“Aric didn’t…he didn’t rape me.”
“You said you didn’t remember anything like that,” she clarified gently. “I would think it would be unlikely for it to be him, based on the stage of your pregnancy. But if it happened at the beginning of your captivity, it wouldn’t be wholly impossible.”
I was pretty sure Aric hadn’t forced himself on me. To be honest, he’d seemed pretty disgusted by humans, especially me. But toward the end, I’d thought he started to respect me, as messed up as that was. If I hadn’t been able to kill him when I did, I had a horrible, sinking feeling that this conversation might be different.
I shook my head. “It’s not him.”
Luce’s gaze met mine. “Then the King is the father. Or possibly someone else?”
The breath I exhaled punched out of me. “There’s no one else. It has to be him. We had…well, we were together, and there wasn’t protection. I didn’t think it would be a concern.”
Luce didn’t move for several moments. I wasn’t even sure if she breathed, but then she swallowed and sat up straight. “It’s extremely rare for a human to become pregnant by a fae, but it happens.”
I knew that. A halfling could be born from such a union. Ivy Owens was a prime example of that—
“The prophecy.” I jolted, heart leaping into my throat. “The one that could cause the gates of the Otherworld to open—”
“You’re not a halfling,” Luce interceded calmly. “Your child most likely wouldn’t even be one.”
Yes, she was right. The prophecy that would tear open the gates between our worlds, freeing the demented Queen Morgana, required a Prince or Princess or a King or Queen to procreate with a halfling, creating a child that should never exist. I knew that. I wasn’t a halfling, but I also wasn’t exactly human anymore, was I? The King had given me the Summer Kiss, something that no one else knew. Well, no one who was alive. Aric had figured it out, but—
“Wait.” My brain had finally processed everything she’d said. “M-my child most likely wouldn’t be a halfling? It would be human?”
“No.” Luce leaned forward again, pressing the tips of her fingers together. “The child would most likely be completely fae.”
I opened my mouth, closed it, and then tried again. “How is that even possible? I’m human.” Mostly. “And he is fae. His genetics can’t cancel out mine.”
“Actually, for the King or for an Ancient, they would.”
I stared at her. “Does science mean nothing to you people?”
A faint smile appeared. “Only to a certain degree, Brighton. We are not human, and we are not bound by human science, biology, or genetics. We are far more superior than that.” A pause. “No offense meant.”
I blinked at her.
“This could explain why the pregnancy is still viable despite the trauma to your body,” Luce went on, a look of curiosity creeping across her face. “A child of a King would be incredibly strong, even at this stage and inside a human incubator.”
“Human incubator?” I repeated. “Can you please never refer to me as that again?”
“Sorry.” She dipped her chin. “I know you are more than that. Sometimes my mind is far too…clinical for the comfort of others.”
“Really?” I said dryly.
Seeming to miss my sarcasm, she nodded. “The King being the father lessens some of my concerns over what risks you’ll face. I would even be willing to suggest that the pregnancy might continue to be viable.”
Viable.
I was beginning to dislike that word. I looked down, realizing I was still wearing the fluffy white robe. “What…? I mean, will this pregnancy be different from a normal one?”
Luce appeared to think that over. “It’s hard to say. Not many Ancients have impregnated a human before. But I can tell you what a pregnancy for a fae is like.”
Unsure if I really wanted to know, I nodded anyway.
“Pregnancy terms are about the same as humans. Nine months. Not many fae are born prematurely without there being a physical cause, like an injury,” she explained. “Most fae only experience sickness during the first two or so months.”
The vomiting spells were suddenly brought to a whole new light. I’d thought it had been the trauma and my stomach adjusting to food.
“The threat of miscarriage also usually only exists in the first two to three months,” she went on. “We are extremely lucky compared to human women in that sense.”
Yes, they were.
“The progression of the fetus is relatively the same as it is for a human.” Luce loosely clasped her hands together. “Come to think of it, our pregnancies are rather uneventful compared to humans’. I imagine yours will be too.”
I slowly became unaware that my hand was pressed to my lower stomach. I hadn’t realized that I’d even placed it there. My stomach felt flat—flatter than it had ever been.
Luce studied me like I was some strange creature she’d never come into contact with before. “You’re handling the news well.”
“I am?” A brittle laugh parted my lips. “I think it’s because none of this seems real, and I… after what I’ve gone through? I don’t know. I don’t think I’ve truly processed any of this.” My gaze shifted to the closed door. “It’s not like there’s anything I can do about it.”
“There are options, Brighton.”
My head jerked back to her.
“The same ones available to human women,” she added quietly.
Shock flickered through me. Not because of what she was suggesting. I was relieved to hear that fae women had a choice, but I was stunned that she would even bring it up, considering who the father was.
But then I thought of how her face had paled when she first asked if the King could be the father. “What will happen if the King doesn’t take a Queen?”
The only visible reaction was the tension around Luce’s mouth. “He would be dethroned, and since he’s ascended to the throne already, his brother would not be able to take it. We would be without a King.”
“And the entire Court would fail—would become vulnerable to the Winter fae,” I said.
Luce inhaled sharply through her nose and then nodded. “It would be very…catastrophic for all if that were to happen.”
Tatiana hadn’t lied.
Then again, I hadn’t thought she had.
“Is that why you’re telling me I have options?” I asked, knowing that Luce had no idea that Caden had already ended his engagement with Tatiana. “Because the child and I might get in the way of Caden marrying a fae?”
Her eyes widened slightly. “I’m letting you know you have options because, as a healer that is my duty. What I personally feel has no bearing on what you decide to do.”
I believed her. Luce seemed too, as she said, clinical “But do you think it will get in the way?”
“What I think is not a part of my duty, Brighton.”
“But what is happening could impact your future,” I persisted.
She looked away, lips pressing into a flat line. She was quiet for so long that I didn’t think she was going to answer. “I believe that our King knows how important it is to the entire Court. He will not fail us.”