I sit and stare out at the rolling hills and lakes, slumped on the stone bench until the sun begins to fade and I start to shiver in the cool, evening air.
Chapter 7
Ponte, Italy, September 2014 - Kalen
He has finally tracked down his wife. He didn’t want to believe that the place she would come to would be here. There must be something still inside her that knows what this place means. He supposes that is a good thing, he just wishes that she had gone somewhere else. Somewhere that means something to them. He watches her, sitting on the stone bench, staring out at the view in front of her in the dying light. He sees her shiver violently and he goes to her.
Carefully.
He doesn’t want to startle her or make her Astral out to some place where he can’t find her.
“Aeval,” he says gently but she ignores him.
“Aefre?” he tries with a grimace, but she remains unmoving.
He sits down next to her, giving her enough space, desperately wanting to reach out and take her hand.
“Which is it?” she croaks out after a few minutes. “What is my name? Who am I?”
“Aeval,” he says decisively, and she turns her head slowly to look at him. “You are my wife.”
“I don’t know you,” she says, and it pierces his heart.
“I am Kalen, King of the Light Fae, and you are Aeval, my Queen,” he explains to her quietly.
She looks away from him again and he fears he is losing her. None of it means anything to her.
“Do you know where you are?” he ventures.
She shrugs and he breathes out in relief.
“Will you let me take you home?” he asks.
“I have no home,” she says in a monotone. “I have no name. I am not real.”
“Yes, you are,” Kalen says vehemently, now taking the risk to grab her icy cold hand. “You are very real to me and our daughter, Aeval.”
“Daughter,” she says flatly.
“Yes, Delinda. Our daughter,” Kalen presses. It is quite clear she doesn’t remember a thing about herself. That means he can start from scratch and build up her memories as he wants them.
“I don’t have a daughter,” she says. “I can’t have children.” The confused look on her face as she gazes down at her belly, makes him pause. Does she remember that she is a Vampire?
“You can, my love, and you do,” he says.
“Delinda,” she whispers.
“Yes, our daughter. Yours and mine.”
“Ours,” she repeats, still staring blankly ahead.
“That’s right, Aeval,” Kalen says.
“I don’t know you,” she says again.
“Let me take you home and we can help you remember,” he says.
She doesn’t say anything, she just sits there, so he takes this as his cue to stand up and gather her up into his arms. She doesn’t shy away from him, nor does she draw herself closer to him. Her mouth goes slack and for the first time he feels a slice of fear go down his spine. He knows that he is partly to blame for this, but he also knows that Constantine must still be trying to reach her through their child. It has confused her brain to the point where it has shut down and she has tuned out.