Harvi

Chapter-40

Harvi looked out at the vast surrounding through the gigantic glass window. The surreal view of the sun kissing the lightly covered snow, creating the otherworldly magic and beauty all over the slightly warm environment. The air slightly breezed, still carrying the chill from last night's snowfall.

She tightened her woolen coat and again smoothed her front of the dress. Even though the weather today was usually warmer than others, there was no trace of happiness over her facial features. Her dead eyes scanned from heavily covered trees from snow to snowy wild blooming flowers. The garden was freshly mowed and cut as what to be said per her taste. She remembered not telling anybody what she liked or not but still somehow Zades assumed she liked it that way.

It's been fourteen years ever since Zades dragged her back to Arkadia from the North jungle. Ever since, she has faced so much that it was hard to tell whether it was a reality or a nightmare. She long forgotten her smiles, the warmness, the fuzzy feeling that summers brought every year, the first rain of monsoons or the dry autumns. All she remembered was suffering.

Just like Zades promised, he stripped her bare from every touch of happiness, self-respect and emotions. He whipped her into a living stone-y creature. Neither he let her live, nor let her die. The first four years, Zades was a true definition of evil, of the monster that he was called. The first three months he brought her to Arkadia from the North jungle were the hardest for her, he continuously whipped her naked, marked her, starved her, forced himself on her day and night all the while imprisoning her in the dungeons but he was clever enough not to let her die but to make her rot like a half dead rodent.

Her soul shivered when she remembered the darker than night dungeons, it was the most scary, soul tearing and gut wrenching place she had ever seen. She heard screams of others day and night but her screams were deadlier. She never thought Zades could have this part of him that he rarely shows to the world. She never thought the person could be this cruel, full of monstrosity, pure evil and scary psychopath. When he finally took her out of the dungeons, she was narrowly breathing, scarcely feeling her own heartbeat. She was fighting hard to keep her open but they were tight shut.

The maids screeched like squirrels when they first saw her condition. Her hair falling out, cheeks sunken, and skin dry like autumn leaves. Still Zades didn't have his fill of punishment toward her. He let her heal enough to be able to stand but then his mental torture began, Harvi was truly fearful of him, that even mentioning of his name would brought great trauma and panick to her. She would visibly shake whenever he would be with her.

Zades would only relish in her fear. He would wear a dangerous smirk on his lips. He was taming her like he liked to tame his wild pets. For him, he was merely teaching her to never leave him, to never disrespect him, to never betray him. Granted, earlier he used to turn a blind eye for whatever mischief Harvi does, he did let her disrespect him, bad mouth him, and talk back to him as somewhere he found it entertaining. Her little rebelness would turn him on, would give him pleasure but he didn't realize how much he had put his trust, loosened his grip on her when she finally found the chance to run away from him.

His bubble of happiness bursted when she betrayed him, stabbed him and tried to leave again to die. Her words cut deeper than the kitchen knife she used to thrust in his collarbone and thigh. Unknowingly, she awakened the beast within him, and he swore to never trust her, to never disrespect him, and to never let her escape from him ever again. He used anger and disgust as his weapon, to catalyze his brutal acts toward her. Not only, he succeed in branding his fear in Harvi but also, he fought hard against his family.

Zades challenged King Daevos for the throne but he also challenged King Nikos of Trilia, elder brother of Dahlan. Aster managed to make him understand how power and strong position was always greater. Zades knew Arkadia and its Kingdom would never accept Harvi as their Queen. They would eat her alive on any chance they were given. That's why he defeated Daevos in hand to hand combat, making him the new King of Arkadia. The Emperor was giddy for his grandson's success but he went on to shock the whole Kingdom more. Queen Kilia, wife of Daevos, committed suicide when she heard her dearest husband couldn't make it out alive, while being pregnant with their second child.