Gilded Fate

CHAPTER SIX

Phaeryl couldn’t ignore the fact that she had licked Xhanes’ blood. Its somewhat metallic taste was still stuck on her tongue. She already prepared her mind and was waiting for her body to collapse. ‘Always be ready to help out even if it means making sacrifices.’ The slow, measured voice was all she could hear in her mind. She hadn’t heard that voice in years since her grandmother died. An instant wish of going back to times she spent with her grandmother subdued her.

“Do you not realize it yet?”

Xhanes’ calm and direct voice pierced through her thoughts. Her eyes quickly met his, sending an abrupt wave of realization. She stood up from the chair, reacting faster than she could think.

Her eyes went wide, and her mouth opened, but no words came. The realization hit her like ice, leaving her rooted to the spot she was standing on, unsure of what to do.

“Wh—What? I don’t understand ”

She managed to let out, inwardly denying the only possibility that came to her mind. Her mind ran back to the night at the tarvern.

“Never thought I would find my mate without even trying. Maybe that comes with being born on the night of the golden moon” Phaeryl tried to hide her annoyance on seeing the slight smug form on Xhanes’ face.

Was this a test? Or maybe someone was playing a dirty prank on her.

She laughed, sharp and breathless, though the tremor in her voice betrayed her disbelief.

“You’re Joking”

Xhanes gently led her in front of a mirror. Her eyes went wide, and she stared, unable to believe what she was seeing. Her eyes had a soft glow and certain tiny imprints on them. She felt her stomach drop, her breath caught, and her thoughts scattered in stunned disbelief.

“What did you do to me?”

She inched back quickly. Cautious, graceful, yet urgent, like a deer testing the edges of a predator’s territory.

His laughter echoed, slow and deliberate, each note slicing through the tension like a blade of ridicule.

“Trust me, I didn’t do anything to you. You’ve had this mark for a while; you were just oblivious”

“No. Your blood must have given me this mark.” She took a few steps backward.

“This kingdom will never cease to amuse me. I never knew there was such a dumb myth going around”

He trailed forward, making Phaeryl inch back till she hit the wall. The air between them thickened when their eyes locked.

“How am I sure it’s the same mark as yours?” Her eyes hastily trailed off from him.

He let out a slight chuckle before removing his shirt and turning his back to Phaeryl, exposing a large imprint that almost covered his whole back. Phaeryl didn’t know a gasp escaped her lips. She couldn’t deny the striking resemblance to the one in her eyes. This was not a joke. Punishment was the right word for it.

“I’ll wear my shirt before you start gawking at my body”

“There’s no way in this life I’d gawk at your body” She mumbled.

Her eyes searched through the room, taking her time to absorb the whole new information. Her eyes halted at Xhanes, who was already sitting, sipping wine from his glass. His palm was healed as though there wasn’t just a slit on it earlier.

“I’m leaving”

“I thought mates greeted each other in a more romantic way” Phaeryl’s nose crunched, betraying her efforts to ignore Xhanes.

She glanced at the door before leaning closer, her voice dropping to a whisper.

“I haven’t told anyone this,” she said, fingers twisting her ring.

“Only you.”

She hesitated, then exhaled slowly, as if releasing a weight he’d carried too long.

“I finally got my bond mark. In fact, I've had it all this while” she murmured.

“Are you serious? How did you find out? Who is your mate?” Isla’s questions made her rethink her decision to tell her.

“I— Um. I just found out tonight. Xhanes is my mate”

She finished speaking and watched her reaction.

She leaned back slowly, dragging a hand down her face, a short, disbelieving laugh escaping before he could stop it.

Isla's mouth opened, then closed again. A lot of questions clearly sat on her tongue.

“I always knew you were funny. But this is not the time to joke” Isla’s laughter, evident of doubt, broke the quiet room.

“I'm very serious”

Isla searched Phaeryl’s face for any hint of humor.

“After cleaning the staircase, I went to tell I was leaving. This man is a psychopath. He forced me to lick his blood”

“But, isn't that a good thing? Do you feel stronger? What did it taste like? ”

“I only let the tip of my tongue taste it. It tastes like blood. I don’t think I feel anything.”

“This is crazy. What about our plan to escape?”

Phaeryl paused. She chewed on her lower lip, eyes unfocused for a moment. Then they sharpened, bright with sudden purpose.

“I gathered some expensive things I could find in the Yeld palace. We need to leave tomorrow. If we slip out from the rest; I doubt anyone would notice.”

Isla’s brows drew up into a puzzled look.

“Lord Xhanes would surely notice if his mate is gone”

The faint smile on Phaeryl’s face faded. Her gaze shifted to her, sharper now, as if he was finally seeing something that had been there all along.

“He'd probably be too self-absorbed to notice I fled” Phaeryl couldn’t disregard the obvious truth in Isla’s statement.

“Enough about Xhanes. I found a lot of coins in a random room at the palace”

Phaeryl explained, carrying up a large bag of coins before dropping it on the floor.

“We have to be really careful while carrying this bag out of this place.”

Isla leaned forward slightly, eyes fixed on the object in her hands. She tilted her head, studying it a little longer than necessary.

“I really hope Xhanes doesn't do anything to ruin my plans tomorrow,