Shielded - The Marilla Chronicles

Chapter 32

We reached the top of the stairs and Malaki began leading us through the corridors.

"Is this your castle?" Maxwell asked under hushed tones as we stepped through the black stained wooden passageways. This was more where you would expect the Dark Prince to live.

"Its..." Malaki stopped and looked around at the paintings, painting that were absent, pointless, with no emotion behind them. Faces of dark Fae. "This was a mating gift from my father."

Maxwell blinked a few times, while I grew impatient.

"Mating gift?" Maxwell muttered, "You are mated? Bonded?" His eyes darted to Malaki's bare hand. No sign of any ring or band.

"They have some really weird, Kinky set up." I answered in annoyance.

Malaki looked at me with creased eyebrows. "We are not mated, or bonded." His voice sounded rather pained. "I am sorry you had to see that part of me Marilla."

I looked up at him through a hooded gaze. I could not master up the strength to say something cheeky. Not when I had his mocking smile in my brain as he bragged about taking away my virginity.

"This." He gestured to the castle around us, "Is not me."

I let out a huff. Sure, it wasn't. I think that hurt more, that he thought he had to hide his dark side from me.

"The man on that island, in my kitchen, is me." He continued as he pressed his palm to his chest.

Maxwell had moved to examine one of the paintings, maybe to give us some privacy, or maybe because he really was not interested in Malaki's plea for forgiveness.

Malaki took one, one very slow step forward. "Living, required that I played the role my father lay out for me." He took another step forward, I looked at those boots as he moved to me. Wondered how close I would let him get.

"I was to be, the terrifying monster the Dark One let loose on the world." His black tendrils spiraled out from behind his back, causing Maxwell to look back and examine them. "I had to do a lot of terrible things to live Marilla."

He took another step, but I suppose that had been too close for me. My heart began to race, and my Trident came out. I held it steady and pointed the tip towards him. He stopped moving forward.

"When I saw you, that day in Atlantis." His hands went up in a gesture for peace, "Something clicked into place and I knew what you were to me."

I shook my head.

"I won't force it." His voice sounded reassuring, "But when Lenora found out I had found a mermaid as my soulmate, she rushed off to my father."

I slowly dropped the Trident as he continued to speak.

Maxwell was back to examining the painting, heading further and further down the passageway. He began to take watch, ensuring no one was coming.

"Lenora decided, I needed to be the one to kill you, and that she should mate with me. The Dark One agreed." Malaki shrugged and his eyes moved away from mine. Hiding a glint of pain that I saw anyway.

"I did kill your people still." His eyes still didn't meet mine but his voice carried remorse. "I blacked out their lives, but I ensured they felt no pain." He slowly looked back up at me.

I huffed out, "Thank you being such a prince charming, for killing my people gently." My ability for sarcasm was still very strong.

"Mar." Maxwell was next to Malaki now, and he was giving me his disappointed brother face.