The Lightning-Struck Heart (Tales From Verania 1)

“He’s not my knight.”

Mama rolled her eyes elegantly, because she could be no other way. “Hogwash and poppycock, that. He belongs to you more than he belongs to anyone else. He is your cornerstone after all.”

I narrowed my eyes. “And just how the hell did you know that?”

She picked up a makeup brush from the vanity and brushed it under her eyes. “Didn’t know for sure until right this moment. I suspected, but confirmation is always better.”

“How do you know what a cornerstone is?”

She laughed. “Precious, I’m Mama. I know everything.”

“Then you’ll know he swore an oath to the Prince,” I said. “An oath that binds him into marriage.”

She sighed. “No. I didn’t know that.”

“It doesn’t matter. I rescued Justin, now have a pet dragon father who licks Gary’s butthole, and will be forced to attend the wedding of the century.” I grimaced. “You know, I usually don’t complain this much.”

“A pet dragon father,” she said, lips twitching.

“Yeah. Apparently I can talk to dragons. Or, rather, dragons can speak Veranian if I’m near. Magic is the shit, you know?”

“If I didn’t have the Tilted Cross to worry about, I’d be following you wherever you went,” she said. “The things you’ve seen and done fill my cold, crusty heart with adoration and envy.”

“There’s nothing cold and crusty about you,” I said dutifully. And because there wasn’t.

“I suppose not,” she said. “The gods know I’m not getting any younger.”

“And notice how polite I’m being by not asking the lady her age, even if she’s given me an obvious in.”

She gave me a shark’s smile. “How lucky you have practiced restraint. I’d hate to see what you’d look like without testicles.”

And so because I loved her, I told her everything. About the cornerstone business. About Ryan. About being force-fed coercion through corn. About cults and fairies and rescuing princes from ancient keeps. By the time I finished, my voice was hoarse and my heart was sore.

She was quiet for a time. Then, “Drowning in someone’s skin will not help you forget the other.”

I shrugged. “At least I’ll feel wanted.”

She turned to me then and stood. She reached out for me, her hands cupping my face, and I leaned against her touch. Regardless of how ruthless she could be, regardless of her own claims of being cold-hearted, she was still Mama to me. My fairy drag mother. The woman who had taught me to trust myself and my instincts. Morgan could teach me magic. My parents could teach me morals. Gary and Tiggy could teach me brotherhood. But Mama taught me that while life had sharp edges, it would only cut you if you allowed it to.

She said, “You are wanted. The heart that beats in your chest is the most wonderful thing I’ve ever been witness to. It hurts, precious. I know it does. But like all things, it shall pass and you will be all that much stronger because of it.”

I hugged her then. She made a surprised noise at the back of her throat as this wasn’t something she typically did. With anyone. But I was a hugger and she was my friend. Her arms came around me tentatively, her hands clasping at my back. She smelled of vanilla and clove. It was lovely.

She left, after a time.

Moments later, there was a knock at the door.

I opened it.

Moishe looked me up and down.

“Wizard,” he said, his voice full of sex and magic. “I heard you asked for me. How may I be of service?”

I grabbed him by the collar and pulled him into the room, slamming the door behind us.

Later, I walked through Meridian City toward the gates.

I passed by a newsboy shouting out the headlines.