My Mother's Promise
1369 Words
Aria's POV:
The throne room dropped into total silence. No one moved, and no one dared to take a breath.
I kept looking at Kael, the assassin's words playing over and over again in my head.
"Tell her reason her mother died protecting you."
"What does he mean?" I asked, my voice emerging as barely more than a whisper.
Kael took some time to respond. His eyes dropped to the marble floor before gradually coming back to mine.
"I wanted to tell you."
"When?"
The question came out sharper than I intended.
"When you trusted me," he said and pain flashed across his face. "I wanted you to hear it from me... not from him."
I chuckled bitterly.
"But you still withheld it from me."
The assassin chuckled lightly before Kael could answer.
"You still don't get it, Princess," he said to me.
I felt uncomfortable when I heard the title.
"I have told you not to call me that," I said to him but he ignored me.
"The Lycan King is not as innocent as you would assume."
Kael's aura burst out across the throne room. The torches lining the walls flickered fiercely and every guard immediately lowered his head.
"One more word," Kael growled, "And you will lose your tongue."
The assassin grinned.
"You may shut me," he said and looked at me, still smiling. "However, you can't silence the truth."
My heart started beating faster.
"What really is the truth?"
Though the chains on his arms were heavy, he bent forward.
"The night your parents passed away..." He begun and his grin vanished."...Kael was nearby."
My breath caught. I turned to look at Kael in shock.
"Were you around?" I asked him and he nodded his head once.
"Indeed," he replied.
The room spun around me.
"You saw them die?"
"No, I didn't," he responded immediately, sadness written all over his face. "I fought alongside them."
I grimaced.
"What?"
Kael inhaled gently.
"Eighteen years ago, your parents ran the Lunar Court."
The elders bowed in honor.
"The Lunar Court?" I said again.
"The royal kingdom was the one that brought every werewolf region together."
I gazed at him.
"You weren't just friends with my mother."
"No," he said and his eyes met mine. "I promised to protect your family."
Once again, the throne room became silent.
"I served your father."
"You served him?" I asked him and he nodded once more.
"I was not king at the time."
It was hard for me to picture the mighty Lycan King helping another person.
"Was my dad stronger than you?"
Kael's face showed a thin smile.
"He wasn't stronger. He was more knowledgeable."
The words shocked everyone. Even the elders seemed surprised.
"Your father believed every pack should have peace," Kael continued, his countenance turned dark. "Not everyone agreed."
The assassin laughed.
"The sought for the throne."
Kael's eyes flashed dangerously.
"They sought for power."
The assassin shrugged.
"Same thing."
I rubbed my temples.
"So..." I said, trying to put everything together. "The werewolves were under my parents' command."
Kael nodded in agreement.
"They were mudered."
"Yes."
"I survived."
"Yes, you did."
"And ended up somehow in the Silver Moon Pack."
"Yes."
None of it made sense to me.
"Why would someone leave a royal heir in a regular pack?
Kael turned aside.
"Cause it was the last place anyone would look."
My heart sank.
"Thus all my life..." I whispered. "...was a lie."
"No," Kael said and moved closer. "It was an opportunity."
"An opportunity for what?"
"For you to live."
His words stole my wrath. The killer chuckled once more before I could answer.
"You overlooked the best part."
Kael's face grew rigid.
"I warned you."
The prisoner neglected him.
"Ask him what transpired following the death of your parents."
I turned to look at Kael.
"What happened?"
He kept quiet. He remained quiet for too long.
At last Elder Rowan came forward.
"Your Majesty..."
Kael shut his eyes.
"Time's up."
He opened them once more.
"I failed," he said.
The words shocked everyone.
"I couldn't save them," he added with a voice that was too calm. "They trusted in me." He swallowed hard. "But I was unable to protect them."
For the first time since meeting him, I saw real guilt. Eighteen years had passed with it still living inside him.
"My mum..." I begun and my throat tightened. "...did she hate you?"
His eyes opened.
"What?"
"Before she passed away," I said, almost breaking down in tears. "Did she blame you?"
Before Kael even responded, he turned to me looking so sad that tears welled up in my eyes.
"No."
His voice cracked slightly.
"She actually thanked me."
The room was still silent.
"She put you in my arms."
My breathing ceased.
"What?" I asked, in surprise.
"She instructed to make sure were alive a d safe," he said and sighed sadly. "Then she brushed your brow with a kiss..." His golden eyes grew distant. "... And walked back into battle."
Tears ran down my face.
"She knew..." I said but didn't have the courage to complete my statement.
Kael gave a nod.
"She knew she wasn't coming back."
"No..." I said, and I covered my mouth to keep myself from crying.
Kael's own eyes glistened.
"Her last words were..." He said and gazed straight at me. "'Tell my daughter that she was loved from the moment she was born.'"
The tears I had been struggling over came out. I fell to my knees. My mother had loved me. She had not deserted me. She had died protecting me.
A warm hand softly settled on my shoulder. Kael knelt down beside me.
"I am so sorry," he said to me.
I was unable to respond. Years of isolation and years of believing No one wanted me, all disappeared in an instant. My mother had loved me enough to offer her life.
The assassin observed quietly. After that he grinned.
"Touching."
Slowly, Kael rose up. He bore a cold expression.
"You've already said enough."
The assassin chuckled.
"No," he said and gazed right at me. "I've barely begun."
He leaned forward.
"Do you know who gave the ordered the death of your parents?"
Every muscle in me tightened.
"Who?"
The smile resurfaced.
"Someone,' he said and paused for a second. "Someone you've trusted your whole life."
My heart sank.
"I've trusted only a few people all my life," he said and he nodded.
"Exactly".
I examined his face.
"Tell me."
The assassin chuckled.
"I'll tell you," he said and looked around the throne room. "But first...".
He glanced toward one of the guards by the entrance.
"...you should ask why one of your king's own men keeps reaching for the dagger hidden beneath his cloak."
Everyone turned their heads towards the guard.
"Sieze him," Kael ordered right away, but it was already too late.
The guard yanked the knife loose and pounced at me. I hardly hard time to scream before Kael put himself between me and the guard. The dagger plunged into Kael's side and blood splattered on the marble floor.
"KAEL!"
The throne room descended into pandemonium. Some warriors tackled the assassin, while others surrounded the traitorous guard.
I barely notice any of it, though. My whole attention was on Kael. He staggered backward and fell on his knees. My legs brought me to him before I even knew I was walking. As he fell, I caught him and blood covered my hands.
"No," I said as panic consumed me. "No, no, no..."
Kael looked up at me and smiled despite the pain.
"You're..." He said and coughed. "...safe."
Fresh tears messed up my vision.
"You i***t," I said and I pushed both hands down on the wound. "Why should you do that?"
He stared at me as if the response was obvious.
"Because..."
His breathing became ragged.
"...I would rather die..."
His fingers gently wrapped around mine.
"...than lose you."
The throne room descended in total silence. Every elder, warrior and servant, heard his confession. And in that moment my heart realized something terrifying. Somewhere between the rejection, the forest and this castle, I had fallen in love with the Lycan King.
- Writer
