Page 20 of To Save a Kingdom

Perhaps. Flexing his fingers, he resisted the urge to reach for his swords as though this were a challenge faced in battle. But he couldn’t draw a blade against his own mother for something as innocuous as suggesting he abandon Aliya. He bit back a snort—the sun elf kingdom had never been home to him, not like the rich mountain halls. But he may be able to forge a new future here, with Aliya, if she allowed it.

“And what if I’ve already met the person I want?” His voice was quiet. From the first time he’d found her in that filthy inn outside Lions Grove, something inside him had known who she’d be to him, even if he hadn’t been ready to acknowledge it at the time.

Sparks danced in his mother’s eyes as she clapped. “Can it be? You’ve found your mate?” Stepping forward, she put her hands on his forearms. “Who’s the lucky female?”

Clearing his throat, he dragged his gaze from hers as though the floor had suddenly become very interesting. A ball of spiders coalesced in his gut as his instincts warned him this would not go well. “Queen Aliya.”

Sorisana froze, her face going pale. After a few tense seconds, she stumbled backward like he’d burned her until she collapsed into one of the overstuffed chairs next to the desk. “A Cerel?” She blinked, one hand covering her mouth. Shaking her head, she whispered, “My son has chosen a Cerel as his mate?”

A burst of fire flickered in his chest at the disgust in her tone. He took an adjacent chair, far enough away as to not intrude into her space. “She is a Larimar.” Swallowing, he forced moisture down his dry throat. “Before you judge her for the name her father thrust upon her, I’d hoped you would be open-minded and consider who she truly is.” He had no idea what he’d been thinking. It had taken him days, weeks, to see past Aliya’s usefulness as a political pawn and admit there was more to her, to their relationship. Why should he have expected any different from his mother?

Sorisana was silent, her hand still covering her mouth. She gazed at him, her eyes glistening with tears that threatened to overflow.

“She still carries your necklace,” he said, his words barely a whisper. “The one you gave the Larimar you befriended at the beginning of The Human War. It’s become something of a family heirloom.”

Sorisana gasped at the mention of her old friend, her features softening as her hand drifted from her face to her lap. “How did the two of you meet?”

“She was running from guards who were trying to arrest her. I recognized her—she looks identical to her mother.” At least, Aliya’s preferred shape, as she called it, did. “The soldiers yelled her name, and I figured intervening would be an efficient way for me to repay our life debt to their family.”

His mother barked a laugh. “How ironic.”

One corner of his mouth curled up, despite the coldness to her tone. “There’s no other like her,” he said as a heaviness settled on him. “I hoped you’d give her a chance, because as long as she’ll have me, I have no intention of leaving.”

Sorisana bit her lips, pressing them into a thin line as she studied him. Eventually, she nodded, reaching over and patting his leg. “I will try to view her as a Larimar and keep an open mind. For you.”

Tension released between his shoulder blades. “Thank you.” He took a deep breath. “I do think you’ll like her, and she could use a female friend in her life.”

Her expression said she was less hopeful than he was. “I’ll do my best. But surely you can’t think the human nobles will accept an elf as their king?”

A bitter taste swelled at the back of his throat. No, he wasn’t naive enough to expect such a thing. Their two races couldn’t expunge two centuries of animosity in a few days. But that was tomorrow’s problem—they had plenty of more important things to deal with at the moment.

Sorisana’s soft eyes met his. “It’s not uncommon for kings and queens to have lovers on the side, but would you truly be happy in that position?” Her tone said she knew the answer, and believed he deserved so much more.

Little did she comprehend what lengths he would go to for Aliya. He schooled his expression. “If that’s what it takes, then yes.”

“You’d give up your home, your chance at a real family?”

Elessan blinked. Visions of half elf shapeshifter children crawling around his feet warmed him, drawing a smile to his lips. “Aliya and I could have a real family. Just because they wouldn’t be in line for the throne wouldn’t invalidate your grandchildrens’ existence.” The words came out with more bite than he expected.

Sorisana leaned back at the hardness in his tone. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that. It’s just…” She paused. “There are so few mountain elves remaining. If you don’t pass your genes on, our race will go extinct.”

Elessan frowned. What was she talking about? With the exception of his mother, there weren’t any surviving female mountain elves. “There are no others left. Even if we did manage to locate some, there wouldn’t be enough to rebuild an entire people. We’ll die out within the next generation regardless of what I do. Sacrificing my happiness won’t change that fact.”

Before Sorisana said anything more, Elessan stood. Holding a hand out to her, he said, “Come with me. Keep an open mind and meet her. You won’t be disappointed.”

His mother let him pull her to her feet. “Very well.” She brushed the wrinkles out of her long tunic. “Lead the way.”

Chapter 9

Aliya

Aliya entered the great hall a few minutes before dinner was scheduled to be served. The cavernous space still felt overwhelming. Her footsteps echoed over the murmuring coming from Roland Enorathil and his daughter, Tsara, where they sat on a small settee to one side. Grand banners that had been black and crimson less than a week ago were now Larimar blue as they lined the room overhead, waving gently in the breeze.

“I’m sorry for my tardiness,” Aliya said as she moved to join the elves. “I was held up by an unforeseen issue.” Unforeseen as in she hadn’t realized how badly she didn’t want to be at dinner and thus had dawdled until the last possible second.

It wasn’t a stellar way to start negotiations with her fellow monarch, but based on his actions upon arrival, they were already on shaky ground. Hopefully, Tsara had been able to smooth things over.

Aliya’s gaze shifted to the princess, but Tsara kept her eyes averted.