I shook my head. Heat spread from my scalp and traveled down my spine, fanning out into my ribs.
“Evander was a knight who embodied nobility and strength. Yet, his strength went beyond the physical. It came from his heart. He protected those around him, whether they be of royal blood or that of a commoner.” A distant look crossed the king’s face. “It was my brother’s favorite bedtime story.”
A pang slammed into my chest. It hit me so hard I felt the reverberations in my rib cage. I hadn’t given much thought to my name before then, but the realization that my dad named me after his favorite book character nearly made me cry.
Had he hoped I’d grow to be noble and strong too, like his favorite hero? Someone who protected people and cared deeply for them. Someone with a good heart.
“It’s quite strange,” the king said to me. “You remind me of him. My brother.”
My damn lungs stopped working.
As he regarded me with an inquisitive scrunch to his brow, I couldn’t help but wonder if he’d started piecing together the truth. The family resemblance was undeniable. The same shade of hair and eyes. Similar bone structure. Supposedly, I had some of my mom’s soft features, like the shape of my nose and lips, but my dad’s genes were strong.
And the king was no fool.
“However, he’s been gone for many years now.” King Eidolon lifted a hand to his neck, where several scars showed above his collar. Clearly, he had loved my dad. Still grieved him.
Hope blossomed in my chest that maybe one day I could tell him the truth.
“You rarely speak of our uncle,” Sawyer said.
That sad gleam in the king’s eyes deepened.
“Because Elias is an embarrassment to the family,” the queen spouted off. “Not to mention his unsavory reputation as a dark mage. Wicked from the moment he drew his first breath.”
“Enough,” the king softly said. “Elias was many things, but he was far from wicked.”
The queen grew colder. If that was even possible. “Wicked or not, he was a truly dishonorable and selfish man who cast aside his royal duty to run away with a peasant woman. And look where it got him. Throat slit and dumped in a shallow grave.”
That’s how he died?
I lost strength in my knees and caught myself on the edge of the table.
“I said enough!” King Eidolon slammed his fist down. His eyes, which were normally so kind, much like Sawyer’s, turned icy as they fell to his wife. “Speak one more ill word of my brother, and I’ll have you removed from this table.”
The queen pursed her lips.
Throat tightening, I knew I had like four seconds tops before I started crying. Fortunately, the king dismissed me, and I managed to flee just as tears surged forward. I was so absorbed in what’d just happened that I wasn’t exactly watching where I was going. Story of my life.
A body slammed into me.
“Sorry!” I sputtered, stumbling back a step.
The person I’d collided with kept walking. Didn’t even turn to glare at me for bumping into them. They were about my height and small-framed and wore a hood that was pulled up over their hair and face. Not one of the spies though.
The mysterious person faded from my head quickly. I had too much going on up there already.
Had the king figured out the truth? Nerves flipped and twisted in my stomach, grinding together like rusty gears.
“Sweetheart?” Maddox reached my side and grabbed my jaw, examining my face. “Why are you crying?”
Briar and Callum joined us, both wearing similar worried expressions.
“I’m okay,” I rasped, leaning into Maddox’s touch. “Just got overwhelmed, I think.”
“Understandable.” His eyes softened. “You’ve had quite the eventful few weeks.”
“Which is why you’re taking several days off after this evening,” Briar said, placing his hand on my side. “No running around the café or overworking yourself. You’ll focus on nothing but relaxation. Perhaps tackle that stack of books you’ve been meaning to read.”
