Chapter 92 – Cursed Blood

Levisia sat back in her chair and folded one leg in front of the other. She stared at Pel, whose words seemed to have died in his mouth.

“What is going on between us, Pel? You keep avoiding my gaze as soon as we see each other. I’m starting to get the impression that you don’t ever want to see me again.”

Levisia felt bitterness deep within her. Pel’s lack of an answer confirmed what she had been thinking all this time.

“What have I done, Pel? Besides being born into Kraidens?” Levisia glanced down at her hands, and ran a finger over her blister. She knew that the Kraidens had left him with lasting scars, but she was not about to apologise for being born as herself. If that was even what Pel wanted her to apologise for.

Pel cleared his throat and gestured for her to stay seated. He walked behind her and opened the door, letting in a blast of chill air.

“Wait here. I will fetch you a new bandage, and then we can talk.” Pel closed the door behind him, leaving Levisia to mull in her own thoughts. Everything that was happening between them could be traced back to the black market, where the Kraidens had interfered and pounced on her.

And then there was the business where he confessed his feelings towards her in the gardens, to which she had rejected. Since then, he had been avoiding her, almost like he was placing the blame on her shoulders.

When Pel returned a few minutes later, nudging the door shut with his foot, she watched as he knelt down in front of her and began wrapping her hand up in a fresh bandage. He was surprisingly gentle for a man who possessed such strength. But he refused to meet her gaze the entire time.

“Pel, what is going on? What have you been avoiding me? You said you wanted us to talk to clear the air, so talk. Please.” Levisia winced as he accidentally caught her blister. “You were the one who said I should always stay by your side.”

“That was when we were venturing into unknown territory, Levisia. Not in the comfort of an Imperial Palace.” Pel snapped. “And why are you so insistent on approaching me all the time? I thought you made it clear that you wanted nothing to do with me. Especially now that you have the Kraidens in the wings, waiting to answer your every call.” He firmly knotted the bandage and scrambled to his feet, his back turned towards her.

“It’s not like that Pel, and you know it isn’t!” Levisia rose from her chair, glaring at Pel’s back. “How else was I meant to respond when you drop a love confession on me out of the blue? I do like you Pel, but not once have we had something like that going on between us. We’ve been companions, and maybe even friends, but nothing. I was too stunned to say anything else.”

Pel spun round to face her, his expression sour and his body language defensive. Levisia approached him, her arms folded across her chest. The two stared at each other in near silence, the only sound coming from the rain that was beginning to fall on the windows. Levisia got the impression that the weather could sense how she was feeling.

“Stop avoiding me. You were the one who told me to not avoid you.” Levisia snapped, her voice breaking.

Pel walked away from her and sat on his desk, his head in his hands.

Levisia reminded him again of another fact that he wouldn’t know. As soon as she took one more step, his body leaned back over his desk. His will to fight seemed to leave his body with one sigh that shook Levisia to the core.

“What do you even care about this, Levisia? About me? You’ve already turned me down, so why not just leave it at that? You go your way, and I go mine.” Pel curled his hands up into tight fists, his knuckles standing out against his skin. “There is no reason for us to be near each other anymore, especially not with the Kraidens around. The necklace has been found, and everything is back to normal. That’s the way it should be, right?”

“Can you forget about the Kraidens?! This isn’t about them, it’s about us! About you! About… About me!” Levisia flailed her arms around as she struggled to find her words. “Leave them out of this, and focus on us.”

“How am I supposed to when their blood runs through your veins?!” Pel slammed his fists into his desk. “Like it or not, they are the Sword of Damocles that hangs over us all!”

“Then what do you want me to do? Apologise for having the Kraiden blood? For being who I am? I cannot do that, Pel. It wasn’t my choice to be born as Levisia White. I already said that I couldn’t help being born into the family ruined your life!” Levisia let out a groan of frustration and slumped against the desk, bringing her knees to her chest. A few traitorous tears fell down her cheeks.