Eldrin growls. Raising my head from Vaeril’s chest, I see Eldrin sitting in the corner of the room, his arms crossed as he watches us with narrowed eyes.
“What?” Vaeril freezes, his expression icy.
“I know as much as you at this point,” Naril comments from the other side of the room. He’s leaning back in his chair, his booted feet resting on the table, and he’s wearing a carefree smile, but it’s not genuine.
“Where were you?” my mate queries, taking a menacing step towards his friend. At least, he would have if he wasn’t still holding on to me at the time.
Frowning, Naril pulls his feet from the table and leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “The queen ordered me to the border.”
Vaeril’s expression changes then, and I feel his shock through our connection. “Hmm,” he hums, glancing from one brother to the other. Sighing, he guides me back over to the chair I’d been sitting in when he arrived before pulling his own around so he can face me. He sits and runs his eyes over me again. I can tell he wants to reach out and take my hands, but he stops, clutching his own instead like he knows he won’t be able to stop touching me otherwise. “Clarissa, can you tell me what happened?”
Nodding, I check that the others are close enough to be able to hear, not wanting to repeat myself. “The queen has recognised me as part elf. She reminded me that I am now her subject and I have to obey any and all orders.” Eldrin curses from the other side of the room, but with a look from his brother, he quiets down so I can continue. “She knows about our bond, she said it’s the only reason that she won’t just kill me in case it kills you too.”
Vaeril swears this time, leaning back in his chair. He’s not looking at me now, but over at the twins with an expression of concentration. Vaeril hadn’t wanted to reveal our bond until later, after we had sealed it, but he doesn’t appear all that upset anymore.
“The queen must think we’ve completed the bond,” he muses, and Naril nods his head in agreement. “That’s why I’ve been avoiding you. I wasn’t sure what she would do if she found out we were bonded. But now that we know, we can use that to our advantage.”
I suddenly realise why this is significant. If the queen was to find out that I wasn’t fully bonded to Vaeril yet, she wouldn’t have a reason to keep me alive anymore. Fear floods my system as I look up at Vaeril, who’s wearing a determined expression.
“You need to seal the bond as soon as possible,” Naril urges, drinking from a glass of wine as if to cover up his concern. I’ve noticed this is a habit of his. Any time he shows any sort of emotion, he covers it up with his bolshy, brash behaviour.
“That is none of your business,” Eldrin snarls, causing shocked looks from Naril and Vaeril, but it doesn’t surprise me. I’ve seen the way he reacts any time someone mentions my mate or the bond between us. It causes him pain, and I wish there was something I could do about it.
“Why do you care so much?” Naril asks, frowning at his brother.
“It doesn’t matter,” Vaeril responds, waving off the comments before it turns into a full-scale argument. “I won’t let anything happen to my mate, whether the bond is sealed or not. I won’t rush Clarissa into it.” Since we’ve arrived, he’s accepted that I’m his mate, and there’s a note of finality in his voice that says we won’t be speaking about this again. What he doesn’t know is that I agree with Naril.
Do I want to complete the bond? The jury’s still out, but I do want to be safe from the queen, and if that’s the way to do it, then I would gladly complete the bond. Although, I remember what the queen said about ways of silencing me, the wide eyes of the lady-in-waiting haunting my thoughts.
“What else happened with the queen?” Naril questions, pulling my mind to the present. All their eyes are on me, and it makes me feel uncomfortable, so I stare down at my hands, which are resting in my lap.
“Apparently, some of the elves think I’m special. That I’m some sign from the missing gods and goddesses that they will be returning. She wants