Glancing at myself, I grimaced and grinned. I was alive and I was back. The rafters were no longer a comfortable place to be, which was fine. I had no intention of watching anymore. It was my turn to take center stage. I jumped and I flew letting rage carry me forward. I landed with an ungraceful thud, but I didn't give a shit. Most of these fuckers wouldn't even be alive to talk about this evening when all was said and done.
Chapter 20
Teaching your child that good conquers evil may seem like a good idea. However, this doesn't always hold true. Most of the time it does, but not without a massive clusterfuck. Also, do not use the word clusterfuck around your child. This will cause problems when he goes to kindergarten. Trust us. We know.
"Who in the Hell are you?" The Corrine screamed in fury as Ethan quickly moved to my side. He dropped his Bon Jovi disguise and his fangs emerged from his gums. The crowd gasped, but none louder than The Corrine.
"Ethan?" she said in a little girl voice that made me want to gag. "You've come back to me." She sighed in ecstasy, fell to her knees and kissed his feet.
"Get up, skank. He's not yours," I said as I kicked her away.
"Kill her," The Corrine screeched from the floor.
Oh my Hell, I did not have time for this shit. As an army of Fairies advanced on me, I waved my arm violently. Thousands of Fairies froze and went airborne, but that wasn't the best part. Nope. All the male Fairies sported double Ds, press-on nails, frizzy hair and a full face of garish makeup. The female Fairies now were the proud owners of unibrows, mustaches, long gnarly leg hair and tiny penises. The Fairies that weren't frozen midair screamed in terror and ran like the Devil was on their heels from the ballroom. It was all kinds of awesome and my Mini Elves shrieked with glee.
I turned to The Corrine and curtsied—just like Martha and Jane. She deserved no less than me pretending to take a crap on her solid gold floor. "I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Astrid and you're dead."
Her bellow of rage shook the room. She lunged at me with such hatred I took a step back. Violent magic seeped from her every pore. It was going to get ugly fast. Quickly I flicked my fingers at her, trapped her magic and froze her in a very unflattering position. Even though the hanging Fairies were mortified at their new looks I heard quite a few laughs at The Corrine's predicament. And just so she didn't feel left out I flicked my hand at her again. She now looked like the rest of her people, tiny penis and all. I turned away from her. She was the very least of my problems right now.
I needed to do something before all Hell broke loose and I knew this was the best time to get it over with. This was going to suck ass, but I wouldn't be able to go on if I didn't come clean. Not that anyone would want to hear what I had to say—I still had to say it. I turned to Ethan and gathered my courage.
"Ethan, I have to say something to you."
"What do you want to say to me, Astrid?" he asked softly as he stood next to me. His eyes turned a brilliant green. He was so very beautiful I wanted to cry.
"Don't say anything until I finish."
"I promise," he said as he watched me curiously.
Here goes nothing. "I love you, Ethan. I know that's wrong, but I needed you to know. It seems ridiculous since I've only known you for a few days, but I do." The words flew quickly and awkwardly from my mouth.
He stared up at the ceiling and my stomach plummeted to my toes. Shitshitshit, I had started this and I was going to finish it.
"I know you love your mate and I don't care that you can never love me back. Well, actually I do, but that's selfish and wrong. She's a very lucky woman and I wish you the best. Shit—honestly, I don't, but it's the polite thing to say. It's probably wrong that I'm telling you this, but I have to. I want you to know that I'm going to leave my husband when we get back to wherever we're from because it's not fair to him. It's wrong to be with a person when you love another. I hope he understands and I really hope I don't have twenty-two children. It would absolutely suck to be a single mother to that many kids. Anyway, you don't need to hear that part. That's my problem and I will deal with it."
I wasn't sure, but it looked like Ethan was laughing. He couldn't be…that was impossible. Martha and Jane looked so confused I almost giggled, but nothing was very funny at the moment. Plus, I wasn't quite done.
"When we get back, I will take my seventeen children and I'll go away—far away. You'll never have to see me again. I won't disrupt your life because I love you too much. I understand that this is mortifying for you, but I had to tell you. Please forgive me."
I looked at my feet and wanted to die. Why did I just do that? Had I truly lost my entire mind? Yes, I had. However, I felt free. I could now kill a shit load of Fairies and if I died I would have no reason to come back as a ghost and bare my soul to him. Wait. Did ghosts even exist? Slowly I glanced up, expecting to be laughed at or dismissed. What I saw shocked me to the core.
Ethan closed the gap between us and pressed his lips to my forehead. "You love me even though you don't know who I am to you," he marveled as he took my face in his. "You are my miracle and I don't care if your memory never comes back. We will make new ones together. You are mine, Astrid. You always have been and you always will be."
I was as confused as Martha and Jane at this point. Did he love me too? How was that possible? "What about your wife? You have a wife," I stuttered as I pressed my cheek to his hand. It felt so perfect—so right.