Prologue
Up in the frozen landscape of the Eldrain region, with its barren trees and imposing buildings, up at Icetrail manor, there was an argument brewing between Jaldrain and Eldemira.
“Are you sure that you need to bring her along?”
Eldemira took a glance in the direction of their daughter’s direction. It was not a hidden fact in the Icetrail household that she had a lot of disdain for the 16-year-old given that she was from a previous marriage. One that ended tragically and under mysterious circumstances. And under normal circumstances, Jaldrain would have succumbed to his wife’s wishes. But this time around, he couldn’t avoid bringing her along. He had to acknowledge her existence as his oldest child. And this was a fact that he had explained to Eldemira for close to a year, when he had told her that he was bringing her along to the next meeting of the Altean conglomerate.
“I told you that all the leading families were going to introduce their heirs to each other during this year’s meeting, and it would be a bad appearance for this family as the head of the conglomerate if I didn’t bring mine as well. And as much as you hate it, Isabella is my heir, and that decision is final.”
And with that last statement, the discussion was effectively over. Eldemira wasn’t happy, as she believed that one of her sons should have been declared his heir, instead of the girl from his deceased wife. The girl’s entire existence was a reminder of what she had to endure to get to where she was now. And the disappearance of Jaldrain’s first wife just happened to coincide perfectly with her managing to grab his love, and more importantly, his attention. But it seemed like she was starting to lose it to some cretin that he was determined to call his heir.
After that irritating conversation with his wife, Jeldrain turned his attention to his heir. Isabella was a strong-willed girl, that he couldn’t deny. But he felt he was asking her to take on more than she was able to handle. And for that, he blamed Eldemira. The woman was always unnecessarily harsh on the girl, and yet, she never complained. She carried on as if nothing happened, constantly trying to please both her parents. As the carriage pulled up, he felt that the time was right to let her know what was happening.
“Isabella to me,” he barked.
His daughter rushed to his side, extremely eager to please him, wary of any punishment that might be dealt to her for some unknown problem. He twinged at her reaction, making a mental note to tell Eldemira to go easy on the girl. Not like she would. The existence of Isabella was a reminder that she wasn’t the first in his life. And it seemed like Eldemira would never forgive Isabella for that.
“Yes, father?”
He gave the girl a once over, steeling his resolve for what he was about to say.
“Today, your status as my heir will be cemented for the rest of eternity,” he stated. “I expect great things from you, and I do not expect to be disappointed.”
His daughter did not waver under the steely gaze of his ice-blue eyes, as he expected. She returned with her own steely gaze as if her spirit was refusing to be intimidated.
“I will not fail you, father.”
He nodded, satisfied with her answer, turning to the carriage, signifying that it was time for the group of three to leave.
