Kevin’s POV
I finally sent Liam away and stood up from the seat, thinking of Ella. I wanted to go in search of her and it wasn’t because of the lie I wanted to tell her. It was because I missed her.
Liam and I hadn’t been able to come up with a reasonable excuse for Ella to not visit the witches when they are around and had decided to sleep on it till we find a more reasonable excuse to keep her away from them. Moreover, it wasn’t as if the witches were here yet so I didn’t have a reason to stay cooped up in the study brainstorming for something that hadn’t happened yet.
I ran to the garden, eager to see Ella and draw her into my arms.
“Ella,” I called out, looking for her in the garden when I got there and didn’t see her.
I walked the length of the garden, calling her name. A maid was watering the garden and bowed as she saw me.
“Greetings, your highness.” She said.
“Well done.” I waved at her. “Have you seen the Luna?”
“I saw her on her way to the bedroom as I was coming to the garden.”
“Thank you.” I said and raced to the main house.
I opened the door to our bedroom and frowned as I saw her. She was seated on the bed and didn’t look good at all. I rushed to her side, wondering what was wrong with her.
“Why do you look glum, my dear?” I asked, kneeling beside her.
“What did you do?” She asked me.
I frowned, wondering what she was talking about. “Is there something wrong? Did I do anything bad?”
She sighed. “I knew you wouldn’t admit to anything.”
I sighed. “Talk to me. Don’t talk to me in parables, my dear. Tell me what is going on. Did the boys say something about their training?”
“No, they didn’t.”
“Where are they?” I asked, searching for the answer in her eyes.
“I sent them off with their nannies. They are playing in the garden.”
I exhaled a breath of relief, glad that they were safe. I still didn’t know what she was talking about.
“Why are you looking sad? What do you mean?”
“What kind of deal did you make twelve years ago?” She blurted out.
I paled, knowing what it was she was referring to. After all, I had just ended the conversation.
“You heard us in the study?”
“Would you have told me anything if I hadn’t overheard the two of you?”
“How much of what we said did you overhear?”
“Everything.” She scowled.
I wondered what everything meant to her. “How much of everything is everything?”
“Don’t play games with me, Kevin. Why did you trade your life with a witch?”
“To find you.”
“That doesn’t make it make sense.”
“It made sense to me at that time.”
“It was about your life. You shouldn’t have made a deal like that. You shouldn’t have gambled it away like that.”
She sounded too much like Liam. If I had known that she had heard me speaking with Liam and would give me problems, I wouldn’t have left the study in search of her. I would have stayed in the study, thinking of more ways to pacify her. I didn’t know what to do except to withstand her anger.
“You are worth more than that.”
She snorted. “Don’t patronize me, Kevin.”
I sighed, knowing that it sounded like I was though I wasn’t trying to tease her. I was being truthful. “I am not trying to lie to you. I’m being real. You are my life, Ella. I thought you knew that already by now. I wouldn’t hesitate to lay down my life for you if that would keep you safe.”
She sighed and I saw the anger deflating out of her. “How am I supposed to feel about that?” She cried.
Her voice was laced with guilt and I frowned. I didn’t want her to feel that way either. I didn’t want her to feel any negative emotions. She was only meant to feel positive vibes alone.
“You are meant to feel loved, Ella.” I said, moving closer to her.
I placed my hands on her shoulder and was glad she didn’t flinch at my touch. I breathed out in relief. She wasn’t as mad as I thought she would be and that made me happy though I still didn’t like the look on her face.
“How?” She cried, looking at me with red eyes.
She wasn’t crying at the moment and that meant that she had cried before I got in.
I hated that I had made her cry but I didn’t regret the choice I had made.
“How can I feel loved when the man I love lost his years because of me? How can I fool myself into thinking that I’m happy when the man who loves me is dying?”
I was about to tell her that I wasn’t dying when I reminded myself that she had said the truth. I wasn’t dying in the way she believed I was but it didn’t change the fact that I would die before her because of what I had done. I wasn’t going to live as long as the average wolf so I must be dying. I wondered if Maya would still want me if she knew I had a shorter life span.
She continued. “You shouldn’t have done it.”
I sighed. “I was crazy while looking for you and couldn’t afford to live one more second without you. I had to find you. I had no other choice.”
“You could have waited.”
“I don’t regret finding you as quickly as I did. I don’t regret the choice I made.”
She groaned, rubbing at her temples. “I would like to be alone, Kevin.”
“Don’t stay mad at me for too long, Ella. I can’t bear it.”
“I can’t bear that you are dying because of me.”
I nodded as I moved towards the door. “I will be right outside.” I said and sighed as I stepped outside.