left us.

“No,” I say. “Let’s do this now. We’ve waited long enough.” I look towards the settlements in the distance. “ They’ve waited long enough, and I don’t need anything fancy. You’re all here with me, and that is enough.”

I turn to Nadir, pressing his hand to my chest. “I know you’re no longer destined to become king of The Aurora, but how does the title of Heart King sound?”

He breaks into a smile that lights up every corner of my spirit. He pulls me in close. “It sounds really fucking perfect.”

He leans down to kiss me, and we linger on it, savoring the feel of each other until Mael clears his throat very pointedly, and we pull apart.

“Sorry,” I say, feeling my cheeks blush. But there are smiles all around the circle .

“How do I perform the ascension?” I ask.

Anemone steps out of the circle. “Place the Crown on your head, and it will take care of the rest.”

“Thank you,” I say to her. “For helping us too. I know what I did—”

She cuts me off. “You have freed me from Zerra. I am the one who can never thank you enough.” She presses a hand to her chest and dips her head.

Cyan comes up behind Anemone, resting a hand on her lower back. “All is forgiven, Heart Queen.”

“Thank you,” I whisper.

Linden joins them and hesitates before she bows at the waist. “Thank you,” she says curtly, and I can’t help but laugh.

“Are you always going to hate me?”

She shrugs. “We’ll see.”

I’ll take it.

Then I turn to my siblings.

“I guess it’s time.”

“Wait,” Willow says. “Tristan and I got you something. Maybe it was silly, but we couldn’t help ourselves.”

Tristan reaches into his bag and pulls out a small box wrapped in shiny red paper and tied with a gold silk ribbon.

“What’s this?” I ask, holding out my hand for it.

“Open it,” Willow says, her eyes sparkling. My siblings exchange an amused look, and I narrow my eyes.

Nadir peers over my shoulder as I tug on the ribbon and then lift the lid. When I see what’s inside, I burst out laughing.

“What is it?” Elswyth asks as I pull out the smooth bar of soap. She looks around the circle. “Soap? I don’t understand. ”

“I’ll tell you the story someday,” I promise, and then I bring it to my nose, inhaling its soft floral scent.

“It’s perfect,” I say to my brother and sister. “Thank you.”

“Make sure you keep it somewhere safe,” Tristan says with a wink. “Wouldn’t want anyone to steal it.”

I laugh again and then look at my brother and sister.

“Should we do this?” I ask. Tristan takes my gift and exchanges it for the Crown.

“Willow, Tris,” I say, placing it on my head and then holding out my hands. They each take one as Nadir stands before me, wrapping his hand around the nape of my neck, his forehead tipping against mine.

“Ready?” I ask him, and he nods.

I close my eyes, and something tugs in my chest as I spiral into nothingness before I feel solid ground at my feet. When I open my eyes, I’m standing in the same rose garden, the white stone path bordered by benches and hundreds of rose bushes. The air is warm and still, the sun a softly glowing orb.

This time Willow, Tristan, and Nadir are all here too. We all share confused looks as we scan our surroundings.

“Where are we?” Tris asks.

“This is where the Crown took me last time,” I answer as I turn around and notice a figure standing at the end of the path.

“Mother,” I breathe, sensing Willow and Tristan go still.

A moment later, another person steps out of the shadows, and our father, wearing a simple brown tunic and pants, loops his arm through our mother’s. He looks exactly as I remember, with that rich chestnut hair curling over his shoulders. His emerald eyes sparkle above a thick beard that always tickled my cheeks whenever he’d give me a kiss. My heart ricochets in my chest as he smiles, and I hear Tristan and Willow’s soft gasps.

Our mother holds out her free arm.

“Children,” she says, tears filling her eyes.

“Mother.” Tristan stumbles towards her, tears already streaming down his face. He throws himself against her before Willow does the same to our father. I watch as they all hug while I hold Nadir’s hand. He squeezes it, and I look at him, my bottom lip quivering.

When Tristan and Willow move away, my parents turn to me. I release Nadir’s hand and run to them, throwing an arm around their necks. They cling to me as we all shake.

“You did it,” Mother says. “I knew you could.”

“Why are you here?” I ask. “I thought you said only you and I could see each other.”

“The Artefacts pulled some strings on our behalf,” Father says.

“I’ve missed you so much,” I say to him, and he smiles, his green eyes crinkling at the corners in a way that makes my chest hurt.

“I miss you too,” he says. “Every day.”

“I wish—”

“I know,” he says. “I know.”

We hug again and then I say, “I want you to meet someone.”

I gesture to Nadir, and he approaches. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look this unsure of himself, and it almost makes me laugh .

“This is Nadir,” I say. “My mate. My bonded partner and now the king of Heart.” I take his hand and look up into his eyes. “The man who helped . . . make me.”

Nadir smiles and holds out his free hand, but my parents will have none of that. They ignore it and wrap him in a long, tight hug from each side. His arms hang at his sides, and it’s clear he doesn’t quite know what to do with himself. My siblings and I burst out laughing. Finally, he figures it out and hugs them back.

After they finish, Nadir steps back and glances at me.

“I assure you that your daughter was the one who made herself. I just stood behind her.”

“Thank you,” my mother says, clutching her hands together. “Please take care of her.”

He bends at the waist and presses his hand to his heart. “With my life.”

We all hug and chatter a bit longer, describing everything that happened in the Underworld and in the Evanescence. Tristan and Willow tell them everything they can about their lives. Willow gushes about Amya, and Tristan shares his fears and hopes about being the Primary of The Woodlands.

Soon, the mood turns somber again.

“This is it, isn’t it?” I ask. “This is all the time we have?”

“I’m afraid so,” Mother says with her arm wrapped around Willow’s shoulders. “But we’ll keep an eye on you whenever we can.”

“At least we had this,” Willow says, brushing the tears from her cheeks. “I never ever thought we’d see you again.”

We all stare at one another as I feel my heart breaking all over again. But I remind myself of all the things I’ve gained .

“What happens now? Is this the ascension?” I ask.

“It is,” Mother says. “At least in your case. When you leave here, you will officially be the Heart Queen.”

My parents both drop to their knees and bow their heads. My endless flow of tears won’t stop as they look back up.

“This is all we ever wanted for the three of you. Take care of each other,” Father says. “You will be a wonderful queen, Lor. I always knew you would be.”

“Be happy, my children,” Mother adds. “Never forget how much you were loved.”

Then she presses her fingers to her mouth and blows us a kiss. Nadir, Willow, and Tristan, along with my parents, all melt away.

I spin around, wondering what I’m still doing here, to find Tyr standing at the end of the path. It feels like we just left him, but he looks entirely different. His golden hair shines in the sun, and color glows in his bronzed cheeks. He fills out a white tunic and pants, and his shoulders are relaxed. I imagine this is what he must have looked like before Atlas ruined his life.

“Tyr,” I whisper as he smiles and then holds two fingers to his lips before dropping his chin.

“My first duty as the god of Ouranos is to see you crowned, Lor.”

I nod and smile. “Thank you again. For everything.”

He bends at the waist in a deep bow before he straightens. “Farewell, Heart Queen.”

His words echo as the scene melts away, and I once again find myself standing amongst the ruins of Heart, surrounded by everyone I love .

“Did it work—” I start to ask, then my eyes widen.

The roses are blooming again, only they’re everywhere now. Spreading over the entire city. The walls. The ground. Climbing over the rubble and what’s left of the castle.

“I think it worked,” Nadir says.

They continue climbing over everything, surrounding me, Nadir, and my siblings in a wreath of flowers, welcoming us home.

My gaze turns to the settlements in the distance. A thin plume of smoke curls in the air like a signal, reminding me of what all of this was really for.

“We should go tell them,” I say. Not waiting for anyone to reply, I start running as vines of roses chase my heels. I hear everyone following as we pass the city walls.

My feet have wings as I fly over the ruined landscape until I come to a halt.

Nadir stops behind me, his hand finding my lower back. Everyone else falls into a line as we watch a mass of people approach.

The roses follow us. They spread out, climbing across the landscape, coating everything in a carpet of red and green. It’s the most beautiful sight.

We wait as the crowd draws closer. Those at the front note the crown on my head, and they all start dropping to their knees.

“The magic!” someone cries. “It’s back!”

“The queen! She lives!”

“We are saved!

“We can return home! ”

Etienne and Rhiannon emerge out of the crowd with their hands linked.

They stop in front of me and also fall to their knees.

“Long live our queen,” Rhiannon says before everyone else picks up the chant, repeating it over and over.

And if all of this weren’t enough, the sky starts to fill with lightning bugs. They flit around us, tiny balls of glowing light dancing in the sky. I share a smile with Nadir, who stands to my left, and then one with Willow and Tristan, who stand on my other side.

I look at the three most important people in my life.

At the ruined queendom behind us and the devastation of the land that surrounds us.

I inhale the scent of a million roses on a shaky breath.

“So what do we do now?” I ask.

My brother wraps an arm around my shoulders and sweeps an arm out.

“We finally live,” he says. “And then we build it all again.”