KING DARIAN.

I send them to get her, but she must have altered them more than I thought. They couldn’t recognize her face, like, completely.

They even had their friend believing he was seeing things. At least he could tell the face was familiar.

“fuck!”

I hurl the snow globe at the edge of my desk towards the wall and immediately regret it, stopping it mid-air. It was my last birthday gift from my sons before they started resenting me.

Before I could reminisce more, the door opens and the snake, Garian strolls in, I hated the boy, I can’t count the number of times I have stalked him, even in his dreams to kill him, only to back out when I smelt, felt her sinister energy on him.

He walks in like he owns the place, owns me, a smug smile on his lips, maybe he did, at least it felt like it.

“what is it Gary?” he hated the nickname, all the more reason most of the folks in the palace used it, no one liked him, which says a lot because folks tend to pretend they like each other here, and no one bothered with him.

“She wants to see you,” his tone suggests that the meeting would be far from social, not that they normally are but in this case, chills ran down my back, even Dolly sensing my mood shift, or maybe she heard him, turned and strutted out the office, still invisible.

“Why, is there a problem? I got the girl here, risking everything. What more could she want?”

“Why don’t you ask her that?” the bastard answers smugly.

I lost it.

“Careful Garian, you may be her lapdog and messenger, but don’t forget you are still a citizen of Bright, I’ll be well within my rights to punish you, folks have lost their heads for less than disrespecting their King, don’t try me.”

He scoffs, turning to the door, but I see the uncertainty in his eyes the chill of fear and it energizes me something fierce.

I hear his yelp from the hall followed by a growl, Dolly; I realise with a smile; she didn’t leave after all.

Mood somewhat uplifted, I brace myself and head to my chambers.

She enjoys being in my private space, the room I shared with my beloved mate, knowing it gets to me more than the arrangement we have.

I smell her before I even reach the door, the sickly sweet scent of roses that somewhat buries itself so deep I can smell it way after she leaves.

“Come in Darian,” she croons from inside, I walk in and look around but as usual there’s no physical body, the slight disturbance in the air around the bed, my mate’s side of the bed tells me where exactly she was.

“I did as you asked, why are you here?”

“Careful honey or I’ll think you don’t like me, and my feelings would be hurt, you don’t want my feelings hurt,” a pause, and she moves closer going around me where I stood, just inside the door, “do you?”

“You remember what happens when you hurt me?”

Gritting my teeth, I imagine the hundreds of ways I have dreamt up to kill her, and make her suffer.

She giggles, an innocent girly giggle which she is anything but, the giggle makes my blood freeze, tense up, and I wait to see what she would do next.

“you cannot kill me, baby.”

Another waft around me, and then she moves to the bed, back to my love’s side.

’Our agreement was bringing her here before they got their hands on her, but they did, and then to make matters worse, Dary, you inducted her into the mate trials, do you know how mad that makes me?”

Yes, I do, it’s why I did it, you evil witch.

“I understand your concerns, but it’s the only way I could think up to get her here without arousing suspicion after the scouts failed to bring her in before the other side got to her.”

“you mean your best friend’s side, that side?” she asks with a dark chuckle.

I remain quiet knowing the storm had not yet passed, and I was right.

“I’ll punish you, and your blood, watch out for it,” she says and then I don’t feel her anymore.

Collapsing on the bed, I clutch my head as I try to regain my composure, what would she do now? She cannot physically harm my children, the bargain made sure of that, so what would she do?