Death Wind (Elven Alliance #3) - Tara Grayce Page 0,110

elven kingdom at the far distant end of the continent that would take her?

Perhaps Weylind would pardon her. Maybe give her a lesser punishment? Did she dare hope for such a thing?

She hugged her knees tighter to her chest. “What happens to me now?”

Weylind heaved a long sigh. “I do not know. You are a traitor to Tarenhiel and plotted the murder of a member of the royal family. Even a supposed change of heart cannot change the fact that, in the eyes of the law, you must be punished. I cannot turn a blind eye to your crimes nor can I sweep such egregious acts away with a pardon.”

Something in her chest crumpled. No pardon. That meant, this ordeal was far from over. If anything, it was just beginning.

“But...you are still my sister.” Weylind’s face twisted, his dark eyes filled with pain. “I will not have you executed. I could not bear it, nor would Farrendel wish it.”

Of course, he would not. He was far too good for that. He and his human princess were alike, in that way. Melantha stared at Weylind’s boots. “I will be banished, then.”

Banished. Never to see her family again. Pain seared Melantha’s chest, her breath seizing with an intense longing for the deep forest of Tarenhiel, her room in Ellonahshinel, her family sitting around the dining table. All the simple, wonderful beauty of home.

A home that was no longer hers. That would never be hers again.

In trying to return her life to what it had been before her mother died, she had lost the life she currently had. She should have been more thankful for the things and people she had. Instead, she had lost everything.

“You have a choice. Banishment or...” Weylind halted his pacing to face her. “Prince Rharreth of the trolls has asked for a marriage alliance as part of the new peace treaty.”

And, obviously, Weylind was not going to marry Jalissa to the troll prince. No, if anyone was sacrificed to a marriage alliance with the trolls, it would be the sister who had made herself an expendable outcast.

“A marriage alliance would make our treaty with the trolls stronger. I am not sure the treaty will hold for long without something more binding than a piece of paper behind it.” Weylind’s voice took on its official, emotionless tone. “There would be benefits to you, as well. You would be a queen. I would declare that your marriage to Prince Rharreth was your punishment. It would be essentially banishment and would satisfy those who would argue I am granting you preferential treatment. Yet, you would not technically be banished. You could still visit Tarenhiel on a limited basis in an official capacity.”

But not as family. Perhaps only when Farrendel was elsewhere, visiting his new Escarlish family.

Or, worse, when he was present and everyone could coldly shun her as punishment for what she had done.

Would she deserve anything else? After all, cold shunning was exactly what she had been doing to that human princess.

“But I understand if banishment would still be preferable. I have talked with Farrendel about Prince Rharreth, but Farrendel was too tired to say much besides that he believes the troll prince is honorable.” Weylind’s back and tone had gone stiff once again.

“He was...” How to describe Prince Rharreth’s actions? “He started out cold, but not cruel. He merely followed orders. But he eventually softened, allowing me to help Farrendel. He was even punished for it, once King Charvod discovered what he had done.”

And Prince Rharreth had pushed her to be a better, more honorable person. His coldness toward her at the start had been fueled by his own disgust at her betrayal of her kingdom and her own brother.

In her torn dress, the marks on her back were probably visible. Of all the ironies. She had once scorned Farrendel for being scarred and imperfect. And yet, now she was also scarred, and would be for the rest of her life.

“I see.” Weylind’s shoulders relaxed, as if he had been worried about marrying her to a cruel troll. Or, maybe he was more worried about making a peace treaty with a cruel troll than about her.

Prince Rharreth was not cruel. Not the way his brother had been.

But did she wish to marry him?

No, not really. She did not want to marry any troll. Nor did she want to stay here in this dark, ice and stone kingdom for the rest of her life. Her breathing quickened, the cold and