Episode 005
1103 Words
Strange Feelings
Maelis Pov
"She doesn't have an earring."
I could hear Nora's voice clearly in my head, and my stomach tightened. I looked at Queen Veyra while the silver piece of jewelry warmed my hand. Furthermore, I stared into her eyes, and for a moment neither of us said anything. My fingers trembled as I slowly lifted my hand to reveal the earring.
I whispered, "I found this," my throat dry. "You said in the study that you weren't even close to the library." Why was your earring here then?
At first, her lips didn't move. She just stood there, her sharp gaze piercing me. The silence grew longer and thicker, making it difficult to breathe. Caroline moved nervously next to me, her body stiff as if she were ready for a storm.
Queen Veyra grabbed the earring out of my hand in a flash. Her fingers brushed against mine, and they were as cold as ice. Her face didn't change, but the thin press of her lips made my heart race.
I said softly, "Kaelen didn't kill that maid."
She tilted her head and spoke in a voice that sounded calm but wasn't. "You think you know what to do?" She got closer, and her perfume was strong and sickening. "You're going to be in for a rude awakening."
She turned around and walked out of the library, the door closing behind her with a hollow sound.
What she said stuck with me. An unpleasant wake-up call. What did that mean?
I hugged myself and tried to stop the shiver that was crawling up my back. She didn't want to kill Kaelen; she wanted to kill something much bigger. I could sense it.
After she left, the library was too quiet. I looked at Caroline, who looked like she wanted to disappear. She looked at me, then the door, then back at the bloodstain on the floor. I didn't push her; I had seen enough. People said that Queen Veyra was more cruel than Kaelen's anger.
But the thought of seeing him again after last night made my stomach turn. But I had to do it. He was the only one who really needed to know the truth.
I knocked on the heavy wooden door to his study, and my knuckles brushed against the carvings. I thought about running for a second, but his voice came through from the other side.
"Come in."
I slowly opened the door. Kaelen sat at his desk with his back straight and a quill scratching on parchment. Even when he was quiet, he filled the room. He didn't look up right away.
Finally, when he did, his deep blue, steady, unreadable eyes met mine. The mask covered most of his face, but just the way he looked at me made me shiver. The air smelled a little like leather and smoke, and his smell was stronger than ever. It made my chest feel tight against the pull.
He reviewed me from head to toe before he spoke. "What is it?"
I swallowed and moved closer. "I wanted to see how you were doing."
It looked like the words didn't belong in his world because his brow rose slightly.
"Because of the maid," I said, my voice getting lower.
He leaned back in his chair, and the corner of his jaw got tighter. "Maids die here all the time." You get used to it.
His tone was so cold that it hurt. My hands turned into fists at my sides.
"I know it wasn't you," I said again, this time louder.
That made him stop. His eyes got sharper and focused on me with something I couldn't put my finger on. Doubt? What a surprise! Whatever it was, it went right through me.
"Oh?" His voice had changed; it was lower and softer than before.
"Yes." Even though my heart was racing, I held his gaze.
There was a long silence between us. I didn't know who was studying whom for the first time. Then I broke it with the only reason I had for being there. "I have to go back to my dad's house this afternoon." I need to return to collect the rest of my belongings.
“Take a guard,” he said right away, in a clipped voice.
I quickly said, "That won't be necessary." "It's not far." "I'm fine."
His eyes narrowed, and for a moment I thought he would hit me, but instead he looked down at his bandaged hand. My chest tightened again as I thought about how he had stabbed himself instead of letting me go.
I turned to the door, hoping to get out before my feelings got the best of me. But his voice stopped me just before I left.
"Will you be back this afternoon?"
I stopped moving. This time, his voice wasn't sharp. It had something else in it. His voice conveyed a desire to learn more. Perhaps he felt a need for more knowledge.
I looked back and said, "Yes." "Why?"
He said, "There is a dinner tonight," and then he went back to looking at the papers on his desk. "You'll go as my Luna."
My face got hot quickly. "I don't have the right clothes for that."
He didn't care that his quill was scratching across the page. "That's why you'll come back early." Before my meeting, I'll drop you off at the boutique.
It didn't make sense to argue. I nodded once, even though my chest felt heavy.
My knees were weak by the time I got out in the hall. The smell of him was still on me, which made it difficult to breathe. I leaned against the wall and talked to myself in a low voice.
"Well, Maelis... You're going to dinner with the wolf king at the palace.
My laugh sounded empty. What the hell had I gotten myself into?
...
Kaelen's pov
I saw her leave, and her steps were stiff with nerves. The smell of her persisted even after the door clicked shut behind her. Nice. Unable to be shaken.
Eric made me feel restless inside. He growled, "Her scent," almost in a whisper. "It stays. You want her. "Tonight."
I clenched my teeth and pressed my hands flat against the desk. The heat in my chest was sharp and almost too much to bear.
Eric laughed darkly and said, "You never wanted a woman this badly before."
I closed my eyes and tried to calm my breathing, but her voice, her defiance, and her trust stayed with me.
What was she doing to me?
- Writer
