Imperial (Insight #8)(46)
“Mazing,” he said under his breath.
I clenched his arms. I knew he thought Mazing had the same issue I had, that we only heard what we wanted to, and that was very little because wrath perpetually consumed us.
“Listen. That Veil did not thin overnight. It has been thinning for quite some time. That is not what changed why I found words.”
“Then what?”
He took in a deep breath and turned his head to the street before he looked back down at me. “I lived in the past. I rebuilt it. Everything they took from you. Even though the Creator had made me a promise before I met you and also on the day you left, I still lived in the past, thinking that using my anger that way was best. I was wrong.”
Vade hesitated as he stared at me. “Sometimes we forget to heed our own advice. I stopped listening. I stopped looking for signs because I was in the past. One day, I felt weak. I felt like death and had no idea why. I knew you were still safe, so I went to the springs. My line was intact, strong and thriving. Those of yours that I’d found were strong. I didn’t understand. I fell to the floor, and for the first time in a long time I listened. Really listened. The first thoughts I heard, the first words were of that green-eyed girl of yours. I heard her declare that she would protect and stand up for a pure Escort. It took my breath away because there was so much of your wrath within her.
“I listened more intently, turned the springs back to understand who she was, why she was here, who the ones with her were. I discovered instantly why I was weak. That Donalt, along with Xavier, had not only stolen your Fated and mine, but also had nearly killed one of them.
“I didn’t even have to think about it. I restored my Fated that they had harmed, along with yours. I watched over them until they left The Realm and then looked through the past, discovered how wronged we really were. It was worse than I had ever imagined. I wanted to show them to you, wanted you to see their paths, and for the millionth time I tried to speak the order to bring you home, only this time the words came without fail.”
“You’re telling me that you found words the moment you discovered this web?”
“I’m telling you I found words the moment I stopped looking in the past and opened my eyes to what was all around me, what had been there all along. Anger is swarming through me, but it is aimed at myself, not the kings that harmed me. Our lines, our Fated mists, have suffered because I could not move forward and see the signs around me.”
“There is more. There are words you still are not speaking, words that must be horrid.”
“Why do you think they are horrid?”
“Call me crazy, but when the king of anger, the Reaper, and the Creator Himself are in a silent conference about you the secret cannot be blissful.”
Pain echoed in his eyes. “It is a secret that you will not see or understand until you open your eyes the way I did.”
“Your eyes were closed when you learned of it.”
“No, they were not. They were not closed when I went with the Creator to raise you or when He spoke to me after you were taken. They were focused on our tomorrow, on the next evolution of our kind.”
“An evolution that will never be. The other kings have created pure evil; we have failed as a race.”
“Stop thinking about the other kings. We cannot control them, but we can control ourselves. It is our future, our calling that needs to be in focus. We have to live the lives we were given, not the lives given to them.”
None of his words made any sense to me. There was a death sentence hanging above our heads. There was no way to restore our past.
His hands reached for my arms and squeezed them gently. “Let’s let this debate rest for now. Right now, walk with me as we remember our beginning. Feel those emotions you felt then, and hopefully now…tell me what they are.”
I tensed again, knowing that he had no idea how dangerous that request was, knowing that it was getting harder and harder to fight them. Each request of his, each memory, pushed me to the brink of a final death.
“Red velvet. Cream cheese icing,” I murmured.
A boyish smile that made me melt every time took over his image.
He let his hand slide down my arm and grasped my hand before leading me in this shop I adored in the most childlike way.
It was slow. Not many people were in this eccentric little bakery-slash-bar. I sensed that the kitchen was closing and the nightlife the place had was gearing up. Well, attempting to. It seemed as though the downpour had hindered the normal traffic, or maybe it was the day of the week. I remembered from our past times here that sometimes you could barely move in here, and others it was near vacant. Vade had told me that in this dimension the souls worked through the week and only enjoyed the weekend. That always saddened me. It didn’t seem right to find bliss only on a few days of the week.
Vade led me to the bakery side of the shop. As he went to the register, I walked down the long glass counter that held the most beautiful desserts in existence. I could feel indecisiveness creeping in; though red velvet was my favorite, they were all so tempting.
All of the workers had stopped what they were doing and were silently gazing at the pair of us. I didn’t really understand why; we were both blending in, our eyes were dulled, and our clothes matched the time and the dimension. I glanced at Vade to see if he knew why, but I only found that alluring smile of his.
Just to ensure that I wasn’t doing anything odd, I walked to his side as he reached his arm around me. He smiled at the two girls that were staring at him wide-eyed from behind the counter.