Finale (Caraval 3)

“No! You can’t tell him. Whatever you do, don’t tell him.” Again, Scarlett almost left it at that. The Assassin had warned her not to interfere with the past, but maybe Scarlett had been part of the past all along. Maybe she wasn’t just here to steal a dress, or to see a mother she’d never understood. Maybe Scarlett was here to help make sure her mother made some of those choices Scarlett had never understood. Because she understood them now.

If Paradise married Gavriel and raised Scarlett with him, the future would change—Tella would never be born, and there was a good chance that all the Fates would be freed from the cards very soon.

“Gavriel is not what you think he is,” Scarlett said.

Paradise took a harsh step back, some of the sharp edges returning to her expression.

But Scarlett didn’t stop; either she was wrong and she’d already changed the future irreparably, or she was right and she needed to press forward, to stop her mother from making an irreversible mistake.

“I don’t know how much I’m supposed to tell you, or if I’m supposed to be saying any of this. But you don’t marry Gavriel. He’s not the father of your second child. Gavriel is a Fate. He’s the Fallen Star and he was trapped inside the Deck of Destiny that you stole from Empress Elantine. He wants to find the deck again so he can free all the Fates and take over the empire. You stop him from doing this—you trap him in a card again. But then you still have to hide, because his church—the Church of the Fallen Star—comes after you for running with the cards. So you marry Marcello Dragna and go away with him.”

Paradise laughed, but it held none of the amusement of her earlier laugh. “No, I would never marry Marcello.”

“But you do,” Scarlett said. And it struck her that

out of all the impossible things she’d just shared, this was the one Paradise remarked on. It made Scarlett wonder if deep down her mother was already aware of Gavriel’s true goals and identity.

Scarlett tried to read her mother’s colors. There were competing emotions warring each other, but Scarlett could see that Paradise was in love and uncertain, and despite her calm exterior, she was terrified of what Scarlett had just said.

“I’m sorry,” Scarlett said.

“Why are you apologizing?”

“Because I know you love him.”

“Criminals don’t love.”

“If that were true, I don’t think I would be here. But I am. I’m here because you did whatever it took to take care of me—the daughter you’re pregnant with right now. That’s part of what makes you so remarkable. You leave Valenda, but people still tell stories about you. Even Empress Elantine talked about you before she died. She told my sister that when you loved, you did it as fiercely as you lived. You were willing to do whatever it took to protect the ones you love, even if it hurt you or them in the process.”

And Scarlett realized then—she was the exact same. Everything she’d just said would cause Paradise and Tella and herself a world of pain. But if Paradise took a different course, then the future would change; everything Scarlett cared about might be lost and the Fallen Star might never be defeated.

Paradise was shaking her head, as if she could clear her muddled emotions. “And I thought you were just here to steal a dress.”

“Like you said, I’m not a very good thief.”

“I might have been wrong.” Paradise reached down, picked up her box from the dress shop, and held it out to Scarlett. “Take it, you earned it with your story.”

“Does this mean you believe me?”

“I don’t know, but I don’t think I’ll be getting engaged tonight,” Paradise said, careless and flippant. She sounded a lot like Tella when Tella was pretending not to feel.

“I’m sorry,” Scarlett said.

“You don’t need to keep apologizing. But there is one thing you could do for me.” Paradise gave Scarlett a trembling smile. “Put the dress on. I didn’t get to try it on today, and I want to know if it would have looked as fabulous as I’m imagining. I’ll watch the other alley to make sure no one unwanted pops in.”

Paradise darted around the corner.

Scarlett wanted to protest; she didn’t feel like stripping in a frozen alley once again. But after all she’d told Paradise, this was the least Scarlett could do for her. It was the last thing her mother would ever ask of her. And it turned out to be the last thing her mother would ever say to her, as well.

When Scarlett finished dressing and turned the corner, Paradise was gone.

Scarlett picked up the bottom of her new dress and ran to the end of the alley, hoping to catch her mother. She looked up and down the street at all the people in their bright coats walking through the falling snow. If Paradise was among them, Scarlett didn’t see her. All she found was a broken lamppost and a dropped knife.

Her mother had left again. Scarlett couldn’t be surprised, and she didn’t let herself feel hurt, not this time. Paradise might have been her mother, but she was also just a pregnant girl who’d been told she’d have to make a terrible choice. Scarlett couldn’t blame her for running, and maybe Scarlett shouldn’t have blamed her so much before. Scarlett loved Tella and Julian despite their imperfections; it was time to start loving her mother the same way.

And when the Assassin appeared an instant later, Scarlett imagined that this was how it was meant to be all along, and that her mother really had done the best she could. She might have run away from Scarlett just now, but Scarlett believed that when she went back to the future, she’d find things unchanged.

“Did you do what you needed to do?” he asked.