"Edlynne. Please. You must eat." Eleanor begs as I stand utterly still on the balcony of my chambers. The night has fallen upon me. The stars are dazzling as I watch them flicker across the midnight sky. I should be contemplating their mesmerizing beauty as I always do, but all I can vision is Jorah's dead body. His death took place shortly after my father informed me of his decision to punish Raven through his father. I did not witness the moment he was ruthlessly killed in his son's place. However, I did see the guards take his body past the castle gates from where I stand. My heart aches at the thought of Raven being informed of this dreadful news. He will never forgive me for causing his father's death. I know I am to blame. He would have never fallen for me the way it is prohibited if I wasn't desperate for a friend that wasn't of my status. I was selfish, and I will never forget myself for it.

"I cannot eat, not when I cannot stop the vision in my mind of his body being dragged out of this castle like some wild beast." She does not respond.

"I am truly sorry."

"Raven will never forgive me."

"You should write him a letter."

"He will never read it."

"If he is truly your friend, he will read it. You will never see him again. You should at least say goodbye." I cannot imagine what must be going through his head as of this moment. Jorah meant everything to Raven since his mother left them when he was three years old. Perhaps is better if I never see him again. I don't think I could ever face him like I used to. Not after what happened.

"You are right. I should say goodbye."

By the time the rose-pink light of dawn gleamed across the skies of Aralia, I had concluded the letter. Eleanor assured me that she would deliver it to him since she was the only one who could leave the castle without being questioned. I remained confined in the chambers of my own castle, and I didn't leave until Eleanor returned.

By noon, one of the maids sent by mother brought me another set of meat and vegetables, assuming I had eaten the one that was brought to me the night before. I did not want to be rude since she was only doing what she was instructed by the queen, but that plate too was left untouched.

"Eleanor!" My eyes widen at the sight of her entering. She must have delivered the letter to him since I don't see her with it.

"He has your letter. I made him promise not to open it until he arrived home."

"Is he alright?" I am not entirely sure if I want to know his state of mind. She hesitates for a slight second to respond. I meet the despair in her agonizing eyes as if they were reflecting Raven's emotions through them.

"He does not know what caused his father's death." I do not know whether I should feel relief or guilty that he does not know what really happened.

"I will choose to believe that he will be strong enough to move on from this when the time is right. It is the only thing that will keep me from moving on myself."

"Jake!" I shout his name as soon as I open the front door, hoping he responds before my mind is seized with every horrible thought possible as to where he could be or what could have happened. The arrival of the twins has contributed to a state of paranoia that I know will be my breaking point until this is all over. I couldn't stay in school without making sure that everyone I care about is safe. Although I have made a deal with them, they are remorseless creatures who can't be trusted.

"Claire? What are you doing? It's 11am." He is bewildered by my unexpected arrival.

"Nesrin and Declan are in town. They found me." His eyes widen as he meets mine with a petrifying look. He was there when Darya told me about her horrifying death, and warn me about them being remorseless creatures.

"How? When?."

"At school. That's why I came. I need to make sure everyone is okay. I know my mom is at work. Where is Jenna?."

"I..I don't know. Let me call her." He quavers as he dials her number. His hands are trembling and we both wait impatiently for her to pick up the phone. "She's not responding."

"I'm sure she's okay." I choose to believe even though my mind is being tortured with a thousand reasons as to why she is not responding and none of them are good.

"We have to go look for her." Before I can grab his arm to stop him from rushing out the door, Jenna opens the door. We both sigh in relief, but she looks confused.

"What is going on here?."

"You weren't answering your phone." Jake breathes.

"It's in my purse. I didn't hear it." She tells him. "I thought you were in school."

"I was. I just came home because I wasn't feeling that well. The nurse sent me home. She thinks I might be incubating a cold." I lie. No professor or worker at school would let a student leave without a parent's permission.

"She sent you home without a parent's permission?." I freeze since I can't think of anything that will convince her to let this go.

"It was before the bell. I hadn't gone to any class yet."

"Alright."

"What are we going to do?." Jake asks desperately as soon as we both enter and lock the door of my room behind us. I can sense his perturbation.

"Nothing. I made a deal with them to go back to Dawn."

"What?! Why would you do that?!" He snaps.

"Because I didn't have a choice. If I don't go with them, they are going to start killing the people of this town."

"We could have figured something out."

"We don't have time for that."

"What does Raven think of this?."

"He thinks I'm going back with him, but I'm not. I can't break the deal I made. If I do, there would be nothing stopping them from going on a killing spree."

"You are giving up by turning yourself in." Jake says before he leaves abruptly. I understand why he is angry, but only I can understand what it feels like to carry the weight that is knowing how many people have died because of me. Because I wasn't there to save them like I was meant to. I was suppose to be their queen, but I abandoned them the minute everything turned deadly. I can't keep hiding, not if I want this nightmare to be over.

"We have something to tell you." Mom breaks the silence at the dinner table. Jake has been reluctant to speak to me since this morning. He hasn't said a word since he sat down and ate his dinner in silence.

"What is it?." I ask before she can continue.

"I need to travel to Seattle this week for a meeting with my lawyer." Jenna starts.

"And I have decided to accompany her. It will only be for a week. You both will stay here, unless you are not comfortable with it." Jake and I exchange looks for a slight second before we both nod. I know he is thinking what I'm thinking. If they are not in town this week, then they won't be in danger. Seattle is the safest place that they can be until this is all over.

"I don't have a problem with it." I assure them.

"Me neither."

"Alright then. We leave tomorrow morning."

"Claire! We are leaving!" I rush downstairs to find Jake attempting to carry the last bag to the taxi. His body is bent in a deeply disturbing way that will forever hunt me in my dreams at night.

"Don't hurt yourself." I tell him. He chuckles as he drops the bag to take deep breaths. It is good to see him smile even if  he's still mad at me.

"This is the hotel we will be staying at. Don't hesitate to call me. I trust you to be responsible. I'll see you in a week. I love you so much." I hug her deeply as my chest tightens at the thought that I would never see her again. By the time she returns, I will be long gone. The spell will break when I cross the portal. She won't remember me. It will be as if I was never here in the first place. As if I was never her daughter. Every trace that I was ever a part of this world will vanish. I push back the sorrowful tears since I don't want her to see me cry.

"I'll miss you, mom. I love you too." I say as I let go. As I watch her step inside the taxi, I let a despairing tear roll down my blistering cheek. I didn't think it would hurt this much to say goodbye to her.

"This is your goodbye. You won't be here when she returns." She waves a hand out the window and I try to capture this moment. The last moment I saw her. I just hope that she can be as happy as she seems when she returns to the life she had before I came.

*Hey! I just wanted to leave a note saying thank you to everyone who has been reading my story and has gotten this far. I try to update every week and as much as I can. I'm just really busy with college. It is hard to find the time to write. Don't forget to let me know what you guys think! :) *
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