Chapter Thirty-Six
Asher
B ellamy slowly brushed his fingers through my hair, placing gentle kisses to my head randomly. We laid there, memorizing one another, for longer than I cared to admit. But it was such a beautiful experience, having him there in the flesh. Knowing just how real he truly was.
War loomed, but I deserved this peace. I had earned this joy.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Bellamy asked. It reminded me of when he had asked the same thing in Behman—when I had refused to talk to him and started a fight.
“Yes, I do,” I answered, looking up at him from where I laid on his chest. His smile was dazzling, framed by his full lips and deep dimples. Happiness seemed to bleed from his heart and out into the air, all because I was willing to talk to him. It felt too good to be true, yet there he was.
Real.
Cuddling further into him, I prepared myself for the pain I was going to dig up. I reminded myself that the hurt was worth Bellamy’s love, and that nothing could harm me for long when he was there to hold me.
“They tortured me at first. Burned, shattered, and sliced me until they realized I was not going to give them information or submission.” Bellamy’s grip on me tightened, a low and husky growl rumbling within his chest. “Then, Mia let a Shifter take a turn. I learned he had been impersonating Sterling the entire time. That was…well, that was bad. I had known him since Academy, and it turns out he had been plotting since I rejected him when we were young.”
Bellamy did not speak, did not so much as breathe too loudly after that. Something intrinsic within him must have known this would take a terrible turn—that it would involve the crushing of my heart. I tugged up one of his hands, placing a kiss on his knuckles before continuing.
“He was the one who caught Sipho and me. It was him—Theon was his name—that told the royals about my relationship. To prove it, he had taken on Sipho’s form and tricked me into kissing him. And then he waited until the chance came for me to marry. When we needed mortal alliances, there was likely no question who would take on the mortal prince’s form. Everything after that—the assault, the touches, the hateful things he would say—stemmed from his hatred of my dismissal of him in Academy.” Each word was raspier than the last, my voice becoming sore with the emotions that overtook it.
“Please tell me you killed him,” was all he said. I laughed, nodding. “Good, or else I would have had to take you to that foul place and make sure you had the chance to do it.”
Of course he would not offer to kill Theon. He knew I could do it, that I would want that revenge for myself. It was glorious, having someone believe in me so fully.
“I tore out his jugular with my teeth.” Bellamy’s arms tightened around me, his mouth moving to my ear.
“Gods, that is so unbelievably sexy,” he murmured.
“Well, I paid for it. After that, they took a different approach with me. I was doing too well in the dungeons, I think. Sterling and I were keeping one another company, even laughing and joking. He—wait, Sterling! Did you find him?”
“Yes, Princess. We can go see him later. Just focus on your story. If you want to tell the rest, that is,” he added, his voice soft.
“I do,” I hastily said. “Let me think, where was I? Oh yes, a new approach. One morning I awoke not on the damp and dark floor of my cell, but instead in my golden bed. It was startling, but Mia coming into the room and claiming I had been asleep for a year had completely overwhelmed me. I knew it was not true, but every day I lost a little faith in our love story. I started to believe that maybe I had made it all up in my head. It did not help that I was seeing Wrath. I do not know why or how, but he would just appear. He was so real, so lifelike. I could pet him and hold him. He would whisper doubts in my mind, telling me that none of it was real. Soon I began to believe him.”
“That was why you panicked earlier.” It was a resigned sort of statement, as if he was preparing to accept guilt or blame. “Was the sex too much? Are you hurt? Do you feel taken advantage of?”
“No, most definitely not. I feel happy. Thankful.” I paused, smirking at him. “Aroused.”
He chuckled, the sound short and broken despite the humor that inspired it.
“On the bright side, it turns out the fae are far from content. When the time comes, I think I can enact genuine change and they will be more than eager for it.” Bellamy cleared his throat, adjusting beneath me and squinting his gaze. “Before I find someone else to rule Betovere, that is.”
Snorting, he rolled his eyes and leaned down to kiss my forehead. All I could do was smile back. How beautiful was it, to just sit there and delight in him?
“How were things here? Tell me you did not murder too many beings while I was gone,” I taunted. Bellamy mock gasped, rearing his head back towards the headboard and flicking me in the nose.
“How dare you insinuate such a thing!”
We laughed together, and for a moment everything was perfect. Of course, nothing stayed perfect.
“There is something I need to tell you,” Bellamy said. There was suddenly a firmness to his voice that put me on edge, as if he were trying to force himself to say whatever it was.
“Okay, tell me.”
“I need you to get dressed first.”
“Well that sounds foreboding,” I joked, trying to relieve the air of the tension that was flooding it.
“I wish it were not, but you should probably be prepared for something not so great.” So much for easing the tension.
“Ew,” was all I could say.
We got dressed in silence, Bellamy pulling my old training leathers over my head with a look of fondness on his face that made my heart clench. And my thighs, admittedly.
When we were both clothed and Bellamy had braided my hair back, he pulled out something I never thought I would see again. Sipho’s necklace—my necklace—dangled from Bellamy’s pale finger. With a dashing smile, he walked behind me and secured the silver chain around my neck. Lifting my fingers to graze the small amethyst, I sighed in contentment. Now fully dressed and ready, we left our room hand-in-hand and walked down the hall.
Though my mind had been cycling through the potential things Bellamy could say, I had not guessed we would stop before a door at the end of the hall that I knew to be vacant.
“Bellamy, what is happening? No one lives in the room next to Damon’s,” I said, pointing at the door before us. Bellamy cringed, his face pinching together. Instead of responding, he knocked on the door three times.
“Come in,” a deep voice responded, the accent the same drawling and slow rasp as Bell’s. Pursing his lips, Bellamy stared at me one last time before nodding and opening the door. His strong arm wrapped around me, tucking me behind him as we stepped through the door. I managed to peek around him, endlessly curious about what we were doing there.
The room was rather plain, almost entirely empty save for the enormous bed against the far wall and a chair nearby. A male laid there beneath bright blue blankets, smiling warmly at Bellamy. I recognized him from the battle in the Fire Lands. It was King Adbeel Ayad.
“Hey, Adbeel, how are you feeling?” Bellamy asked, nerves cracking his voice.
“I am fine, but where is she? Safe? I made sure Ranbir only healed me minimally so he would be strong for her,” King Adbeel rambled.
Her? Who was he talking about?
“Actually,” Bellamy said just before sighing heavily. Squinting, I did my best to understand, going so far as to let my mental gates open.
Bellamy stepped to the side, revealing me to the king. I was engulfed by emotions. First, the fear and nerves from the male to my right. He thought of our love—of our demise. They tasted bitter at the back of my tongue.
But then came the king’s feelings. They were the opposite. He thought of his family, of his wife. His daughter. His son. He was overwhelmed with joy and disbelief. There, in the depths of it all, was the sweetest joy.
“Um, hi, I am Asher. I have absolutely no idea what is going on, but it is very nice to meet you.” I took a step forward, waving sheepishly. Gods I probably looked like an idiot. This was my first time meeting—wait. I knew what this was about. “You are about to tell me what it is you have been hiding.”
Peering over at Bellamy, I caught sight of his visible flinch. Okay, so it was bad. I always knew it was something important, but I rather thought it would be self-serving. It was the reason I felt compelled not to meet him for so long. But just then it seemed like I had been wrong. Maybe this would hurt more than it would heal.
Neither male spoke, both of them opting to simply stare at me. Did I have something on my face? Was my skin melting off? Had I suddenly become the most wretched looking creature in existence?
“Okay, well, I will start I guess,” I muttered. “I am so sorry that I delayed this meeting. I wish I had a better way to explain why I did it. Or any way at all. Truly I feel like I should—”
“Asher—”
“—have a better excuse but I just wanted—”
“Asher!”
“What?”
“I need to explain this to you, but I want you to first remember that I am sorry. I am so fucking sorry,” Bellamy said, stepping in front of me and grabbing my shoulders.
Eternity above, this was bad. My stomach rolled, my head spun, and I was fairly certain I would have shit myself if I had eaten anything recently.
Closing his eyes, he first tilted his face up, breathing heavily. Then he let his entire head fall forward and his shoulders slump. With a nod, he turned me fully towards his king and began pushing me to the bed. Quickly, I prodded his mental shields, finding them down.
If this is some sort of family kink, I need you to know that I am not a fan and would rather not.
Bellamy snorted at my words in his head, causing King Adbeel to raise a brow. The demon ruler had sat up, his eyes tracking us as we neared. Why were they being so ominous about whatever it was? It could not have been that bad.
“Asher, this is King Adbeel Ayad. He is the ruler of Eoforhild and a descendant of the… goddess, Asta. He is also your—well, he is—I mean, you are—”
“You look so much like your mother,” Adbeel cut in. I gasped, staring at the bedridden king with wide eyes. Bellamy choked on what could have only been air, his hair grazing my arm as he bent forward. The king merely stared at me, his lips slightly parted.
“How did you know my mother?” I asked, suspicion woven into my voice like a tapestry of unease.
Adbeel smiled, the expression soft and somewhat pained. It was then, as I looked at the demon king with his unruly curls and light brown skin, that I realized exactly what I was.
“She was my daughter.”