Page 62 of To Scale the Emerald Mountain
When we mentioned going to The Capital to Ellya, she asked when her father, siblings, and stepmother would join us and my heart broke, realizing just how desperately she longed for her father, how much she looked up to her brothers, and cared for her stepmother. I soon learned Angelise agreed that Milo treated Ellya unfairly. I could not take her from them, not yet.
Fighting every instinct I had to keep her close to me, to be selfish, was difficult. But if I brought Ellya home with me then, I would be solidifying her never having any kind of real relationship with her family,save her grandmother.
Ellya also deserved the chance to be herself, separate from me. She deserved to form her own personality, have her own likes and interests discovered all on her own. She deserved to learn and grow and make mistakes, for that is all part of the beauty of life. I always wanted her to have the most, to have everything.
I had lived what is lifetimes for others before she entered the world. How could I not afford Ellya the same freedom? If she had lived practically her entire life with me—with me overseeing everything about her education, training, and leisure—she would have molded into what I expected. The unfairness of that prospect curdled my stomach and made me feel downright dirty for considering it. Ellya’s life meant more than just being my mate.
I never wanted her to doubt that we are equal in every way.
Ellya was inconsolable that first time I had to leave. In her child mind, she had assumed that since she was staying in Brhadir that I would be staying with her. She screamed, cried, and slapped me across the face. The heartache still stings as stoutly when I recall the memory today.
For some time, I doubted my decision to let her blossom on her own, but I visited as frequently as I could. Mhaylene would bring Ellya to visit The Capital just as often, and it quickly became apparent that letting her grow up in Brhadir was the right choice.
The complications of navigating such an intimate bond in a manner appropriate for Ellya’s age was a hurdle I foolishly did not expect. It ended up being easier from afar to allow our relationship to progress through the stages of her life. I first acted as a protector and friend, then mentor and confidant.
Things have only begun to shift to something more intimate recently.
Seeing the new ways she had grown and learned was an experience in itself. Throughout her childhood and adolescence, Ellya’s powers manifested quickly and strongly. It was painful to watch her struggle through mastering her Sight for so many years. Some of those visits when she would seize and bled from her nose after being overtaken by a vision made my soul ache knowing there was nothing I could do but hold her through it.
Ellya eventually mastered that gift along with the others she was given which came to her easily, naturally. Seeing how she fought with her staff made me swell with pride. Where her gifts were beautiful, the staff was not something she was born with. That was a choice that was all hers, even if inspired by Mhaylene.
Patience has become a virtue I have mastered. In the last year, I have sensed Ellya’s maturing nearing completion. The hard line I had drawn for us in our vast age difference coming into view. I was waiting for the time that I would come to her, find her fully blossomed, and our lives together would start. And that day came not long ago when I was able to get away long enough to come to her for a few days.
The moment my eyes landed on Ellya, everything had changed. I knew that it was time. It had only been a few months since I had last seen her; but she was different. Not her physical appearance, but her aura; it had fully lost the shine of childhood.
Ellya’s scent was different. She had always had the earthy, fresh smell of clove. But this time, when I gathered her in my arms, I was hit with something new that nearly brought me to my knees. Clove was still there, but wrapped around it was something dark and sultry. The scent of night blooming jasmine.
My arms held Ellya longer than I ever had, trying to douse myself in the intoxicating floral aroma that was so utterly, beautifully her. When Ifinally pulled away, and she gazed up at me, her lovely green eyes held the same fire I know that mine did. She knew as well as I that it was time. The ancient magic of our bond purring in my chest began whispering to me in that fleeting moment, beginning its coaxing to claim what is ours.
Cradling her face in my hands, I brought my lips to hers for the first time, capturing her mouth with mine passionately—possessively. We were both so enraptured with each other in the life altering moment I could not resist, even if I wanted to.
I was addicted at the first taste.
I would have brought Ellya home with me then. And gods, do I regret asking her at that moment—senselessly drunk on her and the possibilities ahead of us—if she was ready to come home with me. Ready to claim me as hers and us rule at each other’s side. Her preening was evident when I called her my queen, despite always knowing that she would be. In just minutes everything was different between us. We were to be everything we were always meant to be.
Milo and I barely tolerated each other in those first several years, arguing often over my outspokenness towards his lack of parenting. As Milo finally began to deal with his grief from losing Tellisha, he became more unsettled by the thought of me mating his daughter. And though our friendship will never return, we eventually became cordial. I held some level of nervousness when I left Ellya to go speak to her father.
“You are a good man, Alec. It’s just… I’ve seen you be downright debaucherous more times than I care to count. And you’re so old.” Discomfort contorted his expression.
Laughter crawled up my throat when he said that to me after I told him I was finally taking Ellya home. My debauchery tamedwhen I became king. It disappeared completely the day Ellya was born.
My joy was painfully short-lived when Milo informed me that Locane had shown up unannounced a few days before my arrival. “He was asking strange questions, Alec. About Ellya and her visions. Why would he be so interested in Ellya and her gifts?”
Milo’s concern was noxious, and I knew what Locane was inquiring about.
My brother and I had not spoken since our father’s funeral. Locane fled shortly after the service, leaving only a frantic note. It was in that nearly illegible letter that he told me the Quinndohsi throne was mine.
Word made it to me that he started a new life on the Mother Continent, living lavishly after making a sound investment in a mine in the Crehseidance Territory. I had hoped that he had healed from his afflictions that were hand delivered to him by Father, that he had given up the cursed quest. I prayed as often for that as I did for my sanity, especially knowing what I do now and how my mate may come to play a part.
My hopes were instantly dashed away when Milo relayed to me about my brother’s overall appearance. Overwhelming sadness blanketed us both when he told me about Locane’s pallor; the lack of shine in his eyes; the cruel lines of his face; the utter void of emotion in his tones and expressions. Mostly, when Milo described the darkness staining Locane’s fingers: a truth I would willingly accept to prepare for the possibilities ahead. Especially when Milo confirmed my suspicions about Locane’s questions, asking if Ellya ever had visions pertaining to the gods or Ellhora.
Dread welled up inside of me when I considered that he also knew where Mhaylene’s home is located, that it was virtuallyunprotected. Milo is not aware of Ellya’s ties to the gems of the gods; that the gems are indeed more than just myth and legend. He did not understand when I suddenly told him I had something to tend to before Ellya would leave with me to start our new life. Milo was alarmed by my urgency to keep Ellya and Mhaylene in the castle grounds under the protection of powerful wards. He was outraged when I started ordering his guards to change stations, adding extra to every hidden entrance and exit.
Unfortunately, my brother knew this castle as well as any.
It was necessary to compel Milo to stop asking questions, solidify my orders, and add more wards to the grounds personally. After a long night of increasing patrols and protection, the castle was abuzz with anxious energy. Everything was in place except for one thing. The dread I harbored knowing I had to hunt down my brother to put a stop to whatever he may have planned was only eclipsed by my dread of telling Ellya that she would not be leaving with me after all—at least not this time.
She was furious. Her fury only increased when I would not tell her why I had changed my mind so suddenly, why she was being forced to stay at the castle. Ellya screamed, cried, and slapped me across the face. I should have seen the omen for what it was when she reacted the same as she had the first time she learned I would be leaving without her.
