A/N: I know you guys probably hate me for the last chapter, but I want you to know that it's always hard to eliminate characters, no matter how they're eliminated. I loved Lady Maddy just as much as you guys did, but her death was not in vain. I would never do something like this without a very explicit purpose, and the storm her passing left in its wake has only just begun. What has happened and what will happen next will change the future of Kaden's Selection. I love you guys so much, and I hope that you'll keep sticking with this story despite what's happened.

Chapter 36

Kaden wasn't sure where he was.

He woke up on the ground, but not the grass. He could've sworn he was in the garden last he checked, but the ground he woke up on was bright white and strangely warm for what he assumed was stone. It freaked him out, so he got up quickly, something that was strange as well. His arm wasn't hurting, but he was sure that he'd landed on it the wrong way. He'd heard the crunching. But he was perfect...too perfect. Even his shoes were meticulously shined, his suit just as crisp as it was coming out of his closet in the morning.

Looking around, Kaden saw nothing in sight. Literally, nothing. It was just himself in the middle of a giant room of bright white. There didn't even look to be any walls.

Was this heaven? Was this hell? Something in between?

And then he heard laughter. Familiar laughter. Coming from the distance.

He walked towards it, not sure what to expect. However, the further he walked, the more color started to seep into the white. Hues of green and purple, pinks and blues started to mix into the picture. Notes of music reached his ears, the sound of violin strings playing a classical piece that he recognized, but he couldn't quite figure out from where. He could smell the perfume of flowers, and a soft breeze of warm air hit him.

Soon enough, the whole image came into focus.

Kaden was back in the gardens, but it was late springtime. Flowers were blooming in every direction, the palace standing proudly behind him. There were people scattered about, a large amount for a celebration. Their mouths moved like they were deep in conversation, but Kaden couldn't hear anything, like they were only mouthing their words. No one paid him any mind, so he weaved through the people, making his way to the rows and rows of pristine white lawn chairs that faced a bridal arch. Under that arch stood a man and a woman with both of their backs to Kaden, a priest mouthing their vows. There were only a few people actually watching the wedding: a single couple sitting in the very front row.

This wedding...this wedding was familiar. He knew this wedding, or at least he thought he did. Everything was the same and yet, everything was different.

He was going to walk up to the arch when something ran into his legs, knocking him off kilter. Or rather, someone. It was the first time he was acknowledged by anyone in this bizarre gathering, but the person who peered up at him was not who Kaden was expecting to see when he looked down.

"Osten?" Kaden asked, shocked to see his brother shrunk back to his ten-year-old self. Little Osten looked up at Kaden with wide eyes, just as shocked to see his brother grown up. They must've spent ages just staring at one another, wondering what was going on.

"Osten, sweetie, come over here!"

Kaden's head immediately snapped up, watching little Osten run away from him and into the arms of their mother.

Kaden's heart stopped.

She looked just as she did the last time he saw her. Her smile radiating in the sunlight, red hair starting to grey at the temples, blue dress rippling in the breeze. But this wasn't what she looked like on this particular wedding day. Today she was supposed to be wearing purple. Eadlyn had a fit about it. Everyone had to wear purple, even the groomsmen had to wear purple vests and ties. It was a pain, but they did it, because Eadlyn was finally getting married.

That didn't keep Kaden from stumbling down the aisle, desperate to get close to his mother. It didn't matter that she wasn't the same as his memory. She was there, and that had to mean something. Maybe he was wrong; maybe this was exactly how things were.

"Kaden, what kept you?" his mother asked as soon as he was in front of her.

He couldn't find the words to speak through all of his emotions. It was overwhelming, to hear her speak his name, like nothing had changed. Nothing sounded more perfect to his ears. He'd give anything to have her say it again.

"Your father and I have been worried sick. We thought you wouldn't make it," his mother continued, and that niggling feeling of doubt crept back in. They were both too old for this memory. Shouldn't she notice? And where did Osten go?

"Make it?" Kaden repeated, the only two words he managed to form from all the chaos in his mind.

"To your sister's wedding," his mother replied, laughter lacing her words in a way that made Kaden's heart ache. He'd forgotten what her laugh sounded like. "Come on, let's sit. It's almost time to start."

"But they're already up at the arch," Kaden pointed out. His mother only shushed him, leaning over to lean on his father, her expression equivalent to that of a lovesick puppy. His father didn't so much as blink when they sat down, his expression a plastered on smile. They were both focused on the mute priest who had yet to even take a breath. It was all just so bizarre.

"This is wrong...this isn't what happened..."

"Come on Kaden, can't you just be happy for our sister? She's finally doing something right," Ahren asked, smiling unnervingly. Where the hell did he come from? He wasn't there a moment ago. Kaden was unsettled, and scooted closer to his mother.

"That will be you one day," his mother said, looking down on him with those smiling blue eyes. His father looked over at him, nodding enthusiastically along.

This wasn't right. Nothing about this was right.

Kaden turned his attention back to his sister and her groom, but as they turned around, he realized they were not the same people. Instead, he was faced with himself, and hand in hand with his doppelgänger was Lady Maddy. The priest had vanished, and so had the rest of the guests. Kaden turned around to realize that he was alone on the bench.

Somehow, he couldn't get up. It was like he was fixed to the bench, stuck to witness this crazy show. The skies started to turn grey and thunder rolled in the background. The white sashes were snapping and waving in the wind, but the couple under the arch didn't seem to notice it.

Instead, Lady Maddy looked straight at Kaden, her face riddled with confusion and surprise.

"Jack?" she called, her voice barely carrying over to him.

That was wrong. She wasn't supposed to say that. That wasn't her line.

But then the whole garden exploded in a vision of fire, pulling Kaden under in a sea of red.

Kaden shot up, his chest heaving. It was like he couldn't breathe, his lungs constricting around themselves. His entire being was on edge, coiled and tensed, ready for a fight that he'd already lost.

"Easy, easy," Allegra was at Kaden's side, pushing gently to get him to lie back down on the bed. Kaden complied, too weak to stay up much longer, his momentary rush of adrenaline passing quickly. "You took quite the beating."

Forcing himself to calm down, Kaden recognized his surroundings. He was in the infirmary, lying on a bed. The pressure he felt in his arm was the IV he was hooked up to, probably numbing the area of his chest wrapped in a thick layer of gauze. The infirmary must've been packed, his area cordoned off by makeshift curtains. As memories of the garden party came back to him, he understood why.

He was lucky to be alive.

"And you..." Kaden replied roughly, reaching a hand up to run his thumb across the long gash carved into the side of her cheek. It was deep and a bright, angry red held together by two butterfly stitches. She flinched as his fingers brushed the wound, and guilt crawled up Kaden's throat.

"It's a good thing I'm a princess. Someone will have to marry me for my title if not for my good looks," Allegra replied, but the joke fell flat.

"Are you hurt anywhere else?" Kaden asked, trying to see as much of her as he could from his limited view.

"I'm fine, unlike you," Allegra sighed as she sat back down in a chair next to his bed, her expression riddled with worry. "You fractured your wrist and two ribs, but the worst is the burns on your back. The nurses did all they could, but they say that the scars will be permanent."

"My father had scars on his back. I'll be fine," Kaden replied as he came to terms with the information, his thoughts running morbid places. It seemed as though he would have more in common with his father than he anticipated. Kaden was only a premature death away from being his duplicate.

"Don't do that," Allegra said, melancholy lacing her words. "Don't pass this off like it's nothing. Don't pretend this isn't hurting you."

Kaden didn't reply to that, if only because he wasn't sure what he was feeling. The shock still hadn't worn off. This still didn't feel real. How could it? What happened was all of his worst fears rolled into one, but that didn't stop new ones from popping up.

"Where's Osten?" Kaden asked, morbid thoughts rolling into his mind one after the other, panic rising.

"He's fine. He's safe in his room, under house arrest for the time being," Allegra assured, trying to calm him. "Everyone who was playing croquet wasn't even in the line of fire. I only got this because I did the dumb thing and tried to be brave," she reached up to touch her face, gesturing to the cut.

"Brave?"

"People don't like being whacked over the head by mallets...makes them angry."

Her smile was wry, but it didn't reach her eyes. Kaden still didn't know what she was talking about, but he didn't care. She was there and safe. One less person he had to worry about for the time being.

"Your ladies are doing fine," Allegra continued, crossing her legs and smoothing down the ragged ends off her dress. "A lot of them have scrapes and scratches. Nothing serious. They're all terrified though. They don't know what's going on, and no one is telling them anything."

"Has anyone told you anything?" Kaden asked.

"No. They've been waiting for you to wake up before they release any formal statements."

"The Council?" Kaden asked for clarification, and Allegra nodded.

"They're waiting right outside. Do you want me to go get them?"

Kaden nodded, trying to sit up and wincing when he rubbed his back the wrong way. He fought the pain and got the rest of the way up, sure to catch hell from whatever nurse came to change his bandages. But his physical appearance wasn't as important as what had happened. Whatever he'd gone through, others had it worse.

"Your Majesty, thank God you are alright," Sir Bloomsdale rushed in, holding onto his chest. His display was touching, but Kaden was not in the mood for pleasantries. He needed answers.

"This was the anarchists," Kaden stated, and immediately a weight settled down on the room. The rest of the council members filed inside in solemn silence. Sir Bloomsdale looked like he had aged ten years, his face set in deep lines.

"Yes, we have strong reason to believe that. They left their mark all over the palace walls."

"How far did they get?" Kaden asked, wondering how much of his home those animals had tainted. He had heard the sound of shattering glass, so he assumed that they had found their way inside somehow.

"Not past the first floor. Repairs are being made as we speak, and security is being tripled. Not that there is anyone left to protect. Nearly all of our esteemed guests have left. Only a handful remain."

"The summit?"

"Has been called off to be reconvened at another time," Sir Bloomsdale replied, and Kaden's heart sunk further. His one chance to make his mark on history, and everyone left his home fearing for their lives. He couldn't blame them. He didn't know why he thought having the summit in Illéa was a good idea anyway. It was far too dangerous, too reckless. He should've known. And now people were dead because of his mistakes.

"How many..." Kaden started, unable to get the rest of the words out.

"How many what, Your Majesty?"

"How many were killed in the attack?" How many people are dead because of me?

"Fifty total were killed in the incident. That includes the guards, palace staff and the people in the gardens," one of the council members said like he was rattling off statistics. The voice made Kaden flinch, how detached it sounded. Like those lives were nothing.

Fifty dead.

That number was astounding, and it made him ill.

"And the Israeli Prime Minister," Kaden added in, the memory of the man without his head forever seared into his nightmares.

"Unfortunately yes. We did lose diplomats. No royalty, thank God, but two members of the Russian party, the Israeli Prime Minister, and Princess Elsa's translator," Sir Bloomsdale said, sounding a little more affected than the other man.

"And Lady Maddy?" Kaden finally asked. The one question that had been on his mind yet been too afraid to ask. "She was with the bomber when he was going to pull the trigger, but I couldn't see...I couldn't get to her...did she...?"

There was hope in his voice. He knew it, Sir Bloomsdale knew it, and the whole damn council knew it. Maybe it was foolish to live in denial, but crazier things had happened than surviving an explosion. And this was the girl who told him to always hang onto hope, who deserved more than Kaden could give her. This was the girl who stuck her nose in books and dreamed of better things, who got Kaden to believe in those things as well.

"Your Majesty...the Lady Maddy was at the epicenter of the explosion. We didn't include her body in the count because she had no body to find. I'm so sorry, Your Majesty, but she is gone."

The truth was a hard pill to swallow.

It made the rest of the world fade away, all noise turning to static in his ears except for that single damning statement playing on repeat.

She's gone, she's gone, she's gone.

He couldn't accept that. Not again. Not after all that's he'd been through, after all he had lost.

"Get out," Kaden said, his voice shaking. He didn't know what he was feeling, but it wasn't good. If everyone didn't get away from him right now, he was going to lose it.

"Your Majesty, we still have much to discuss about what to do next, and-"

"I said GET OUT!" Kaden screamed, causing all of the council members to take a step back from the bed.

A few councilmen immediately scuttled away, but Sir Bloomsdale stayed behind to escort the rest out, casting one last pitying glance at Kaden before shutting the curtains. He could hear Sir Bloomsdale talking to Allegra, convincing her to leave him alone, and that was probably wise.

Kaden didn't want to see anyone, not for a long while.