Maximus POV~
The regret hit me so hard that I could barely breathe, because the girl kneeling in front of me was not just any girl; she was a living wound torn straight from my chest, her silver eyes and silver hair reflecting a face I had loved once so deeply that it had been carved into my heart with blood, and how could I have ever forgotten her? How could I have failed to recognize Elara when her shadow was standing right in front of me wearing our child's face.
My hand lifted on its own, trembling violently as I tried to cup her cheek, but I couldn't do it; I couldn't bring myself to touch her, because the moment my fingers hovered near her skin, I realized the truth was too heavy, and my entire body was shaking from the inside out as my mind screamed that this girl could only be one thing...mine and Elara's daughter...because if she was not Elarliya's child, then there was only one woman in this world she could belong to.
