Chapter 134: If loving her makes me a traitor

Moira was seated in the corner as always, taking into account everything that had happened that day before she retired for the night.

She scribbled on paper with an ink feather, her weathered face in deep concentration on her work, when someone knocked on the door once, and then the door opened and she walked in.

The moment Moira looked up and saw it was her daughter, she glared once again. Her face twisted into a frown as she looked back down at her work and continued, ignoring her.

Annelise came over and stood directly in front of her, fidgeting her fingers. There was no other way to say this than to give it to her bluntly, "Mother, I’m leaving again, and I have no idea when I would be back,"

Moira continued to write, completely ignoring her daughter. The only indication or reaction was the subtle tightening of her grip on the feather.

"We can’t stay here any more. It’s not safe. Nowhere is safe,"

Moira remained silent.

Annelise then bent down till both knees were on the floor, and her fingers gripped the front of the table as she stared at her mother’s angry face, "You need to try and understand things from my perspective, mother," She said softly, "Della needs someone by her side. And I want to be that someone. She—" Annelise dragged out a small but hard breath, "She didn’t do any of those things. I don’t believe, and I have never believed it. I won’t judge her like everyone else has done, and like you and a few others have done because of what... Malachi’s past mate did,"

Moira looked ready to snap at any moment.

In fact, Annelise was surprised she hasn’t yet said anything.

"I really wish you’d understand," Annelise’s expression fell, and her eyes became cloudy from the tears in them. Then, she straightened back up with her shoulders squared, ready to take her leave now, "Goodbye, Mother. I love you,"

She’d only taken two steps away from her mother’s strangled voice asked, "I don’t want to lose you!"

Anne felt her heart almost stop, and she held her breath and just kept trembling in her shoes.

"A lot of people know that you’ve been accompanying the Rotblood all this time, and they’ve probably already branded you as a traitor," Moira slowly stood up from her seat, "Is that...who you want to be instead of living a normal life? A traitor?"

Life would never be the same.

Once it’s started, only a miracle would make it stop. She’d seen this coming already. Stepping out to help Della that night had changed everything, and she knew there would be so much hardship to overcome being Della’s companion.

But honestly, she wouldn’t have had it any other way.

Della deserved the happiness and sense of safety she got. She deserved to have someone she could lean on.

Whenever someone was being kind to her, no matter how little, Della would look at the person like they were giving her the whole world, or she would even look like the most confused person on earth.

That woman hadn’t just been broken and made to believe that nothing good would ever choose, she had been starved of kindness her entire life that even the smallest act of love felt like a miracle she didn’t know how to hold.

And no matter how big the risk was proving to be, Annelise couldn’t just sit idle and watch. She would rather drive a fist into her chest and pull out her heart than sit here and watch the world trample on a helpless, innocent person.

Annelise’s lips trembled, but she didn’t look away, "If being a traitor means refusing to abandon someone who has done nothing wrong, then yes, Mother."

Moira’s face fell.

"Then that’s what I’ll be." Her voice cracked, but she steadied it, "I’d rather be a traitor with a clean conscience than a good daughter who watched an innocent woman die because everyone else decided she deserved it." She swallowed hard, tears finally slipping down her cheeks.

"You taught me to heal people, Mother. You taught me that every life matters. So how can you ask me to turn my back on hers now?" She took a trembling breath.

"I’m sorry if choosing her means losing the life you wanted for me. But I can’t save everyone, and I can’t fix what happened to Della. The only thing I can do is make sure she doesn’t have to face the rest of it alone." Her eyes softened, "So if the world wants to call me a traitor for that... then I’ll wear the name."

"But she did all those bad things!!" Moira cried, her voice also shaking, "And she admitted to them! She connived with the enemies and buried Moonfire under the altar, and she sabotaged the banner with Moonfire too! She did all that, so...why?"

"Because I know her!" Annelise’s voice cracked so loudly that Moira fell silent, "I know what she said, Mother. I know what everyone heard her admit. But I also know Della."

She wiped furiously at her tears, "And I know there is no way that woman would willingly hurt hundreds of people. I know it because I’ve watched her apologise for things that weren’t even her fault. I’ve watched her cry because she thought she’d inconvenienced someone. I’ve watched her make people smile from the bottom of her heart."

"That doesn’t prove—"

"Then don’t tell me she is Katherine!"

Moira went completely still.

"You all keep looking at Della and seeing her. You see what Katherine did, and you decide Della must have the same darkness inside her. But she isn’t Katherine, Mother. She isn’t her!" Her voice broke this time, and she heaved a little before she continued, "Maybe Della really did admit to those things. Maybe she really did stand there and say she was guilty. But I refuse to believe she actually did, because someone like her who grew up terrified of everyone and everything wouldn’t suddenly decide to destroy an entire wedding!"

Moira’s lips parted, but nothing came out.

"I don’t know what happened that night," Annelise whispered. "I don’t know why she confessed. But I know Della. And until I have a reason to believe otherwise, I’m going to trust the woman I’ve actually met instead of the monster everyone else decided she was before they ever bothered to know her."

And with that, Annelise walked out the door and slammed the door shut behind her.

She wiped her tears outside the door and waited there for a few seconds so her breath would come back to normal.

Her hands were still shaking, and she looked down at them.

She was scared.

More than anything, she was scared.

She was terrified, indeed.

Walking down this path, she was really terrified that chills clamped down on her bones.

But she would be damned even more and would never forgive herself if she ever let Della do this alone.

Anne blew out long exhales, her chest rising and falling slowly till her composure was completely back.

Then, she headed to where she had dropped off Della.