Page 48 of Plaything of the Dark Elf

Etheron

Dalia lays her head on my broad chest as we both breathe in one another. Her hands cling to my back, her inner walls massage my length, but most of all, her heart beats against my chest, and mine meets every beat.

I lay back, letting her rest on top of me. I stroke her golden locks and bask in the clarity. Part of me wonders why she has this effect on me, but I let the thought drift away. The fact of the matter is, she does have this effect on me. Why can be figured out later. For now, I close my eyes and listen to her breathing, feeling her supple skin on my body and with my hand.

Magic, medicine, violence, alcohol, sex, none of them have come close to the relief Dalia provides me. Even after the most glorious battles, or most salacious nights of whoring, the dark fog remains on the edges of my mind, but with her, it vanishes completely. She’s a cure to my disease, a salve to my wound. She’s better than magic and medicine. She’s everything I need.

I think back to Mother and Father. What might they say to me about needing a human woman? Rather than ponder an answer, another question rises. What might Dalia’s family say? Do they even know her current fate? She hadn’t sold herself into slavery, she’d been kidnapped. “Does your family know where you were before I found you?”

She shakes her head and her hands grip me a little tighter.

“Do you miss your family?”

She gazes up at me, placing her chin on my chest, and sighs. “I suppose. I haven’t seen them for…Gods, it’s been years now. I was taken from my home when my parents were gone. In my struggle, I knocked over a chair and broke a clay cup. They might not even know I was taken. For all I know, they think I left in a rage.”

“Did you have siblings?”

She nods. “Three brothers. Two older, one younger, but only by a year. He was basically an older brother as well. All of them were so protective of me.” Her eyes well with tears and my heart constricts.

I cup her jaw and stroke the red mark on her cheek with the pad of my thumb. “Where were they when you were taken?”

She pulls the birth mark from my touch by turning her face into my palm, laying soft kisses on my hand. “They were in the fields with my father. My mother was out on an errand. I normally went with her on errands, but she wouldn’t let me go with her that day. I was angry, and I let her know it. That’s why I think they might suspect I left.” She chews her bottom lip for a moment, her eyes cast down to my chest as one of her fingers traces the runes on it. “Do you think… I know it doesn’t matter much, but would it be possible to reach out to them? Let them know that I’m safe now?”

Safe. The word pulls my lips into a smile. “Do humans consider others safe when they’re slaves of the miou?”

Her smile falls. “No. Not really.”

I pull her face up to look her in the eyes. “You are safe, Dalia. I promise you that. And yes, we can tell your family you’re safe.”

Life sparkles in her eyes and her bright smile returns. “Would it—” She presses her lips into a tight line, glancing away. “Would it be too much to ask if we could do something for the area they live in?”

It’s one thing to send her family a letter telling them Dalia is safe in my care, it’s another to dump money into their house or their doctor. Most times, the money ends up wasted if not given proper oversight, which I certainly don’t have the time to give. Nor do I truly wish to give them any money even if it is spent properly.

Dalia’s smile pulls my mind from reason, and I nod. “I’ll see what I can do. Improving in the lowtowns is not something easily done, and not quickly done either. Plans need to be laid out, approved by city officials. It can take some time, but reaching out to them can be done rather quickly.”

“I can write to them?” Her eyes grip mine, hope beaming more radiant than the sun.

“Of course.”

“And…” She blushes and stares down at my chest. “What exactly should I say about us? Do I just say that I’m your slave? Or…” Her breath catches, and her body tenses on mine. “Would I say that we’re… more?”

More.The word rings like a dirge in my mind. Are we more? Don’t we have to be? She makes me feel like nothing I’ve ever felt before. She saves me from the worst of myself. We must be more. Does that mean marriage?

I’ve heard some quiet whispers, or rather, salacious rumors, of a few marriages between dark elves and humans. I always dismissed them more so because the thought of mating or marrying has been out of reach for me. With my dark thoughts and violent past, I don’t even deserve to have a family.

But wouldn’t I be happy with the one Dalia gives me?Gazing into her emerald eyes, I can’t find a reason to say no.

A family. Could I truly have one? Even without my issues, having a family carries risks. They’d become targets of our nation’s enemies, targets of my political rivals. They’d be something to lose. I’ve never cared about losing my home, my station, my life, but the thought of losing Dalia strikes my heart like a serrated blade. How much pain would losing children cause?

That’s all external threats, what about internal? My mind is clear now, but what about tomorrow? It came back before. Even if this time does feel different, that black fog could return and take me over. I could kill the mother of my children, or my entire family. I know what it’s like to lose my family. I don’t want to lose another.

The dark thoughts sour my heart. I frown, but cover myself by coughing into a fist. “I just remembered. I need to attend a meeting. I’d only planned to show you the mausoleum.” I slip from the bed, leaving her in the sheets. “You can stay here or return to your rooms if you like. Or move about the manor as you see fit.” I lean back over the bed and kiss her, hoping she doesn’t sense the fear that grips my heart. “I’m sorry for leaving abruptly. I’ll be back in a short while.”

“Okay.” She smiles up at me, her smile not radiating the confidence it once did. “I look forward to your return.”

I smile and pull out my formal wardrobe. As I get dressed, I glimpse her staring at me through the mirror.

“Etheron?” She chews her lip again, gripping the sheets around her, covering herself from me. “What of my letter to my parents?”

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