Fated - Book 2

Chapter 7

My head was pounding. The pain was dull compared to the sharp pangs running up and down my body."The king would never do such a thing!""There is no way to find out now since all of the witnesses' are dead!"The voices around me were shouting—screaming over me, to be more exact; the dull sensation in my skull pounded harder as the sound of my uncles barking at the other voices filled my ears."The prince had a damn good enough reason!"Right, I killed someone, or was it a group of people, or was it a king? I was still foggy over the details as I tried to piece together the odd conversation being barked around me."The princess is a whore, as we all know; how do we not know that she was in the chambers trying to seduce the king?"A shrill voice made me groan. I tried my best to push myself up and spit at the cowering woman at the end of my bed."I thought he was sedated.""Shut the fuck up and get out."I snapped at the horrid being; she was one of King Novus' maidens. She stood there, barely dressed in some gold cloth that hardly covered her chest. She stammered slightly before puffing her chest and turning on her heels to scurry out of the infirmary.Right, I was kept here due to my wounds and to have some healers sedate me, as I was being held in question for killing the king's guards in his chambers and staining his uniform with the blood."Where is she?"They froze at my question, but it only angered me further, forcing a growl out of my aching chest."She is in the bed behind the curtain."Dante's voice was soft in my ear as he tried to point me in the direction where she was. Her scent was faint, but it was there. I could see shadows moving behind the thin linen. She was there among them."You should have just killed the King and thrown his corpse to his people if you wanted to start a war."Aaron spattered his words, which made me growl as my rage only grew, making my body ache further."I would have done the same, my boy."My chest heaved at his words. My hand darted towards my mouth quickly to hold down my nausea as the memory washed over me. Neim yelled for me, telling me my bride was crying and in pain. My body moved on its own as Dionysus took over and helped me find her.It was Seina who controlled my hands as I ripped through soft flesh. My stomach turned as the memory of their blood-soaked screams filled my mind. Their hearts were still beating when I started to rip into their warm flesh.Neim was crying in my head as his attention kept pulling us towards the bundle on the bed. She was bleeding and stripped of her clothing by the time I looked at her. The sight was sickening as I painstakingly watched a guard pull out of her and charge me, while Novus sat in his seat with a twisted grin."No survivors?""Only the whimpering King."Dante was annoyed with the fact that I left the king alive."I want to watch him burn."They were my own words as I whispered them. The memory settled into my mind. I was the one using their magic to move my body. I used their rage to fuel my broken body as I ripped through those elves."We all do."My father's voice rolled from the entrance to the bright room. He looked exhausted as he stood there; his skin was ashy and thin; he hadn't slept."And we will have that opportunity; both of us have declared war."My heart skipped a beat at his words. All for me killing guards, that he ordered to harm my bride, all so that he could sit there and watch, he watched as they ripped her flesh and forced themselves into her."The princess has been tended to; all of her wounds have been cleaned and stitched."One of the doctors who came with our company on this trip opened the curtain beside us to show my bride balled up on her bed, hiding from the lights and noises around her. A smile crossed my lips at the sight of her."She needs some rest, my lord."The doctor's voice was a soft whisper as she spoke to my father. Aaron placed a heavy hand on my shoulder before he followed the other beings out of the room. The room was bright and filled with natural light, yet the only noise that filled the air was our breathing.They had left us alone to rest, yet all I wanted was to hold her and chase that memory of me being a monster out of her mind."They have all left, princess."I sank back into my bed. The mattress was thin, and so were the pillows; they only caused my joints and wounds to ache more. Without a word, I felt her weight against me; she had snuck her way off her bed and found her way beside me.My heart fluttered as I felt her body curl up tight against mine. I tried my utter best to turn and wrap both of my arms around her, but the bandage wrapped around me hindered my motions."Can we just leave?"She muttered against my chest. She had been crying, and I didn't blame her. I rested my arm on her waist while the arm under her wrapped around her as best as it could. She groaned at the sensation of me touching her, which made my heart sink.Was this how she felt when I had that rule about her not touching me?I shifted my hands as best as I could so that only the tips of my fingers were grazing her clothed body. It wasn't enough; I wanted to feel her soft, pale skin and her faint warmth, but not yet."Soon, my princess, I need you healed and ready to travel."I lied; I was the one who needed to heal; I needed the rest, but I was too scared to close my eyes. The last time I did, she was attacked and betrayed by our host."We can heal on the road."She sighed and muttered against me; this time I let out a broken chuckle at her unreasonable statement."We could, but then we won't be able to lay like this.""I want to get away, my dragon, away from all of it."My body moved against its invisible restraints and wrapped around her. Despite her tensed body and groans, I pulled her closer to me so that my warmth could wrap around her and make her feel safe."I will take you as far as you would wish to go, my love; I will take you to the unknown lands of Endora and keep you there for the rest of our lives, far away from this pain, after I burn it all down."She flinched at my touch and sobbed at my words. When I found her on the bed after I ripped the guards into unrecognisable chunks, I wrapped myself around her and whispered that I would burn them all for the harm they had inflicted on her while I was at my weakest.This promise was made out of my usual state of mind, and I plan to keep it. Even if it means going against my king and my kingdom, no one has the right to harm my bride and think they could get away with it by calling her the whore."Artemis."She muttered my name against her chest, pulling me out of my angered state of mind. I could only hum in response as I tried to refocus my eyes and attention."I was pregnant."Her words sent a cold chill down my spine. She was. What does that mean? Did I harm her and cause her to lose the fetus? Did Novus construct this plan to rid my bride of her unborn child? As my mind raced, the odd dream I had months ago flashed through my mind.The priestess was covered in the blood of my bride and held our unborn child in her hand, smiling sadistically as I could do nothing to save either of them."The doctor told me that I lost the fetus due to the trauma and shock that my body had taken."Her voice was a whisper in the wind against my ears, and my heart was pounding in my chest. I didn't care how it happened; all I knew was that Novus had caused this; he had caused my bride pain beyond anything I could fix.My body pulled up on its own, my chest pulled tight suddenly, and my eyesight shifted. It pulled in and faded out as the voices in my head fought for dominance, but neither of them found the footing they were looking for; instead, I heard them all cry in pain.Her small hand trailed up my bandaged torso as she wrapped herself around me in an attempt to console me, but I wasn't the one in pain; they were; they felt her emptiness, her pain, and her endless suffering."I should be the one holding you."It was a growl of worlds that left my chest; it frightened me. The sound I made was not from me nor my dragons, but from what I could hear in her voice, she was smiling."It's alright, my dragon; you have a lifetime to hold me."She pressed her lips against my shoulder as she gently held me, while I cried from the voices in my head and the pain that a loss leaves behind.