The Sun's Shadow

Chapter Nineteen

Ele envied their freedom.

She imagined that if one of these birds lost their wings, they would slowly give up on life after seeing their friends play without them. If Ele had to witness faenixes soaring high each day... That might send her spiraling. Perhaps she was lucky to be here- In a castle of flightless creatures.

Although Kaanan could-

"Ele! I'm so glad you came. I worried that my earlier behavior would frighten you off." Roman's voice scared off the birds and most of her sadness.

The frown on her face fluttered into a smile, forcing it so that he didn't pry for her thoughts. She waved, then dropped her hand upon realizing how hard communicating would be. And she didn't even think to bring paper...

"Come on over, I have everything set up for our lunch." He gestured for her to come around one archway and there, in the center of the courtyard, was a blue and white striped blanket with an array of food on display. "If there's something more you'd like, I can run and grab it too."

No, everything was perfect... She shook her head and smiled genuinely at him this time.

"And I brought this too." He dug out a notepad and quill from the basket and placed it beside her empty plate. An invitation to sit.

Without wasting time, since her stomach would surely give away how hungry she felt with a growl soon, she sat down and in unison; they began picking food to fill their plates.

She leaned over the notepad briefly to express her thanks on paper. Roman read it with a grin plastered on his face.

"Do you remember when we first met?" He asked, and she nodded, recalling that encounter all too well after trying so hard to look past it. "I asked if you could still scream..." Feeling bold, he brought his hand up to brush some strands of hair back over her shoulder, therefore exposing her neck to him. Then he admitted, "I still wonder."

Not allowing her to jump to conclusions herself, he felt the need to explain; "Have you ever felt excited... Sensually? You've been of age now for quite a few weeks and it makes me wonder how far you've gone with someone or, maybe even, alone at night in your room?"

His blatant questioning created tension between them and she visibly scooted back from him out of sheer discomfort. This made him smile.

"Ah, I see. You've never even flirted with someone before. How dare I insinuate that you've pleasured yourself?" Yet something flickered in her eye- The look of being caught. "You know, you can tell me or... Even show me."

Her hand darted for the notepad to express how unsettled she was by his abruptness, but he snatched it up before she could.

"Flirting is something that could easily be done with little to no words."

This 'flirting' felt very one sided...

He snickered when her hesitation became too drawn out. "I don't mean to make you uncomfortable. I just have this feeling that no one has seen the real you, the you that should have mates pounding down the doors and trampling over one another for even a glimpse at the glow you radiate."

Who talks like this? She internalized and then tacked on; Who acts like this?

Backing off from the topic of her sensuality, he tossed the pad into her lap.

"Here's your voice back," He bitterly sighed.

With her communication method now at her fingertips, she got immediately down to the pressing questions she had, knowing that nothing was off the table with him. Evidently. If he could ask her all those personal things, surely she could know...

'How are you and the Prince related?' Read her scribblings.

"Mm, I thought that was something you had figured out by now." He leaned in closer and popped the secret. "My father, Doctor Charles, is the King's older brother."

Older brother? Her eyebrows drew tight as she raced to ask the followup question, but he already knew what was coming.

"Save the ink. You want to know why my father isn't King and got reduced to a lowly royal doctor?" His tone sounded so sour, like someone wronged. "He was meant to be King. Obviously, given his mere birthright of being the oldest. But many years ago, precisely five hours after I was born, the woman who birthed me fled the castle. The future Queen. My father was heartbroken. Jyosith used this weakness to his advantage."

Ele imagined how much resentment that Roman felt towards his birth mother. At the very least hers had stuck around to raise her... Even though Ele wonders if she would have been better off if she did leave right after her birth.

She reached out to place her hand tenderly over his and he noticeably relaxed his posture and leaned back onto the blanket. Then he looked down to where their hands touched, his lips steadily forming a smile.

It faded fast. "My uncle sought to expose my father to their father, King Dorian. I know you've heard his name before in your studies. The faenix slayer."

When he uttered that name and what made him infamous, the numb spot where her wings had been cauterized now ached. She thought of her people. Their wings. Thought of how they fell in battle. She pondered how many of those faenix trinkets and antiquities piled high in her room- How many came from those fallen at the hands of King Dorian?

"Dorian was always one for a show. Any chance he had, he hosted barbaric events at the castle. So when his sons were fighting for the throne... He put them up to a duel for the whole kingdom to see. And quite an event it was, according to his writings. He enjoyed seeing his sons shed each other's blood on the banquet floors." Roman's lip twisted up in disgust and it exposed one fang that ached for revenge. "My father didn't deserve that."

Throughout his tell-all, he maneuvered his fingers through hers and now properly held her hand. They looked down at it and she accepted it. He may be exposing his past to gain her sympathy, but it worked.

"What no one knows, is that my father showed mercy to a man who still bore a wedding band. Dorian only saw hesitation in battle and expressed that a King should never show mercy to one's enemies, even if they be blood, to which Jyosith agreed and was named next in line."

The cruelty of vampires never ceased to amaze her- Except this time. The story of betrayal shrouded in blood didn't end there.

"The vampire council challenged Jyosith's claim and fought for my father the best they could. Since I had just been born, they used that as leverage. Then, all of a sudden, Wylda became pregnant and a short nine months later gave birth to a healthy boy."

Kaanan. The newborn assigned the title of Prince the moment he was born.

She had to ask something that Roman himself may have never realized, 'Do you resent Kaanan for becoming Prince?'

Upon reading her bizarre question, he laughed and shook his head humorously. "Never. I hate his father but never him. Besides," Roman's amused tone subsided and his eyes darkened, "The true victor is the one who captures your heart."

The shift in the atmosphere between their bodies could practically be seen. Newfound excitement buzzed and pulled them closer, creating a thickness that separated them only by willpower. One would have to act first. It continued to swell- a pulsating energy- brought on by hesitation and confusion.

Eager lips parted as she sucked in the encouraging air. The scent of fresh strawberries and an earthy musk hit her tongue, and she could taste how they smelled. Her senses were on edge and in a frenzy.

Ele pulled back to break the connection before she regretted further actions. Did she really mean to kiss him? Or did her empathy swirl with unmated desires to drive her to console him?

She bent over her notepad and scribbled, 'Sorry.'

"Please never be sorry around me. I'll end up using that weakness to my advantage." He winked as if joking, but the vow made her wonder.

Was he more like his father or more like the uncle he despised?