The Mountains Blade

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty- Royalty and Its Price

Elwyn took in thick gulps of air as she took the stairs back down to the thin hallway. 

Air burned her lungs as she took in strangled gasps. 

Her hands grasped onto her waist in an effort to calm herself as she settled into the darkness of the hallway. 

A hand rested on her shoulder. Elwyn felt a rush of comfort as she turned and saw Marlowe. She looked at her with sympathy, Elwyn did not take the time to let that bother her, as she enveloped her into a hug. "Oh thank the creator." She breathed, grateful to be in the presence of someone other than Aldric or Evander. 

"I saw Aldric pouting and cursing down the stairs, moments ago." Marlowe smiled. 

Elwyn shook her head at her, holding in a laugh. 

"Really, that's actually hilarious." Marlowe snorted. 

"Marlowe." A deep voice quipped from the top of the stairs. 

Elwyn and her friend looked up at Evander. His dark eyes were hooded, a scowl pulled across his face. 

"Did I not say that you were not to leave our guest alone and keep her away from the party?" 

Elwyn felt her skin pale, fitting the pieces of the puzzle together. That was why Dane had found her, the guests looked at her the way they did because they only knew her as a human. Although she wasn't sure her heritage would have much sway over anyone's opinion of her. Evander and Aldric had looked at her with surprise as well. 

Elwyn snapped her attention to Marlowe. She grinned sheepishly. "Oops." She said raising her hands in defense. 

The hallway grew warm as Evander descended the stairs and stood over Elwyn. His dark eyes raked over her body and he frowned looking at his sister. "What is she wearing?" He asked as if Elwyn was not there. 

"A dress." She smirked. 

Evander examined the dress, pausing to look at the gold and black that melted together along the fabric. 

"You can leave us, Marlowe." 

Elwyn watched as the girl gave her a thumbs up before slipping down the hall. 

"I will be placing you in the queens chambers." 

Elwyn frowned, shaking her head as the king began to walk down the dark hallway. 

"I am not sleeping in the queens chambers." Elwyn said. 

Evander turned to look at her, raising his eyebrows at her. "And why is that?" 

"Because I am not your queen." Elwyn snarled crossing her arms and planting her feet. 

"Elwyn, I do not know what it is you think I want with you but I can assure you; I do not wish for you to be my queen."

The girl flinched, having not expected his words to injure her heart. She felt a sharp sadness creep over her, rejection. 

"Then why am I still here?" She challenged. 

The king sighed with annoyance. "My brother was a fool for taking you. He wasn't ordered to take either you or your sister. He was supposed to be looking for a way to destroy the shadow people. He obviously had other ideas. And since there is nothing that I can do, for now you will be staying here. Within reach, so that my brother doesn't try to put his filthy hands where they don't belong."

The sound of Evanders anger towards his brother had Elwyn taken aback. Based on the stories she had heard, he should be hand in hand with Aldric, conquering and killing everyone. 

"You're the king, make it happen. Send me home." Evander stalked toward her, stopping inches away from her. 

The heat of his body brushed her cool skin from the distance between them. 

"I am trying to do that but I can't have you parading around the castle. There are things I need to figure out."

Elwyn clamped her lips shut, trying to stop herself from saying anything crude to the beast who stood before her. 

"The more you fight me, the harder it will be to help you." Evander snapped. 

Elwyn shrunk back at the ferocity of his tone. Evander saw this and frowned. 

"Fine." 

~

Avelina Greywater could not count the number of funeral corteges she had attended. She prayed that she would not have to attend her sisters. Her ruby red hair was pulled up into an updo, a black veil draped over hald of her face. She was dressed in a glittering black gown with golden heels. The dress was rather plain but still stark in comparison against the rest of the community in dressed in cotton, unlike Avelinas fine silk. Where they stood at gates of Goldmoons royal castle, the parade began. 

Melancholy music swept through the streets and a golden painted cart swept by with the royal musicians. Avelina watched with cloudy eyes, her mother dressed in similar attire, squeezed her hand. 

As the music faded, more carts lined the streets, some decorated with black paint and draping ribbon, others were filled with fresh flowers, surrounding their dead. 
Avelina felt sick to her stomach watching this. A weeping mother ran after a particular carriage decorated with painted stars and nothing but a thin blanket over a small child. 
Avelina closed her eyes tightly. 

"Look at them." Hope said to her daughter. "You have to look at them, they deserve to be seen."

Avelina thought to ignore her but listened anyways. As she opened her eyes, Isabelle, Elwyns maid went by. A canopy of dark blue ribbon hung over her body, glittering jewels clinked together and sky colored fabric was placed over her pale body. Her eyes were closed and her skin sparkled from painted glitter, her blue hair made a halo on the velvet pillow she lay on. 

Avelinas heart ran cold at the sight, she hadn't even disappeared from the street until shouting began. 

"Kill the queen and princess. We want justice!" A shrill voice yelled out. 

Avelina turned in time to see a herd of at least twenty city residents. Some showed their faces shrouded in anger, while others wore grey dull masks carved out into the shape of a wolf. 

They held weapons high, some even shooting into the air with the human weapons. Havoc erupted, people began to flood the streets, running in all different directions while, guards began to pull her and her mother away. 

Avelina suspected it was a scare tactic until one of the masked crowd aimed the human weapon at her mother. 

The heir whipped her head around to face her mother, who was being herded behind the castle gates. "Mom!" Avelina screamed. 

Hope Greywater whipped around just as the shot rang out.