Chapter 10: Scared
Writer’s POV
There was a sickening silence in the room, and it didn’t help that the younger Alpha had an evil gleam in his eyes as he patiently waited for the Alpha King to give his response.
Why was he doing this? He was requesting something for her, like some sort of object.
There were thousands of chefs that he could afford, but he had chosen Serena. He didn’t have good intentions; she was sure about that, and the smirk on his face proved it.
A wave of fear rushed through her, and she shivered under the cold air as she could think of better coffee makers than her. Hell, there was even a coffee maker machine!
So why was he trying so hard to get her? There was nothing special about her-not her coffee.
It took another four minutes before the king spoke.
“You do know what slaves are, Declan. Slaves have known their masters more intimately for ages. They know most of their secrets, and it wouldn’t be good if those secrets were let out into the open.” He said it, his voice thundering above everyone.
“Do you have another agenda for demanding the only slave I have? I’m starting to wonder.” He continued, pinning the Alpha, who had been referred to as Declan, with a deadly, emotionless stare.
Declan’s smile wiped off immediately as he stared with confusion and a hint of anger.
“No… no… my lord. Of course not.” He stuttered, not expecting such a response from the king.
“So, what then? If not for the act of discovering all my secrets by taking my slave, slaves are bound to their masters, but it seems you want to destroy that bond and create yours.” The king stated, reading every emotion that betrayed the young Alpha’s face.
From confusion to anger, and then to remorse. Those weren’t his intentions; he quickly looked to the older Alpha for help, who sat beside him and had been quiet since the conversation started. He was speechless.
The older Alpha stood up with a small smile on his face, his eyes darting from Declan to the King.
“My lord. Your Highness.” He bowed a little. “I’m sure Declan here doesn’t have that intention. But I would love to apologize to you on his behalf.” He explained, and Declan nodded vigorously in agreement.
“Leave this room. Wait for me in my chambers.” The Alpha King commanded without sparing her another glance.
Was he trying to protect her? Did he not want to give her up to the younger Alpha?
Was he that possessive about the things he owed?
She thought as she walked back quietly into the kitchen.
There was no way for her to leave this castle, ever. He would go to any length and decline any offer so she could be stuck here forever.
She sighed, dropping the empty tray on the counter, just as she heard a voice behind her.
“Hey.” She turned, and there was a guy, a new face, staring at her. He had a straight face, dark brown eyes, and wavy black hair.
“I thought the king asked you to leave for his chambers. You want him to get to his chambers before you?” He asked with seriousness, and she shook her head.
“No.. no. I just don’t know my way around here yet. I am waiting for someone; I need someone to take me.” Serena answered.
“Come on,” the guy said. He turned and left the kitchen, leaving Serena to follow him.
As they walked down the hallway, she thought of when she would ever get familiar with the hallways and rooms they passed. It might take a while because everything was so complicated and looked the same.
By the time they arrived at the hallway that led to the King’s Chambers, she could see the guards ahead; the guy left her after mumbling that she was on her own now. She muttered, “Thank you” to him.
She walked shyly to the guards, who turned to her at the sound of her feet scuffing the floor.
“I want to pass, the k-king.” She started to stutter, but the guards saved her from the stress and pulled her away from the huge doors, letting her through.
“Go in.” One said, and she nodded quickly, entering the darkroom. The door shut behind her, taking away the little light that came with it.
She continued walking into the room with her hands in front of her, frantically searching the room blindly for a switch.
As she walked, she heard light movements around her, making her stop in her tracks.
“Hello?” She called out, but no one answered. Maybe she hadn’t heard well, and it was just her fear getting the best of her.
She resumed looking for the switch when she heard another noise from her left. She gasped and turned to it.
“Hello?” she asked fearfully.
Her heart thumped loudly in her chest, and she stepped back, flinching when her back hit the cold wall behind her.
Who is there? She wanted to ask, but fear overwhelmed her, and she started to shiver. The room suddenly became colder. Was it the spirit of the former slave who had committed suicide that returned to hunt the King?
Her mind burst into chaos, and she slid to the floor, covering her face with her hands and pushing her knees up her chest.
But why would the spirit hunt her? She wasn’t the king; couldn’t she see that?
The footsteps got louder, and she covered her face in fear, shaking visibly as the footsteps got closer and turned to two and four.
“Oh, please, oh, please.” She started to plead with the supposed spirit.
**
Back in the sitting room.
The cold look on the king’s face melted away as amusement filled his eyes, he tried to suppress a smirk that was trying to break out of his face. But he couldn’t help it; a soft laugh suddenly escaped his lips.
The two Alpha turned to him, surprised he could show any emotion other than anger and irritation.
But they couldn’t figure out why.
As they exchanged surprised looks, the Alpha King continued laughing.
**
Betty walked into the mini-mansion dining space with a huge grin on her face
“I just heard that your little plaything got into huge trouble with the king. The king asked for her to be taken to the sacred room.” She said a mischievous smile on her face.
“What? The sacred room?” Isaac, who was busy cleaning the cups, looked up at Betty immediately after he heard that.
“Yes. It’s funny. The king loves torturing a lot; you should probably teach the little girl how to behave around him.” Betty chuckled before walking off.
Isaac was angered by the information. He left the dining room to look for Grandma Felicia. He searched everywhere for her and finally found her in her bedroom.
“Come in, Isaac.” He heard her command. He pushed the door slightly and entered, the room smelled of herbs and fresh trees.
“So, what is it? You look worried.” Grandma Felicia, who had been knitting, looked up at him worriedly.
“It’s Serena. She is in trouble with the king. I heard he ordered for her to be taken to the sacred room. You know how her heart jumps at everything; I fear she’ll die in there before the king thinks of bringing her out,” Isaac murmured.
Grandma Felicia smiled, dropping her knitting needles and staring up at him.
“You care about her this much?” She softly asked.
“Of course. She… I’ve told you what I feel about her grandma. The first time she stepped in here, I felt that I knew her from somewhere, and you permitted me to find out. What if she is really my sister? I won’t let her die before finding that out.” Isaac grimaced, flopping down in a seat close to the older woman.
“Yes. Indeed, you can’t let her die. She won’t die, though; all the things that are happening right now are supposed to happen, Isaac. You, of all people, should know that. Calm yourself. She won’t die.” The older woman assured him, taking his hand into hers.
“I just… I just want you to help talk to the king. He listens to you the most often. Maybe he might allow her out early.” Isaac said, looking at her intertwined hands and sighing deeply.
“I will try that later,” she promised before focusing her gaze elsewhere.
“I’ll take my leave now,” Isaac bowed before leaving the room. As he walked down the huge hallways, he came across Serena’s door.
Placing a hand on the letter ‘S’, he could only hope silently.
“You should survive, Serena. You have to.”
He withdrew back his hand, a sad sigh escaping his lips. Walking out of the mansion the memories of the first day they had met flashed in his mind.
Immediately, the two guards, Sam and Draco, arrived at the castle with Serena that day. Her scent was the first thing that hit his nose. It was so familiar but it was mixed with two other stronger scents. Scents that were foreign to him.
The familiar scent smelled just like his father. The scent of earth and rain. Isaac knew that he had a sister somewhere, but his father hadn’t told him about her until he passed away.
Knowing that he had someone out there-a family that he couldn’t reach out to-broke him in a million ways possible.
And upon meeting Serena, there was just this connection he felt, this familiarity around her so he wanted to know more. He remembered how he rushed to Grandma Felicia, begging to be her guardian for a couple of days. And of course, he hadn’t told anyone else about his suspicion except the older woman.
Serena, if you are truly the sister I’ve been looking for, then I’m going to get you out of here. There are a lot of ways I can do that. I will make you free-born again. So you can’t die on me now. You can’t! He thought, a depressed look etched on his face as he stared up at the bright sky.
“You heard? The new girl you fancy so much is in the king’s sacred room right now, probably suffering from the effects of the king’s trick. The same thing he did to my sister made her lose her mind and murder herself.” He turned to see Charles walking towards him.
“I don’t know why the king enjoys torturing people. It’s a shame your plaything is going through the same fate.” He said, a hint of sadness in his voice.
Isaac frowned and faced him “She is not my plaything, Charles.” He replied angrily.
She might be my sister. Bloody hell! He wanted to scream out loud.
“Then join me, Isaac. If you care about the girl’s life and don’t want her to end up like my sister, then join me. Let’s think of a way of ending this wickedness.” Charles offered.
After calming down, he focused his gaze on Charles, surprised at what he was implying.
“Charles, you need to let go. Forget about your revenge; you’ll only end up in a grave. The king can’t be killed. At least not easily; he has unknown powers. Just let go of your hate and quietly leave this castle.” Isaac advised, but Charles wouldn’t have any of that.
“No! I’m not leaving here without getting revenge for my sweet sister. She was so nice, yet she died a painful death!” He yelled, shaking his head in refusal.
“Man, I’m sorry. But your sister ended her life with her own hands; she didn’t want to continue serving the king. I’m sorry it happened but that won’t be Serena’s fate. I’ll make sure of it.” Isaac vowed before walking back into the mini-mansion.
It was another hour, and there was still no word from Serena or the King. He rushed back to Grandma Felicia.
“Come in, Isaac.” She ushered him in once again and Isaac didn’t hesitate to go in.
“It’s already been an hour and a few minutes. Please go speak to him to let her go. She has to get out of that room.” Isaac pleaded, his face rigid with worry.
Grandma Felicia sighed and stood up reluctantly.
“I told you she would make it. I don’t know why you are so scared. See your heart threatening to jump out of your chest.” She teased before walking out of the room with Isaac closely trailing behind her.