"Motherfucker, back off!!!"
"Riley?" Kael's voice was rough, Did he mean to sound comforting? It only made me shiver more.
"I don't want to hear it! I almost died, Kael!"
I started pulling at the tubes and drip strings in my body. They hurt, it hurt to move, but I didn't care. I didn't want to be close to him. Anywhere was safer than near Kael.
I hate him. I can't stand the sight of him.
I had no reason to be close to him. Ever since I met him, it has never been good. I should have gotten eaten by vampires. Anything but the pain I felt that night. I had been asleep for what? Three days of my life?
He followed me out of the cabin to the front door.
"Where's Jax?" I asked, my voice trembling.
"He's on patrol," he answered.
"Is that what you people do? You kill people? Is that it?" "Are you going to kill me too?"
He raised his hands in mock surrender. "If I wanted you dead you'd be dead"
"I want nothing to do with you. I don't care about your throne." My breath hitched. "You can kill me now 'cos I'm useless."
"Touching," a new voice cut through. It sounded familiar...
Where did I hear the voice from ???
We both turned. A woman stood leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed. She wore dark, fitted clothes; practical but sharp,. Her eyes were the color of magenta, held a knowing gleam, She had short silver hair.
"But a bit dramatic, don't you think?" she added, one eyebrow arched.
Kael's tension didn't ease. "Maeve."
She ignored him, her focus was entirely on me. "So you're the one giving our Alpha so much trouble." She pushed off the doorframe and took a step closer. "The bond backlash nearly unspooled you. It's a miracle you're standing."
"You healed me when I was unconscious?
I heard your voice ?" The memory of her calm steady voice started clicking into place
'It's you ? Isn't it?"
"It took you long enough to figure it out ? Seriously?
I expected better, Kael you should have told me she's a bit slow"
Excuse me who the fuck did she think she is. Hold up...
"And you are ??"
"I'm Maeve your Trainer"
"You must be mistaken, I didn't ask for a trainer, Matter of fact I was just leaving" I shot back lifting my chin
"Kael? Is she always like this"
Maeve snorted, a sharp, unattractive sound that was somehow more real than anything else in the room. "Leave? And go where? Even if you walk out that door, you think these woods are any safer? The walls between worlds are thin here, You won't survive a week. Don't be stupid."
Before I could fire back, Kael's voice cut through, low and firm. "She is the best sorceress I know, Riley. The only one I trust with this."
Since when did he care about me ??
Since when does he care about anything except his throne
My eyes flicked back to Maeve. She was now examining her nails with an air of pure boredom, looking about as serious as a teenager skipping class. She seemed carefree, almost goofy. It was unnerving.
"I don't trust you," I said, my voice flat. "I don't trust anyone in this godforsaken world. The answer is no."
"Then let us make a deal," he said, his voice low and resonant. "A real one."
My breath hitched. A deal?
"You stay," he stated, each word was slow and deliberate. "You train with Maeve. You learn to control the power in your blood. And you'll stand by my side when I challenge my brother for the throne."
He paused, letting the weight of his demands sink in.
"In return," he continued, his gaze was unwavering, "the moment the crown is mine, the very first thing I will do is open every archive, interrogate every elder, and tear this world apart to give you the truth about your mother. No more secrets. No more 'I don't know.' You will have your answers."
My heart hammered against my ribs. A throne for the truth. It was the first thing he'd ever offered that meant anything to me. A fair deal.
I looked from his grim, determined face to Maeve's goofy curious one, then back to him. So he did know something. If that's how he wanted to play. I could play too. I could use him. He wants a throne, I want the truth about my mother.
"And how sure can I be," I whispered, the words tearing from a deep, wounded place, "that you won't just lie to me again?"
He slowly lifted his hand. The air around it began to shimmer, and the intricate, silvery lines of the Aethelgard Bond materialized on his own skin, mirroring the scar on my collarbone. It glowed with a faint, painful light.
"The bond cannot lie in this" "Swear the pact with me through it. If I break my word to you, the magic will break its tie to me. I will lose my claim to the throne forever. My birthright... for your truth."
"This is the only currency I have that you might trust. So I put my kingdom on the line for your answer. What is your choice, Riley?"
I stared at his hand he offered, I slid my hand into his "Deal?"
"Are you guys done ?" Maeve replied she looked bored with everything happening around like she could be someplace else.
This was the so called sorceress supposed to train me ??? Oh Boy !!