FOREDOOMED

Chapter 1.2

Adira blinked her eyes a few times before quickly looking around only to find out every corner of the room strangely familiar: the brick wall, the ceramic tile, the canopy wooden bed, and the single-tier chandelier. Even with her foggy mind, she knew she would never choose to lodge in this type of room because she could not afford it, yet she felt like she had been here many times.

When Adira closed her eyes, one memory after memory came rushing to her like an avalanche, unrelentingly unstoppable. Panic quickly overpowered her mind, instantly opening her eyes and pushing her body to get up and flee. But her legs were so stiff she could barely bend them. She quickly pulled away the white blankets and forced her legs to move with her arms lifting.

Someone clearing one's throat froze Adira's futile attempt of getting up, prompting her to look for the owner of that voice. And she found her right next to a gigantic wooden wardrobe. A woman in a midnight blue tunic, covering her body from neck to feet, stood rigidly with her hands too tightly clasped together.

"Don't get up yet," she said in a quiet voice, void of any emotion. She went closer to Adira at a calculated pace and made her lie down and cover her body with a blanket.

Adira obeyed her meekly, too amazed and engrossed in staring at her face that looked exactly the same since she last saw her many years ago: her towering forehead without a trace of wrinkles, her black eyes that never seemed to bat, and her thin lips that were always tucked inwards.

"I will inform the king that you're already awake," she said after tucking her back to bed. She already did a while ago through mind link, unknowingly to Adira. The king ordered them to act like human in the presence of Adira.

Before she could turn away, Adira held her hand and looked straight into her eyes as though searching for something. She found none. There wasn't any trace of emotion visible in her eyes, nothing but complete emptiness.

"Where am I?" Adira said after realizing she was staring at her for quite some time. It was the safest question she could come up with.

The woman, who appeared to be in her mid-thirties, took away Adira's hand and let it rest above her abdomen. "The king will provide all answers to your queries," she said before quietly leaving the room.

Not only her appearance remained unchanged but her unshakeable loyalty to the beast had not wavered. Even her room appeared precisely the same as though it was only yesterday she had left this room when it was years ago, a decade and two to be exact.

When the thought of conjuring her power crossed her mind, the door opened so suddenly that her heart almost leaped out of her chest. Then her body stiffened, her heart seemingly stopping to beat as she expected the rude intruder to be the beast.

A young lad having a similar dark tone as hers except for the striking paleness as though sunlight had not ever touched his skin. A boyish grin spread on his face, two dimples appearing on the middle of her cheeks as he approached her.

Upon realizing he was not the beast, Adira's body instantly relaxed, her heart returning to beating as she let out a breath she wasn't aware she was holding. As he stood next to her bed, his grin not fading, she realized he was an unfamiliar sight, the only one that exudes strange anonymity.

"You did come back to life," he said in a playful tone. Then, he bent down, their faces a mere inch away. "Only to be in hell," he added with utmost seriousness, the hint of playfulness and friendly demeanor instantly vanished.

"Who are you?" Adira intended to sound scared but came off with a commanding tone, demanding an immediate answer.

The young man straightened his posture only to bow the next second. "Apology, my lady," he said, a hint of sarcasm lacing on his voice. "I have a habit of forgetting formalities. I am Ruven, the king's apprentice," he said, extending his hand.

Instead of taking his hand to shake and introduce herself, Adira quickly eyed him from up to down. He was wearing a velvet magenta V-neck long sleeves with ruffles, giving a glimpse of his smooth, chiseled chest. The shiny shirt was sloppily tucked inside his black leather pants, which were paired with black boots adorned with golden studs. He undoubtedly belonged to royalty, Adira conjectured.

"Stare all you want, my lady. I won't be offended," Ruven said, combing his messy short curly hair with his long fingers.

"Where am I?" she asked once again, ignoring the young man's flirtation.

Ruven sat on her bed, rather too cozily as though they were friends for eons. "Tell me who you are first."

"You're not the one who brought me here, so I won't answer you," Adira simply said.

"That got me burning with curiosity," he said, staring at her with a scrutinizing look. "Women come here once in a while at night, but they were never brought by the king, and they go before the dawn even breaks. But you... you have stayed here for one long month. And I heard the king constantly comes in this room, checking up on you and seemingly waiting for you to wake up..." he continued to blabber.

Adira's thoughts were filled with two words, 'one month'. She had been unconscious for one month. Fear engulfed her body as soon as she realized she could not escape from the beast. She could not return.

"Oh well, I must go before the king finds out I sneaked into your room. He wouldn't be pleased," Ruven said, dashing out of the room too quickly that Adira only heard the door closing.

Ruven was a Dominus, Adira was certain of that, though she wasn't sure to what kind of Dominus he belonged. But, he should be her least concern, for now. Before she could come up with an escape plan, the door opened again.

Adira was welcomed with sharp golden eyes intensely blazing like a sun burning hot at noon. Caught entranced, she followed those fiery eyes that became the center of her universe. The room, her escape plan, her wrath, and everything else were forgotten with one simple stare.

"Let me check her, Your Highness," a soft timid female voice requested, to which the king nodded.

Breaking herself from the trance the beast had put her under, Adira blinked a couple of times and forced herself to look away and directed her gaze towards that voice, that she realized was from a healer. Her two fingertips emitted bluish light that goes into Adira's wrist, flowed brightly within her veins, and quickly died down like a passing flash of lightning.

"She's fine, Your Highness," she said, putting down Adira's hand.

"Leave," King Henric ordered in a rough voice, to which the healer abided without a second thought

Without tearing away his gaze from Adira who was looking down at her clasped hands, Henry strode towards her and sat on the stool next to her bed. Relief, thrill, and ecstasy were all swirling inside of him that he was struggling to keep it in now that he was seeing her awake and well. He had never been overwhelmed with his emotions, rather he had never felt those emotions all at once. And that was all because of an Inferus woman. Not just any woman, his mate.

"Where did you take me?" Adira asked in a low voice when his stare was becoming uncomfortable for her. She might not be looking, but she could feel his stare directed at her.

King Henric was pleased that she remained calm despite waking up in an unfamiliar place and with strangers. "Albion Castle in the City of Gael," he answered.

Adira was a bit surprised he was telling the truth unlike before when he was keeping her in the dark. "City of Gael... Albion Castle. Where is that? In Europe, perhaps?" she asked, keeping her gaze low and fiddling with her fingers.

"That should be your least concern," he grumbled.

Yes, Adira knew, but a plan was already forming in her mind. "If you're k********g me, you have to know I'm not rich and I don't have any family. I'm an orphan and a medical volunteer only," she tried to sound helpless, like any Inferus who would be placed in her situation.

King Henric smirked, feeling more pleased. She had no one to return to, and no one would be looking for her when she disappeared into the human world. She was all his. "No, you're not here for ransom," he said.

"Then, am I here to be a... s*x slave," she purposely trailed off, then whispered the last two words, indicating her fear in subtlety.

"No," he growled lowly. He might be what others claimed to be cruel and ruthless, but he had never forced a woman. He needed not to, for they would throw themselves to him just to have a taste of royalty, the King of Werewolves.

"Don't hurt me, please," she begged, showing she felt threatened for the tiniest display of his monstrosity.

His hands clenched upon hearing her beg. She might be an Inferus and powerless, but he needed her to be strong. "A queen does not beg but demands and commands," he said, displeasure evident in his voice.

"But I am not a queen," Adira replied in a soft voice, even though she was confused as to why he would be bringing that up.

"You will be... my queen," he declared in full conviction.

Adira's heart pounded, spreading warm tingling sensations all over her body. Unable to control herself, she raised her head and meet his steady gaze. And there she saw and beheld sincerity burning in his eyes.