“I understand,” he replied, and squeezed his eyes shut to stop the flood of tears he could feel welling up behind them. “Okay. You’re right. Do it.”
Ruven peered at him closely, seeming to hesitate, before nodding and clasping one of Taegan’s hands in his own. The other hand pressed against his face, the fingers splayed to rest along his forehead and temple, with the thumb nestled under his eye. He felt a warm tingle from the contact as the magic gathered beneath Ruven’s fingertips, and closed his eyes. The king whispered an incantation, barely audible, and suddenly the warmth exploded into a searing heat that shot to the point in the back of his head like a homing beacon. It erupted into a burning pain and for a moment, all Taegan could see was red.
When his vision slowly returned, he realized he was on the ground, clutching the back of his head in agony. There were figures around him, more than there were a moment ago, but dimly he recognized the closest form as his father who was waving the others back.
“Taegan,” he heard him saying quietly. “Taegan, you’re alright. Can you speak?”
“Y-Yes,” he gasped, the pain slowly receding, but still throbbing in his skull. It felt as if the sensation of a finger being crushed by a hammer had been condensed down into a needle and shoved into the nape of his neck. His lips were wet—he brushed them with his fingers and they came away a bright red. His nose was steadily dripping blood.
Immediately, regret flooded him. What had possessed him to agree to such a thing? The pain in his head was proof he had made a mistake, and he wondered fearfully if Zorvut had felt the same blossom of agony from their bond as it died. He supposed he would never find out now, and the thought sent a fresh pang of despair radiating from his heart to his fingertips.
King Ruven helped pull him to a sitting position, and he could more clearly see now that two guards who must have come rushing in from all the commotion had joined Kelvhan. One of the guards offered him a handkerchief, which he took and pressed to his nose. After a moment, he stood, his legs quivering beneath his weight.
“Try and get some rest,” Ruven said in a low voice. Taegan could see in his eyes that he had not expected so visceral a reaction from him, though he was clearly trying to hide how shaken he was. “We’ll talk more in the morning, but try and sleep.”
“I can help him to his quarters, my king,” Kelvhan interjected, and Ruven nodded in agreement. Taegan didn’t have the strength to argue, so he wearily took Kelvhan’s offered arm and allowed himself to be led from the room. Behind him be could hear his father speaking to the guards.
“Summon the generals to my study at once. We need to plan where to send scouts,” he was saying, his voice growing more distant and faint as they walked. “And have the kitchens drop off a carafe of coffee. I doubt any of us will be sleeping tonight...”
He half-suspected Kelvhan to try to follow him to his room, but the other elf stopped short of his door when they arrived.
“I’m sorry, Taegan,” he said, as Taegan pushed through the door. “I’m sorry it had to end up like this.”
He had no reply to that, so he simply shut the door behind him without speaking. Somehow he managed to wash the blood from his face and find his way back to bed—the bed many sizes too big for him alone. Just a few hours ago they had gotten into bed together. His husband had held him in his arms—and now he was unbonded, unmarried.
He pressed his face into Zorvut’s pillow and wept until a restless sleep took him.
Chapter Twelve
Inthemorning,Taeganwoke with his head throbbing and his eyes swollen. He lay motionless in bed for a long time, watching the empty spot where Zorvut would have been, before stumbling to the bathroom and splashing his face with warm water. Though he must have slept in fits and starts, he felt as if he had been wide awake all night.
He had no appetite, but lying alone in his room seemed suddenly detestable. When he opened his door, he spotted Aerik jumping to his feet from where it looked like he had been sitting across from the entrance.
“My prince,” he said, his voice uncharacteristically nervous as he bowed his head. “I... I heard about last night. Please, is there anything I can do to assist you?”
Taegan opened his mouth to speak, but no noise came out. He swallowed hard, cleared his throat, and tried again.
“Will you bring me some tea to my study?” he asked hoarsely, and Aerik nodded quickly.
“Of course,” he replied, and strode away. The sound of his footsteps echoed up from the spiral staircase. After a moment, Taegan forced himself to head down the stairs as well, making the short walk to his private study.
The curtains were open so the golden morning light shone through, illuminating the empty room. It would be a lovely morning, he thought as he curled up in his comfiest chair. It smelled a bit like Zorvut. He squeezed his eyes shut, but still felt a tear run down his face.
Taegan wasn’t sure how long he sat there, but eventually he heard the door open and the clinking of dishes as Aerik returned with a kettle and a teacup on a platter. He opened his eyes to see the manservant ginger place the tray on the desk in front of him, and he nodded in thanks as he reached for the cup.
“My prince,” Aerik said, with more emotion in his voice than Taegan could ever recall hearing from him. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what to say.” Taegan shook his head.
“Say nothing,” he replied. “Sit with me for a bit.”
Aerik nodded and sat down in one of the wooden chairs by Taegan’s desk. His back remained stiff and straight, betraying his hesitance despite the carefully neutral expression on his face. Taegan looked away and instead watched the trees sway in the breeze through the window.
The tea had become lukewarm in his hands when a knock came at his study door. They both eyed the door before glancing at each other, and slowly Aerik rose to open it.
Kelvhan stood in the doorway as it swung open. The first tendril of emotion broke through the overwhelming numbness in Taegan’s veins—his eyes narrowed in irritation.
“May I come in?” Kelvhan asked, looking past Aerik to meet Taegan’s gaze across the room.
“Come in,” he said, and added quickly, “Aerik, stay in here, please.” They both paused in surprise; after a beat, Aerik stepped back into the room to clear the doorway, and Kelvhan slowly walked inside with a scowl.
