The King's Queen

Chapter 50 Pt. 1

Ashton was standing there.

***

The sealing ring slipped from my grasp while I tried to figure out if I was stuck in a lucid dream. Dreaming seemed to be a more logical explanation for what was happening.

Ashton and I had been separated for almost two weeks. I had waited for so long to see him again and now that he was standing in front of me, the moment didn't feel real. It was almost as if he was an illusion-a mirage manifested and projected from the deepest desire of my heart.

My mind went blank when he took the first step towards me. Every thought faded away and my brain raced to react, to respond, but came up empty. I couldn't move or breathe enough to even utter a word. I could see nothing-process nothing-but him.

"My love."

His voice shattered and unshattered me, unleashing my emotions like a chariot of horses. He took a slow step towards me, as if hardly believing his own eyes.

His long strides quickly turned into a run, and before I knew it, I was surrounded by him, engulfed in his arms and the warm, solid feel of his build. He hugged me for a very long time, almost as if I would vanish if he dared to let go for even a fraction of a second.

My heart hammered jubilantly against him, and he drew back ever so slightly to stare into my eyes. I saw love. I felt the intensity of his passion and our lips collided in the sweetest kiss we'd ever shared. This was right. This was what was supposed to be. Even if I was an Origin, that would never change.

Perhaps because I'd been caught so off guard by his unexpected appearance, it took a few more seconds for me to realize that something was wrong.

Where we embraced, I didn't feel the familiar sparks of the soulmate bond dancing along my skin. I couldn't sense his rank.

Ashton seemed... human.

He brought his hands up to caress my face and leaned in to rest his forehead against mine. The glint of sunlight off his ring reflected and burned itself in my memory.

Ashton was wearing a sealing ring.

"Elizabeth, my precious soulmate. I searched everywhere for you. I missed you so much!"

He didn't seem to notice that my eyes were glued to his ring because his keen eyes inspected me for any sign of injuries, but my arrow wound had already finished healing a few hours ago.

"Ash," I breathed, placing my hands over his.

My throat clogged with emotion, and I simply leaned against him and allowed the relief to flow over me. I didn't know how long we had stayed like that, but somewhere along the line, Kevin had become un-petrified and moved closer to us. His eyes were hollow with sorrow as he looked at us.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Ashton's voice roared with anger as he swung around to fasten his glare at Kevin.

"Ashton... why are you here?" Kevin asked with equal parts sadness and confusion.

So, I guess Kevin hadn't known that Ashton had followed him here. It made sense how he wasn't able to detect him all this time.

Ashton's eyes darkened in response to his friend's question. "I was going crazy! I was losing my mind after losing her! Why didn't you tell me that you knew where she was? I-!" He broke off, his voice bitter with the sting of betrayal. "I had no choice but to follow you here."

"So you risked everything to come here? Did you forget that you're the crown prince? If Malekh finds out that the emperor's heir infiltrated his country, he won't sit quietly and do nothing."