534- I Promised
POV Thalyndra Moonclaw:
I opened my eyes, pupils dilated, brown illuminating my irises. Too fast, acting with all the thirst for vengeance, using the pain to fill me with strength, I pulled the dagger from the waistband of my pants and plunged it into his back, burying it to the hilt, right in the middle of his heart.
Sorina gasped, but when she tried to approach, she was intercepted by Myrion, who appeared right in front of her in the blink of an eye.
Chaos was unleashed.
The hidden wolves ran toward us. Anton tore off the head of one, splattering me with blood. Some shifted, running toward me, trying to reach me. Sorina screamed, desperate. Myrion threw her to the side, against the ground right in front of Vladren.
"Watch her, don't let her escape," he ordered.
I moved away from Severian and stared at him. His mouth was open, blood flowing through it, staining his chin. He pulled the air with difficulty, choking.
I smiled at him and leaned in to whisper in his ear.
"When I found my parents' blood in that office, I promised the death of everyone who was present that day, and you were the last of the three wolves I sniffed out." I tilted my head slightly to the side. "Just as they did to him, stabbing him in the back, I did to you. How does it feel, knowing you were murdered by your own granddaughter?" I laughed. "And by the way, I will never be a Gaius. I will always be a Moonclaw, and now, I am also an Eldoria. Rot in hell, Severian!" I hissed, pulling my dagger. He groaned. I pushed him back, watching him fall on his back to the ground.
I didn't take my eyes off him, watching his life drain away as a pool of blood spread across the ground, circling his body, staining the leaves. When he took his last breath, I finally breathed a sigh of relief, feeling satisfied.
I took a step back and looked around, watching Edric, Anton, and Myrion finish off the Mercantes.
The wolves ran toward them. I saw Edric break the jaw of a shifted one, splitting the snout in half. The smell of blood filled the environment, so pungent it was nauseating.
Anton thrust his arm into the chest of one, pulling his hand out with the heart. Myrion had fun, trying to separate heads from torsos. They advanced with poisoned daggers against the brothers, as if somehow they could reach them.
In a moment of distraction, one plunged the dagger into Anton's belly. The alpha raised his face, staring at the Mercante with his eyes gleaming gold and emerald green, then gave a half-smile that would make anyone in their right mind run away. He pulled out the dagger as if it were nothing more than a small, irrelevant annoyance and threw it on the ground beside him. He extended his hand, grabbing the man's neck and squeezed. He turned red, his eyes bulged. He hissed, trying to breathe. Anton applied more force. The sound of bones cracking made me slightly dizzy. He broke his neck. The head tilted to the side and he released the Mercante, letting him fall dead.
I could hear Sorina's crying, but I couldn't bring myself to look at her.
They finished the slaughter in a few minutes. Sweaty, panting, and covered in blood, they began to laugh, as if what had happened was just a fun pastime.
I once heard that the Eldoria were bloodthirsty and unbalanced. I didn't believe it, because my father always spoke highly of them. But looking at them that way, I realized there was a kernel of truth behind the comments. And even more surprising was the fact that I really liked it.
I turned my back and finally faced the woman who brought me into the world.
"Why did you do this, Thalyndra? Why? We are your family, we were willing to give you everything," she whimpered, wiping her dirty face with the back of her hand. Tears streamed down and created a trail in the red blood that stained her face, the blood of her clan.
"I didn't lie when I said I hate you. I despise what you are and what you did. You didn't just deceive my father, you deceived me too. You betrayed us both," I shot out, full of coldness and indifference, staring down at her. "I don't know what you were thinking, that you would come here and tell me the whole truth, imagining I would handle it well? That I would accept the fact that I am the daughter of a Mercante, the people I hate most in life. That's why you came, even knowing the Eldoria would kill you at the first opportunity, because you thought it wouldn't happen, that I would defend you."
"It's the least you could do, you're my daughter!" she shouted. I shook my head negatively.
"No, I am the daughter of William Moonclaw, the most intelligent, honorable, and shrewd man I have ever known. I am what I am thanks to him and I share his same opinion, history is not merchandise, it's legacy. You don't sell what was made to be kept and respected."
"What a disappointment, Thalyndra," she spat, with disgust. I laughed.
"Disappointment? That coming from the woman who deceived the whole family, who lied to someone who only loved her, gave her a comfortable life, and indulged her wishes, while trying to protect you, thinking you needed to be protected." I rubbed my face, wiping away new tears that emerged. "You know, Mother, I preferred the first reality, the one in which I thought you had died along with him."
"I'm sorry to disappoint you, my little Shadow Mercante," she replied, trying to provoke me.
"Where is his body? Why did you take it?"
"William was still alive, that's why we carried him. His body was buried in the Mercante cemetery, along with other traitors and enemies."
He knew he would die, that's why he left the message. It also only reiterated his suspicion to me. It was a secret between him and me and no one else, not even his wife. He didn't want me to stay there, fearing they would return and take me.
"There was your blood there too."
"A decent disguise for a clever young woman." I felt Anton approach me and stop beside me. She stared at him, observing him. "You married well, in the end. You became an Eldoria, as William wished. Queen of the pack." She laughed. "He would be proud."
I tried to feel something, to care a little more, but I felt nothing but rancor and deep resentment. Deep down, I felt my heart shattered, so intensely hurt by the new reality, by the truth of the facts.