Unleashed Witch (The Primordial Queen #3)

21. Mael

21

MAEL

E llie’s trembling in my arms as we come to a stop outside her dad’s office. She’s coming down from the adrenaline high of her training session, and the exhaustion is starting to set in.

She knocks softly on the door, clinging to my hand like it’s her lifeline. Her fingers are cold against mine, still trembling from the fading adrenaline from her training session. Her magicae hasn’t dulled too much, but she’s putting more of her weight on me than usual.

I’m not impressed that we’ve got to meet with Anomus, when I want to just get her home and comfortable.

“I want to know what he wants,” Ellie murmurs, peeking up at me from under her long eyelashes. Her cheeks are rosier than usual against her pale skin, and the exhaustion that I feel from her side of the bond makes my chest ache.

I wish I could tell her to just sack off her dad and we can call it a night.

Sadly, she actually cares about him.

“I know you do, baby.” I brush a kiss to the top of her head, moments before she opens the door and pulls me through. The air in her dad’s office hits us with a wall of warmth, heavy with the scent of ancient grimoires and that peculiar metallic tang that lingers after serious dark magic.

I shouldn’t be surprised that the dark fuck is performing sketchy spells when he’s all alone in his office.

Flickering orbs of light cast dancing shadows across the walls, making the room feel smaller than it is, and I meet Anomus’s eyes. They seem to darken as he takes Ellie’s exhausted expression in, but the room lightens at the same time.

The one good thing about this fucker, is that he’s obsessed with his daughter.

Good thing too, because I know there’s not a single line he won’t cross for her.

That’s the only kind of love I understand.

“Hi.” Ellie’s shy blush is the most adorable thing I’ve ever laid eyes upon, and I see the hesitation in Anomus’s gaze as he debates on how to respond.

Ellie’s mind is whirring those same struggles. Should she call him Anomus, or dad? Would he prefer Uncle or nothing at all?

Should she wave or offer a hug?

She wants a hug.

I squeeze Zoe’s hand and move away from her, nodding my head at Anomus, before gesturing to the small fridge in the corner. “Can I have one of those?”

He doesn’t even look my way, nodding immediately, as he focuses on his daughter. “Omi said you did wonderful today.”

Something dark and possessive twists in my chest as Zoe’s side of the bond lights up, the feeling of pride so overwhelming, that I can’t help but pause at the door of the fridge.

Do we not praise her enough?

I praise her efforts constantly—don’t I?

Nah, fuck it, we clearly don’t. We need to do it more.

“Did she really?” Ellie moves to sit on the sofa, bringing her legs up under herself, and I move to the arm chair by her side, positioning myself between her and the door, angled so I can see both exits while keeping Anomus in my peripheral vision.

It doesn’t hurt that the seat next to Ellie is free, so that once the dark witch finally uses his brain he can sit next to his daughter.

Nobody better dare accuse me of being selfish with Ellie’s attention for a good week after this good deed.

Anomus eyes us both up, and watches as I unseal the bottle of apple juice, and hand it to Ellie.

“Drink up, Ellie baby,” I command, and her eyes widen, but she does as I say. I hide my smirk at her less than innocent thoughts and turn to Anomus. “Are you going to come and sit with us, or are you going to shout from over there?”

His eyes darken, but when I raise a brow, he smooths out his features and slowly walks over. I hold in my frustration.

You offer the man the world’s most precious and dazzling gem, and he’s fucking terrified to accept it.

Fool.

Doesn’t he understand that we will never be worthy of her?

Ellie hands me back the apple juice, and her blue eyes meet mine, as she places her hand on my forearm. “I’m the one not worthy of you , Mal. What is with you boys, thinking you don’t deserve me? You’re everything.”

I roll my eyes, and try to tamp down the glare I want to give her father for being here and ruining my time with her.

Instead, I place my hand over hers, and smile at her. “Don’t be silly, Ellie baby. You’re the one who saw the darkness inside me—in us all—and chose to stay anyway.”

She groans loudly, and her dad’s eyebrows raise. Not that Ellie notices, instead her focus is completely on me. “You’re not a dark man, Mael. You’re good—kind, smart, sweet.”

“Handsome?”

“Very.” Her blush darkens, and she can’t meet my eyes, but her reaction warms my soul better than my fire ever could.

“Trust me, Ellie baby, when I say that the love I have for you is endless.” Her eyes meet mine, tears welling up, as she hears the truth.

“How could it not be?” I continue, leaning in a little closer. “After all, you’re the one who taught me what love actually is. Before you, it was just another weapon people used against each other.”

“I don’t like this silent communicating,” Anomus decides, crossing his arms over his chest, a pathetic look on his face.

“I’m sorry,” Ellie murmurs, tucking her wayward curls of hair behind her ears. Most of it is tied up in a messy bun on the top of her head, and I know she’ll have a headache when she lets it down later tonight.

Hm, maybe I can give her a head massage, like she does for Ryes’s fat, undeserving head.

“Don’t be sorry. I wanted to catch you before you left, to talk more about the Royal Showcase that Etonik thinks he’s worthy enough of putting on,” Anomus says, dryly. The light seems to darken in the room, shadows creeping longer across the walls, as if the very mention of that bastard’s name corrupts Anomus’s magicae.

“Um, okay.” Ellie hunches over even further, retreating into herself, and I don’t bother to hide the glower I send towards Anomus.

Fucking cunt.

I don’t care if he’s her dad, he clearly doesn’t realise how exhausted she is, and how much she does not want to face this right now.

“It doesn’t matter if I don’t want to face it, Mal,” Ellie says, gently. “I don’t have the luxury of burying my head in the sand when we’ve barely got two weeks to make a plan.”

“I still vote we kill him, and let you avoid this shit.” I huff out a breath of hot air. “I don’t like that we’ve been put into this position.”

“Nobody does, fire witch,” Anomus says, darkly. “Refusing to go, will not only make Elzora a huge target to every person around, but it will endanger the rest of you, as well. We nearly lost…” He trails off, giving Ellie a nervous look, before mouthing ‘Etrix’ behind his hand at me.

“I can read minds,” Ellie says, looking between the two of us. “And I’m okay about it now.”

If by okay, I mean, terrified and heartbroken every time anyone leaves the house.

“We need to talk about the prophecy that Etonik mentioned,” Anomus says, and my jaw locks together, as I turn away from the conversation. “And the danger it puts you, and your soul connections in, lux animula mea .”

Ellie’s magicae pulses with anxiety, a wave of golden power escaping her that makes the dark magicae in the room recoil. The air crackles with the sharp sense of her fear, the pressure inside of my crushing and devastating as I feel her echoes. Even Anomus flinches, his own shadows drawing closer to him.

Of course this is about the fucking prophecy. Well, at least it’s clear Anomus is terrified of his daughter.

I can feel the moment that her anxiety attack takes true hold, and she’s no longer fully present . Her mind is filled with lies, her body no longer acting rationally. My poor, poor, love.

Another wave of soul magicae explodes out of her, as her shallow breathing quickens. Her fingers dig into her palms hard enough that I think they’ve drawn blood, and through our bond, it feels like the world is closing in on her. I shut down my side of the bond, unable to help her and experience this with her.

That’s the problem when your girl’s a powerful empath—she draws you in without even trying. Sometimes it’s beautiful, sometimes it’s healing, but other times… it makes you angry enough that you want the world to burn for ever allowing her to feel the slightest bit of pain.

Then again, it’s not like I’d need to be angry to burn the world down for her.

Another wave of soul magicae fills the room, far more raw and uncontrollable than the last. The force of it rattles Anomus’s bookshelves, and desk, sending papers flying through the room.

It would be funny thinking of him cleaning it all back up properly, if it weren’t for the terrified expression on Ellie’s face.

Anomus’s magicae is tentative as he reaches for her, but her soul magicae repels his influence, golden sparks burning through the shadows he’s cast. Fuck.

I drop to my knees in front of her, and my heart constricts at the expression on her face. Tears drip down her cheeks, her mouth open in a silent sob, but her blue eyes… they’re the worst part—they seem flat, lifeless, soulless .

I tilt her head up to look at me, and although her eyes move, they just seem to look through me, like she can’t actually see anything. This isn’t like her usual panic attack—or is it? I have no fucking idea. Her whole body trembles, and her magicae constantly leaks out in erratic pulses that match her racing heartbeat.

She just feels broken.

I absorb the next wave of her panic, taking into my primordium like it’s my own. Her hands are clammy, but I refuse to let her sit in this horrific nightmare—daymare? Mindfuck?—for any longer.

“Ellie baby, I need you to breathe for me,” I demand. She doesn’t respond, not even to look me in the eyes.

Fuck.

Anomus’s magicae moves at the same time as mine does, his shadows writhing as he reaches for his daughter once more.

Fucking idiot.

My magicae switches gears, and rather than trying to merge with our anima nexum , it surrounds her in warmth instead, and desperately tries to shove her father away before he can even touch her.

Ellie’s magicae is unpredictable right now, and she’s already proven that he’s not someone she wants to engage with.

The orbs of light in the room flicker violently as our magicaes clash—fire and darkness fighting for dominance whilst trying to keep Ellie out of it.

“Stop,” she begs us both silently, tears dripping down her face, as another wave of magicae blasts out of her. The runes on my skin glow a bright gold, as it hits me, and I grunt at the raw desperation in her power.

Her terror is like ice water in my veins, and my primordium is desperate to quell my fire completely, if it means we can calm our panicked anima nexum.

“Let go of her,” Anomus commands darkly. “You heard my daughter.”

“Don’t be fucking stupid,” I snarl at him. “Your magicae will only make it worse. Pull back, and let me soothe my anima nexum .”

The room darkens, and flames dance along my skin. I’d be obsessed with how beautiful it looks, if I wasn’t concerned that the other beauty in the room wasn’t a second away from exploding.

Even despite Anomus’s darkness, the temperature in the room spikes dangerously.

“Trust me,” I plead, turning to meet Anomus’s pitch black eyes. “She is my entire life. But if she loses her control, people could get hurt—the wards could get fucked, anything could go wrong, and she will be the one to pay the price.”

He heaves a breath, and nods once. I feel his magicae retreat, as he strides across the room. I don’t bother paying any more attention to his tantrum, and instead, connect to my anima nexum through the bond we share.

I reach inside of me, and tug on the golden, glowing heart, that surrounds my own. Ellie’s sharp inhale of breath is a sign it worked, but I don’t let the hope halt me.

“Ellie baby, I need you to look at me, okay?” I keep my tone soft, and soothing, despite the fear clawing at my chest—despite the anger trying to fuel my fire that much further, all thanks to her fucking idiotic dad.

How dare the absolute brainless fuck spring this shit on her.

How fucking dare he.

I open up our bond, because I need to feel her, to be the anchor out of it. It’s a shit fucking move, because every shuddering breath she takes is echoed by me. I don’t know how my beautiful girl is still functional, because it would be kinder to let me be stabbed in the fucking lung with each inhale, than whatever is happening to her.

I let my magicae pour through our connection, starting at her hand, and travelling along her body, wrapping around her like a blanket of safety. I do my best to radiate calm, strength, and love , across our bond, so she’s not coming back into a tense situation.

My girl tends to faint after an episode like this, and selfishly, I don’t think I’m strong enough for that.

“Focus on my fire, baby, focus on our bond,” I murmur, letting the warmth of my magicae absorb into her now. Her breathing slows as our magicae intertwines, gold and crimson banding together—her magicae irresistible to my own.

“Good girl.” I scoot in closer, pulling her into my lap. I ignore the weight of her dad’s gaze, and move so we’re now both sat on the sofa together.

Her blue eyes are still unfocused, but they meet mine hesitantly, and I know that this time she can actually see me. I can feel her panic receding, and she responds so beautifully to my smile.

“There you are, baby,” I murmur, brushing the hair out of her face, and using the pads of my thumbs to wipe away her tears. “Keep breathing, keep relaxing. You’re doing so amazing, Ellie baby. I’m so proud of you.”

After another few calming breaths, her colour returns to her, but instead of being reassured, she grimaces . Her eyes dart across the room, to where her dad is standing behind his desk.

Fucking fool.

I move position, blocking the cunt from her viewpoint.

Is he really so fucking stupid?

I’ve just managed to calm her down, managed to free my anima nexum from the terror her own mind trapped her in, and he tried to send her right back there with his looming and brooding.

If I had my way, I’d burn his eyes from his fucking skull, so he couldn’t look at her again.

“I’m sorry. I’m so so sorry,” Ellie whispers, her hands trembling. I take them in my own, holding her close, as she buries her head into my chest. She’s silent as she sobs, but I can feel her tears soaking through my shirt.

Each one is a failure—I’m supposed to be the one to protect her from this shit, and instead, I’m the one holding her whilst she cries.

Anomus rounds his desk, his face a lot calmer now, and I don’t move as he comes to sit on the sofa with Ellie and I. She either doesn’t notice, or is too ashamed to react, and my hold on her tightens.

I don’t think the prick would take her away from me when she’s seeking comfort, but I couldn’t exactly blame him for trying. They’ve been apart for her entire life, practically, and nobody can deny his devotion to her.

“Your shame for your anxiety attack hurts my heart, my love,” Anomus says, softly. She tenses, her shoulders no longer shaking, as Anomus’s words wash over her.

“Not that I want to agree with those beneath me,” I murmur in her ear. “But my heart hurts way more than his does.”

She laughs. Just a little one. It’s full of exhaustion and shame.

But she laughed.

“And this is why you’re my least favourite of her men,” Anomus says, with such a snooty tone of voice that pulls another half-hearted giggle from his daughter— from my mate . I don’t even react to his pathetic taunt.

Why would I, when it’s clearly a lie?

There’s not a chance you could put me, Etrix, Jasper and Ryes in a room together and not pick me first.

Hell, I come first out of us all.

“Your arrogance knows no bounds,” Anomus mutters, and I roll my eyes. It’s not like he can read my thoughts, so he’s clearly just wanting a fight.

“I really am sorry,” Ellie whispers, lifting her head from my chest to look at her dad. “I’m trying to be better about all of… all of the danger and stuff. I just—” She blows out a huff of air, and I can feel her reaching for me across our bond. I wait to see what she wants, but she seems to draw strength from me.

“You mentioned the danger to my men, and I got trapped in a panic about Etrix,” she whispers.

I roll my eyes. “Don’t worry, Ellie baby, nobody else would’ve cared if he died.”

Her furious blue eyes meet mine, and sure, she’s angry, but the panic has completely disappeared.

“I wonder how you can be so foolish but so wise at the same time,” Ellie’s dad says with a contemplative look. Honestly, he just looks constipated.

“Probably from all the times I was kicked in the head,” I say, without a hint of sarcasm. Ellie’s magicae immediately spreads across my body, soothing the hints of childhood pain.

I brush my lips against her knuckles, not wanting to embarrass her by kissing her senseless in front of her dad, but damn am I desperate for him to fuck off.

“It was probably a stupid move on my behalf to bring this up today, knowing that your primordium still hasn’t truly settled yet, and you experienced a true fear this morning.”

I give him a dirty look, leaning past Ellie, to get in his face a little. “A true fear? Fuck off with your patronising bullshit, and get yourself a dictionary so you don’t make the same mistake twice. She was terrified just now, because she nearly lost a piece of her fucking soul?—”

“Come back to me, now, Mal,” Ellie says, gently turning my head so that I’m looking into her beautiful blue eyes. “He didn’t mean that—trust me, I can hear his thoughts, remember? My… Anomus was nervous about saying the wrong thing, and tried to word it the best he could. He didn’t mean to upset me.”

I wrap my arms around her, resting my head on her head, still glowering at her dad. Let the prick feel the full weight of my hostility.

I don’t care whether offence was intended.

It still deserves to be punished.

And that’s why I love you.

I sigh in contention at her thoughts, and look down at Ellie with a grin. “You know, you’re a little minx sometimes.”

She blushes, and my heart beats faster, knowing she didn’t mean to have me hear that.

She’s fucking perfect.

“I apologise, lux animula mea ,” Anomus says, and I can hear the true authenticity in his words. Grovelling prick. “I truly did not mean to insult.”

“I know,” she murmurs, resting her hands on my arms. “I don’t like that everyone has to walk around on eggshells with me, because I’m not strong enough to handle the realities that we’re in.”

“Strength is something you have in spades dear daughter,” Anomus says. “But it’s something your opponents have too. Do you know what you have that they don’t?”

She scrunches her nose up. “Nine boyfriends?”

Anomus and I both laugh at that, and I squeeze her just a little bit tighter.

“Empathy. Compassion. Grace.” He winks at her. “A true hatred for power?”

“I don’t hate power,” Ellie protests, wiggling on my lap with that fantastic ass of hers, in a way she absolutely should not do with her father present. “I just don’t think I’m suited for it.”

Her dad smiles, and I’m so glad he looks nothing like Ellie when he does, because fuck me that’s something I refuse to let his goofy face ruin.

“Go home, my love, and we’ll discuss this in a couple of days. The prophecy will be here, but the hope is that your anxiety won’t.”

Ellie’s exhaustion is clearly stronger than I realise because she doesn’t try to force this conversation, and she nods. I help her get up, and hold her as close as is respectable , so that we can leave.

I open a portal, and she hugs her dad goodbye. The awkwardness between the two of them is palpable, but the love is there too.

It’ll be amazing for her, when they finally get over this stage, and can just… accept it.

“But, um, Anomus?” Ellie murmurs, after taking my hand in hers. Her dad raises a brow. “Don’t wait for the day my anxiety will be gone, before making a move… it isn’t going anywhere. I’d rather live a mentally ill life, than not live one at all.”

The dampness in my eyes is because my eyes decided to produce fire, and it’s just steam.

I don’t care what Ellie’s giggles say.

“Come on, Ellie baby, let’s get you up to bed,” I murmur, bending to lift her into my arms as the portal closes behind us. Her legs give way as I do, and she practically falls into my hold.

“I can walk,” she protests, but we both feel how content she is as I cradle her to my chest that it’s obvious she does not want to be put down.

“You were tortured today, baby, let me give you the smothering you deserve.”

Her giggles are weak, but genuine, as she cuddles into me. Little puffs of warm breath tickles my neck, as her magicae reaches for mine instinctively.

“My hero,” she murmurs sleepily, and I feel her smile against my skin. “Even if you did threaten to kill my… Anomus multiple times in one conversation.”

“None verbally,” I point out. I deserve a fucking reward for that.

I never thought I’d meet someone with so few brain cells.

She laughs through her nose, and I grin at her thoughts. “I really only threatened him three times? I must be getting soft.”

“Hm.” She traces her finger across my chest, and I can’t tell if she’s drawing a heart, or a circle. “It’s a heart.”

I grin down at her. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Ellie says, kissing my neck, just below my ear. “Now please, put me down. I can walk.”

How dare she think she’s too heavy for me.

“Maybe you can,” I admit, tightening my hold on her, just in case she tries to wriggle away. “But, let me be selfish for once. I like having you close enough that I know you’re safe.”

And that tugs on her heartstrings, just like I knew it would, and she relaxes into my hold completely.

“ Aperi ,” I command as we reach her bedroom door. Ellie doesn’t budge from my arms, as I enter her room, and I murmur, “ claude ” once we’re inside. We’re home alone, and I don’t know how long it’ll last before someone else tries crawling in her bed, but I know my girl feels more comfortable with her door closed.

The lights are already on, and I don’t even need to focus when it comes to lighting the candles in her bathroom, their wicks calling to my magicae like a desperate plea. I gently place my anima nexum on her bed, and move to close her curtains.

I’m not surprised when Ellie curls up, and drops her glasses onto the bed rather than keeping them on. She sleepily watches me prepare her room, and despite the guilt in her thoughts, I’m pleased that she stays comfortable.

She’s drained, and it’s my job to care for her.

I failed earlier.

But tonight, she’s mine to protect.