Page 36 of Crown of Ellova: Vol 1

He tightens his hold on my hand. “It means, Izadella, thatyouhave my blood and my blade.Forever.”

“Oh.”Oh.

“So you will have to forgive me if I do not abandon the vow I made and watch you walk away from me. I swear it, not only as a man of medicine, to heal you when you need me, to protect and defend, but to care for and serve you in all ways. You are my queen and I am yours to command, in whatever way you need.”

His scent is overwhelming, and a warmth I’ve never known fills my chest at his sweet words. He leans down and my eyes flutter shut, but the moment our lips are about to touch, I jerk back, releasing his hand as if it burned me, the full realization of his words hitting me.

Queen?

CHAPTER 16

Istumble away from Leon, and my confusion matches his.

He takes a step towards me, leaves crunching underneath his boots, arms outstretched to catch me if I fall.

“What’s wrong?” He looks around the clearing for an attack, but quickly returns to my gaze.

“Queen?” It is a broken sound, even to my ears.

His confusion grows at my shaking question. “Yes, queen.” What he offers as an explanation is of no help to me, and when my open-mouthed shock does not morph into understanding, he pulls an iron coin from his healer’s bag. Holding it up before me, he reads it aloud. “‘Loyal to whoever wears the crown.’” He turns the coin over to show the same sword and crown symbol. “It means whoever wears the crown is the ruler of Adreania. You are now the rightful que?—”

Lunging at him, I cut his deranged words short as I slap my hand over his mouth. “Leon, do not finish that sentence! Adreania may have a rightful ruler but it is not me! Do you understand me?”

My heart hitches at the whisper of pressure as his lips press into my palm, sending an electric current through me, before his hands rise up to cover mine, slowly removing it but not letting go.

“The truth may be unexpected, but that doesn’t make it false.However unintended this all was, the law is clear. You are the queen and my life is sworn to you.”

“No, Leon. Maybe that was true long ago, but it’s not now. No matter how awful Grayden is, with his father dead, that makes him king. That is how the line of succession works. Please, I’ve given you everything you need for your journey home to Versairen. Food and gems to trade, to buy the silence of everyone you meet. Please, you need to go.” He is making this so much harder than it needs to be.

“Never.” He takes the pack off and tosses it to the forest floor. “That crown makes you queen of Adreania. It may just be a historical object to you but it symbolizes something much greater: power. Kalvorn is about to go to war for the crown! You need to be somewhere safe. I can take you there.” Desperation bleeds into his voice.

“So I am your queen?” Frustration is building in me.

“Yes.”

“Truly, you will do whatever I say?” Air is suddenly harder to pull into my lungs.

“Truly,” he answers earnestly, gifting me with a small reassuring smile.

“Then I order you to leave! Any foolish oath you made to that poor excuse for a king is complete. Pick up that bag and go home, Leon.”

The aches in my body are nothing to the pain in my chest when I see his expression. When I can no longer stand to see the hurt I’ve caused, I pull my hand back, stepping out of his space.

Leon’s fists clench at his sides. “It’s been long enough, so surely the king’s absence has been noticed. Instead of his father, Grayden will find an empty bedchamber, his father gone, and a suspiciously missing healer. Once the guards have searched the castle only to return to him empty-handed, what do you think he will do?”

My voice is trapped within my chest.

He continues, bitterness blooming in his words. “Do you know what they will do to me when they find me? Kill me. Oathbreaker and defender of the king disgraced. Death will be the only justice inGrayden’s eyes. Once he is done raging, he will send forces out into the city, and when the crown is not found there, he will never stop looking for it. I have no doubt he will seek revenge on Kalvorn immediately, who already has an army waiting to attack, turning his sick and dying people into soldiers for a crown that is useless to him and revenge for a father he never cared about.”

“Leon, you tried to stop whoever took Jedrick. You went after him when they left you for dead.”

His face hardens but I do not feel his anger is directed at me, just the situation he now finds himself in. “You think the man who threatened you two nights ago would care that Itried? He will only see failure, and the punishment for that is death. It is no longer safe for you or me! He will be sending out forces to comb this forest shortly, no matter the risks. They may already have sent guards to the port to stop all ships from leaving for Versairen. He could have spies anywhere. I’ve already failed one royal. I refuse to fail another one, especially one I actuallycareabout.”

I want to scream that a fate worse than death awaits him if he follows me to the fae realm, that the magic will drive him to madness. “I’m sorry, but?—”

The rumbling of horse hooves slamming into the soil nearby grows louder, heading straight towards us.

Leon holds my father’s sword out at the same time I remove my dagger, hiding it from view in my back pocket. He moves to stand in front of me. “You need to run. I’ll find you again,” he demands, scanning the forest. “Go,now!” When I make no move to flee, he pleads, “Please!Pleasehide.”

---