Royal Games

Chapter 59

I wake up screaming and lurch forward. Or at least I try to move. There's something wrapped tight around my waist. Holding me in place. Squeezing me. I scramble to get free, but it's no use.

She's got me. I didn't really kill Darcey. She let me think I did, only to capture me in my sleep. She came back to finish what she started. I'm not safe. She...

"Shh, Alyssa. It's alright."

I pause. That's not Darcey's voice. I look down. The arms holding me are masculine and oh so familiar. I relax.

"It was just a bad dream." Isaac reassures me.

"Didn't feel like it." I mumble. I remember her blood everywhere. On my hands. Making the floor slick as she stalked across it to get to me, sword protruding grotesquely from her chest.

"It's over now."

Silence. And in that silence, I remember my last words before falling asleep.

"Isaac..." I begin tentatively.

"Yes?"

"I think we might be soulmates."

Isaac chuckles. "Took you long enough to figure it out."

"What?" I exclaim, squirming in his arms to face him.

"Do you remember the first night we went out together? When smoke came from your wound?" I nod. "Love creates the strongest magic. And although it wasn't quite love then, a connection between soulmates is always a powerful thing. The magic in your body recognised me as your soulmate, even if your mind didn't register it."

"You knew this entire time and you never said anything?" I ask incredulously.

"You had enough to deal with, and I didn't want to scare you off. We both know it takes more than just a connection to make a relationship work."

I kiss him gently, before murmuring against his lips. "Never withhold important information from me again."

"If you can promise me the same." He replies.

"I promise." I don't hesitate. What is there to think about? He knows who I am. He's seen the darkest parts of me. And yet he's still here. "No more secrets."

It's with peaceful thoughts in my mind that I finally shower, talking to Isaac through the bathroom door the entire time. When I get dressed, I change into jeans and a fluffy pink jumper. Ordinary clothes befitting my ordinary life. No more parading around in gowns or sneaking around in black.

Isaac and I briefly pass his family on our way out of the house. They must wonder what the hell we're up to going out all the time in this cold weather.

"Don't catch a cold out there." John calls after us just before the door slams shut.

"Do you trust me?" Isaac asks, his large white wings spreading wide.

"Yes." I manage to breathe out, in awe of his magnificent wings.

"Then drink up." He hands me a vial of invisibility potion that he must've swiped from my own stash. Isaac drinks from another vial.

I lift the vial to my lips... And am suddenly swept off my feet.

Isaac cradles my body as he shoots up into the sky. The potion vial slips out of my fingers, but I can't hear it smash against the ground over the powerful beat of his wings. Wind tickles my face, causing my loose hair to stream behind me. I let out a joyous shriek as the countryside becomes a blur below. Trees, houses, and cars all shrink. People are reduced to no larger than ants. We fly over grassy green hills and icy blue rivers.

Up here, it is only us. Only me and Isaac. No one else exists. Nothing else matters.

We could see the whole world from here, and yet no one can see us. Being invisible is an added thrill I've never experienced before. People never bother on Topia because the few humans who live there are fully aware of magic anyway.

Far too soon, Isaac swoops down, landing gently on the frosty grass. We dip our hands in the nearby stream and quickly glamour away our seelie appearances.

"I can't say I'm glad to be back here." I say, looking towards Donovan Finch's mansion.

"Neither can I." Isaac agrees.

"You two offend me." Donovan announces in a mocking tone. I whirl around to see him leaning against a tree. He appears human now, and I try not to wonder what became of the wings Adrianna ruined. "My assassins informed me when the deed was done, so I suspected you would show up soon, Princess Alyssa." His low bow makes my skin crawl. Then he turns to Isaac. "You, however, I wasn't expecting."

"I'm here for Alyssa's protection."

I had jumped to say yes the moment Isaac had suggested accompanying me here. I might trust that Donovan isn't after my head, but this is still a hub for criminal activity.

Donovan's answering smirk is sinister. "You've heard too many stories about me. Some may be true, but I assure you I'm never violent for no reason. Be civil with me, and neither of you will come to any harm in my house. You have my word."

"The word of a criminal." Isaac mutters.

"I'm a criminal, not a monster." Donovan drawls. "Now come." He starts towards his mansion. "You're wasting my time out here."

We follow him all the way to his office in silence. It's the same room we were in last time we were here, and I'm not sure how I feel about that.

"Take your seats." Donovan says, slipping into his own chair and propping his feet up on the desk.

"You knew about Darcey." I accuse as I sit down.

"Of course I knew. I never met your mother, so there was no need to have any kind of vendetta against her. Your aunt, on the other hand, made deals with me and never paid up."

"What deals?" I ask curiously.

"That's none of your concern. I am aware of what Darcey did to Queen Dahlia, but not how or when she did it, I'm afraid."

"Do you know anything about a prophesy?" I inquire, unsure whether I should really mention it to a criminal.

Removing his feet from the desk, Donovan lets out a long sigh.

"The Queen's twin shall be killed by female blood." He recites. "One of my psychics foretold this fate to Darcey years ago. It's common knowledge how tricksy psychic magic is. I guess in trying to prevent the prophesy coming true, she inadvertently brought about her own undoing."

"And that's why you wanted me to go after her." I realise. "Why you didn't just send your assassins to do it directly." Do it. Kill her. I still can't quite call it what it was.

"Indeed. My assassins may be skilled, but I had a hand in Darcey's own training. I trusted my psychic over the unpredictability of how Darcey might respond to a threat."

"Anything else you've failed to mention?" Isaac asks.

"I hold many secrets, but no others that concern either of you. Now, if you want to leave, I need your word that no authorities will be hearing about the location of this mansion."

"My lips are sealed for as long as Alyssa Casteray remains dead." I reply.

I turn to Isaac, who doesn't say anything. Then he grits his teeth. "No one will find out."

"Good. You're free to go."

I can't get out of Donovan's mansion quick enough. I hope we never cross paths again, but I know better than to expect it. Isaac flies both of us back to his house, staying quiet to give me a chance to mull over what we've learnt.

The Queen's twin shall be killed by female blood.

Is that why Darcey killed my mum, out of fear of the prophesy? Or did my aunt have other motives for her actions? Jealousy? Greed? Entertainment? I may never know the answer.