Page 47 of Crown of Ellova: Vol 1

Tavien turns to Nueena. “I spoke with Lillian. Your parents are waiting for us in the throne room. Viella will keep our friend here company while we discuss the…” He cocks his head to one side while looking at the crown hidden under my hair. “...situation?”

“I need to stay with Izadella. Anywhere she goes, I go,” Leon says as Nueena and Tavien start towards the door.

“I’m sorry, Leon,” I say, “but there are some things I must speak with the Realm Keeper about. But if they would like to hear your side of the story, and I’m sure they will, I will come back here and bring you.”

He opens his mouth to argue at the idea of us separating.

“The library has some wonderful books. Get cleaned up. Vi will call for some lunch for you, and I promise I’ll be back as soon as I can. Viella is wonderful, you will like her, and she can answer any questions you have. Take a hot bath. My bathing room has everything you need.”

Two of Lillian’s personal honeyguards come in to stand at the door. They are both highly trained and vicious fighters when needed, and I know she sends these two in particular as a statement. One of them gives Leon a little wave, but her acknowledgment seems more mocking than friendly.

Leon narrows his eyes at the guard. “Right.” He moves closer to my ear. “Are you sureyouwill be all right?”

Unable to resist the genuine concern in his question, I reach out and place a hand on his forearm, his hand quickly covering mine. “Quite all right. I promise you are completely safe here.”

Leon moves even closer to me, his lips brushing my ear. “It’s not my safety I’m worried about.”

CHAPTER 21

At the heart of the Ellovian palace is a spacious courtyard garden. At the center, surrounded by its countless blooms, is a stone and crystal sanctuary. It was once a holy temple for the fae goddess Ellova but now holds the Realm Keeper’s throne room.

Guards with baldrics the color of plums greet us as they open the large doors. The long room has open crystal windows filled with the early-morning sunshine; the surrounding flowers peek in and the lively morning sounds of the palace float by. Vines wrap around the columns that hold up the ceiling and the soft purple material that drapes between each one.

Our steps echo throughout as we walk across the light green floor with dark green marbling towards the driftwood table just before the throne.

Nyvenah, Realm Keeper of Ellova and Nueena’s mother, sits upon the Ellovian throne, which is made of twisted trees and intricately entwined ivy. Above her head, gemstones in the color of each court are set in an arch. Her consort and Nueena’s father, Alachite, waits off to the side next to a floating tapestry of the fae and mortal realms. The elaborate tapestry map is sewn with delicate shimmering threads, the realm of Ellova on one side with the mortal kingdoms of Adreania, Kalvorn, and Versairen across the Divide.On Nyvenah’s right grows the navlue tree with its deep purple branches, its beautiful fruit dangling from it, ripening, a deeper shade than the one Grayden tried to feed me. The green rind darkens with every day that passes as Nueena’s power reaches its peak, its closed flower buds waiting to bloom.

My stomach twists with dread at the memory. Another situation I will need to tell them about.

Just beyond the Ellovian throne stands a grand gray statue of the goddess Ellova, ten feet tall, a flowing dress frozen behind her, with patches of moss clinging to the bottom in spirals. Her marble eyes are open, her expression kind. Long hair reaches her feet, curling at the edges. Atop her head is a floral crown with flowers enchanted to never die. Her beauty is carved into the stone, ethereal to all who see it.

Last to arrive is Lillian, who strides in and with a wave of her gloved hand sends all guards away, shutting the door behind them.

“Welcome home, Dewdrop,” Alachite says to me as I approach.

Alachite and Nyvenah smile warmly at us, but their concern is clear beneath it. Lillian must have told them something alarming has happened.

“Hello, my dewlings.” Nyvenah rises gracefully from her throne, stepping down to greet me.

We kiss each other on the cheek in greeting and her arm wraps around my shoulders as we walk to Nueena.

Nyvenah is still dressed in her regal red garb from her visit to the Court of Swords this morning. Her dark brown skin is a stark contrast to her moonlight hair. Her thick braids are pinned in a swirl around her head, with a large gold crown covered with emeralds and amethysts on top. She is hundreds of years old but could pass for a mortal of fifty or sixty years. Small wrinkles are permanently etched around her eyes, which are now focused solely on me.

“Welcome home. How was the Court of Swords?” I ask. “It’s always lovely this time of year.”

We all sit at the ornate table together. Nyvenah folds her hands atop it, facing me. “Fine, fine, more preparation for the coronation.Lillian said we might need to return sooner than we thought to bring Ellova’s armies here. I am somewhat nervous as to that cryptic message but she said you had something to share. Are you all right, Della?”

Saying yes feels like a lie, so I pull out the pins holding up my hair, one by one. All eyes are on me. Nyvenah’s and Alachite’s expressions grow increasingly worried with each one I drop on the worn wood, my hair falling to reveal the reason the Merawood Forest was enchanted with protection.

The golden crown that destroyed the lives and friendship of Nyvenah’s great-grandmother, Realm Keeper Zarella, and her closest friends, Inara and Alvina.

I can see my reflection in one of the wall mirrors.

I tell them everything that has happened since I found Jedrick defenseless in the forest: the attackers who abducted the king, Jedrick’s death, the crown about to burn down the entire forest, the pain of putting it on, Leon showing up, and Grayden’s guards attempting to take us. I take great care to explain that bringing Leon was a last resort and a matter of life or death.

Nyvenah and Alachite take it all in with stunned expressions, but it’s Alachite who speaks first.

“You did the right thing. It seems without a living conduit, the crown cannot handle the great magic trapped within it. Powerful objects are often unpredictable. Everything outside of the Venneem Mountains would have been destroyed, and that threatens our safety.”

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