*Danika*
Wordlessly, I stood from the bed to the ground and started removing the tiny bit of clothing. My heartbeat would definitely not skip his hearing. I stood beside him, waiting for the next order.
He didn’t move, making me confused. I thought he came to whip me, why is he wasting time? It looks like he is taking his time as if having second thoughts about it.
He came close, his arms shooting out to grasp me around the waist and drag me near. “I am not here to whip you. Stop having such bizarre thoughts.” His nose went to my neck and instinctively I leaned into him, my body molding perfectly into him.
“I thought you wanted to punish me for earlier,” I voiced, raggedly.
“You have to stop acting like a slave to me,” He said hoarsely, still sniffing me in. I choked on air when his fangs grazed my neck but didn’t sink in. I closed my eyes as my hands went up and cupped his head, massaging his scalp, which caused him to produce a guttural sound.
From sniffing me he hugged me to him, cradling me like a babe and his life depended on me. I held him back, taking in this hunky man who even though I looked little compared to his wall of Hemma body, I found joy in knowing I gave him comfort.
“Do you think I have failed as a King?” he asked in a disturbed voice, signaling his inner struggle.
My heart was bruised. I knew it was because of his mother’s harsh utterances. I exhaled, and pulled away until I was looking at him eyeball to eyeball. I ignored the wary loll of his eyes and went ahead to tell him what I think. “Before I came here, I used to hear very horrible things about you. Things that made children crawl under their blanket when mentioned to them…” I sighed, faced the bed, and pulled him until we were seated. “… However, a few months down the line, you proved me wrong. Yes, we might have started on a wrong foot, and yes you might still annoy me to no end presently, but you are the best King ever! You called me your slave, but I have never felt like one for a day. You treat me kindly even though you haven’t accepted me. I don’t believe anyone can call you a failed King.”
“Bu-”
I placed my index finger on his lip to shut him up. “If there is something I don’t think you should have, it’s self-doubt. You shouldn’t let what anybody thinks of you get to you. Be you! I am not saying you haven’t done horrible things in the past but I understand that you were trying to be the man everyone expected you to be…”
Crinkles of something I couldn’t decipher danced in his eyes in the darkness and I smiled, cupping his right cheek and caressing it softly. “The Alonso Lockhart I know will storm into the Vampire Kingdom and bring an end to this menace if he wants to, but that won’t change anything. Your father did that, and even if you do that, it would only incite more problems that would leave the trademark of hatred, coldness, and revenge for the upcoming generation, your children. Why don’t you try another means, perhaps be diplomatic-”
“They will call me weak! My mother would think I have grown soft. They woul-”
“Being reasonable can never make you weak, Alonso! Think about it, till when do you intend to continue fighting with them, huh? You go and kill them and then they plot and come back, it goes on and on and on. The same drama,” I hissed and shook my head. “That is no way to leave life.”
“I’m confused, Danika.”
I scooted close and nudged him close to lean on my shoulder. “Take your time, no rush. Do not yield to pressure. Since you say I’m the one they’re after, I will get busy with my training. They might have caught me off-guard the first time, but what life has taught me this far is to always expect the worst.” I needed to remind myself of that.
That time in my former pack, my sister would come in the middle of the night to show me hell. Then, when she wants to steal my powers, she would come with my father, and they will drag me like a worthless dog outside to do what they want with me, not caring about the repercussions on me or how I would feel about it.
That was then, maybe this is my destiny. They think I’m still the weak Danika. They can come in the middle of the night and drag off to do as they see fit. Well, I have to prove them wrong, whoever they may be. Perhaps this is what my mother was talking about in my dream. I have to help Alonso to help me. I will fight side by side with him to conquer the evil people!
This means my training has to double up. I will train henceforth as never before. I won’t relent. I will keep training until I have mastered every technique at the back of my palm. I will talk to Roland tomorrow when I go to the infirmary about the direction of the library. I will have to make the findings myself. I don’t want to bring too many people into my problem. The lesser, the better.
“I will do anything you want me to, to help you,” Alonso inferred on my shoulder.
“Well, you can start by trying to mend ways with your brother.” He stiffened but didn’t move out. I relaxed, then something occurred to me. “Also since you want to help me, I would like to go to the library.”
He rose up, his sparkling blues finding mine. “The library is hardly used. Most of the books are parched and smirked. I considered closing it down some time ago but decided against it, in hope that our future pups might take interest.”
“It’s such a pity, then. I have always wanted to go to the library. It’s just that I’m always tired after work and I rest during weekends.”
He seems to have deep thoughts. “You can stop working at the infirmary if you want.”
“No!” I blurted faster than I intended. “I love it there. I have been promoted so I have responsibilities and can’t just quit.” My eyes broadened as were his.
“You were promoted? When? How?”
I sighed and sagged back. “I didn’t tell you because I thought you would be mad at Dr. Salem for taking such a bold step without confirmation from you.” My eyes fell to the ground.
“I am happy. I mean if you are promoted that means you did well and deserved it.” He grabbed my shoulders and made me face him. “I will tell you something… Hilda worked there for some time before she died. She never made it past three weeks before giving up… They didn’t bother coming to ask her to come back which meant her absence wasn’t missed. When you were sick, they came and… They were really put out and wished they could do anything to bring you back.”
I didn’t know that! I lifted my hands to my mouth. “I didn’t know.”
“I forgot to tell you, I’m sorry.”
He said he’s sorry! Who is this man? “Don’t worry about it,” I assured.
“It’s okay. I’m just…” His face fell, and I worried he was about to go back to being moody. Albeit, when he lifted it once more, it had a sign of regret. “You are a good person, Danika. I messed up badly. Despite all I have done to you, you never stop trying to reach me. I don’t deserve you!”
I tapped his shoulder, almost moved to tears. “That is what mates do for each other, Alonso. They stick with each other no matter what! … I grew up seeking for my mate as my only refuge. I didn’t have the love of a child from my father, it was all thorny and filled with so much agony for me. My sister had all the love…” I sniffed as the tears finally came. “But I didn’t give up on hoping for love. The only way I could make up for what they said I did is to show kindness. People called me weak and pushed me to the wall yet I persevered…” I broke down, losing every restraint, in recollection of my past- “I was going to die for something I did in my moment of weakness, but you came, and you saved me. I will never forget that…”
I was still talking when he crushed me to him. I hugged him back, letting in the grief wracking my body. I will never forget this moment. My mate is holding unto me, not for anything but to share in my anguish as I share in his. We can beat this. Anything, whatever it may be. I will do anything just so people would know there are many ways to win a war than through killing.
“You are the best woman alive,” he croaked as though crying.
“And you are the best King that ever lived!” I lauded, and I mean it. I will make sure that happens even though he never accepts me.
…