Chapter 2 A Servant.. And A Spy
"Who are you? What do you want with us?" Skirian continued.
Vanessa's brows knitted, her eyes darting to the unfamiliar walls, then to the looming figure before her. Her voice trembled as if each word had to claw its way out: "I don't.. where am I?"
"Don't act dumb now. Isn't it obvious already? A physician's quarters."
"Wha.. why?"
"My lord, my lord," the physician cut in. He then spoke to Skirian in a very low voice, as if to prevent Vanessa from hearing what he wanted to say. "Maybe this is too soon. She's not fully recovered yet. Maybe you come back some other time if you intend to question her and really get valuable answers from her."
Skirian's jaw tightened, shadows gathering in the corners of his eyes. His stare locked on the physician; sharp, unblinking, and heavy enough to silence the room without a single syllable.
"My lord, you yourself said you want her alive. I presume that that is because you want answers," the physician doubled down. "I don't think you want to risk her blacking out again. My lord."
"Fine. You have until tomorrow to get her fully fit," Skirian answered in a sharp tone.
"I'll do my best, my lord." The physician bowed.
As Skirian walked away, his boots thudding against the wooden floor, Vanessa's gaze snagged on him. No, on something about him, that struck like a spark to dry tinder, sending a shiver racing up her spine.
The torchlight slid across the ring on his right hand, setting the engraved sigil aglow for a heartbeat. The mark seared into her memory, she knew she'd definitely seen it before.
"Oh my God! That's the sigil Lucius showed me. Wait, Lucius, the assignment, the Pyrrhion pack, Skirian. Shit! Skirian!"
A cold drain swept through her veins, leeching the warmth from her cheeks. Her chest tightened, each inhale snagging as though the air itself resisted her.
She clutched the sheets on the bed where she laid so tightly even the physician silently noticed it. It was an entire flood of memories, memories that made her realize how screwed she currently was..
****
About A Week Ago..
The wine trickled into the glass in a soft, glugging rhythm, but the air between them stayed taut, coiled like a rope ready to snap. It was filled with so much tension that Vanessa could feel a chill in her bones. It was probably just her though, because as Lucius brought her one of the two wine glasses he'd just filled, his stride looked as confident as ever.
"Here." He said, his voice as still as ice.
Vanessa took the glass from him and bowed her head slightly. "Your highness."
"Just call me Lucius, ok? I am only known as the king of the witches to strangers. And you, my dear, are no longer a stranger."
"Your highness," Vanessa continued. "Am I here because you found out I do not have magical powers?"
"You're one stubborn girl, aren't you? Which is more difficult, calling me by my title or calling me by my name?"
Vanessa lowered her gaze, clutching the stem of her glass as though it anchored her. "My king, I was raised to keep names like yours on a pedestal. My stepmother made sure I never forgot my place."
"Say the truth as it is. She taught you a lot about being timid. I saw you in the house yesterday. The way they treated you.. even your younger stepsisters. And you just allow them?"
"I hold no ill feelings towards them, my king. They've kept my secret safe for decades now.. until yesterday. There are family members who would have done worse"
"Well, like you said, they did keep your secret. Until yesterday. You know what the consequences are for witches like you? Witches who are completely powerless and cannot help the witch society in any way."
"Yes, my king, I do."
"You will be executed next week, when you turn twenty one. Your stepmother already had the execution all planned out by the way. She'd told us all the places you'll be to next week, and how we'll easily get a hold of you."
"That's not.. she'll never do something like that. My stepmother has done many things, things that are less than ideal, and that some will even consider cruel. But she promised my father. She promised him before he died that she'll always protect me, and that no factors were ever going to change her stance."
"Well, she lied to your father, and to you as well apparently."
"So that's why you came yesterday? To confirm if I was indeed a witch without powers?"
"No. I came yesterday so I could assess if you're worth saving."
"I'm sorry, my lord. I don't understand."
"It is set in stone now that the witches will execute you come the next seven days, but you have a chance, a chance to live beyond then."
Vanessa stared at Lucius in silence, absolutely confused.
"I am making you an offer, Vanessa," he continued. "I want you to spy for me."
"Spy? My king, I am only but a servant girl for my step mother."
"You were yesterday. Today, you are my student. I shall tell you what you need to do, and how you will go about doing it."
"What is it that you want me to do, your highness?"
A slow grin unfurled across Lucius's face, stretching like a cat basking in the satisfaction of a long awaited moment. At last, Vanessa had asked the question he'd been coaxing toward all along.
"You'll be infiltrating the Pyrrhion pack next week, my dear. And your target is their fiercest warrior; a werewolf who has become a legend, Skirian. You either do that, or watch your life come to a painful end through an execution in seven days' time."
****
"Dad, dad! I only just went in there, she's not even fully conscious." It was Skirian's voice. Pretty loud from beyond the door of the physician's room.
"I am your alpha, and I command you to let me in! I'll kill that witch myself!" Somehow, this voice was even broader than Skirian's.