Instead, he growled at Lexa. “This is bullshit, Mistress. My daughter brought the Earth Lord to heel. Giving her to him was not part of the plan.”
Ellie laughed at her father. “To heel? Are you serious? You obviously don’t know Cadmus very well, Father.”
He blinked at the familial title and softened a fraction. “You’re right, Daughter, I don’t. But I do know his kind and ours don’t mix.”
“Don’t mix well,” Lexa corrected. “And that’s a mistake that has cost many lives and much pain through the years. Because of that chasm, Tanselm is in dire straits. But with Cadmus and Ellie mending the breach, along with Alandra and Aerolus, things are looking up.”
Ethim glared at Lexa. “How can you say that? Are we all just pawns in your quest for revenge against Tanselm’s sorcerer? Yes, Mistress. We all know how much you long to strip the Light from Arim’s very being. What I don’t know is what you plan on doing with my daughter. Do you think to sacrifice her for Tanselm?”
The clear ice in Lexa’s eyes didn’t bode well for The Sarqua’s future. Jonas quickly stepped between her and Ethim when a blue spark fired in her hand. “Mistress, you know his response is based on nothing more than love for his daughter.”
“And ignorance and fear.” Ellie surprised him by chiming in. Cadmus said nothing, squeezing her arm in support. “I know I’m fairly new to all this Light and Dark stuff, but I’ve heard Jonas’ stories my whole life. Sounds to me like a lot of untruths have been flying about both sides.”
She turned to Jonas. “You always told me that the Light Bringers thrived on killing anything not Light. That they thought themselves better than the rest of existence. But I know Cadmus doesn’t feel that way. His brothers have married women from my world—my former world. And Alandra, a princess from Aelle—a Shadow realm—would sacrifice anything for her husband, a Storm Lord and Light Bringer. I know this because she and I have been friends for a year.”
“I knew it,” Jonas muttered.
Ethim stared in shock. “You refused to acknowledge the Djinn, yet you befriended a conniving Aellei?” His voice rose in anger. “I don’t fucking believe this!”
“Watch your tone,” Cadmus warned in a cool voice, though Jonas could feel amusement below his calm surface.
“Watch my tone? Look, you little lekharn, I only allowed you here to appease our Dark Mistress, an act I regret more than you can know. I’ll speak to my daughter any way I fucking feel like!” Black rays of energy shot from Ethim’s eyes into Cadmus, and for a moment, Jonas feared the worst.
To his amazement, Cadmus merely shrugged the blast away. “Thanks, Ellie.” He kissed her and sent Jonas a wink before turning back to Ethim. “Get this. Through your daughter, I can now withstand direct Darkness. How cool is that, Ethim? Or should I call you Dad?”
Ethim choked on his rage, and suddenly, Amanda appeared behind them.
“Oh, good. You’re all here together. Thank you for the invite.” She nodded at Lexa. “I’ve been so looking forward to this.” Completely ignoring her blustering husband, she approached Ellie and Cadmus and enveloped them both in a warm embrace. “My little girl finally found her heart. Oh, Ellie, I’m so happy for you. I just knew he was the one. I could sense it the moment I looked into his eyes.” She turned to Ethim. “Now we can relax, Ethim. Our daughter has a big, strong warrior to protect her, so you should be happy.”
“Happy?” he growled. “You don’t understand. Cadmus Storm is a—”
“Very nice man who is going to take good care of our daughter. And if you want to see our grandbabies one day, you’d better play nice.” Amanda’s gaze grew hard. “I think we’ve all shared enough prejudices and misunderstandings to last a lifetime.” She glanced at Ellie with apology, her eyes damp. “I hope we can all start over again, a clean slate, maybe?”
Jonas exhaled loudly and ignored the aggravated grumbles around him. “Hell. This is worse than those damned daytime soaps. Why don’t we all agree that Ethim’s got work to do in the father-in-law department and grab something to eat? I’m hungry, and I’m sure you two could use some food.” He glared at Cadmus and Ellie. “While you’ve been becoming ‘better acquainted,’ some of us have been waiting out here, starving.”
Amanda chuckled and walked back to Ethim, yanking him to her side when he took a threatening step towards Jonas.
“Well said, Jonas.” Lexa smiled. “Now, why don’t we all sit down in Ethim’s home and sup together while we wait for what comes next.”
In the blink of an eye, they sat in Ethim’s home before a large table covered with food. Jonas’ mouth watered as he eyed fresh fowl and spiced meat, ripe, juicy fruits and honeyed cakes hopefully spiked with sorba.
Between bites, Jonas asked what was foremost on his mind. “Okay, Mistress, I’ll bite. What do we do next?”
She shrugged. “That’s what I’d like to know. Well, Cadmus? You see the future. What are we waiting for?”
Cadmus met Lexa’s stare with a shrug, wishing he knew. “I have no idea what comes next. If it’s up to me, I’m suggesting we eat.”
“I second that,” Jonas said around a mouthful of food.
“You would.” Lexa frowned. “Cadmus, beyond your abilities as an Earth Lord, you’ve been gifted with the ability to foretell endless possibilities. You’re the one who must give us the next step. I’ve done all I can.” She stared at Ellie, a small smile curving her lips. “Perhaps it’s time you took your affai home.”
“Since when has it been decided she’s his affai?” Ethim’s fork clattered to the table, and he turned accusing eyes on Lexa. “You promised me she’d be happy.”
“And she will be,” Cadmus answered, squeezing Ellie’s hand. “You’re making a mistake to assume I would treat Ellie poorly simply because she’s part Djinn. She’s my affai, and I’ll protect her with my life if need be. With her help, Tanselm can be so much more than it is.”
“Than she is,” Lexa corrected.
Cadmus frowned. “So Tanselm really is female? I always thought it was just something I made up.”
“A consciousness lives in the waters, the land and Tanselm’s very air. If you listen hard enough, you can hear what I did the moment I stepped on her grassy plains. That Tanselm’s sentience is nurturing, loving and female.”
“Then what’s Foreia?” Ellie asked. “Because from everything I’ve felt since being here, I’d say the land is decidedly male.”
“Why would you say that?” Jonas asked.
Ellie blushed, and Cadmus nudged her. “Yes, why, Ellie?”
“Because I’ve been getting a lot of hints and not so subtle shoves in your direction.” “For the sex, numbskull. Do I have to spell it out for you? Foreia craves sex the way you seem to, in a kind of domineering, erotic and masculine way.”
He stifled a chuckle. “Oh, right.” “Damn, but I agree with Foreia. Let’s ditch these people and find that gazebo again.”
Ethim glared at Cadmus, but when his gaze settled on Ellie, his features softened, and he studied her with a pained gaze. “Ellie, I would speak with you privately.” He rose from the table, waiting.
Cadmus stared from father to daughter, aware of the pain vibrating in Ellie’s heart. She wanted so much to love her father, to feel his complete acceptance. But lies and misunderstandings had clouded their relationship for a very long time. He studied Ethim, wondering how the man had kept his distance from Ellie all these years. It was clear how much he cared for her, even if he did have a warped way of showing it.