05-03-2021, 11:12 PM
OOC: And thus we reach the end of “The Dark Side of the Sun”. Not sure if this has been my longest arc but it’s been a blast putting the pieces together for this near two-year finish. Posted in two parts due to length.
Frankfurt Court Center
Frankfurt, Germany
April 29th, 2021
12:32pm
A haunting silence filled the room as the three people stood there, the two women that stood together staring down the taller, lean man that stood before them. For a second, less than that if one was to be technical, Selena’s gaze shot to Deanna’s face as she stood beside her wife, trying to take in the redhead’s expression in that microcosm of time.
Deanna’s expression was set in place and her jaw was locked shut, and Selena mentally sent her thanks to Odin and the gods that, despite the, no doubt, shock at seeing her accuser once more, Deanna had stuck to the plan Talia had laid out for them, remaining silent and not giving the man anything he could use.
As for the man, Fredric Castle looked very much the same as Selena had last seen a year or so ago. Of course, he didn’t know that, for she had been in disguise with Talia at the time. Still, it was the the last time she had seen him as herself that her mind leapt to for a moment as the man stood there, dressed a simply black suit and matching tie, a contrast to Selena’s attire, as well as Deanna’s black skirt, white shirt and black ‘suit top’, choosing to go a more ‘generic’ route then Selena’s attire, which included the dark red coat she still wore over her thin frame.
Behind Fredric shuffled a shorter, larger man with thinning wisps of hair that seemed to be clinging to the man’s skull for dear life. He wore a simple gray suit and, unlike his client, who was maintain an unreadable expression, the only expression this fellow showed was irritation.
That all being said, he was immediately recognized as the same man that had helped put Deanna in prison nearly two years ago, serving the same purpose he seemed to be serving now. As he regarded the two Frost women, his whole body seemed to try and work together, like gears in a clock working one after the other in order to make the hands move, his body parts revving him up to get him to speak. Before he could utter a word, however, the door behind everyone was opened once more, allowing a young woman to stride into the room.
“Good morning, everyone.” She replied openly, gaining the attention of everyone within the room. Her hair was tied up tied in a bun and her clothes were of the same kind as Deanna’s. She held a leather binder in her hands and did not waste time moving to a seat at the table, seating herself as she set up. “I’m glad everyone could make it. Please have a seat.”
Not to the surprise of anyone, all obeyed the young woman, the Frost women sitting at one side/end of the table, while Castle and his lawyer – Selena was sure his name was Sherman or something – sat the opposite. This was, after all, the mediator of this meeting – mediations before a new trial was to be set up. The last thing either side wanted was to be problematic to her.
“So…” the young woman gazed from the Frosts to Castle and his lawyer. “As you know, my name is Cheryl and I’ve been assigned as mediator of today’s mediation proceedings. I’d like remind everyone that a civil, professional attitude is preferred and encouraged. Any disorderly conduct will be handled by security within the building. Does everyone understand?”
“Of course.” ‘Sherman’ sighed, while Fredric simply nodded. Both Selena and Deanna merely nodded their hands as well.
“Alright.” Replied Cheryl as she opened her binder, which was filled with papers, though Selena could not make out the small writing on said paper from where she sat. With a click from a black, ball-point pen, Cheryl, once more gazed around the room at the other occupants. “Who would like to start?”
“I would like to simply start-“ Sherman pointed out. “That I believe this to be a complete waste of time for myself and my client, and will add that, while we have no intention to alter our original charges against Mrs. Frost, we will now be adding courtroom charges and legal fees on top of that.”
“Assuming it goes to court.” Selena replied sharply as she sat in her seat, gaining Sherman’s surprise and attention.
“I’m sorry, but why is Mrs. Frost here? Does the defendant not have a lawyer?”
“My wife chose her own council and representative for this mediation-“
“Objection.” Sherman pointed out. “Conflict of interest! Mediator, I mean, this is a farce-“
“I remind you, Mr. Horner, that this is not a courtroom. The defendant is allowed to have council here as well be represented by whom she wishes.” Cheryl countered. “Should this go to trial, that matter may be contested, but as of here and now-“
“Very well.” Sherman sighed with a dismissive wave. “I’ll withdraw my objections. You were saying, Mrs. Frost?”
While it was a small victory at best, Selena savoured it internally, clinging to the positive feeling of victory that swelled within her chest. Under the table, she felt Deanna’s hands squeezing hers affectionately, though her face and body gave no other hint of her emotional state.
“I believe you responded perfectly, mediator.” She simply added. “Of course, I will add that it is our intention to have this end here and now without going to trial.”
No one could have missed the loud “Pffft” sound of disbelief that came from Fredric’s lips, the young man clearly not believing, for a second that such a thing was possible.
“Something to add, Mr. Castle?” Cheryl asked politely, giving away no emotion or expression that would indicate bias or personal thoughts.
“I’m just…” he sighed, reaching up to massage his forehead. “Nevermind.” He simply replied. “I’m not going to be accused of unprofessional behaviour by such desperate people.”
Oh, right! Selena’s mind laughed. He said he’s not going to be ‘unprofessional’ but he just threw a sideways insult at us, calling us ‘desperate’.
“No, no.” the Snow Queen held up her hand. “If the plaintiff wishes to express his views on the matter, we’re more than happy to give them the floor to speak.”
A split second, Castle’s eyes darted to his lawyer, who gave an imperceptible nod. Taking a deep breath, as if to steel himself, Fredric leaned over the table, his eyes glaring into Deanna mostly.
“I want to know what kind of people would continue to torment their victim as much as you have, Mrs. Frost.” He stated sharply. “I…I was just starting to get over it. I was trusting myself to date again… I was able to hold down a job… the night terrors were rarer and rarer because I thought I was done with you. That I was SAFE from you. And now… here I am, having to relive that nightmare all over again!” he took a moment for some steady breaths, as if to compose himself. “How dare you… you…Ekelhaftes Tier!”
“Hey!” Cheryl warned. “There is no need for that!”
“Forgive my client.” Sherman quickly stated, gently guiding Fredric to sit back against the chair. “But given the nature of this case, I believe you can understand his reluctance to open up old wounds and revisit them. And I must echo my client’s sentiments that this is entirely unreasonable to have the case reopened and re-tried.”
The group was silent for a moment, Deanna at a loss at what she heard. It was not so different than what had filled her ears during the initial trial, where she had been cursed in German and English as well. Slowly, her eyes glanced at her wife…
Selena had not budged, beyond her jaw clenching and her eyes narrowing.
“Since you afforded the notion to speak your mind, Mr. Castle…” she started, slowly, like a dull growl. “Do you mind granting me the same courtesy?”
Neither man replied in words, Sherman merely raising an eyebrow as Selena pushed herself out of her chair, moving away from them. “May I share with you what a true nightmare is, Mr. Castle?” she asked, her eyes gazing at the walls as she moved around the section of the room – a pale hand reaching up to caress a side or shelf as she passed it. She could almost see the arctic-blue and white lights in her mind.
“A nightmare, Mr. Castle, is lying on a slab that your jailors call ‘a bed’ every night for almost two years, not being able to hold the one you love. A nightmare is going day by day, not knowing if this is the day you get beaten up again… or worse. A nightmare is having to be told that you can’t see your children as they grow up. As they reach milestones in their young lives…”
Slowly, she turned to cast her gaze, cold and calculating, not at Deanna or the mediator or even the damn lawyer, but directly at Fredric, the tension building like a storm.
“But most of all, Mr. Castle, a true nightmare is living this hell every day and never knowing why. Never knowing why you were cast there to begin with. Never knowing why you were imprisoned. Only knowing the ticking of hours, that turn into weeks, that turn into months, that turns into years…”
Tick, tock…Tick, tock…
The sound of the clock on the wall seemed to echo louder, as if, somehow, spurned on by Selena’s words as she stood her spot.
“Ahem…” Sherman cleared his throat. “A very sad story, Mrs. Frost. While I can sympathize to your wife’s pain, to an extent, I will remind you that her issues are a result of her crimes – I will repeat – a result of her crimes. Choices she made. Now, since you and your wife are the ones that instigated this ‘new trial’, I must insist you get to the point so that we may proceed as planned.”
“I must agree with Mr. Horner.” Cheryl politely urged. “Let’s get back on track, shall we?”
Quickly, Selena nodded, moving back to her wife, drawing closer to her and able to see, subtle as it was, the effect her speech had on the young woman. Still, the Snow Queen forced herself to remain focused, reaching down to the floor to her leather bag and pulling out a simple folder. Retrieving it, she held it up for all those in the room to see.
“This is the reason that I was granted a new trial by a magistrate here in Frankfurt.”
Gracefully, she slid the folder across the table towards Sherman and Fredric, the former of the two taking it and opening it to scan the papers carefully.
“Let me tell you an interesting story.” Selena began. “A young boy in New Jersey realizes at a young age that he has a rather…special condition. He finds out that, despite his always increasing age, he manages to maintain a rather youthful visage. Lucky fellow, I’d say. I was born with hair whiter than most people at the other end of the age spectrum. But this guy decides to use this feature to his benefit-“ Selena stopped as she heard Sherman turn one of the many pages over. Castle’s eyes, on the other hand, remained locked onto Selena, as she continued.
“Things start off slow. Some misdemeanors here and there – he doesn’t really cross out onto the scene until he’s a bit older, where he manages to swindle a single mother of 43 into having sex with him. Now, the woman declares that the boy proved that he was 22 at the time, but no one believes her. And even if they do, a brief background check proves otherwise.”
“Your point?” asked Sherman, as he turned another page.
“Oh, no point. But, about a year and a half later, wouldn’t you know it? Another single mother, this one 39 years old and in Washington, is arrested and charged with sex with a minor, swearing the same thing. Naturally, the same result occurs. Fast forward five years and similar instances are popping up in Vancouver, Manchester, Tokyo, and even Budapest.”
“Again, is there a point to this?” Sherman repeated, his voice clearly showing his irritation.
“Oh there is.” Selena pressed. “In all six cases, the boys that were ‘assaulted’? Missing. Haven’t been seen since the incident. No new mailing address, phone number, social media page, nothing. It was like they disappeared off the face of the earth.”
“Selena…”
The voice was a slight whisper and had Selena been standing anywhere other than close to Deanna, she would not have heard the redhead whisper under her breath. “Look…” she barely lifted her finger to point towards Fredric, an action missed by most, but caught by Selena, who turned her head towards the object of so much pain and loss that the two of them had suffered.
Fredric’s body was still, his eyes were growing wider with each piece of information that Selena revealed – the information that had cost her the very thing that had made her a Frost in her own mind for so much of her life.
“And then we look at you, Mr. Castle.” Selena replied, eyeing Sherman. “And here, you can turn to page 34 in the folder there, Mr. Horner.” She didn’t wait for the lawyer to respond. “That’s where I find out that you moved here to Frankfurt six years ago with your mom, Gloria Castle, right?”
“Ye-yes.” Castle sharply answered.
“Right. And initially, along with your birth certificate coming from the smaller city of Schwerin, that was that and nobody looked twice. But after what I found-“
“What is all this? How did you get it?” Sherman tried to interject.
“I’ll get to that.” Selena fired back, her mind ablaze, locked on the image she was fighting for. That image of her wife standing in her bus over a month ago, tears in her eyes, telling her ‘We’re together again.’ And her vow to never lose her wife again!
With a clench of her jaw, Selena pushed further. “But looking into Schwerin, Fredric? No hospital had you on record. More than that, there was no Gloria Castle that occupied Schwerin at that time frame. And the same was said of your father, Jonas Castle.”
Selena took a deep breath, letting her words settle for a moment, but her eyes never wavering from the bastard that had stolen her wife for nearly two years.
“I could go on, but I’ll cut to the chase, Mr. Castle. You weren’t 16 when you first met my wife in that tavern in Oberwesel. You were 31…”
The quiet rage that been growing in Selena since she started, had grown into a fire, one she used to keep herself from crashing from the emotional high she was riding.
“Because those boys: James Corlett from Vancouver? Gabe Hull from Manchester? Aiden Rapsin in Tokyo? All the way to that little boy little boy in New Jersey… was you, wasn’t it, Mr. Collin Oltins?!”
There was a microsecond before Fredric spoke – a moment where he recoiled at the mention of that name, his head jerking up to glare at Selena… but it felt like an eternity to the Snow Queen.
“I’ve never heard of those people! What the hell are you getting at?” He demanded to know, a hand from Sherman the only thing keeping him in his chair.
“I agree!” Sherman spat. “This is what you have? Conjecture?! Conspiracy theories to excuse your ways despicable behaviour? A smear campaign against a young man, who has a minor, was victimized by YOUR wife?! HOW DARE YOU!!”
“People, please!” pressed Cheryl, holding her hands up.
“No!” proclaimed Sherman, pushing himself out of the chair with Castle following. “We are done here! We’re not going to give these women ANY kind of consideration! You may have swindled a magistrate, Mrs. Frost, but I can assure you that no jury will buy this wild theory without a shred of TRUE evidence! Not circumstantial!”
The two were heading to the door – Selena’s heart quickening as they did.
“Yeah, you might want to check page 102 before you go, Mr. Horner. Considering it’s not just your client who’s name is on the line now.”
It was a gamble – the only thing Selena could think of in that moment to try and stop one or both of them from leaving – because if they did, so did any chance of ending this here and now!
But Sherman did stop, his fat hand halfway towards the door handle, turning around to eye the platinum-blonde as she stood there.
“Excuse me?” he asked, eyes ablaze in, Selena had to admit, reasonable anger.
“It’s simple.” Selena stated. “You walk out that door, I still have Deanna. Until she’s found guilty again, she can stay with me on bail. She’s proven that she can be trusted to be here to make court appearances. So if that happens, we’ll still win in the end. But if you walk out that door…” she gestured to the door before them. “You walk out that door and keep yourself tied to Castle? Once he loses, it’s going to come back on you. That you aided a rapist. A con artist. And so much worse. So… before you do, I’d check page 102.”
The Snow Queen quietly held her breath as she stood there, everyone remaining still as Sherman seemed to contemplate the words spoken, and while it was only seven or eight seconds, it felt like an hour to Selena as Sherman regarded her before, with a more than audible grumble, he flipped open the folder that he had tossed onto the table, flipping pages less than ‘enthusiastically’ until he spotted the page number at the top.
Tick…tock… the clock sounded loudly in Selena’s ears, and she could not imagine what this was doing to her poor wife, who was probably fighting against speaking out every second that passed.
“What is this?” Sherman asked, turning his attention over to Selena.
“Two things that link everything together.” Selena explained. “First, credit card paths. Our lawyer tracked this down when the pieces started to fall into place-“
“You just said that there was no credit history to all those missing kids.” Sherman interjected.
“No, you’re right, there weren’t. But you’re forgetting one other part in this.” Selena stated. “Each of those boy, much like Mr. Castle here, had a, supposedly single mother. And, like those boys, said mother eventually up and vanishes, but according to those statements, not before emptying her account into another, only to be picked up by someone else.”
Immediately, Sherman’s eyes glared down at the sheets and sheets of paper trail that etched out the journey of the last near decade. From Terri Oltins to Shania Burks to Samantha Hull, all the way, after a winding and twisting path, to Gloria Castle.
“Turns out that the woman wasn’t his mother. More like girlfriend and partner in crime.” Selena concluded.
There was a moment of silence as Sherman’s head turned from Selena to the papers to Fredric to the papers and back to Selena.
“You can’t be believing this!” Fredric declared. “You’re my lawyer! I’m paying you to defend me! I’m telling you that that woman-“ he pointed a sharp finger at the quiet Deanna as she sat there. “That woman molested me! She took advantage of me! Why would I take her to trial if all I wanted was money?!”
Despite herself, Selena found herself biting her lip. “Actually, that is a good point.” She finally replied. “I’ll admit that that was the one thing I couldn’t quite grasp. Because I offered you a lot and you still pushed to take this to trial.”
“BECAUSE SHE DID IT!” yelled Fredric desperately, his face turning red. “BECAUSE SHE’S GUILTY!”
Yet, as he looked around the room and saw the eyes of all, from Selena to Deanna to Cheryl to Sherman, glaring at him, he could not find the steeled expression he had used earlier so well.
With a sigh, the large lawyer, packed up his bag before shuffling past Fredric, making his way to the door.
“Where are you going?!” Castle demanded.
Turning back to face the man, the lawyer’s face seemed to change, revealing the truth age and weariness he held.
“I believe it would be in the best interest if you sought other representation, Mr. Castle.” Was all he said before closing the door in Castle’s face, his footsteps echoing through the outside hall before it was silent.
Fredric, meanwhile, stood there in shock, his back to the women inside the room.
It took a few breaths for Selena to slow her fast-beating heart, her eyes still on the back of Castle.
“Castle.” She called out, gaining his attention as he slowly turned around. “There’s more in that folder.” She gestured towards the folder Sherman had returned to the table before departing. “More mistakes you and your girlfriend made in the last decade. Little things that link up. And I promise you, right now, there is more than enough there to prove what I’ve been saying is true. Meaning your charges on my wife? Charges regarding minors? They don’t hold.”
She paused to give the man time to digest her words.
“You have one option now.” She stated. “ Because whether you continue trying to get my wife in prison now or not, this will end up in the hands of the police. The only difference is that, in court? There will not be a doubt in anyone’s mind in who you are. You don’t? It stays more quiet, but either way, it’ going to be you that spends the next ten years or so in a Frankfurt prison!”
Despite the very clear threat, Fredric’s eyes did not deviate from the folder on the table.
“Mr. Castle?” Cheryl’s voice came clear to everyone remaining in the room, even gathering a little of Fredric’s attention, but she was met with silence for a solid two minutes.
“What do you want from me?”
The question came from as a whisper, a squeak of sound from the once proud and, as Selena remembered, smug man. But as she was about to answer, the word that came out was not her own.
“Nothing.”
Jerking her head back, eyes wide, Selena was stunned to see her wife, her Deanna, staring at the boy that had cost her nearly two years of her life, and the boy that could only stare at her.
“I can’t change what you’ve done.” She said, her voice clear but nowhere near the volume Selena had roared with. “I can’t take back what I’ve lost thanks to you… and whatever else is coming your way from your past, I can’t stop that.”
She sighed. “I know I should hate you and part of me does. Maybe I always will. All that my wife said about nightmares was absolutely true. And you have no idea what hell you put me through just for money or whatever it is you got out of this….” She bit her lower lip, but kept her eyes on Fredric. “But also gave me my little girl, Amiliah… and for that, I could not be more thankful to you.”
For the first time in, perhaps awhile, Selena could not speak. She could barely process the words coming from her wife’s lips.
“But… I just want to go home.” Her voice shook a little. “Please, just let me go home and be with my wife and my children.”
The plea left the room in silence, Fredric standing there in shock, though not moreso than Selena, but certainly for different reasons as a certain emotion begin to grow and swell within the Snow Queen’s chest.
“I’ll…I’ll drop the charges…”
Tick…tock…tick…tock.
Selena had to make sure she heard right, repeating the sound in her head over and over again until she heard Deanna gasp, her soft hands reaching out to clutch Selena’s hand.
“Very well.” Cheryl, the mediator immediately writing in her notes. “I will need you to sign this…” she turned a paper over to the Fredric, who shakingly wrote his name on it before handing it to Deanna, who eagerly signed it. That accomplished, the woman filed the paper into her folder. “You should receive a copy in your mailboxes within a few days. I should also inform you, Mr. Castle, that I am obligated to turn over the evidence to other cases that Mrs. Frost supplied to the police and that-“
Within a second, the folder containing said information was snatched off the table, Fredric Castle grabbing it and bolting for the door. On instinct, Selena grabbed her wife and dove to the ground, fearing an attack and covering her wife with her body.
“MR. CASTLE!” Cheryl called out as the man ripped open the door and ran out of the room, sprinting down the hall for all that he was worth. The mediator quickly rushed to the door, shouting in German – words Selena could not comprehend – but she did hear the loud crash and sound of a scuffle that seem to come further down the hall. Staring down, she gazed at her wife, checking over her.
“Are you alright?!” she asked.
“Winded a little from being tackled…” Deanna groaned. “I’m okay.” She added as Selena helped her up to her feet.
Together the two Frost wives moved to the door in time to see security guards on the ground, grappling with the restrained Fredric Castle, pulling him to his feet, handcuffing him, and leading him away, Cheryl only a few feet away from the Frost women, waiting as one of guards not restraining Castle gathered up the pieces of paper scattered on the ground, placing them back in the folder and handing them to Cheryl, who took them gingerly before returning to the Frost women.
“I apologize.” She stated.
“You have no reason to apologize.” Deanna assured the, slightly, frazzled mediator. “But…does this change his confession-“
“No.” Cheryl stated, holding up the signed paper both Deanna and Fredric had signed. “He has officially dropped the charges. This won’t help his case either, but in terms of you, Mrs. Frost, you’re free to go.”
Emerald eyes grew wide as Deanna’s mouth hung open in disbelief. “I’m…I’m free…completely?”
“Yes.” Cheryl smiled. “Unless you change your mind and decide to press charges for your time in prison or many spent in fines-“
Unable to say any more words, Deanna could only shake her head. “Just tell me I can go home, please…”
Cheryl was about to reply before her eyes caught sight of the taller woman standing beside Deanna, the platinum-blonde turning her wife in her arms with a bright smile.
“Deanna…” she grinned, seeing her wife’s eyes tear up as she spoke the words she wanted to say to her beloved. “We can go home.”
**************************************************
2 days later
4:11pm
All the bags were packed and placed in the car, ready to go, but it wasn’t to move the Frosts out of Oberwessel and back to Manhattan just yet. No… it would have been foolish to think that could be done so quickly, Selena thought, as she moved the last bag into the trunk and shut it, releasing a huff of breath from the exertion.
Their flight to Pittsburgh was in a few hours, the flight that would take, not only Selena, but also Deanna to “Be Careful What You Wish For”, and her match with Syren.
Be careful what you wish for… Selena had to smile at the old adage. She had certainly gotten what she wished for in Deanna’s freedom and no matter whatever came their way because of that, she would never regret wishing for it. Her match with Syren? Yes, there was a chance that she was either going to lose clean or, more likely, that Infamous would, once again and despite Mr. D.’s prompting, get involved to save their ‘golden goose’ for the umpteenth time, which would mean there was a good chance that the Snow Queen would have to eat crow, especially after she filmed her promo in the coming days –
Selena had to smile at the arguments she had written down in her laptop over the last few days regarding that promo, her mind finally allowing her to work on her job. The process had been rather cathartic for the young woman and, she could imagine, lead to some regrets if she came up short like she had in the past against opponents like her sister Regan and Xander Valentine. But, when it came to Deanna, she was not going to regret what she had given up for her wife to be with her once more. Soon, they would be back in their ‘forever home’ in Manhattan, back to the lives they had to leave behind thanks to Castle.
But, of course, it couldn’t be that easy to simply leave Oberwesel. Both women knew that when they had returned back to share the good news. Yes, the two of them could come and go as they wanted – but for their children?
No. It would not be that easy. It was still April, closing in on May. Two of the children were still in school, needing to finish up the school year…
A shiver of excitement shot through Selena. While Amiliah was still a bit too young to understand, David had been thrilled to hear that the Frost would, eventually, be heading back home to Manhattan. The boy had friends back there and it had been harder to make new friends here with most people ‘yelling words I don’t understand’ – the language barrier being a slight issue, and the translator the school had assigned for him probably had not helped him any, she realized. As for Elsianna, while she had loved staying here in the quiet castle and country, she did miss her friends like Asuna Gray – having to use the Zoom calls for their Dungeons and Dragons sessions. Her only concern was returning to the city where the Stantons were, the boy Aaron Stanton having been responsible for the burn scars that laced up and down the young girl’s arms, which remained covered by her gloves. A little assurance that the boy/family could not bother the Frosts again was enough for her, and the entire Frost family were on board to returning home once the children finished the school year.
But when it came to excitement, none had matched Deanna and Gerda.
At the thought of that, Selena turned around just in time to see her wife skipping out of the castle door, her spaghetti-strapped sundress flowing around her with her movements, light blue with swirls of purple and pink (Selena not quite sure of the combination worked but, even so, was miles ahead of a prison uniform). The redhead, reaching her wife, hopped into her wife’s space, throwing her arms around Selena’s neck gently and kissing her without any hesitation or shame that they were outside of the castle, where the whole world could see them.
This was part of that ‘excitement’ that only Deanna and Gerda had. In regards to the family friend and neighbour, Gerda was beyond excited to return home to her husband, Kai, who had stayed behind in Manhattan to look after their home as well as the Frost’s house and keep up-to-date with the neighbourhood. For the redhead, her newfound freedom, without any threat of ‘continued incarceration’ haunting her, had made her want to savour every moment she had said freedom. What that entailed was a total loss of inhibitions, which Deanna did not have many to begin with! For the last few days, Selena had been on the receiving end of many a surprise hug, kiss or snuggle-opportunity by her liberated wife, which the Snow Queen did not mind in the least.
Breaking the kiss, Deanna moved her head back, a bright smile on her face. “Kids are wondering where you are.”
“Just finished up packing.” Selena smiled, gestured, somewhat proudly (the bags were heavy after all) to the packed vehicle. “Though I’m trying to not think about the fact that I’ll have to unpack them all once we get to the airport, and when we land.”
For a moment, Deanna’s head tilted to the side, taking in the sight of the parked and packed vehicle. “Well, why don’t I help?” she asked. “I mean, I appreciate you letting me spend as much time with the kids as possible, but they won’t be coming with us.”
“Because the bags are heavy.” Selena argued. “Besides, Deanna. It’s mostly my gears and clothes and you’re supposed to be-“
She barely had time to register with a squeak as her point-of-view immediately shifted, the former world champion suddenly finding herself a solid three or four feet higher as she was lifted off the ground, a strong pair of arms wrapped around her legs to lift her! A brief second of confusion and disorientation, however, and the realization of her predicament came to her, causing her to see the calm expression of her wife.
“Hi.” Deanna smiled, and it was the soft, beautiful face of the redhead that surprised Selena the most. Sure, she was a healthy weight (certainly not the heaviest woman in the world), and., with her profession, she had been manhandled before, tossed around like a beanbag by men twice her size and, certainly, she had been lifted by women before-
All of that said, the women that had lifted her, tossed her around the ring, slammed her into the mat, were wrestlers. Strong women like Red Rayne (who had lifted Selena with one arm and powerbombed her) and her sister, Regan, and other legends like Brittany Lohan and Rachael Tatum. Women that had trained their bodies to be machines of power and domination. So to have her wife, only recently a full-time manager lift her with an expression that screamed a lack of exertion… it stunned Selena a little.
“Um…okay.” Eyebrows raised, she simply stared down at her wife. “I did not really…expect this…”
“I had a lot of free time.” Deanna simply replied, her face still an expression of calm and ease.
“A lot of free time?” Selena laughed. “What were you lifting in there? Other inmates?”
“Pumping iron?” Deanna threw back, trying to add to the joke.
“Lifting weighting times?” Selena tried – not as well as her wife.
“That one doesn’t work.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Selena tilted her head teasingly. “I think being so high up, where the air is thinner is making me a little light-headed! Although…”
The idea came to her, perhaps from the sounds of the birds and nature that surrounded the castle, away from the traffic of Oberwesel down below – a soft memory of something she had always wanted to do but never had with her wife. The reason was simple. With her being taller and stronger physically (due to the demands of her occupation), Selena, throughout her marriage, had adopted the traits (if that was the right word) that could be construed as ‘masculine’. She led her wife when they danced more often than not, she was the breadwinner, hell, more often than not, she wore more unisexual clothes (jeans and jackets, just like she was wearing at that moment) as opposed to dresses (though definitely not exclusively) while her wife always favoured shorts and dresses over jeans and pants.
Very little time to feel like a queen when you’re too busy needing to be a knight… her mind echoed.
But there, lifted off the ground by the woman she loved, that’s exactly how Selena felt. That she was being rescued by a dashing knight with hair as red as the deepest, most crimson sunset and eyes like emeralds. But it was more than that:
Deanna had had every reason to utterly destroy Fredric back in that courthouse. Selena had given her the tools, sharpened them and placed the method in her hands with the information she had given her hair for. Deanna could have bankrupt him and, more than that, could have pressed charges for the hell he put her through – hell, for assaulting her that night! If it had been Selena, Fredric may still be alive, yes, but he would not have an ounce of hope in his eyes…
But Deanna had let him go. Had chosen to forgive him and move on. To not press charges and just… walk away…
Maybe she was physically stronger, a little bit, but… in that moment, watching Deanna… it had hit Selena so strongly, just as it was now. The words she had spoken to her earlier that day: that she needed Deanna, couldn’t be complete or succeed or even be truly happy without her...
She’s so much stronger than me…
And perhaps it was also watching all those damned Disney movies with her kids as well that prompted her hands to lift up, her knuckles and fingers caressing down her wife’s face. Without a word, the former world champion leaned in, granting her ‘knight’ a kiss as deep as she could give, letting herself be the small one in that moment – the woman needing her knight to hold her and save her.
“Ewwww!”
And of course, the sound of disgust filling their ears would break such magic, causing Deanna to lower her wife down to the ground, Selena’s running shoes gently finding purchase as they met the stone-tiled pathway. Slowly, the two women turned, though Deanna kept her arms wrapped around Selena (moving the wrestler’s back) to see Marvel t-shirt wearing boy shaking his head as his babysitter Gerda held his hand.
“Gross.” He added with a shake of his head.
“Oh hush.” Gerda gently chastised the boy. “You were the one that wanted to find them.”
“Because Gunther said we can’t eat till they join us!”
Suffice it to say, while the Frost family were excited to be heading home in a few months, Gunther and his wife, Margarette, the caretakers of the Schonburg castle, were both happy and sad to hear this news. Selena, Deanna, and their children, in the years they had known one the caretakers, had become, somewhat, of a family to them, especially Deanna being see a daughter to Gunther and Margarette. Still, as Gunther had said, “Life must go on!”, at least Selena thought that was what he said as he had spoken it in German. Still, the couple insisted on having a big dinner party to celebrate Deanna’s freedom, Gunther even breaking out the barbeque!
“Ah…” Deanna guiltily shrugged her shoulders, shrugging her shoulders a bit before turning to Selena. “I was supposed to come get you.” She remarked to the platinum-blonde.
“Was the plan to lift me up and carry me there?” Selena asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Hey! You distracted me!” Deanna refuted. “And you know I could have.”
“I distracted you?” Selena’s eyes were wide. “I’m putting packed bags away and then, all of a sudden, I’m being King-Konged like nobody’s business-“
“King Kong?!” Deanna half-laughed, half-gasped, knowing her wife’s fondness for classic movies (assuming their ‘movie theatre’ style entertainment room back in Manhattan was any indication). “You now saying I’m an ape.”
“Well…” Selena gave a toss of her shorter hair with her hand. “You are now, technically, the hairiest woman in the family.”
“Oh…” Deanna seethed playfully. “Just for that… you can sleep in the hallway on the flight to Pittsburgh!”
Without waiting for a response, Deanna marched away, taking David’s hand and guiding him back the way they had come, Gerda in tow.
“Why?” Selena called out, unable to stop the mirth in her voice. “You gonna throw me out of bed?”
“That’s right!” a voice called back from within. “PRISON RULES!”
The answer caused a laugh to escape Selena’s throat as she did one more mental scan of all the bags in the car – until she heard her cellphone going off inside her pant pocket. Withdrawing it, she scanned the number, surprised that it was an “Unknown Number” before contemplating whether or not she should answer.
“Might work…” she reasoned, which was fair. Mr. D. had made the match between Selena and Syren a practically guaranteed thing but – the word there was ‘practically’. And with CHBK and Ravyn in her camp, Syren could easily have found a loophole to dodge facing Selena…meaning she wasn’t needed at the pay-per-view… Better to know than travel for nothing… Gus, Hallie and Kassandra would be pissed… she thought, recalling the staff that were running her private plane, probably right now. Not to mention poor Eric…
She answered the phone.
“Hello?” she asked, listening in to the voice.
“I’m going to give you credit.”
The voice was distorted, warped, reminding Selena of the voice she had heard on Talia’s phone a year ago. The one that had left a threatening message to the lawyer, telling her to stay away from Selena’s case.
“Excuse me?” Selena asked. “Who is this?”
“You wouldn’t know me even if I told you.” Came the answer. “I will say that you impressed me.”
“Ooookay?”
“I don’t know how you got that information on Castle, but you certainly exceeded my expectations.”
A familiar sense of alarm gripped the Snow Queen. “Who is this?”
“Like I said.” Came the voice on the phone. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
“Then how do you know about Castle? And the information I found?”
“You asked the question a few days ago, didn’t you? That it didn’t make sense why some two-bit conman like Castle had turned down your offers for money?”
The being’s words, distorted as they were in terms of pitch, were transforming Selena’s feelings of alarm to panic.
“How did you know I said that?”
“Easy.” Came the voice. “Because I was there, listening in. I knew where you were. Just like I know where you are right now.”
On instinct, Selena threw herself down and against the car near her, trying to shield herself.
“Hahahaha!” the laughter rang from her phone. “If I wanted you dead, Selena, I would have taken the shot when your wife was lifting you up in the air. I mean…couldn’t have been an easier shot to make.”
“You’re….you’re nearby?”
“Somewhat.” Came the voice. “But you can relax. You are in no danger right now.”
“Right now?”
“Yes.” Came the voice. “I am strong enough to admit when I was beaten. And you and your family beat me this time.”
“Castle? Sherman?”
“Neither.” Came the voice before it gave a long sigh. “Allow me to set you straight. Stand up first and stop looking like a panicked worm.”
Slowly, Selena drew herself to her feet.
“Much better. You deserve to be standing on such a happy day.”
“ You said you were going to set me straight.”
“Precisely.” It replied. “To put to you simply: I’m responsible for Fredric finding Deanna in the tavern of Oberwesel that night. And I’m responsible for him having Deanna convicted, as well as every lawyer from here to Frankfurt turning you down when you initially lost the case.”
Selena’s eyes widened. “How?!” she asked. “How could you be-“
“Not important.” Claimed the voice. “All you need to know is that everything has been because of me.”
“Then why did you wait?!” Selena asked, gripping her phone tighter. “Why did you wait till after Amiliah was born? You could have had Fredric came at us in a moment!”
“Yes, but what good would that do?” mocked the voice. “The smartest person waits for their investments to grow before cashing out. I waited until you were at your happiest – with your sister, Regan, your now three children, and your wife….before taking them away.”
And now the anger was replacing the fear.
“So you are responsible for Deanna being arrested. Knowing she was innocent.” Selena asked, her voice deadpan.
“Exactly.”
“And Talia’s car accident? The invasion on the castle grounds?”
“All me…well, and some people I managed to hire.”
“So why are you telling me this?” the platinum-blonde asked curtly.
“So that you can enjoy this while you can, Selena.” The voice replied. “Like I said, why take you down now when you’re still recovering from loss? No… I want you to be happy. I want you to go and become World Champion like you said. Hell, go and headline Rise to Greatness. Go and move back to your ‘forever house’. I want you to reach a point of normalcy and genuine happiness with Deanna… Then… then… I’ll be there to take it all away.”
“Why?!” yelled Selena into the device. “What did any of us do to you?!”
The line was silent for a moment, before an answer seeped into Selena’s ear.
“Not yet.” Came the reply. “You’re not ready to know…”
“Well, I’m done listening to you anyway!” Selena pressed. “Soon my family will be out of this country and out of your reach!”
“Were you out of Malcolm Scythe’s reach when you were in Manhattan?”
Selena’s jaw clenched, too emotional to answer that question.
“The end is coming…” came the voice. “You can’t stop it – you’ve only delayed it. But it is coming for you, Selena. And when it does… things will finally be made right.”
The line went dead, leaving Selena in a cold dread as she looked around the castle grounds, expecting a killer of some kind to pop out of nowhere and kill her then and there.
Things will finally be made right…
“Be careful what you wish for…” she growled under her breath. A dragon is at its most dangerous when it’s backed into a corner…protecting what’s hers…
She turned and made her way to where her family was, trying to drive the voice and its threats out of her mind. Whether it was some crazed fan or stalker or a combination of both… no, she was done giving people like that any kind of power.
Whatever came there way, she would handle it…and she would beat it.
The dark side of the sun had passed… Selena had her sunshine back… and she was never going to lose it again…
The End
COMING SOON: Project Black Ice
_______________________________________________________________
The Dark Side of the Sun
”A Lion's Share”
Frankfurt Court Center
Frankfurt, Germany
April 29th, 2021
12:32pm
A haunting silence filled the room as the three people stood there, the two women that stood together staring down the taller, lean man that stood before them. For a second, less than that if one was to be technical, Selena’s gaze shot to Deanna’s face as she stood beside her wife, trying to take in the redhead’s expression in that microcosm of time.
Deanna’s expression was set in place and her jaw was locked shut, and Selena mentally sent her thanks to Odin and the gods that, despite the, no doubt, shock at seeing her accuser once more, Deanna had stuck to the plan Talia had laid out for them, remaining silent and not giving the man anything he could use.
As for the man, Fredric Castle looked very much the same as Selena had last seen a year or so ago. Of course, he didn’t know that, for she had been in disguise with Talia at the time. Still, it was the the last time she had seen him as herself that her mind leapt to for a moment as the man stood there, dressed a simply black suit and matching tie, a contrast to Selena’s attire, as well as Deanna’s black skirt, white shirt and black ‘suit top’, choosing to go a more ‘generic’ route then Selena’s attire, which included the dark red coat she still wore over her thin frame.
Behind Fredric shuffled a shorter, larger man with thinning wisps of hair that seemed to be clinging to the man’s skull for dear life. He wore a simple gray suit and, unlike his client, who was maintain an unreadable expression, the only expression this fellow showed was irritation.
That all being said, he was immediately recognized as the same man that had helped put Deanna in prison nearly two years ago, serving the same purpose he seemed to be serving now. As he regarded the two Frost women, his whole body seemed to try and work together, like gears in a clock working one after the other in order to make the hands move, his body parts revving him up to get him to speak. Before he could utter a word, however, the door behind everyone was opened once more, allowing a young woman to stride into the room.
“Good morning, everyone.” She replied openly, gaining the attention of everyone within the room. Her hair was tied up tied in a bun and her clothes were of the same kind as Deanna’s. She held a leather binder in her hands and did not waste time moving to a seat at the table, seating herself as she set up. “I’m glad everyone could make it. Please have a seat.”
Not to the surprise of anyone, all obeyed the young woman, the Frost women sitting at one side/end of the table, while Castle and his lawyer – Selena was sure his name was Sherman or something – sat the opposite. This was, after all, the mediator of this meeting – mediations before a new trial was to be set up. The last thing either side wanted was to be problematic to her.
“So…” the young woman gazed from the Frosts to Castle and his lawyer. “As you know, my name is Cheryl and I’ve been assigned as mediator of today’s mediation proceedings. I’d like remind everyone that a civil, professional attitude is preferred and encouraged. Any disorderly conduct will be handled by security within the building. Does everyone understand?”
“Of course.” ‘Sherman’ sighed, while Fredric simply nodded. Both Selena and Deanna merely nodded their hands as well.
“Alright.” Replied Cheryl as she opened her binder, which was filled with papers, though Selena could not make out the small writing on said paper from where she sat. With a click from a black, ball-point pen, Cheryl, once more gazed around the room at the other occupants. “Who would like to start?”
“I would like to simply start-“ Sherman pointed out. “That I believe this to be a complete waste of time for myself and my client, and will add that, while we have no intention to alter our original charges against Mrs. Frost, we will now be adding courtroom charges and legal fees on top of that.”
“Assuming it goes to court.” Selena replied sharply as she sat in her seat, gaining Sherman’s surprise and attention.
“I’m sorry, but why is Mrs. Frost here? Does the defendant not have a lawyer?”
“My wife chose her own council and representative for this mediation-“
“Objection.” Sherman pointed out. “Conflict of interest! Mediator, I mean, this is a farce-“
“I remind you, Mr. Horner, that this is not a courtroom. The defendant is allowed to have council here as well be represented by whom she wishes.” Cheryl countered. “Should this go to trial, that matter may be contested, but as of here and now-“
“Very well.” Sherman sighed with a dismissive wave. “I’ll withdraw my objections. You were saying, Mrs. Frost?”
While it was a small victory at best, Selena savoured it internally, clinging to the positive feeling of victory that swelled within her chest. Under the table, she felt Deanna’s hands squeezing hers affectionately, though her face and body gave no other hint of her emotional state.
“I believe you responded perfectly, mediator.” She simply added. “Of course, I will add that it is our intention to have this end here and now without going to trial.”
No one could have missed the loud “Pffft” sound of disbelief that came from Fredric’s lips, the young man clearly not believing, for a second that such a thing was possible.
“Something to add, Mr. Castle?” Cheryl asked politely, giving away no emotion or expression that would indicate bias or personal thoughts.
“I’m just…” he sighed, reaching up to massage his forehead. “Nevermind.” He simply replied. “I’m not going to be accused of unprofessional behaviour by such desperate people.”
Oh, right! Selena’s mind laughed. He said he’s not going to be ‘unprofessional’ but he just threw a sideways insult at us, calling us ‘desperate’.
“No, no.” the Snow Queen held up her hand. “If the plaintiff wishes to express his views on the matter, we’re more than happy to give them the floor to speak.”
A split second, Castle’s eyes darted to his lawyer, who gave an imperceptible nod. Taking a deep breath, as if to steel himself, Fredric leaned over the table, his eyes glaring into Deanna mostly.
“I want to know what kind of people would continue to torment their victim as much as you have, Mrs. Frost.” He stated sharply. “I…I was just starting to get over it. I was trusting myself to date again… I was able to hold down a job… the night terrors were rarer and rarer because I thought I was done with you. That I was SAFE from you. And now… here I am, having to relive that nightmare all over again!” he took a moment for some steady breaths, as if to compose himself. “How dare you… you…Ekelhaftes Tier!”
“Hey!” Cheryl warned. “There is no need for that!”
“Forgive my client.” Sherman quickly stated, gently guiding Fredric to sit back against the chair. “But given the nature of this case, I believe you can understand his reluctance to open up old wounds and revisit them. And I must echo my client’s sentiments that this is entirely unreasonable to have the case reopened and re-tried.”
The group was silent for a moment, Deanna at a loss at what she heard. It was not so different than what had filled her ears during the initial trial, where she had been cursed in German and English as well. Slowly, her eyes glanced at her wife…
Selena had not budged, beyond her jaw clenching and her eyes narrowing.
“Since you afforded the notion to speak your mind, Mr. Castle…” she started, slowly, like a dull growl. “Do you mind granting me the same courtesy?”
Neither man replied in words, Sherman merely raising an eyebrow as Selena pushed herself out of her chair, moving away from them. “May I share with you what a true nightmare is, Mr. Castle?” she asked, her eyes gazing at the walls as she moved around the section of the room – a pale hand reaching up to caress a side or shelf as she passed it. She could almost see the arctic-blue and white lights in her mind.
“A nightmare, Mr. Castle, is lying on a slab that your jailors call ‘a bed’ every night for almost two years, not being able to hold the one you love. A nightmare is going day by day, not knowing if this is the day you get beaten up again… or worse. A nightmare is having to be told that you can’t see your children as they grow up. As they reach milestones in their young lives…”
Slowly, she turned to cast her gaze, cold and calculating, not at Deanna or the mediator or even the damn lawyer, but directly at Fredric, the tension building like a storm.
“But most of all, Mr. Castle, a true nightmare is living this hell every day and never knowing why. Never knowing why you were cast there to begin with. Never knowing why you were imprisoned. Only knowing the ticking of hours, that turn into weeks, that turn into months, that turns into years…”
Tick, tock…Tick, tock…
The sound of the clock on the wall seemed to echo louder, as if, somehow, spurned on by Selena’s words as she stood her spot.
“Ahem…” Sherman cleared his throat. “A very sad story, Mrs. Frost. While I can sympathize to your wife’s pain, to an extent, I will remind you that her issues are a result of her crimes – I will repeat – a result of her crimes. Choices she made. Now, since you and your wife are the ones that instigated this ‘new trial’, I must insist you get to the point so that we may proceed as planned.”
“I must agree with Mr. Horner.” Cheryl politely urged. “Let’s get back on track, shall we?”
Quickly, Selena nodded, moving back to her wife, drawing closer to her and able to see, subtle as it was, the effect her speech had on the young woman. Still, the Snow Queen forced herself to remain focused, reaching down to the floor to her leather bag and pulling out a simple folder. Retrieving it, she held it up for all those in the room to see.
“This is the reason that I was granted a new trial by a magistrate here in Frankfurt.”
Gracefully, she slid the folder across the table towards Sherman and Fredric, the former of the two taking it and opening it to scan the papers carefully.
“Let me tell you an interesting story.” Selena began. “A young boy in New Jersey realizes at a young age that he has a rather…special condition. He finds out that, despite his always increasing age, he manages to maintain a rather youthful visage. Lucky fellow, I’d say. I was born with hair whiter than most people at the other end of the age spectrum. But this guy decides to use this feature to his benefit-“ Selena stopped as she heard Sherman turn one of the many pages over. Castle’s eyes, on the other hand, remained locked onto Selena, as she continued.
“Things start off slow. Some misdemeanors here and there – he doesn’t really cross out onto the scene until he’s a bit older, where he manages to swindle a single mother of 43 into having sex with him. Now, the woman declares that the boy proved that he was 22 at the time, but no one believes her. And even if they do, a brief background check proves otherwise.”
“Your point?” asked Sherman, as he turned another page.
“Oh, no point. But, about a year and a half later, wouldn’t you know it? Another single mother, this one 39 years old and in Washington, is arrested and charged with sex with a minor, swearing the same thing. Naturally, the same result occurs. Fast forward five years and similar instances are popping up in Vancouver, Manchester, Tokyo, and even Budapest.”
“Again, is there a point to this?” Sherman repeated, his voice clearly showing his irritation.
“Oh there is.” Selena pressed. “In all six cases, the boys that were ‘assaulted’? Missing. Haven’t been seen since the incident. No new mailing address, phone number, social media page, nothing. It was like they disappeared off the face of the earth.”
“Selena…”
The voice was a slight whisper and had Selena been standing anywhere other than close to Deanna, she would not have heard the redhead whisper under her breath. “Look…” she barely lifted her finger to point towards Fredric, an action missed by most, but caught by Selena, who turned her head towards the object of so much pain and loss that the two of them had suffered.
Fredric’s body was still, his eyes were growing wider with each piece of information that Selena revealed – the information that had cost her the very thing that had made her a Frost in her own mind for so much of her life.
“And then we look at you, Mr. Castle.” Selena replied, eyeing Sherman. “And here, you can turn to page 34 in the folder there, Mr. Horner.” She didn’t wait for the lawyer to respond. “That’s where I find out that you moved here to Frankfurt six years ago with your mom, Gloria Castle, right?”
“Ye-yes.” Castle sharply answered.
“Right. And initially, along with your birth certificate coming from the smaller city of Schwerin, that was that and nobody looked twice. But after what I found-“
“What is all this? How did you get it?” Sherman tried to interject.
“I’ll get to that.” Selena fired back, her mind ablaze, locked on the image she was fighting for. That image of her wife standing in her bus over a month ago, tears in her eyes, telling her ‘We’re together again.’ And her vow to never lose her wife again!
With a clench of her jaw, Selena pushed further. “But looking into Schwerin, Fredric? No hospital had you on record. More than that, there was no Gloria Castle that occupied Schwerin at that time frame. And the same was said of your father, Jonas Castle.”
Selena took a deep breath, letting her words settle for a moment, but her eyes never wavering from the bastard that had stolen her wife for nearly two years.
“I could go on, but I’ll cut to the chase, Mr. Castle. You weren’t 16 when you first met my wife in that tavern in Oberwesel. You were 31…”
The quiet rage that been growing in Selena since she started, had grown into a fire, one she used to keep herself from crashing from the emotional high she was riding.
“Because those boys: James Corlett from Vancouver? Gabe Hull from Manchester? Aiden Rapsin in Tokyo? All the way to that little boy little boy in New Jersey… was you, wasn’t it, Mr. Collin Oltins?!”
There was a microsecond before Fredric spoke – a moment where he recoiled at the mention of that name, his head jerking up to glare at Selena… but it felt like an eternity to the Snow Queen.
“I’ve never heard of those people! What the hell are you getting at?” He demanded to know, a hand from Sherman the only thing keeping him in his chair.
“I agree!” Sherman spat. “This is what you have? Conjecture?! Conspiracy theories to excuse your ways despicable behaviour? A smear campaign against a young man, who has a minor, was victimized by YOUR wife?! HOW DARE YOU!!”
“People, please!” pressed Cheryl, holding her hands up.
“No!” proclaimed Sherman, pushing himself out of the chair with Castle following. “We are done here! We’re not going to give these women ANY kind of consideration! You may have swindled a magistrate, Mrs. Frost, but I can assure you that no jury will buy this wild theory without a shred of TRUE evidence! Not circumstantial!”
The two were heading to the door – Selena’s heart quickening as they did.
“Yeah, you might want to check page 102 before you go, Mr. Horner. Considering it’s not just your client who’s name is on the line now.”
It was a gamble – the only thing Selena could think of in that moment to try and stop one or both of them from leaving – because if they did, so did any chance of ending this here and now!
But Sherman did stop, his fat hand halfway towards the door handle, turning around to eye the platinum-blonde as she stood there.
“Excuse me?” he asked, eyes ablaze in, Selena had to admit, reasonable anger.
“It’s simple.” Selena stated. “You walk out that door, I still have Deanna. Until she’s found guilty again, she can stay with me on bail. She’s proven that she can be trusted to be here to make court appearances. So if that happens, we’ll still win in the end. But if you walk out that door…” she gestured to the door before them. “You walk out that door and keep yourself tied to Castle? Once he loses, it’s going to come back on you. That you aided a rapist. A con artist. And so much worse. So… before you do, I’d check page 102.”
The Snow Queen quietly held her breath as she stood there, everyone remaining still as Sherman seemed to contemplate the words spoken, and while it was only seven or eight seconds, it felt like an hour to Selena as Sherman regarded her before, with a more than audible grumble, he flipped open the folder that he had tossed onto the table, flipping pages less than ‘enthusiastically’ until he spotted the page number at the top.
Tick…tock… the clock sounded loudly in Selena’s ears, and she could not imagine what this was doing to her poor wife, who was probably fighting against speaking out every second that passed.
“What is this?” Sherman asked, turning his attention over to Selena.
“Two things that link everything together.” Selena explained. “First, credit card paths. Our lawyer tracked this down when the pieces started to fall into place-“
“You just said that there was no credit history to all those missing kids.” Sherman interjected.
“No, you’re right, there weren’t. But you’re forgetting one other part in this.” Selena stated. “Each of those boy, much like Mr. Castle here, had a, supposedly single mother. And, like those boys, said mother eventually up and vanishes, but according to those statements, not before emptying her account into another, only to be picked up by someone else.”
Immediately, Sherman’s eyes glared down at the sheets and sheets of paper trail that etched out the journey of the last near decade. From Terri Oltins to Shania Burks to Samantha Hull, all the way, after a winding and twisting path, to Gloria Castle.
“Turns out that the woman wasn’t his mother. More like girlfriend and partner in crime.” Selena concluded.
There was a moment of silence as Sherman’s head turned from Selena to the papers to Fredric to the papers and back to Selena.
“You can’t be believing this!” Fredric declared. “You’re my lawyer! I’m paying you to defend me! I’m telling you that that woman-“ he pointed a sharp finger at the quiet Deanna as she sat there. “That woman molested me! She took advantage of me! Why would I take her to trial if all I wanted was money?!”
Despite herself, Selena found herself biting her lip. “Actually, that is a good point.” She finally replied. “I’ll admit that that was the one thing I couldn’t quite grasp. Because I offered you a lot and you still pushed to take this to trial.”
“BECAUSE SHE DID IT!” yelled Fredric desperately, his face turning red. “BECAUSE SHE’S GUILTY!”
Yet, as he looked around the room and saw the eyes of all, from Selena to Deanna to Cheryl to Sherman, glaring at him, he could not find the steeled expression he had used earlier so well.
With a sigh, the large lawyer, packed up his bag before shuffling past Fredric, making his way to the door.
“Where are you going?!” Castle demanded.
Turning back to face the man, the lawyer’s face seemed to change, revealing the truth age and weariness he held.
“I believe it would be in the best interest if you sought other representation, Mr. Castle.” Was all he said before closing the door in Castle’s face, his footsteps echoing through the outside hall before it was silent.
Fredric, meanwhile, stood there in shock, his back to the women inside the room.
It took a few breaths for Selena to slow her fast-beating heart, her eyes still on the back of Castle.
“Castle.” She called out, gaining his attention as he slowly turned around. “There’s more in that folder.” She gestured towards the folder Sherman had returned to the table before departing. “More mistakes you and your girlfriend made in the last decade. Little things that link up. And I promise you, right now, there is more than enough there to prove what I’ve been saying is true. Meaning your charges on my wife? Charges regarding minors? They don’t hold.”
She paused to give the man time to digest her words.
“You have one option now.” She stated. “ Because whether you continue trying to get my wife in prison now or not, this will end up in the hands of the police. The only difference is that, in court? There will not be a doubt in anyone’s mind in who you are. You don’t? It stays more quiet, but either way, it’ going to be you that spends the next ten years or so in a Frankfurt prison!”
Despite the very clear threat, Fredric’s eyes did not deviate from the folder on the table.
“Mr. Castle?” Cheryl’s voice came clear to everyone remaining in the room, even gathering a little of Fredric’s attention, but she was met with silence for a solid two minutes.
“What do you want from me?”
The question came from as a whisper, a squeak of sound from the once proud and, as Selena remembered, smug man. But as she was about to answer, the word that came out was not her own.
“Nothing.”
Jerking her head back, eyes wide, Selena was stunned to see her wife, her Deanna, staring at the boy that had cost her nearly two years of her life, and the boy that could only stare at her.
“I can’t change what you’ve done.” She said, her voice clear but nowhere near the volume Selena had roared with. “I can’t take back what I’ve lost thanks to you… and whatever else is coming your way from your past, I can’t stop that.”
She sighed. “I know I should hate you and part of me does. Maybe I always will. All that my wife said about nightmares was absolutely true. And you have no idea what hell you put me through just for money or whatever it is you got out of this….” She bit her lower lip, but kept her eyes on Fredric. “But also gave me my little girl, Amiliah… and for that, I could not be more thankful to you.”
For the first time in, perhaps awhile, Selena could not speak. She could barely process the words coming from her wife’s lips.
“But… I just want to go home.” Her voice shook a little. “Please, just let me go home and be with my wife and my children.”
The plea left the room in silence, Fredric standing there in shock, though not moreso than Selena, but certainly for different reasons as a certain emotion begin to grow and swell within the Snow Queen’s chest.
“I’ll…I’ll drop the charges…”
Tick…tock…tick…tock.
Selena had to make sure she heard right, repeating the sound in her head over and over again until she heard Deanna gasp, her soft hands reaching out to clutch Selena’s hand.
“Very well.” Cheryl, the mediator immediately writing in her notes. “I will need you to sign this…” she turned a paper over to the Fredric, who shakingly wrote his name on it before handing it to Deanna, who eagerly signed it. That accomplished, the woman filed the paper into her folder. “You should receive a copy in your mailboxes within a few days. I should also inform you, Mr. Castle, that I am obligated to turn over the evidence to other cases that Mrs. Frost supplied to the police and that-“
Within a second, the folder containing said information was snatched off the table, Fredric Castle grabbing it and bolting for the door. On instinct, Selena grabbed her wife and dove to the ground, fearing an attack and covering her wife with her body.
“MR. CASTLE!” Cheryl called out as the man ripped open the door and ran out of the room, sprinting down the hall for all that he was worth. The mediator quickly rushed to the door, shouting in German – words Selena could not comprehend – but she did hear the loud crash and sound of a scuffle that seem to come further down the hall. Staring down, she gazed at her wife, checking over her.
“Are you alright?!” she asked.
“Winded a little from being tackled…” Deanna groaned. “I’m okay.” She added as Selena helped her up to her feet.
Together the two Frost wives moved to the door in time to see security guards on the ground, grappling with the restrained Fredric Castle, pulling him to his feet, handcuffing him, and leading him away, Cheryl only a few feet away from the Frost women, waiting as one of guards not restraining Castle gathered up the pieces of paper scattered on the ground, placing them back in the folder and handing them to Cheryl, who took them gingerly before returning to the Frost women.
“I apologize.” She stated.
“You have no reason to apologize.” Deanna assured the, slightly, frazzled mediator. “But…does this change his confession-“
“No.” Cheryl stated, holding up the signed paper both Deanna and Fredric had signed. “He has officially dropped the charges. This won’t help his case either, but in terms of you, Mrs. Frost, you’re free to go.”
Emerald eyes grew wide as Deanna’s mouth hung open in disbelief. “I’m…I’m free…completely?”
“Yes.” Cheryl smiled. “Unless you change your mind and decide to press charges for your time in prison or many spent in fines-“
Unable to say any more words, Deanna could only shake her head. “Just tell me I can go home, please…”
Cheryl was about to reply before her eyes caught sight of the taller woman standing beside Deanna, the platinum-blonde turning her wife in her arms with a bright smile.
“Deanna…” she grinned, seeing her wife’s eyes tear up as she spoke the words she wanted to say to her beloved. “We can go home.”
**************************************************
2 days later
4:11pm
All the bags were packed and placed in the car, ready to go, but it wasn’t to move the Frosts out of Oberwessel and back to Manhattan just yet. No… it would have been foolish to think that could be done so quickly, Selena thought, as she moved the last bag into the trunk and shut it, releasing a huff of breath from the exertion.
Their flight to Pittsburgh was in a few hours, the flight that would take, not only Selena, but also Deanna to “Be Careful What You Wish For”, and her match with Syren.
Be careful what you wish for… Selena had to smile at the old adage. She had certainly gotten what she wished for in Deanna’s freedom and no matter whatever came their way because of that, she would never regret wishing for it. Her match with Syren? Yes, there was a chance that she was either going to lose clean or, more likely, that Infamous would, once again and despite Mr. D.’s prompting, get involved to save their ‘golden goose’ for the umpteenth time, which would mean there was a good chance that the Snow Queen would have to eat crow, especially after she filmed her promo in the coming days –
Selena had to smile at the arguments she had written down in her laptop over the last few days regarding that promo, her mind finally allowing her to work on her job. The process had been rather cathartic for the young woman and, she could imagine, lead to some regrets if she came up short like she had in the past against opponents like her sister Regan and Xander Valentine. But, when it came to Deanna, she was not going to regret what she had given up for her wife to be with her once more. Soon, they would be back in their ‘forever home’ in Manhattan, back to the lives they had to leave behind thanks to Castle.
But, of course, it couldn’t be that easy to simply leave Oberwesel. Both women knew that when they had returned back to share the good news. Yes, the two of them could come and go as they wanted – but for their children?
No. It would not be that easy. It was still April, closing in on May. Two of the children were still in school, needing to finish up the school year…
A shiver of excitement shot through Selena. While Amiliah was still a bit too young to understand, David had been thrilled to hear that the Frost would, eventually, be heading back home to Manhattan. The boy had friends back there and it had been harder to make new friends here with most people ‘yelling words I don’t understand’ – the language barrier being a slight issue, and the translator the school had assigned for him probably had not helped him any, she realized. As for Elsianna, while she had loved staying here in the quiet castle and country, she did miss her friends like Asuna Gray – having to use the Zoom calls for their Dungeons and Dragons sessions. Her only concern was returning to the city where the Stantons were, the boy Aaron Stanton having been responsible for the burn scars that laced up and down the young girl’s arms, which remained covered by her gloves. A little assurance that the boy/family could not bother the Frosts again was enough for her, and the entire Frost family were on board to returning home once the children finished the school year.
But when it came to excitement, none had matched Deanna and Gerda.
At the thought of that, Selena turned around just in time to see her wife skipping out of the castle door, her spaghetti-strapped sundress flowing around her with her movements, light blue with swirls of purple and pink (Selena not quite sure of the combination worked but, even so, was miles ahead of a prison uniform). The redhead, reaching her wife, hopped into her wife’s space, throwing her arms around Selena’s neck gently and kissing her without any hesitation or shame that they were outside of the castle, where the whole world could see them.
This was part of that ‘excitement’ that only Deanna and Gerda had. In regards to the family friend and neighbour, Gerda was beyond excited to return home to her husband, Kai, who had stayed behind in Manhattan to look after their home as well as the Frost’s house and keep up-to-date with the neighbourhood. For the redhead, her newfound freedom, without any threat of ‘continued incarceration’ haunting her, had made her want to savour every moment she had said freedom. What that entailed was a total loss of inhibitions, which Deanna did not have many to begin with! For the last few days, Selena had been on the receiving end of many a surprise hug, kiss or snuggle-opportunity by her liberated wife, which the Snow Queen did not mind in the least.
Breaking the kiss, Deanna moved her head back, a bright smile on her face. “Kids are wondering where you are.”
“Just finished up packing.” Selena smiled, gestured, somewhat proudly (the bags were heavy after all) to the packed vehicle. “Though I’m trying to not think about the fact that I’ll have to unpack them all once we get to the airport, and when we land.”
For a moment, Deanna’s head tilted to the side, taking in the sight of the parked and packed vehicle. “Well, why don’t I help?” she asked. “I mean, I appreciate you letting me spend as much time with the kids as possible, but they won’t be coming with us.”
“Because the bags are heavy.” Selena argued. “Besides, Deanna. It’s mostly my gears and clothes and you’re supposed to be-“
She barely had time to register with a squeak as her point-of-view immediately shifted, the former world champion suddenly finding herself a solid three or four feet higher as she was lifted off the ground, a strong pair of arms wrapped around her legs to lift her! A brief second of confusion and disorientation, however, and the realization of her predicament came to her, causing her to see the calm expression of her wife.
“Hi.” Deanna smiled, and it was the soft, beautiful face of the redhead that surprised Selena the most. Sure, she was a healthy weight (certainly not the heaviest woman in the world), and., with her profession, she had been manhandled before, tossed around like a beanbag by men twice her size and, certainly, she had been lifted by women before-
All of that said, the women that had lifted her, tossed her around the ring, slammed her into the mat, were wrestlers. Strong women like Red Rayne (who had lifted Selena with one arm and powerbombed her) and her sister, Regan, and other legends like Brittany Lohan and Rachael Tatum. Women that had trained their bodies to be machines of power and domination. So to have her wife, only recently a full-time manager lift her with an expression that screamed a lack of exertion… it stunned Selena a little.
“Um…okay.” Eyebrows raised, she simply stared down at her wife. “I did not really…expect this…”
“I had a lot of free time.” Deanna simply replied, her face still an expression of calm and ease.
“A lot of free time?” Selena laughed. “What were you lifting in there? Other inmates?”
“Pumping iron?” Deanna threw back, trying to add to the joke.
“Lifting weighting times?” Selena tried – not as well as her wife.
“That one doesn’t work.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Selena tilted her head teasingly. “I think being so high up, where the air is thinner is making me a little light-headed! Although…”
The idea came to her, perhaps from the sounds of the birds and nature that surrounded the castle, away from the traffic of Oberwesel down below – a soft memory of something she had always wanted to do but never had with her wife. The reason was simple. With her being taller and stronger physically (due to the demands of her occupation), Selena, throughout her marriage, had adopted the traits (if that was the right word) that could be construed as ‘masculine’. She led her wife when they danced more often than not, she was the breadwinner, hell, more often than not, she wore more unisexual clothes (jeans and jackets, just like she was wearing at that moment) as opposed to dresses (though definitely not exclusively) while her wife always favoured shorts and dresses over jeans and pants.
Very little time to feel like a queen when you’re too busy needing to be a knight… her mind echoed.
But there, lifted off the ground by the woman she loved, that’s exactly how Selena felt. That she was being rescued by a dashing knight with hair as red as the deepest, most crimson sunset and eyes like emeralds. But it was more than that:
Deanna had had every reason to utterly destroy Fredric back in that courthouse. Selena had given her the tools, sharpened them and placed the method in her hands with the information she had given her hair for. Deanna could have bankrupt him and, more than that, could have pressed charges for the hell he put her through – hell, for assaulting her that night! If it had been Selena, Fredric may still be alive, yes, but he would not have an ounce of hope in his eyes…
But Deanna had let him go. Had chosen to forgive him and move on. To not press charges and just… walk away…
Maybe she was physically stronger, a little bit, but… in that moment, watching Deanna… it had hit Selena so strongly, just as it was now. The words she had spoken to her earlier that day: that she needed Deanna, couldn’t be complete or succeed or even be truly happy without her...
She’s so much stronger than me…
And perhaps it was also watching all those damned Disney movies with her kids as well that prompted her hands to lift up, her knuckles and fingers caressing down her wife’s face. Without a word, the former world champion leaned in, granting her ‘knight’ a kiss as deep as she could give, letting herself be the small one in that moment – the woman needing her knight to hold her and save her.
“Ewwww!”
And of course, the sound of disgust filling their ears would break such magic, causing Deanna to lower her wife down to the ground, Selena’s running shoes gently finding purchase as they met the stone-tiled pathway. Slowly, the two women turned, though Deanna kept her arms wrapped around Selena (moving the wrestler’s back) to see Marvel t-shirt wearing boy shaking his head as his babysitter Gerda held his hand.
“Gross.” He added with a shake of his head.
“Oh hush.” Gerda gently chastised the boy. “You were the one that wanted to find them.”
“Because Gunther said we can’t eat till they join us!”
Suffice it to say, while the Frost family were excited to be heading home in a few months, Gunther and his wife, Margarette, the caretakers of the Schonburg castle, were both happy and sad to hear this news. Selena, Deanna, and their children, in the years they had known one the caretakers, had become, somewhat, of a family to them, especially Deanna being see a daughter to Gunther and Margarette. Still, as Gunther had said, “Life must go on!”, at least Selena thought that was what he said as he had spoken it in German. Still, the couple insisted on having a big dinner party to celebrate Deanna’s freedom, Gunther even breaking out the barbeque!
“Ah…” Deanna guiltily shrugged her shoulders, shrugging her shoulders a bit before turning to Selena. “I was supposed to come get you.” She remarked to the platinum-blonde.
“Was the plan to lift me up and carry me there?” Selena asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Hey! You distracted me!” Deanna refuted. “And you know I could have.”
“I distracted you?” Selena’s eyes were wide. “I’m putting packed bags away and then, all of a sudden, I’m being King-Konged like nobody’s business-“
“King Kong?!” Deanna half-laughed, half-gasped, knowing her wife’s fondness for classic movies (assuming their ‘movie theatre’ style entertainment room back in Manhattan was any indication). “You now saying I’m an ape.”
“Well…” Selena gave a toss of her shorter hair with her hand. “You are now, technically, the hairiest woman in the family.”
“Oh…” Deanna seethed playfully. “Just for that… you can sleep in the hallway on the flight to Pittsburgh!”
Without waiting for a response, Deanna marched away, taking David’s hand and guiding him back the way they had come, Gerda in tow.
“Why?” Selena called out, unable to stop the mirth in her voice. “You gonna throw me out of bed?”
“That’s right!” a voice called back from within. “PRISON RULES!”
The answer caused a laugh to escape Selena’s throat as she did one more mental scan of all the bags in the car – until she heard her cellphone going off inside her pant pocket. Withdrawing it, she scanned the number, surprised that it was an “Unknown Number” before contemplating whether or not she should answer.
“Might work…” she reasoned, which was fair. Mr. D. had made the match between Selena and Syren a practically guaranteed thing but – the word there was ‘practically’. And with CHBK and Ravyn in her camp, Syren could easily have found a loophole to dodge facing Selena…meaning she wasn’t needed at the pay-per-view… Better to know than travel for nothing… Gus, Hallie and Kassandra would be pissed… she thought, recalling the staff that were running her private plane, probably right now. Not to mention poor Eric…
She answered the phone.
“Hello?” she asked, listening in to the voice.
“I’m going to give you credit.”
The voice was distorted, warped, reminding Selena of the voice she had heard on Talia’s phone a year ago. The one that had left a threatening message to the lawyer, telling her to stay away from Selena’s case.
“Excuse me?” Selena asked. “Who is this?”
“You wouldn’t know me even if I told you.” Came the answer. “I will say that you impressed me.”
“Ooookay?”
“I don’t know how you got that information on Castle, but you certainly exceeded my expectations.”
A familiar sense of alarm gripped the Snow Queen. “Who is this?”
“Like I said.” Came the voice on the phone. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
“Then how do you know about Castle? And the information I found?”
“You asked the question a few days ago, didn’t you? That it didn’t make sense why some two-bit conman like Castle had turned down your offers for money?”
The being’s words, distorted as they were in terms of pitch, were transforming Selena’s feelings of alarm to panic.
“How did you know I said that?”
“Easy.” Came the voice. “Because I was there, listening in. I knew where you were. Just like I know where you are right now.”
On instinct, Selena threw herself down and against the car near her, trying to shield herself.
“Hahahaha!” the laughter rang from her phone. “If I wanted you dead, Selena, I would have taken the shot when your wife was lifting you up in the air. I mean…couldn’t have been an easier shot to make.”
“You’re….you’re nearby?”
“Somewhat.” Came the voice. “But you can relax. You are in no danger right now.”
“Right now?”
“Yes.” Came the voice. “I am strong enough to admit when I was beaten. And you and your family beat me this time.”
“Castle? Sherman?”
“Neither.” Came the voice before it gave a long sigh. “Allow me to set you straight. Stand up first and stop looking like a panicked worm.”
Slowly, Selena drew herself to her feet.
“Much better. You deserve to be standing on such a happy day.”
“ You said you were going to set me straight.”
“Precisely.” It replied. “To put to you simply: I’m responsible for Fredric finding Deanna in the tavern of Oberwesel that night. And I’m responsible for him having Deanna convicted, as well as every lawyer from here to Frankfurt turning you down when you initially lost the case.”
Selena’s eyes widened. “How?!” she asked. “How could you be-“
“Not important.” Claimed the voice. “All you need to know is that everything has been because of me.”
“Then why did you wait?!” Selena asked, gripping her phone tighter. “Why did you wait till after Amiliah was born? You could have had Fredric came at us in a moment!”
“Yes, but what good would that do?” mocked the voice. “The smartest person waits for their investments to grow before cashing out. I waited until you were at your happiest – with your sister, Regan, your now three children, and your wife….before taking them away.”
And now the anger was replacing the fear.
“So you are responsible for Deanna being arrested. Knowing she was innocent.” Selena asked, her voice deadpan.
“Exactly.”
“And Talia’s car accident? The invasion on the castle grounds?”
“All me…well, and some people I managed to hire.”
“So why are you telling me this?” the platinum-blonde asked curtly.
“So that you can enjoy this while you can, Selena.” The voice replied. “Like I said, why take you down now when you’re still recovering from loss? No… I want you to be happy. I want you to go and become World Champion like you said. Hell, go and headline Rise to Greatness. Go and move back to your ‘forever house’. I want you to reach a point of normalcy and genuine happiness with Deanna… Then… then… I’ll be there to take it all away.”
“Why?!” yelled Selena into the device. “What did any of us do to you?!”
The line was silent for a moment, before an answer seeped into Selena’s ear.
“Not yet.” Came the reply. “You’re not ready to know…”
“Well, I’m done listening to you anyway!” Selena pressed. “Soon my family will be out of this country and out of your reach!”
“Were you out of Malcolm Scythe’s reach when you were in Manhattan?”
Selena’s jaw clenched, too emotional to answer that question.
“The end is coming…” came the voice. “You can’t stop it – you’ve only delayed it. But it is coming for you, Selena. And when it does… things will finally be made right.”
The line went dead, leaving Selena in a cold dread as she looked around the castle grounds, expecting a killer of some kind to pop out of nowhere and kill her then and there.
Things will finally be made right…
“Be careful what you wish for…” she growled under her breath. A dragon is at its most dangerous when it’s backed into a corner…protecting what’s hers…
She turned and made her way to where her family was, trying to drive the voice and its threats out of her mind. Whether it was some crazed fan or stalker or a combination of both… no, she was done giving people like that any kind of power.
Whatever came there way, she would handle it…and she would beat it.
The dark side of the sun had passed… Selena had her sunshine back… and she was never going to lose it again…
The End
COMING SOON: Project Black Ice
_______________________________________________________________
![[Image: hffOaUZ.png]](https://i.imgur.com/hffOaUZ.png)
SCW Supreme Champion
6x SCW World Champion
4x SCW World Tag-Team Champion
2x SCW United States Champion
3x SCW Adrenaline Champion
SCW Television Champion
Longest Reigning SCW World Champion (234 days)
Winner of Shot of Adrenaline Tournament (2016)
Winner of Best of the Best Tournament (2016)
Winner of Trios Tournament (2018)
Winner of U.S. Championship Tournament (2020)
Winner of World Championship Tournament (2023)
Winner of Tactical Warfare (2014, 2019)
Winner of Elimination Chamber (2015)
Winner of Roofed Cage Match (2019)
Winner of Last Person Standing Match (2019)
The Unbelievable Main Event (2021-2023)
Winner of Double Jeopardy Match (2022)
Winner of EOTY Invitational (2023)
Winner of EOTY Invitational (2023)
Female Wrestler of the Year (2016, 2021, 2022)
Tag-Team of the Year (2020 - w/ Regan Street)
Match of the Year (2018, 2019, 2021, 2023)
Feud of the Year (2014, 2019)
![[Image: 34zetxl.png]](https://i.ibb.co/SnpvD5T/34zetxl.png)