Page 96 of A Vow of Wrath and Ruin

Tharan could not believe his ears.

“But that would make the blood even thinner.”

She crossed her arms over her chest, making herself small.

“It does not always work. Sometimes, the children die before they have a chance to live.” She ran her hand over her stomach. “Do not judge us. Our love is pure. It is an honor to serve as a mother to so many children. It is an honor to give Father a pureblood lineage. Especially after…” Her voice trailed off.

“After the mistake you made by having me.” He practically spat the words at her.

She nodded. “I was desperate to leave the north. I was desperate to get back in his good graces. It was my idea. Not his.The magicisdwindling. This was the only thing I could think of…”

She fell to her knees in front of Tharan, wrapping her hands around his.

He pushed her away in disgust, and she crumpled into a ball on the floor.

“You’re sick. You’re all sick here. Is this going on throughout the elven kingdoms? Are you all interbreeding the strongest magus?”

Digging her nails into the stone she pulled herself up.

“I don’t know, but I do know this: If you stay here and make a deal with him, he will find a way to use you as he uses his favorite stallions.” She smoothed the pleats from her dress, avoiding eye contact with him. “You will be a stud, used to breed to whomever he chooses.”

“But then, how do I get the seal from him?”

Her brows knitted in concern. “Let me handle that. Give me a day to forge something. I sleep in his bed. I should be able to get you something.”

“Hopefully, before dinner tomorrow.”

“I’ll do my best.”

Tharan wanted to say more, but words evaded him. He couldn’t fully comprehend what his mother had just told him. For almost one hundred years, she had been procreating with her own father, his grandfather, in an attempt to strengthen the magic in their blood. And she was in love with him.

He swallowed the bile rising his throat.

“I have to go, my love. He will notice if I do not come to bed in a timely fashion.”

“Of course,” Tharan said, releasing her.

She disappeared into the darkness, leaving Tharan with more questions than answers.

23THARAN

Tharan awoke the next morning,unsure if the meeting with his mother had been real or imagined. Had the wine gone to his head? Or had she really told him she’d been reproducing with her father for nearly a century? Either way, he hoped she wasn’t lying about getting him the letter with the seal.

Stealing himself from his bed, he found an elegantly addressed letter slipped beneath his door. He ran a nail under the silver wax seal of the elven king, which depicted Eris giving the breath to Arendir and the other original eleven kings, all of whom had perished since.

He read the invitation:Dearest Grandson, you are cordially invited to join me for dinner at four o’clock in the afternoon for a night of dancing and entertainment.

The elves were odd, to say the least. Tharan would never let a guest dine in their chambers on the first night and invite them to a party the next. Then again, eternity did funny things to the mind.

He sighed, setting the elegant dark blue invitation down on the desk in the entryway. Sleep still clawed at his eyes. He rang for a servant. A gaunt-looking man in his sixties appeared dressed in the same golden-collared garment as the others.

“How may I help you, Your Majesty?” He bowed low.

“That’s not necessary. Just some coffee and sausages, please.” Tharan slid into a plush chair. “And could you please call for my companions?”

The man nodded and disappeared through the servant’s doors. Moments later, a young woman appeared with a silver platter. Placing it in front of Tharan, she revealed a plate of pork sausages and a silver coffee pot with a long, curved stem.

“Thank you,” Tharan said. The woman nodded, pouring him a steaming cup of coffee.

---