Chapter Eighteen
Theo
In the moment when I surrendered my body to the anger that took over, Elise pulled Harold toward her and hugged him. Behind his back, her hands signalled to go back into hiding, and the desperation she wore on her face left me no choice. I went back hiding behind the bed until he was gone.
Elise stayed by the door, leaning her ear on the door and listening to his footsteps until they ceased to be audible. She turned and sighed.
“Theo,” she said, “he could have caught us. You don’t know what could have happened if he had found you here.”
“I would’ve brought him to his knees if you had let me,” I nearly shouted and remembered that I still needed to maintain the whispering.
“You don’t understand,” she said.
“There is no need to now. Let’s leave, and we will have all the time to talk,” I told her and grabbed her hands, heading toward the window.
“Wait,” she said, “we can’t leave now. And even if we could, how are we going to get out of here with all the guards everywhere?”
“Through the window. We will fly out of here,” I told her and proceeded to walk toward the window again.
She pulled her hands away from mine and hid her face in her palms.
“Do you not trust me?” I asked her, beginning to realize that she wanted to stay there more than she wanted to come with me.
For a moment, my whole world began crashing. I felt that the purpose that I had ascribed all my life for was suddenly a lie.
“Of course, I trust you, Theo. It’s not about that,” she said, holding my hands again and pressing her body against mine.
I looked at her face and saw the fear that was taking over her thoughts.
“My mother, she is here. She has been with the king ever since she left me at your house,” she said. “I cannot leave her here, she is hopeless.”
“We will come back for her,” I said as I brushed her cheeks with my hands. “Come with me now, and we will come for her when tomorrow’s sun sets.”
“I will not leave her here,” she said and pulled away from me, turned around. “You think if I could leave, I wouldn’t have? He threatened to hurt my mother if he senses any form of disobedience from me. I can’t help it, Theo. I’m trapped here until I can save my mother from him.”
“Then let’s save her together,” I said in desperation, not being able to control my chaotic emotions at that moment. “Where is she?”
Elise walked toward the door and pressed her ear against it again. She turned toward me and whispered, “Theo, you have to go now.”
“I won’t leave you here,” I said. “I’ll stay here. I’ll hide somewhere.”
She wasn’t listening to me. Instead, some sort of terror was overwhelming her. She approached me, pressed her body against mine while holding my hands tightly. She lay a soft and gentle kiss on my lips that brought all the intense frustration in me to crumble and rest.
“Come back, tomorrow same time, and, please, Theo, don’t do anything stupid,” she begged me while our foreheads were touching. “Now go. I can hear him coming. He is in the hallway.”
My heart couldn’t bring me to speak any words except to give her the promise of getting her out of all this. I was breaking, thinking that it was far beyond my power to save her at that moment when my passion outgrew my abilities. I kissed her once more and headed for the window, jumping, and, while in the air, stretching my wings so that my only comfort became the night sky.
A part of me wanted to head back to the village and see Matilda. But the bigger part of me wanted to stay by the willow tree.
I realized I was only a child at heart. My father was right. I needed more patience than I had, and I understood that the magnitude of my impatience was tremendous.
My impulses were much stronger than my ability to control them. If I had faced the king again, I would have ended up dead. I remembered what Bernard had taught me about controlling my powers, and I stayed by the willow tree attempting to meditate. However, I couldn’t. I endlessly thought of Elise, losing every bit of my power in the thought of her.
It was true that she was like no other. Elise had a heart of gold. At the same time, she was intelligent and able to use her words to charm anyone. A testimony of that were the words that she left me in her note that kept me tied to the pursuit of her for years and years.
I wondered if she would be able to use those abilities of hers to trick the king, perhaps save herself and her mother without ever needing me. One thought lead to another, and I started thinking clearly. I asked myself why hadn’t Elise turned a single time? Back in the village, she didn’t even seem to try and fight the king with me.
That was quite odd, and just for a moment I doubted her intentions. We could have defeated Harold back in the village if she had fought by my side. Was I a fool for risking my own life trying to save the life of someone who didn’t even try to save herself?
The sun began to rise, and I still was in the same place with my body sitting up in the same position. My back was to the willow tree. I moved to the back until I was under its shade and closed my eyes once more.
I had many questions that needed an answer from her or else my journey would have been in vain. I waited until night fell, and when the moon shone bright, I was getting ready to go to the castle again.
***
I went into her room the same way I did the night before. However, this time I hid for some time before she showed up in her room. When we talked, I asked her all the questions that had left me quarrelling with my own mind. I realized how much my doubt had caused me to misunderstand.
The king had developed some sort of injection that suppressed the dragon form in a shifter’s body. I confessed that for a moment I doubted her, and it hurt her. For the first time, I felt what it was like to be betrayed by my own thoughts and for that to cause hurt to the one I loved the most. I was shown how much I needed patience in my heart. I needed to never rush into thinking or into feeling. My father’s words were right, and for the first time in my life, I began to be in control of more than just my body but also my mind.