Page 150 of Emylia

Robust arms wrapped around me, embracing me tightly. “I am just trying to keep you safe.”

“I don’t need you to keep me safe,” I whispered back. “I need you to believe in me.”

ChapterThirty-One

Clouds of dust billowed behind Stormfire and me as we thundered up the final mountainous rise before reaching home. The wind captured my hair, making it whip behind me in a mottled mess of wild golden-brown curls as we ascended.

After trekking through the overgrown brush, we trailed up the curving path that led to my front door. The smell of orange blossoms permeated the air, even before my feet touched the ground.

It was the smell of home.

Vines and thick foliage completely swallowed the log pillar walls, embellishing my home in an enchanting cocoon. Wildflowers bloomed most of the year, depending on the season. Beautiful white buds of jasmine brought with it the sweet-smelling perfume, accompanied by roses of all different shades and ivy that refused to let even one pillar see sunlight. My bedroom took up the entire upstairs, my perfect oasis of solitude set amidst forest and flowers.

Set behind our house was a guest house with enough rooms to house my uncle, aunty, cousins and Sebastian when they came to visit. Green moss and wildflowers half covered the outside walls, allowing some of the wooden pillars to peek through.

Mere feet from the barn, I pulled Stormfire to a halt, dismounting before she’d had a chance to come to a complete stop. Without a word, I led Stormfire to the barn; Sebastian shadowed a step behind me, leading Orion and Mom’s horse, Cherry.

“Are you okay?” Sebastian’s words were uncharacteristically soft.

I wasn’t sure I was. The whole trip home, I hadn’t spoken a word. I was fuming at my uncle for banishing me. It was kind of my fault—okay, definitely my fault—but the knowledge that he’d only done it so he could imprison me at my home soured my stomach. And that was nothing compared to the betrayal I felt at the thought that my mother had lied to me for the last eighteen years.

The thought left me feeling physically ill. If she could lie to me for that long, nothing was stopping her from denying the truth if I confronted her. I needed solid proof. And I knew exactly where to find it.

Turning, I faced Sebastian. “I need to do something.”

Sebastian’s smile was instant. “Then let’s go do it.”

I loved how readily Sebastian jumped to my aid, even though he had no clue what I would ask of him. “You’re not even going to ask what it is?”

“If you need to do it, then I’ve always got your back.”

A smile flickered across my lips, quiet and uninvited. There was something devastatingly endearing about how easily Sebastian would toss the rulebook out the window for me–like it wasn’t even a question. It made me feel like I was worth fighting for. Like maybe, I’d always been. It was a maddening combination of infuriating and perfect. So uniquely him. That kind of loyalty… that kind of love wasn’t just raw–it was unbreakable.

“My mom isn’t going to like it.”

“When has that ever worried either of us?”

His words quickened my heart, a smile playing on my lips. “I’m going to need you to distract Mom so I can sneak into her room.”

“Oh, I like these sorts of plans.” He grinned at me, throwing the saddle over the stall.

With the horses brushed and fed, I turned to the barn entrance, rolling my eyes. “Of course you do.”

Sebastian was in his element as we conspired. Within minutes, he had an elaborate plan to draw my mother away from the house. Honestly, I didn’t care what he did, just as long as it gave me enough time to search her room.

I leaned against the side of the barn, watching patiently as Sebastian disappeared into my house. Several minutes later, he emerged with my mother, heading towards the guest house.

My father had made his own little town; building a blacksmithery, healer’s quarters, a mess hall and a bakery just to name a few. Each building was small, but they did the job and honestly, I believed they were far more stunning enveloped in nature than the buildings in town.

When Sebastian and my mother had disappeared from view, I sprinted to the house, shutting the door quietly behind me. Not wasting a second, I snuck into my mom’s room.

Light streamed in from her window, colors splaying through the room from the stained-glass window; a beautiful depiction of the Goddess Elessandria.

Golden hues accentuated her euphoria; she was breathtaking, bathed in radiant light that illuminated the immaculate space. But I didn’t have time to waste staring at windows, I was on a mission to find something.

So when I looked toward the bed my father had died in, I ignored that too. I would sit with my grief later when I had time.

When I was a little girl, I came across a cloak of my mother’s. It was pure white, except for three brooches, marks that she had told me symbolized her rank. I thought they were all to do with her priestess and healer status, but now I wasn’t so sure.

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