Betrayed (The Secret World Of Atlantis 3)

Chapter 9 - The Torturing Aftermath

But I don’t feel alright, as we return back to the surface and head outside. My heart is pounding somewhere in my throat and my brain is unable to erase the scene I just witnessed. That crunch keeps repeating in my head over and over again, until I find myself slipping on the staircase.

Father grabs me hastily, pulling me back on my feet. “Careful there, I don’t want you to get hurt,” he declares softly, his eyes scanning me with a worried gaze. I pat his shoulder with a shaking hand, like I’m trying to reassure him. But I don’t know why I’m doing that, if I’m not sure I’m fine myself.

“You should worry about how we’re going to handle Zara,” I remind him, my voice sounding strange to my own ears. Father lets out a heavy sigh as we continue descending down the staircase, and that’s his only response to my words.

“Give her time, Ariston. She’s lost her mother. No matter how vile the woman was, she was still her mother and she loved her from the bottom of her heart,” my grandmother declares, her voice sounding unusually quiet. It’s like there’s a lump in her throat, preventing her from speaking properly.

Before any of us is able to respond, we suddenly hear a commotion from outside. We rush through the foyer of the Courthouse and out through the main entrance, only to see Guardians trying their best to keep a furious Zara at bay. Uncle Kaspar and Nahuel are joining them in their attempt, while the women all stare at the scene with empathy. How could they not? No matter how cruel Sofia’s betrayal was … This is a truly heart-breaking moment.

As soon as Zara’s red and swollen eyes land on the four of us, it’s like all of the air is knocked out of her lungs. She stops moving altogether, her already white face growing even paler, than I thought it was physically possible, before suddenly letting out an ear-piercing shriek. Her body begins shaking with sobs uncontrollably, and she falls to her knees, repeating over and over again: “No! Not my mother!”

Before I’m able to stop myself, I walk over and lower myself down next to her. I try to meet her eyes, but it’s like she doesn’t even know I’m there. She probably isn’t able to see me through the fog of tears and even if she could, she wouldn’t care. Because I know she can’t feel anything, but pain in this moment.

I am afraid of how she’s going to react, but I still find myself taking a deep breath, before wrapping my arms around her. As she doesn’t push me away, I figure out this must be a good sign. But I’m only able to relax completely, when she clutches at the top of my dress and buries her face into my shoulder.

I don’t say anything. It wouldn’t help her get any better. All I do is run my hands up and down her back in comfort, while slightly leaning my head on hers. My eyes then travel upwards, meeting Elena’s, then Flora’s and aunt Berenike’s. My best friend’s lips are trembling, and she seems unable to deal with her emotions anymore. Even Flora has tears streaming from her eyes and she isn’t bothering to wipe them away.

The atmosphere is grim, just like on a funeral. And in some way, it is one. Sofia is dead. Nothing can change that. But no matter how hard I’m trying to tell myself, that she isn’t able to hurt us anymore, I have a bad feeling about her last words. I don’t think she was only trying to scare us with that monologue. She must have known something about Teivel’s plans. And I’m starting to fear, that we got rid of her too quickly.

Zara looks like a living corpse on our way back towards the Palace. As soon as she calmed down enough to stop crying, she went all limp inside my arms. I was afraid, that she lost her conscience, but her eyes were open as I looked at her face. But no matter how hard I tried to get a response out of her, she was only staring back at me, blinking every few seconds.

We didn’t leave, because people were staring. We were past that point already. We had to go, because we were afraid that Zara’s well-being would only worsen, if she stayed in that place any longer. But throughout the whole ride, she looks even worse, if that’s humanly possible.

She is sitting between Flora and Nahuel, her head swaying from side to side with each rock we hit on the way. My lip is all bloody, because I keep biting at it nervously, worrying about how Zara is taking the finality of her mother’s life. It’s not a pretty sight to behold.

I mean to rush after her as soon as we arrive and Flora helps her to her chambers, but I am stopped by Elena. She grabs my wrist and I spin around to face her, a hint of urgency covering my expression. She shakes her head slightly. “There’s nothing more you can do, Arya. Let her grieve,” she tells me quietly. I breathe out in frustration, but I know she’s right. My sister isn’t in a state to talk right now.

But as time for lunch comes, I can’t help myself. As soon as father begins to instruct one of the maids to come bring Zara down, I stop him, saying: “I’ll go get her.” Before he’s able to react, I already bolt into the direction of her tower, my heart thumping against my chest as I rush through the hallways. I keep wondering, if she’s able to speak, or if she still hasn’t gone out of that scary state she fell into after realizing her mother is dead.

I want to be there for her, no matter how strained our relationship was in the past few months. She deserves to have me stand by her side in this difficult time. It’s been tense between us, but I’m ready to put the past behind us and start anew. I just hope she feels the same about this.

I find myself taking a deep breath, as I reach the couple of Guardians, that are standing by her door. I nod at them both politely, before taking a step closer and raising my hand. I knock at the wood three times, a nervous lump forming in my throat.

I wait for a few seconds, that soon turn into minutes, but nothing. I sigh, knocking one more time, but this time also calling out to my sister. “Zara? It’s me, Arya … I came to fetch you for lunch.” I once again find myself listening to the silence. This is going to be much harder than I thought. “I know you’re in there. Don’t make me carry you down myself,” I state a little louder, trying to lighten my approach.

But as I still don’t get a response for a while, I breathe out in frustration. Alright. I tried my best. There’s no use in forcing her into anything. “Leave me alone,” I suddenly hear from the other side of the door. And it sounds so close, like she’s sitting right next to it.

I crouch down, trying to peek through the crevice, but I can’t see anything. “Aren’t you hungry? I heard the cooks are preparing Pastitsio with lamb, your favourite,” I try to persuade her, hoping that it works. However, all I hear from the other side is a quiet sniffle. It’s barely audible, but it’s there. I decide to wait in case she decides to reply after all.

And after a few more sniffles, she does. I can barely make out the words, because she’s speaking so silently. “Please tell someone to bring some to my chambers. I … I don’t want to go down there.” I try to think of a way to change her mind, but I know it’s useless. There’s no way I’ll succeed, if she doesn’t want to see any of us.

That’s how I find myself letting out a loud sigh, before giving in. “Alright, anything as long as you eat. And if you need to talk … Just know that I’m here. You can come find me anytime you want, even if it’s in the middle of the night. Or send someone after me and I’ll come to you.” I realize I’m starting to babble, so I bite my tongue. “I’ll go now. Get some rest.”

I already mean to stand up, when I hear her talking once again. “Thank you.” I stop for a moment, not sure whether I’ve heard this right or not. But before I’m able to decide for myself, she continues. “For letting me hug her one last time.” This time her voice is there, loud and clear.

I have to close my eyes to prevent the tears from forming. “Don’t mention it. Any decent human being would do that,” I state, trying to prevent my voice from wavering. But the emotions, that are building up inside me are already changing it.

“Then there aren’t many decent human beings amongst Atlanteans. Because no one else lifted a finger,” she responds quietly once again, making the lump in my throat grow even bigger.

“They don’t understand … I … I didn’t get to hug my mother goodbye, when she was about to die … I couldn’t let you live through that as well,” I stutter, barely able to get the words out of my mouth. But she seems to break down at the mention of the m word, because I hear her sobbing slightly once again.

When I realize she won’t be responding any longer, I try to pull myself together, taking a deep breath and blinking the tears away. As I stand up, I glance at the door one last time, listening to occasional sniffles coming from behind it. I clench my jaw, forcing myself to walk away. There’s nothing more I can do for her now.

After stopping in the kitchen and instructing for lunch to be brought up to Zara’s chambers, I join my family by the table. And I notice the atmosphere is still as grim as it was in front of the Courthouse. How could it not be? The former Queen’s death is hanging in the air, dragging all our moods to ground level.

As my eyes meet with my father’s, he doesn’t need to say anything. His questioning gaze tells me exactly what he wants to know. I shake my head in response, making him look down and sigh at the same time. I take my seat by his side, with Elena sitting next to me. I know he was hoping that I would be able to persuade Zara into joining us. And I’m truly sorry, that I couldn’t give him that.

He takes my hand and I take Elena’s, making the whole table hold each other solemnly. Father closes his eyes and so do we. A long moment of silence hangs in the air, before he speaks up. “Under the eyes of Gods, we witnessed terrible pain today. Two seats at this table have been empty for weeks now … But one is never going to be taken again. Some things hurt us deeply, but they are more than necessary for us to grow and move forward. Sofia betrayed our trust in the worst way possible, alongside Teivel, my long-time friend. Their actions affected all of us, but mostly my daughters.” I stiffen at his words. “Please, grace Zara with the gift of peace and acceptance, so she won’t suffer because of her mother’s death any longer. Make her see, that her mother’s actions were wrong. I’m also asking you to bring Arya’s bonded back to her. You gifted them with this sacred connection, so please, don’t be the one to take it away too soon. The boy has suffered a great deal under Teivel’s hands, he doesn’t deserve to be lost in the North. Bring him back and reunite them, just like it was meant to be,” he concludes.

I find myself overwhelmed with emotions, refusing to open my eyes even when I know, that everyone else is already staring at me. But everything comes crashing down on my shoulders in that moment. The endless searching for Eros, the nerve-wrecking trial, the memory of Sofia’s last words, her sickening death and Zara’s breakdown. I can’t take it any longer. But in that moment, I get pulled into a tight embrace and when I breathe in, I recognize my best friend’s familiar scent. I don’t cry. It seems like I don’t have any tears left. But oh, does melting into her feel relaxing for my suffering soul. She caresses my hair softly, her voice sounding like a soothing melody to my ears. “We will find him. I promise.”