Chapter 371: Until We Meet Again
Elder Loujt shakes his head firmly. "No, Your Highness. They cannot be wrong."
"But how do you ex—"
"Your Highness." He cuts her off sharply. "The records cannot be wrong. They are the life’s work of our ancestors, people who were trying to prepare us for what is coming. To protect this world."
Sonia closes her mouth and presses her lips together.
Elder Loujt sighs. "Although, I must admit, Linus and Liam Monfort are not what I expected of a Monfort."
Sonia gives him a look. "We have never known any Monforts except Linus and Liam."
"We chose to keep our distance, Your Highness."
"Yes, I know that. What I do not understand is why. That is what bothers me." Sonia says it plainly.
"Elder, we have been taught to stay away from the Monforts our entire lives. But I have never been told the full reason. Only that Magnus Monfort betrayed the Great El Dhaerith, my ancestor. That is all. And it happened more than five thousand years ago." She finally says what has been sitting in her chest.
"Your Highness —"
"No. This time, you listen to me." She does not raise her voice, but there is something in it that stops him. "I have always tried to follow our teachings wholeheartedly. But I have just found out that at least one of them may not be entirely correct. I —"
"Your Highness, you must be careful." Elder Loujt cuts her off for the second time, and his tone carries genuine warning.
"Our teachings came from our ancestors. They cannot simply be wrong. Things are rarely as straightforward as they appear. I agree, yes, Linus and Liam do not seem to be what we feared. But we cannot conclude from two people that all Monforts are the same. We must look at the full record. And Your Highness, you will understand the reasons when you become Vaelin Leader."
Sonia rolls her eyes. "And that will not happen until I can defeat Elder Maer in a challenge. When exactly is that supposed to happen? Elder Maer is extraordinarily powerful. Is the condition not designed to ensure I never become leader at all?"
Elder Loujt chuckles. "One day, I suppose."
"Right. Like never." Sonia pouts and picks up her pace, pulling ahead of him.
Elder Loujt can only shake his head.
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Two days have passed since the sun returned to Solarys.
Things at the Monfort residence have been quiet. All of Rhaenas are resting and recovering well. Theo woke up two hours after passing out, and the moment he did, everyone immediately put a resting order in place and refused to let him out of bed.
A nurse from the hospital came and administered a blood transfusion. After just one bag, his complexion had improved enough that Leila allowed him to sit up. The condition, however, was firm.
"But under no circumstances are you leaving this room, Thea."
Theo followed the order without argument and stayed in his room for two full days before being cleared to step out.
Today is that day. And the reason he is allowed out at all is because Thea’s parents are leaving for Arvion, taking Arthur and Julian with them.
Leila has been moving since early morning, checking and rechecking everything, going over lists she has already gone over more than twice, until Maurice’s patience has reached its natural limit.
"Leila. Everything is ready. You have been checking since yesterday and nothing has changed. Most of the equipment is already on its way to the estate. The hospital is sending a doctor and a nurse to travel with us. Lucas and his medical team will be waiting at the airport. It is all arranged." He says it steadily.
Leila sighs. "I know, I know. I just cannot help it."
Maurice smiles faintly. "You need to pace yourself. This is only the beginning. When the doctors and nurses are gone, we will still be there for him. If we spend everything we have right now, we will not last."
Leila looks at her husband, eyes glistening. "I know. You are right. I know." She takes a slow breath. "Okay. Yes. I need to relax." She sits down.
She is back on her feet before she has fully settled. "I need to check on something." She disappears down the hall.
A quiet chuckle comes from the direction of the patio door.
Maurice turns around. Linus is standing there, both hands in his pockets.
Maurice gets up immediately and crosses to greet him. "Good morning, Linus. I did not expect you here."
He is smiling broadly. The two of them have been friends for years, born out of the fact that their wives have been close since long before either of them came into the picture. At first, Maurice had been wary of Linus. Deeply so. Insecure, if he is being honest with himself.
Linus is everything Maurice is not. A natural businessman. A man who commands a room without trying. Even physically, they are quite different. Maurice had almost lost Montrose Corporation when things turned bad, and if Arthur had not stepped in the way he did, it would have been gone. He had always been quietly aware of the gap between them.
Over the years he had come to understand that Linus was not the person he had feared. But it was only in the last few days, living in his guesthouse, watching him with his family and with Rhaenas and with Theo, that Maurice had seen the real Linus. And he has to admit, quietly and without reservation, that he likes him very much.
No matter how full Linus’s schedule is, he has found time every day to stop and talk to Maurice. Even if only for five minutes.
Last night he had said he might not make it this morning, but that he would be at the airport to see them off without fail.
"I know. But I suppose I could not let it go either." He chuckles. "In that way, I am not so different from Leila."
Both men laugh.
Leila appears in the kitchen doorway and smiles when she sees Linus. "Good morning, Linus. Thank you for everything you have done for us. We would not have managed any of this without you."
"Yes, you would have. I have no doubt about that." Linus waves it off. "And to be honest, I am only helping because I did not want Miranda to be upset with me."
Everyone laughs.
"I cannot stay long. I came to let you know that the plane is ready. The hospital just called and their team is prepared as well."
"You did not have to come in person to tell us that, Linus." Leila smiles.
"It seems all we can say to you is thank you." Maurice adds.
"Please. Do not feel indebted to me. If anything, I should be thanking you." Linus says, and he means it. "If it were not for you two, Miranda would not have survived that mall sprinkler incident. Claudia would not be the person she is at work right now. And Liam..." He pauses.
"Liam would still be keeping his distance from us." He finishes quietly.
"That is nonsense. Both of your children are wonderful and we did not do a thing. They came to us as they were." Leila shakes her head.
"Perhaps. But the reason they are who they are is because of your children. And you raised them well. Both of you." Linus says it plainly and sincerely.
Leila glances at Maurice. She is very proud of her children and she cannot quite hide how much it means to hear it said out loud.
They share a quiet smile, all three of them.
"Where is Miranda? Did she not come with you?" Leila asks.
"She does not know I am here. She thinks I have gone to the office. Which I will, shortly." He pauses. "She also asked me to tell you that she is coming to Arvion with you. She wants to help, she will not take no for an answer, and she is currently packing."
He looks at Leila.
Leila laughs. "That sounds exactly like her. We will take very good care of her."
Linus nods. "Thank you."
He straightens. "I have to go. I will see you at the airport."
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Several hours later, in the VVIP lounge of Lor’en International Airport, everyone is gathered and waiting.
"They are here." Linus hangs up and pockets his phone.
Everyone gets to their feet and makes their way to the tarmac. The Monfort private ambulance arrives at the same time they do.
The plane waiting for them has been modified specifically for this journey, every piece of medical equipment that might be needed during transport already installed and secured. Solarys General Hospital had made no secret of how impressed they were when they inspected it, and had already expressed interest in acquiring something similar.
The back of the ambulance opens. The medical personnel jump out and begin their work immediately. Arthur is transported in a crystal-clear, coffin-like medical case, and it takes a moment before the others recognize what it actually is.
Julian’s work. He had modified Arthur’s personal Horizon Pod to accommodate his condition, insisting that this was the only way Arthur should travel.
"In case of a plane emergency, the Pod will detach and fly itself back to Arvion independently. It will automatically contact Lucas the moment it does. It is the safest way for him to travel." Julian had explained, and no one had argued with him.
Julian stands beside the Pod before it is loaded onto the plane, running his checks one last time.
Arthur lies inside, perfectly still. He looks peaceful. He does not look like someone in a coma. He looks, as he always has since that night, like someone who has simply decided to sleep and has not yet decided to stop.
And according to the doctors, that is not far from the truth.
Every examination, run multiple times by multiple teams, has returned the same diagnosis. Arthur Montrose is sleeping. Deeply, unusually, inexplicably. But sleeping.
They still cannot explain why he will not wake up.
The Pod glides aboard the plane on its own and everyone else follows behind it.
"Thea, you need to take good care of yourself. This is the first time you will be on your own, without your brothers, without me and your father. Julian will come back to Solarys as soon as he can, but in the meantime..." Leila is holding Theo’s hands and cannot quite make herself let go.
She has been so consumed with Arthur that she has barely stopped to look at her youngest, and the weight of that is settling on her now, here on the tarmac, with the plane already waiting.
"Mother, I am not really alone. Uncle Linus is here, and Claudia and Liam. Maeve and Alicia too. I have people around me. Please go without worrying. Focus on Arthur. I will be more than fine." Theo smiles and squeezes her hands gently.
Leila’s eyes glisten. She pulls him into a long hug and holds on.
"Leila." Maurice murmurs beside her. "This is not goodbye."
Leila nods against Theo’s shoulder. "Okay. Okay." She sniffles and steps back, cupping Theo’s face in both hands for a moment before letting go. "I will see you soon."
Maurice steps forward and wraps his arms around Theo, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "Thank you." He whispers it directly into his ear.
He steps back.
There is something in his eyes that sends a cold feeling straight through Theo’s chest.
He knows! How?!
Before Theo can fully process it, the plane door has closed. Maeve’s hand finds his arm and she guides him gently away from the tarmac.
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Chapter 371 marks the midpoint of Season 3.
Rhaenas has weathered the storm. But another challenge is already on its way.
I am taking two days off and will return with Chapter 372 on July 1st. See you then.
-N Xuanli-
