359: Our son (part 1)

Our son (part 1)

Egon appeared disappointed, almost as if he were the son instead of the father in this exchange. "At least it worked," he mumbled in a low tone.2

"Never again," Adela warned, her nails digging into her trousers beneath the surface of her bureau, "using Sasha as bait is not an option."

"I can protect her," he uttered with a chilly edge.

"That duty is mine, My Lord." 

"...Right, Lanark is your domain. Your influence is evident," Egon remarked with a hint of admiration that Noctavian noticed and did not appreciate, finding the man's compliment lacking, even beyond the comprehension of women as intelligent as his mother.

Adela was so engrossed in their heated argument that she failed to notice her son's thoughtful expression as he worked on understanding the dynamics between his mother and Egon von Conradie.

"... It's not about my domain; it's deeply personal," she continued, her voice imbued with emotion. "Despite her being your uncle's wife, my connection with Sasha runs far deeper."

Egon looked uncomfortable for a moment but then he got himself together. When he spoke again, he sounded less aggressive.

"It isn't a competition, Adelaide. And I must speak with you privately. It's urgent."

On the brink of exhaustion, Adela found this to be the most inconvenient time for any conversation with Egon. Nevertheless, given his insistence on urgency, there was no way to avoid it.

"Your Highness, why don't you go to His Majesty and brief him on our conversation here? I'll join you shortly."

Noctavian didn't hide his displeasure at the request, yet he trusted his mother's judgment implicitly. "If that's what you prefer, Your Excellency."

Opening the nearby drawer, he retrieved a pair of white leather gloves then carefully assisted her in putting them on, receiving a loving smile in return.

"If you'll excuse me then, Mother."

As if Egon von Conradie were not present in the room, the Crown Prince left without a second glance at him. And while Egon kept his gaze on the floor, his emotions were evident on his face, his ears tracking the boy's every step until he exited the annex.

When his eyes finally lifted to meet hers, the thoughtfulness within them shifted back into a sharp, piercing glare. Adela reciprocated, rising from her bureau and leaning in slightly, bridging the height difference between them, even if making direct eye contact with him was an impossible task.

"I'm all ears," she said, already having a partial idea of what he was about to discuss.

"I have a seven-year-old son and I'm only meeting him now. How can this be acceptable? What if that accident never happened? What if I never returned here!" He snapped.

Never?

His words felt like searing flames against the edges of the empty part of her heart. It stung even more since the man who still held the missing piece was the one uttering them.

"You wish to discuss what happened seven years ago? Then listen closely... My Lord."

She exhaled the last two words, recalling how she had bid him farewell using that title. She leaned more of her weight onto the table around her as the room seemed to spin momentarily.

"Take a seat," he spoke in a calmer tone, striding three paces into her study and occupying the only other chair directly across from hers.

She chose to remain standing, glaring down at him.

"Seven years ago, when you first came back to Lanark... The day my Kannen passed away, I had a dream about a child in the forest with dark hair..." Her gaze briefly touched his hair before returning to his eyes once more. "That child appeared to be content there, but I couldn't resist my urge to keep looking. I felt an overpowering desire to protect him."

Or was it a girl? She couldn't remember.

Egon's eyes widened, his thoughts racing as he connected the dots while she spoke. It affirmed another facet of what Adela was, a notion he had already harbored doubts about.

Witnessing the conclusion behind the predatorial eyes she so admired, she averted her gaze.

"...The warlocks imposed another woman's face on me in Varinthia. I remember that day as vividly as if it happened yesterday."

She clenched her teeth for a moment, then released them, took a deep breath, and exhaled.

"The fear, the fight to keep my sanity... I threw myself off a cliff to defy that man, to prove he had no power over my life even after kidnapping me... Then I suffered a terrible fever from the moment I awoke in that palace...I suffered from a fever that night too, and the Oracle appeared to me in a dream... I was told that I was carrying a child, and once again just like the day Kannen died, an overwhelming need to protect that life consumed me!"

She struggled to hold back tears, avoiding eye contact as she finally shared everything she ever wanted to with Egon.

"...Noctavian and I, we saved each other in Varinthia."

When her gaze returned to Egon's face, every vein beneath the skin of his forehead and neck seemed to stand out. The same was true for the veins in his hands which clenched the armchairs as though on the verge of pulverizing them into dust.

"I was pregnant when I returned to Lanark, but it was too early; I couldn't be sure... I was about to share the news with you, sensing you were really about to leave again for a much longer time. Do you remember, My Lord?... Do you remember how you expressed relief at not being able to father children? How it was good that there would be no lasting connection between us?"

Shock registered on Egon's face as he had replayed that same conversation in his mind for years, yet he had never recalled the part about children as it had held no significance for him. But as she recounted those words to him, it was as if that moment had happened just a heartbeat ago.

Overwhelmed with shame, he averted his gaze from her.

"I revealed my pregnancy to my family while we were en route to Destan, and I resolved to raise him on my own."

Until the day you returned. Her unspoken thought remained private, a fact she believed he didn't deserve to hear.

"...How could you allow him to grow up without me?" His eyes narrowed as they reconnected with hers. "Was your desire for revenge against me so powerful that it justified denying Noctavian his father?"

She couldn't believe her ears.

"What revenge?" She retorted with a raised voice. "You were simply unavailable! You said it yourself – if that accident had never happened, you would have never returned!"

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