Lincoln pulls Cissy’s list from the folds of his tunic and hands it over to the Arbiter.
For a long minute, the Arbiter scans the sheet. Her face returns to looking unreadable again. I start to wonder if I’ve pushed my luck too hard.
At last she lowers the sheet to address the room once more. “I agree as well.”
I raise my fist. “Yes!”
The Arbiter all-out smiles. It’s a good look on her. “Let’s get you wed and crowned. This is one party I shall not miss.”
Wedding and coronation? Yes, please. Not that I’m real Queen material, but I want whatever gets us out of this crazy cycle between Aldred and Connor. The Arbiter’s plan sounds like a winner.
Lincoln and I waste no time proceeding out of the courtroom. Behind us, there follows the Arbiter and our families. Everyone looks jubilant except for Connor, who is predictably mopey.
Meh. He’ll get over it.
Besides, there’s too much of a genuine happy vibe in the air to let Connor get me down. Now this is what I was missing before the wedding started the first time. At this point, my heart feels so light, it’s like I could fly up to Heaven.
I turn to Lincoln and grin. “Let’s do this.”
Chapter Thirty
Once again, I stand in the stone corridor that leads to the Chapel. I still want to call it an arena, but whatever. It’s not like I’ll be hanging out in this place for long. It feels like a flock of demonic butterflies have taken up residence in my stomach, and not in a bad way. I am part demon myself, after all.
Dad looks me over and grins. “You look stunning.”
I glance over my gown. There are now a few green goo stains from skewering Drusus. I like them. They say “warrior bride” to me.
Dad’s mouth winds into that million-watt grin. “I have a surprise for you. There wasn’t time to tell you about it before.”
My eyes widen. “What?”
“I brought in the Heavenly choir. They were going to sing along with Pachelbel’s Canon as a surprise. However, in light of things, I thought you might want a change of tune.”
“They’ll sing whatever I choose?”
“Certainly.”
At this point, only one song will do. “No question. ‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want’ by the Rolling Stones…Or would be the angels be insulted with that?”
“Are you kidding? Do you know how many human rock stars made it to Heaven?”
“Not really.”
“More than you’d expect. Normally, they have no one to perform for. This request will make their eternity.” Dad’s eyes light up angel blue. “Excuse me. One minute and I’ll get them set up.”
As Dad steps off into the darkness of the corridor, Cissy approaches me. Her bouquet of white flowers is now a squished-up mess. She lifts what’s left of the blooms. “Sorry about this. It got stomped on a bit in the commotion.”
“Meh. I like it better that way. It’s more me, really.”
“I should have known.” Cissy leans back, eyeing me from head to toe. “You’re going down the aisle with some demonic goo on your dress.”
I grin from ear to ear. “Awesome, right?”
“Only you, Myla.”
“Fucking A.”
Cis wraps me in a huge hug. “I’m so glad to be here. No one deserves a happily ever after more than you and Lincoln.”
“Not sure a happily ever after is in the cards for us.”
Cissy’s mouth pops open. “You don’t mean that.”
“Sure, I do. ‘Happily ever after’ is a whole lot of boring, if you ask me. Whatever happens next for my guy and me, one thing’s for sure. It’ll be exciting.”
All of a sudden, the voices of the heavenly choir start to echo into the corridor. I peep into the Chapel. All the angels stand along the walls, their white robes gleaming bright.
“I saw her today at the reception
A glass of wine in her hand
I knew she would meet her connection
At her feet was her footloose man
No, you can’t always get what you want
You can’t always get what you want
You can’t always get what you want
But if you try sometimes you find
You get what you need”
Cissy listens intently. Her mouth is all screwed up, which is her “I can’t believe what I’m hearing” face. “You didn’t ask them to sing that.”
“Hells yes, I did.” Cissy is so easy to shock it’s awesome. I bob my eyebrows up and down. “Kick ass, am I right?”
Cissy bursts out laughing. The mood in the hallway turns downright sunny and awesome. “Absolutely.”
Dad reenters the corridor. “That’s our cue.” He offers me his elbow.
I wrap my hand around his upper arm. “Let’s go.”
Dad pauses and gives me a meaningful look. That’s his mischievous face, right there. I can tell because he’s arched his right brow. “In case you’re wondering, I have some pretty neat dance moves.”
My mouth falls open. “You do not.” He’s not going to dance down the aisle at my wedding, is he?
In reply, Dad starts working his hips. Despite the fact that he’s my father, I have to admit that he’s pretty smooth dancer. And that’s no small feat either, considering the man is still wearing golden armor. It’s beyond cool.