12. Emilia
Chapter 12
Emilia
“ W here are we going?” I ask. The scenery passes by the carriage window as we exit the city. No longer buildings but open meadows covered in an array of different coloured flowers. Birds swoop from one side to the next, and a pressure I didn’t realize was crushing me releases from my chest the further out we get.
“It’s a surprise.” All Timas has told me is that he wanted to take me on a date where we won’t get interrupted and can forget about everything that is going on, just for a little bit. Timas intertwines our fingers together, the warmth of his palm seeping into my skin.
“I’m so excited! I haven’t seen a lot of the island.” Looking into Timas’ eyes is like getting lost in the open waters. The dark blue of his eyes always encircles me, making me want to float away. A warmth covers my whole body as I look at him. I’ve fallen so madly in love it takes my breath away sometimes. He brings his hand up and places it on my neck, his thumb sweeping along my jaw .
“You are so beautiful, my flower. I don’t know how I got so lucky to have you as my spirit bond.” The ever-present pulling wanes when I am close to Timas. He says that the longer we wait to complete the bond, the harder it is to be away from each other, so for the moments we can be together, I relish the peace that comes with his presence.
“I think I’m the lucky one. This is nice, we don’t have to hear commentary from the dynamic duo about holding hands or looking at each other—“
“Or kissing each other,” Timas interjects, leaning closer. His eyes light with passion as his gaze lowers to my lips. Leaning down, he places his lips on mine. My eyelids fall closed as the now-familiar feeling of his lips on mine overwhelms my senses. Every time we are together, the subtle buzz of the bond sparks to life. It has been getting stronger with each passing day. The sound of hooves traversing the road fades into the background as Timas pulls me closer. My hands land on his chest, instinctively twisting my fingers into his soft robe. Timas’ one hand flexes at my hip while the other gets lost in my hair. The pounding of my heart has made its way to my ears, but I don’t care because the affection and feel of Timas are all-consuming and wonderful. After a few intense moments, Timas pulls away just slightly, leaning his forehead on mine.
“I can’t wait until you are wholly mine. I’m sorry we have had to follow royal protocol. I’m angry at myself for not just bonding with you immediately after finding you. If we had done that, we wouldn’t be facing this vote, and our bonding ceremony would have already happened.” I feel the same way.
“But you wanted to respect your people’s customs and cultures. You are an admirable King who desires to be what they need. I respect that greatly.” His sigh is full of exhaustion and longing, which makes me lean into him more, wrapping my arms around him. He tucks me into his side and kisses the top of my head.
“I don’t want to be admirable, I want to be selfish. All I want is to be with you for the rest of my days. No threats or murders to solve, just uninterrupted time with the woman of my dreams.” Looking up at Timas, who is staring out the carriage window, I see the exhaustion in his eyes. He has been trying to solve these murders and deal with the night court for over a year. He carries the weight every day, and my heart breaks to see him so burdened.
“I wish there was something more I could do.” He turns his head to me and leans down, placing a soft kiss on my lips.
“You being here is doing more than enough. Talking to me and helping me process things is more than enough, and even going behind my back to send in little spies is a huge help.” He raises an eyebrow at me knowingly.
“I’m sorry about that.” I say. He shakes his head.
“Don’t be sorry. I wasn’t thinking clearly; I should have taken the information more seriously. I’m ashamed I did not listen, so I am happy and appreciative that you stepped up when I was distracted.” My heart melts at his kind words .
“I just want to be your partner in everything.” I give a small smile as he brings his hand down on top of mine.
“You are everything, my darling flower. You bring peace to my turbulent power and serenity to my mind.”
The carriage slows down, which pulls my attention away. I was so lost in Timas that I hadn’t realized how far we had gotten from the city. The hills dip and flow in golden meadows, and we have stopped just on top of one of those hills. Timas climbs out first and turns, putting his hand out for me to grasp. Without hesitation I hold his hand and step out of the carriage without trampling my dress, miraculously. Without the walls of the carriage to block my view, a gasp escapes as I look around. A series of purple, red and yellow flowers cover the meadow. To the right is a tree line, and beyond the tree line, in the far distance, you can just make out the city. The flowers wave in the wind, as a warm breeze passes by them.
“This way.” Timas leads us further into the meadow until I see a blanket set out on the ground with pillows and plates of food.
“Sit, my darling.” Timas helps me down onto the blanket. Looking at the selection, he has some of my favourite foods; the sun is setting which will bring in the beautiful night sky.
“It’s beautiful, Timas.” I can’t help but gush. Timas picks up a glass and pours a pink drink from an elegant bottle. “Another special drink?” I question. Timas chuckles as he hands me my glass and pours a glass for himself .
“This wine was created on another island, closer to the island of Dosna, where my mother currently lives. It’s made out of a small light pink berry that is very sweet, so be careful, it is delicious but dangerous.” I put my lips to the glass and take a tentative sip. A burst of flavour coats my mouth, fruity and very sweet, almost too sweet, but oh, it’s delicious.
“Mhmm, I like this one, though a bit too sweet.” I explain. Timas picks up this small biscuit and hands it to me.
“That’s why you eat this with it. It helps balance it out.” I take a bite of the biscuit, and it melts in my mouth. It’s savoury and compliments the sweet wine really well.
“This makes it taste much better.”
As the sun sets the air grows cold, but Timas just pulls me closer.
“What was your favourite thing to do when you were younger?” I ask. We’ve been asking each other ‘get to know you’ questions for the past month. Our lives have been so different, it’s been a fun game to play to learn more about each other.
“Before Milori came to the palace, I enjoyed building structures in the garden.”
“Structures?” I ask.
“Well, it wasn’t like they were little buildings. I had a couple of staff that helped me haul in wood and bricks so I could build the best looking garden houses. I even managed to build a three-story structure once.” I’m shocked. That was his favourite thing to do ?
“How was that at all fun?” Timas wraps his arm around me tighter.
“I liked planning out how it would look and then finding the appropriate material to build with. My mother said that had I not been King, I would have made an excellent architect. Perhaps be one of the great many who built magnificent buildings here in Sonas, but my life was already plotted, being the only heir to the throne.” There is a wistfulness to his thoughts and it makes me wonder if he wants that life instead of the one he has. “What about you? What was your favourite thing to do as a child?”
It took me a moment to think about what was my favourite because I had many different activities I liked to do. “I think my favourite would be playing ‘Tok Nak’.” Timas looks at me in confusion.
“It’s a game the children played in the village. There were two teams and one person was the Tok, or the person who orchestrated the battle. The two teams would plan out their moves and attacks, and the Tok would yell out ‘ Nak’ when the game began. The first team to put down the other team won and the Tok watched to make sure no one was cheated.“ Timas’ expression went from confusion to mortification. I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Children played this game?” He is truly affronted by the game, but it was a popular game played in the village, and I enjoyed it greatly. I was good at coming up with surprise attacks, and I was smaller than everyone else, so I could maneuver better than most.
“Yes, it was very common in the village.” I still tried to keep the laughter out of my voice, but Timas is just horrified by it and I can’t help myself. “I did grow up in an Orc village, you know.”
“Barbaric.” He mutters, which sets me off again laughing.
“No one ever got seriously injured. It was fun.” My cheeks hurt from smiling so much, but Timas still can’t believe it.
“Utterly barbaric. Our children will not be playing this ‘Tok Nak’ game, they can build things in the garden instead.” My heart took flight at the mention of our children. I have wanted children for a long time, but I never thought I would get them, and here I am sitting with the man of my dreams with that blessing in sight.
“I can’t wait to have your children,” I whisper because I really can’t. Timas looks at me, his eyes darkening, and a small growl comes from deep in his chest.
“Neither can I.” He kisses me, hard and passionate.
Eventually, we leave our romantic spot in the meadow and head back to the palace. By the time I make it to my suite, I am exhausted. It was a much needed break from all the stress in the palace lately. I also noticed Timas was doing better once we returned. His shoulders didn’t sit so high up his neck, the muscles finally relaxing.
It is late, so unsurprisingly, the suite is quiet, but Sylphina should be around somewhere.
“Sylphina?” The suite is deathly quiet, immediately putting me on edge. A single lamp is lit by the bed, and the doors to the balcony are wide open. Odd, normally Sylphina closes them in the evenings. The sense that something is wrong twists in my stomach and a shiver goes down my spine. “Sylphina?” I call louder, hoping that she just didn’t hear me the first time, but there is no answer. Suddenly, movement catches my eye by the balcony door, and a figure steps out from behind the curtain. My heart ricochets in my chest, beating so hard it feels like it is going to come out of my chest. The figure turns into a man, and not just any man: Rian. My eyes go wide, taking in the man who I know as the love of Sylphina’s life, but the Rian I met in the hall a couple of days ago is not standing in front of me now. His brown eyes have turned dark and are filled with malice.
“I don’t think she will hear you,” he says with a sickening tone. Looking around, I try to find something, anything to use against him, but how am I going to fight against a Fae man ? The only option I have is to scream and hope that the guards outside my door will get to me in time. I open my mouth to scream, but a tightness grows around my neck.
“Wrong move sweetheart. No one is coming for you. No one knows you are in trouble, and by the time they realize you are, it will be too late.” The pressure around my neck tightens, making it impossible to breathe. I try to gasp for air, scratching at my throat even though I know nothing is around my neck, it’s his magic. As a last attempt I try to reach for my dagger but dread fills me, knowing that there is no escaping this, and all I can think about is what will happen to Timas. The sides of my vision start to fade to black, no air being able to get to my lungs, and all of a sudden it all goes black, and I am floating in darkness, being taken away. Fear doesn’t seize me in this darkness, but if I wake up, I know I won’t be with Timas anymore.