Chapter 6 Convince Her
[Allaric’s POV]
Elder Alviz stares at me like he can’t quite recognize me and I guess that is to be expected. Since I was a warrior for the kingdom of Hadoom and lived my life obediently follow orders from not only the late king and even Elder Alviz, it was completely against my nature to speak against my master. However, things would become different now.
Since Navaeh chose me as the next king, I would soon become the one giving orders and to make sure not to embarrass her, I would need to break some old habits.
“I should get going.” I say now, knowing there was nothing more to be said here. “I have things to do.”
I give Elder Alviz a nod and then turn and as I do, I can feel his gaze burning into me as he holds back on what it is that he wants to say.
Smart man, at least he had some sense, but I was certain that he wouldn’t always have this sense so I needed to be wary of him.
Making note of this, I continue to move, heading out of the large castle that is yet to be my home and when I step outside I find my father there.
It is clear from the look on his face, that he has been waiting for me and honestly, I wasn’t surprised in the slightest, because no one expected what just took place.
“Allaric,” he growls, moving forward, his aura exploding from him. “Since when have you been seducing Navaeh?”
At his question, I feel my own anger spike because what he was suggesting was absolutely ridiculous.
Never in a thousand years would I have expected her to choose me to be the next king. Not when her late husband was my uncle and not when the man who was closest to her after his death was my own father.
“I’ve done no such thing.” I say now, my voice even. “I’m just as surprised by this as you are.”
At my words, my father’s expression shifts, but the anger that is plain to see stays in place and when his eyes start to glow a dangerous green, I know that he is doing everything he can to hold his anger in.
“Then why?” He demands, his voice shaking, his fists clenching. “WHY DID SHE CHOOSE YOU?”
“I don’t know.” I admit.
At my words, my father’s fist moves, slamming into the door behind my head and when it does, it cracks the wood like it is nothing more than a twig.
“Do you think damaging the queen’s property will earn you points with her?” I sigh. “How many times have I warned you to mind your temper?”
It was no secret that my father was a hot-headed, stubborn, and willful. When he wanted something, he would do whatever it took to get it, staying by Navaeh’s side included. However, he didn’t always do it fairly, but since what he did was his own business, I never said much about it.
When he would openly argue with official decisions made by the king and queen, I would stand aside waiting for him to finally get himself arrested, but because they were family, he got away with it.
When he would do things underhandedly, I said nothing, but maybe it was about time I stopped indulging him. Not only me, but even Navaeh who up until now seemed to have a soft spot for him.
“Father,” I say slowly. “I understand that you aren’t happy with how things went, but you should at least…”
“I should what?” He demands, leaning in close so I feel his aura press against my skin and when it does, I feel my own do the same. When it does, his eyes widen, but even then he doesn’t step back. “What did you do to convince her to pick you?”
“Absolutely nothing.”
I had barely exchanged more than ten words with her between the time my uncle died and now. I didn’t know why she picked me over him, but I also didn’t have the right to ask her.
As a subject of Hadoom and also Navaeh, it was my duty to do as she wished even if it meant becoming her king.
“If you’d like, you can speak with her yourself to figure out what is going on, but I’m afraid you’re too late, she has already been taken to the temple of purity.”
Once Navaeh was in the temple of purity, she wouldn’t be allowed to leave or be visited until the night before our wedding when the binding banquet would take place. That would be taking place in a weeks time. Until then, neither Navaeh or I were allowed to see or contact one another and likewise, no one was allowed to see or contact Navaeh.
“Dammit,” my father growls, his eyes flashing with frustration as he stands back and when he grows quiet, I can almost see the wheels turning in his head.
Standing in place, I watch as he pounders something and when a slow look of calm starts to form on his face, I know that whatever he is about to say will most certainly involve doing what he wants.
“You,” he says, giving me a look. “On the night of the banquet, you simply tell her that you changed your mind about marrying her. Once you do that, I will be the next choice.”
“Are you certain of that?”
I didn’t know why, but something changed between him and Navaeh, that much was obvious by the way she treated him during and after the choosing ceremony. He did something to make her despise him, but I didn’t know what.
“I’m positive,” my father responds. “Navaeh is simply playing hard to get. I’m certain it is because I am Raymond’s brother. She most likely feels guilty to him for falling for his brother.”
“Then what about his nephew?” I challenge. “Wouldn’t she also feel that way about me?”
“You’re different,” my father shrugs. “You were never close with Raymond because you didn’t come to live with me until after that woman died.”
“That woman,” I say slowly, my anger growing again. “Was my mother.”
“Your mother,” he huffs. “You lived with her and therefore never got the chance to get close to your uncle or even Navaeh. When you arrived in Hadoom, you immediately started your battle training and then went off to war. Of course, Navaeh would choose you since you were never close to her or Raymond. That’s why you simply have to refuse so that she has to accept and acknowledge her feelings for me.”
For a moment, I don’t speak as I consider my father’s words, because honestly, they are absolutely ridiculous, but I couldn’t say there wasn’t truth to them.
I saw the way he and Navaeh interacted. I saw the care in her eyes when she smiled, laughed, and even spent time with him, but earlier…My mind wanders back to the look on her face during the choosing ceremony…there was no hint of that warmth or light on her face when she faced him then.
What am I missing?
Frowning, I rack my brain for something, anything that would help me better understand, but I keep coming up empty.
“Do this for me,” my father says, snapping me back to the present. “And I will make sure that you become the head commander of Hadoom’s army.”
“I don’t want it handed to me,” I point out. “I want to achieve that by my own strength.”
“And you think you will be able to do that if you become king?” He laughs. “Once you become king, you will be forced to retire from the military so that you can stay beside Navaeh. Are you really going to give up on your dream for a woman who will never love you?”
