Chapter 5 I am not keeping her.

CHAPTER FIVE

VINCENT

“She’s … something. I can see why you want to keep her.” Electra smiled as we walked down the hallway.

“I am not keeping her.” I sent her a murderous glance.

“But you are not killing her either, which means something.” She countered sharply. 

I ignored her, flexed my fingers and headed straight for Greer’s wing. I needed to see him, but the stench of failure still clung to me closely. He would lose his mind if he found out that I brought the princess here.

“Perhaps we should change first, before seeing him.” Zade grabbed my arm, stopping me in my tracks. 

“You do not have to come with me,” I responded, even though I knew he was right.

“Yeah, but we need to talk.” He insisted, a look in his eyes, and I exhaled sharply. 

My fangs ached, and hunger pressed hard against me. I needed to feed. I needed to clear my head. I needed to wash away the Princess's touch from my body. I reached up and touched my cheek where her nails had gone through. She was vicious, a wild animal, and I couldn’t understand it. How was she so wild? What else was she hiding under her royalty?

We made our way across the castle to my wing. I pushed the door open and cracked the knots in my neck. 

“I haven’t heard back from Rue since the attack, Vincent. I am worried about her.” Electra shut the door behind her.

“She will be fine,” I assured her, but for the first time in a long time, I was uncertain. 

Rue was Electra’s sister, and one of my oldest friends. More importantly, she was also our spy in Volantis, working as a maid in Carden’s household. She had been there for over a year now, communicating their plans to us through magic. If she was ever discovered, she would face a fate worse than death, which is one of the reasons we were the only ones who knew of her mission. 

“I think I should reach out to her.” Electra threw her locks in a tight bun as she paced. 

“Don’t,” Zade warned, sitting at the edge of the bed. He was bleeding through his binds again.

“Don’t?” She snarled at him, eyes filled with rage. “What am I supposed to do? We failed, Zade. She’s trapped there. Carden might live. His mother might be on our heels any moment from now. All our communications are down. We are -”

“They cannot find us,” I said, slowly unravelling the wrap around my wrist. 

As expected, the stab wound had closed. It was one of the few perks of being a hybrid. I healed faster than most. I tossed the wrap to the ground and turned to her. 

“This is Emeris. While we might have revealed that we are not a myth, they still do not know where we are. They cannot find us. No one can. Our priority now should be containing the plague, trying to fucking understand it and healing the sick.” My words were devoid of emotion, but I was way past caring, not when I could still smell Freya on me. “Do not try to reach out to her. That’s an order. Now, go to your wings, clean yourselves up and meet me in Greer’s room.”

They glanced at each other, but left immediately, giving me respite. 

I undressed quickly and washed away the blood on my hands. Freya’s face flashed in my mind. Her olive green eyes. Her long hair. The hatred in her words. 

What was I doing? She couldn’t stay here forever, not when she was already getting on my nerves. 

Amusement flickered in me like a torch when I remembered she wanted me to lock her in a kennel. Perhaps I needed to do just that. Out of sight, out of mind. 

Once I was done, I stepped out of my wing, and the guards bowed their heads in reverence. I ignored them and made my way towards Greer’s wing. I needed to increase the security around the castle because something told me Freya wasn’t bluffing. 

Had she wanted to marry Carden? Had it been a love match? Why did I even care? 

For all we knew, Carden could be dead. Zade’s blade went through his back cleanly. If I hadn’t been distracted with killing the council, I would have smashed his head beneath my boot. Oddly enough, a part of me wished he’d survive so I’d have the chance to put him down once and for all.

“My King!”  Atlas rushed towards me as I reached for the door handle.

“I am busy.” I glanced at him and stepped into Greer’s wing. 

The stench of sickness was thick in the air, and almost stopped me in my tracks. Electra was already there, tending to him with the healers. I gritted my jaw hard and stared at the only father figure I’d ever had. He looked smaller than the last time I’d seen him. The illness was eating him from within, and there was nothing I could do. I’d never felt so powerless. 

“We need to talk about the princess, my King,” Atlas murmured. 

I looked at him, and felt the familiar heat rumbling in me. My wolf wanted nothing more than to snap his head clean off, but I held it back. Atlas meant well, and there was nothing left for me to do here anyway. I’d hoped Greer would be awake, but he wasn’t. So, I stepped out, and Atlas followed suit. 

“I think we should kill her.” He blurted out without preamble. 

I folded my arms and raised my brow. “What?” 

“We need to kill the princess, ending the opposition once and for all. Carden’s death can be made certain, and Astria won’t be hard to kill. If the three of them are dead, then Emeris would no longer have to stay in the shadows again.” His shoulders were squared in determination as he gestured animatedly about killing Freya. 

Freya. 

Freya was mine. Mine to kill, and I wasn’t quite ready. 

“Hm,” I grunted, and shook my head. “We’re not killing her, Atlas,” I told him dismissively, as Electra walked out the door. 

The look on her face told me all I needed to know.

“The healers were talking about Freya, Vincent. According to them, she might be a healer.” She pulled me aside, and my head snapped up.

“Freya is an opinionated, spoilt, violent and sheltered princess. She is not a healer.” I scoffed, irritation burning hotly in my chest. 

“I know it is a long shot, but think about it.” She argued. “Her parents locked her away in the castle all those years. What did you think she was doing? Her wolf never came. She found other ways to be busy. Apparently, all the maids knew of her rendezvous, the times she would sneak out to the garden and market with her bodyguard. Some swear they’ve seen her heal broken bones and animals. What if all we need is a different perspective? What if this isn’t magic, but something else entirely?” Her voice trembled at the edges, and her nails dug into my arm. 

Electra was the most powerful witch I knew. She was Regent of Emeris, of all the witches on the continent, and she believed Freya was the cure?

The world must have gone mad. 

“You’re wrong. I will not put my Kingdom’s fate in the hands of the enemy.” Heat spread through my body, and I clenched my fist tight. 

“Greer doesn’t have long. You might not have a choice.” She told me bluntly.