Alpha King's Healer

16

Before Covey, her whore, or Celeste can protest, I place my hand on Covey's shoulder letting her know its alright.

She exhales deeply, "Are you sure, Aurey?"

I nod. She swallows, gesturing for the other two to follow. She allows them out before her, as she stops to glare at the side of Thaddeus's face. He doesn't play into her anger or disgust as he just locks his gaze down onto me.

Once they are out, he shuts the broken door behind them.

"You know you should not have survived that, right?" His voice fills the room. Before I can respond, he continues on. "And you will not keep surviving if you continue to trust all of those around you, Aurey," he mocks my nickname.

I didn't mind the nickname. It was the same one my mother and father had given me as a child.

"Covey gave me that nickname for my safety whilst hiding here. I only survived because of her. She's my friend, why shouldn't I trust her?"

Thaddeus frowns at me, "Having dumb pet names with someone doesn't make them your friend." He draws in closer to me. His large frame stayed perfectly balanced as he neared. "When are you ever going to learn anything?" He calmly questions.

His body was directly in front of me. In all honesty my neck was hurting from looking up at him, but that was more likely because of the extreme jumping I had to do yesterday.

"Covey is the first person to have shown me genuine kindness and connection since I've left Arvendon. If I trust her, it is for a reason," I argue.

Thaddeus caught his breathe ever so slightly, chest rising and falling very slowly. He raises his hand to my face, the back of his knuckles just barely touching my cheek. He pulls his hand in front of my eyes. It was only then I saw he had it closed around something.

"I told you not to lie to me," he warned. I couldn't understand what I was lying to him about, until he slowly opened his fingers to reveal the pearl bracelet Demios had gifted me before the riot. I wasn't sure how he had gotten it from Covey. "Prince Demios has shown you kindness," he declares.

With the bracelet held right in front of my face, I reach up to grab it. Thaddeus pulls it away from me, examining it himself. His thumb rubbing one of the glistening pearls before he looks to me, his crystalline orbs narrowing at me, not a lot like a glare, but more like he was focusing hard on my face.

I shuffle slightly, uncomfortable under his gaze. If I could wither away, shrink up into a tiny ball like the pearls, I would have.

Finally, he clears his throat, "But I suppose after all, you and Prince Demios are mates," He concluded.

I stifle a laugh, "Prince Demios and I are not mates."

But I couldn't help but think, were we? Perhaps that is why I am so fascinated by Demios, and him me. Could we possibly be mates? Really mates and not fake like Thaddeus and I?

"I have had an exact number of 33 mates, Miss Kingsley. I know a connection when I see one. You're attracted to one another like flies to horseshit," He points out.

He comes in closer, his lips just barely brushing my cheek. They were so warm, so soft. I wanted to lean into them. They felt so inviting.

That's when he whispered it.

"With that, there is something I must do."

I was so reassured to see Thaddeus finally after the horrid attack, but I still had no idea who he was or what his motives were, especially with his words in this moment, right now. But how was I supposed to know or understand him, when I no longer knew myself?