Emilia
Emilia managed to walk up the stairs even though it felt like Ra’as was cutting her heart out of her chest with a rusty knife.
How could he not see that what she did for his son she did with love?
How could he not want to do the same for his beautiful, misunderstood boy?
Just focus on what you have to do.
But thinking about packing up her things and saying goodbye to those two kids was like breathing poison.
Her chest felt hollowed out with grief.
She headed to Ra’as bedroom to find Dyrk first. He needed to know that no matter what happened next, she would never, ever be sorry for going to bat for him.
But when she stepped into the sumptuous suite, it was Mimi, not Dyrk who was sitting on the edge of the bed crying.
“Mimi, what’s wrong?” she asked, crouching beside the bed. “Where’s Dyrk?”
Mimi looked up, her tear-stained face despondent. She pointed at the open window, curtains streaming into the room along with a mist of the lashing rain outside. The storm was in full swing now.
“He’s not here,” she said.
“Do you know where he is?” Emilia asked, keeping her voice as calm as possible.
“Dyrk used to go into the forest sometimes,” Emilia whimpered. “And when Daddy found him, he was so mad. We’re not supposed to go there. We’re not allowed. He’ll be in even more trouble.”
“It’s okay, Mimi,” Emilia told the girl, stroking her wet cheek. “I’m going to find Dyrk, and I’m going to bring him back before he gets in trouble. Okay?”
“We’re not supposed to go in the woods, Emilia,” Mimi whispered.
“But I’m a grown-up,” Emilia reminded her. “That rule is for kids, right?”
Mimi nodded, but didn’t look convinced.
“Did Dyrk go out the window?” Emilia asked.
“Yes, Mimi said. “He didn’t want Daddy to see him leaving.”
Crap.
Mimi was right, if she went downstairs Ra’as would probably be right there waiting to drag her off to that banged up gadabout she had arrived in.
If she wanted to get to Dyrk, she had to go out the same way he had.
She moved to the window and covered her eyes in order to look down without getting rain in them.
The drop onto the patio below was sickening.
But the only other option was to leave without saying goodbye to Dyrk, and doing what she could to get him back in his father’s good graces.
“Okay, so he climbed down the trellis,” she said to herself.
“Emilia, you don’t have a tail,” Mimi pointed out worriedly.
“I don’t need one,” she said lightly, hoping she was right. “You stay on the bed in case your Daddy comes. I’ll be back with Dyrk as quickly as I can.”
Please, gods of the Sun, do not let me fall and smash like an overripe banamelon while this little girl sits on the bed and listens, she prayed.
Moving before she could overthink it, she threw one leg over the sill and found the trellis with it. To her relief, it felt pretty solid.
She turned herself and pulled out the other leg, resting it on the trellis as well.
“See,” she told a worried-looking Mimi. “It’s going to be just fine.”