Thaddeus’s Plan – 1179
Leonora's Decision
Leonora was through the front door, dress swirling in the breeze it created, before I had a chance to reach the meeting room, her decision to stay unusual. Moments later Titus’s fury followed. I stepped over to the door, lifting my hand to knock.
“Soul mages!”
Seeing
Elias’s choices weren’t unexpected. Papa worried most about someone using Anne, and I’d stepped in more than once, but never as late as it was with Elias. Anne hated me Watching her. I tried not to, because it was possible to Know too much… which is what led to the vow. There was still so much I couldn’t share with her due to the promise I’d made all those years earlier to Papa. All he wanted was to keep her safe, terrified what might happen if she were to learn the truth about what she was. Looking at the woman she’d become I wished I’d been able to See as much as Papa could then. With time, and the stronger soulbond, I was more powerful. Back then I’d relied more on what Papa could See.
Ever Complicated
Titus’s truth was powerful, but I knew him. His focus on me was something he’d done entirely on purpose. If I were to ask about what he wanted he’d most likely evade the question, and yet the temptation to ask, to hear him try to find some way of avoiding answering me, was stronger than before. With how honest he’d been I stood a chance of at least getting something from him.
The Strength of Love
More than once Anne helped with the ritual, and she hated it every time. “I’m sorry.”
“Titus, that isn’t…” She shook her head. “Apologising doesn’t change anything.” I opened my mouth, of course it didn’t, but she put a finger to my lips again. “We made our choices. You asked, nothing more. Saying no was always an option.”
Marren Vale
The moon lit my way along the worn path, drawn by the certainty I had a home there. I’d dreamed it more than once. Being in Marren Vale, finally, was simply the start of making them a reality, and I breathed in deeply as I had my first view of the cottage. Jess hadn’t believed anything I told her, other than the fact it was magic that had changed our lives for good. She felt her own power, so went to Mama’s family, in the hope they’d be able to block it, rather than accepting the offer I made for her to join me. Although it probably was for the best, things were going to be complicated enough, I missed her.
The Soulmate Arrives
Thaddeus couldn’t See exactly when Anne’s soulmate would enter Marren Vale, but he believed it was a Certainty. Of course that didn’t stop him from preparing for the possibility it wasn’t, so we’d both been told, before his death, to go looking if it took too long. Fortunately that wouldn’t be necessary, although it was closer than I was comfortable with. Another couple of lives, and it wouldn’t be safe to put her through another ritual. Now, though… I stared through the window.
The Unexpected
There were no more memories, thankfully. Anne likely spent much more time at the cottage, but I’d technically seen what I needed to see, understanding more about the man who left, and the woman I loved. Only she didn’t know I existed, which meant I needed to go to the one place I’d dreamt of her consistently - the Gardens. Rather than having breakfast, I needed to be there early, I dressed in Gabriel’s clothes, knowing she’d recognise them, wishing I had something else. Something that didn’t make me think of him… or their relationship.
Conversations
”Love isn’t a choice.” I’d said those words before, when Titus told me, confidently incorrect, he’d never fall in love with Anne. “Even Anne probably couldn’t tell you why she fell in love with you.”
“Could it have been the soulbond?” There was a bleakness in Dante’s voice I understood, having been through it myself, but that was lifetimes earlier. “If it hadn’t existed…”
The Next Steps
Following Leonora Riordan into the house I hadn’t been in since Phoebe called it home wasn’t something I ever expected to do, especially not with Julian one side and Dante the other, Celeste slightly behind us. Anne being at the Gardens was a relief. If she’d seen me… things were complicated enough without her knowing I’d turned to the Riordans for help. With Julian and Dante also involved… I raked a hand through my hair. I’d made the best choice I could, logically. Emotionally, however, Anne would definitely not see it that way, considering her reaction to Dante’s very existence.