Chapter 22
LIDIANE
The water makes the scene murky, dream-like, and my confused mind, lacking air, struggles to make sense of what I’m seeing.
The Sea King’s daughter? Bizarre.
But also logical. How can such a strange idea make so much sense?
Now the queen wants her husband to crown her son, thinking I’m a threat to his throne.
I need air. Air.
Azur’s floating above me, his expression serene if it wasn’t for a dangerous glint in his eyes.
In front of me, the Sea King looks at his wife. “Let’s state the terms first. Also, a coronation would benefit from a proper ceremony.”
The queen huffs. “The silly formalities can wait. I want to see my son with the crown. Now.”
The King looks absolutely defeated, his shoulders hunched. When he speaks, his voice is the epitome of sadness. “Are you sure you want to do this, Selena? Did you know that I thought I loved you once?”
“All you gave me were scraps, Sonrad. Our son deserves more than that.”
“Is there another way?” The king’s tone is one of pleading, begging.
It’s clear he feels completely crushed, which doesn’t bode well. My insides churn.
Something touches my head. An air bubble. Small, but enough for now. Azur stares at the scene, his eyes sharp.
At the same time, the cage tightens, poking my body.
The queen laughs, still staring at the king. “What do you think?”
King Sonrad asks,“You killed her mother, didn’t you? And poisoned her brother.”
Anger bubbles in my chest.
“The past doesn’t matter, my dear husband,” the queen says.
He narrows his eyes. “You never really bothered to learn the extent of my magic, did you?”
The queen looks puzzled, and he touches the cage with one hand, while spearing the queen with the trident.
Blood oozes from her chest, making the water around her pink.
Meanwhile, my cage vibrates as if resisting something as the king emits a pained scream that sounds like “Go. I’ll be fine.
” The guards and the prince advance on him.
In less than a second, Azur grabs my hand through the bars, and then we land on a beach with fluffy sand and angry waves crashing under the stars.
He saved me. And I don’t know what happened in the Sea Court.
Azur holds me close. “I got you.”
I craved his touch for so long that I want to melt in his embrace as I feel his heart beating in his chest, his hands holding me.
At the same time, I’m still shocked, horrified. “We’re too close to the ocean,” I mumble, fearing that the queen or her son will come after us.
“True. Where do you want to go? The island’s no longer safe.”
“I know. But my things are on the island. I don’t think the Sea Court will come by right now. If they fly, it takes them some time.”
He nods, and we emerge on the river bank, from where he floats us to the island, all the time holding me close.
There are no lights waiting for us, no voices. Only silence.
“They still haven’t returned,” I say.
He rests his forehead on mine. “I’m no longer bound to the Witch King. When I transcend, I don’t feel his pull anymore.”
Amidst all my confusion and shock, a spark of joy emerges. “You think they killed him?”
A corner of his lips lifts. “It’s what it seems.”
I chuckle with so much relief. “And you’re no longer afraid to touch me?”
He shakes his head. “Seawater can undo the magic poisoning, and either way, now we both have it.”
“Is that why… You disappeared?” I step away from him, all my previous annoyance back in full force. “Not even a goodbye. Not even a warning.”
“I panicked. I saw your hands, and I…” He swallows.
“You need better manners.”
“Teach me.”
“No!” I frown. “Get a book or something, if common sense fails you. I’m not your mother.” I realize then that it might have been an insensitive thing to say, considering she died when he was little. “I’m sorry. I… also grew up away from my parents. I know how much it hurts.”
He pulls my hand and kisses it. “It’s fine. You’re right. I should have told you where I went. I…” He blinks and takes a deep breath. “Wasn’t even sure my idea made any sense. Didn’t want to raise any false hope.”
“You went to the Sea Court?”
He nods. “To find the Sea King.”
“How did you know?” I still cannot comprehend all this new information, cannot come to terms with it.
“That day, on the boat. All that attention from the prince, all that anger, it wasn’t normal. And the king protected you. He noticed you and didn’t say anything. It’s why I went there, hoping he’d lend me the Pearl of Healing, but he said seawater would be enough to stop the magical poisoning.”
I chuckle in disbelief. “Something so simple.” My laughter then dies as I consider what I saw. “Is it really true? That woman killed my mother? The king’s my father? I don’t know if he survived the guards.”
Azur wraps his arms around me again. “He sounded confident, said he didn’t need guards. And he has strong magic.” He pauses. “It seems that the queen killed your mother, yes, and poisoned your brother. She’s not aware Ferer survived. Your mother hid him well.”
There’s so much anger stirring in my chest, anger that comes out as a tear in my eye. “All for a stupid throne. I don’t think my mother even cared for it. I don’t care for it.”
“You can’t change who you are. Or change your past.”
I close my eyes, trying to understand, to make sense of things. “If he’s my father, how come he never…” The emptiness and confusion within me don’t fit into words.
Azur runs a tentative finger over my face.“The king thought Ferer was dead, and that you weren’t his daughter. That’s how you two survived. Plus, you avoided the ocean.”
There’s so much calm in his eyes, and I realize then that my biggest worry in the last days is gone. Azur won’t become a bloodpuppet—and neither will I. And the Witch King is probably dead.
I lean on his chest. “Thank you for looking out for me.” A smile comes to my lips. “Bad manners or not.”
“I’ll always look out for you.”
“You think it’s really over? The Witch King is defeated?”
“I… hope so. We still might need to deal with the Sea Court, if…” His voice lowers. “Something happens to your father.” He then smiles. “But I’m not dying. Your hope was right. You were right.”
“Did you have any doubts?”
His chest trembles as if making an effort to breathe, as if struggling. “I never asked you if you wanted this bond, if you wanted…”
“You? Of course I want you.”
“Despite my bad manners?” Oh, he’s so dramatic.
“I’m not perfect either.”
“Of course you are. Now that I can touch you, I want to spend a month holding you like this.”
“Really? You didn’t consider any other kind of touching?”
He looks up, thinking. “Yes, Lidiane. Other possibilities have crossed my mind, even if I feared they were distant dreams. What about you? Did you consider anything else?”
“Hmmm. You’ll have to figure it out.”
“At least I have all the time in the world. There’s no hurry.”
No hurry. There’s time. What a strange concept, a strange idea.
I lean on him again, hearing his beating heart.
Around us, the river flows as leaves rustle with the wind.
I inhale his scent, feel his presence. It’s strange to calm down after being locked in that cage where I could barely breathe, strange to hope again after seeing him so defeated.
He pulls my chin up again, then looks at me, a smirk on the corner of his lips, then he kisses my cheek, and says, “I want easy love. Calm like a river.”
He kisses the corner of my mouth. “But also solid like the earth. I want our love to grow strong slowly. And I’m honored that you want me.”
When his lips meet mine, a rush of electricity runs through my body.
His touch is gentle, soft, sweet. So… Azur, as if I’d always known kissing him would be like, as if it was part of me.
All the time we’ve been apart feels like a bizarre reality, when things didn’t make sense. This feels right. Feels like home.
His hand slides down my back, fingers splaying across my spine, pulling me tighter against him, as the kiss becomes urgent, frantic, almost desperate.
Suddenly, he stops, breathless, staring at me with wild blue eyes.
“I changed my mind. I am in a hurry.”
I chuckle, and he does the same, then lifts me and carries me inside, all the way to his old room. I remember sitting here, waiting for the healer, fearing he’d die. Now he’s so alive. So mine.
He throws me not so gently on his bed, then cages me with his knees, and kisses my neck.
“Your dress—it’s so wet. I think you should take it off.”
“Look who’s talking. You’re soaked. And now your bed is going to get wet.”
“That’s very much the plan.”
He raises an eyebrow, then pulls the lower hem of the dress until it’s above my head, and then yanks it off. He then opens and tosses his shirt.
My breath stills as I admire the planes of his chest, his well-defined abdomen, his shoulders, arms. He kneels around me again, the tips of his hair caressing my collarbone like feathers.
I point at my breastband. “This is wet too, you know?”
“Dripping.” He kisses it, then undoes it, his eyes on me.
When he reveals my breasts, goosebumps ripple across my skin, and something between my legs flutters. His eyes soften as he takes me in, his look a tender, loving caress, and he splays his palms over my stomach.
“Is this the kind of touching that you imagined?” His tone is surprisingly playful.
“Sort of.”
His hands slide upward to cup my breasts, the thumbs caressing the nipples softly, making me gasp.
“Is this the touch you wanted?”
“It’s one of them, yes. But you’re still wearing wet clothes.”
“So are you.”
“What are you going to do about it?” I tease.
His eyes lower to my underwear, as he slides a hand over it, his firm touch sending a jolt of sensation through my body.