Chapter 41 Send in the Clowns
Send in the Clowns
Sage
Cameras flashed and I winced, my eyes stinging as the lights burned my retinas.
“Will Noctis be leading the investigation?”
“We are working closely with Ignareth authorities, given the location of the Godscar Basin and their ability to search during the day, and I have authorized additional Noctian resources to aid in the search for the two missing omega students. Their safe return remains our highest priority.”
I shifted in the low heels Victor had chosen for me, my toes pinched in the stiff leather.
Being in front of so many people was making me sweat, but thankfully the forest green cashmere dress, with its high neck, long sleeves, and knee-length skirt didn’t show it.
I was worried the artfully applied makeup could begin to run, however.
As if that wasn’t enough, the large pearl earrings were heavy and uncomfortable. I fought the urge to reach up and pull on my itching lobes, while my hair, which had been straightened and pulled into a high ponytail, was giving me a headache.
“I urge the public to allow investigators the time and space to do their work, and to refrain from speculation that only deepens fear during an already painful moment. Are there any further questions?”
A reporter, half hidden in the crowd, raised her hand. “Premier Corvane, for those who may not be familiar, could you identify the woman standing beside you today?”
My heart raced, and Victor stiffened. He’d told me that he wanted to ease me into the public eye, and would only explain my presence if it came up.
“I need you for moral support,” he’d explained. “But if they ask, I will not lie. You won’t live in the shadows anymore.”
At this point, I definitely preferred the shadows.
“This is Sage Hexwood.”
He waited a beat, the room silent as a lone camera shutter clicked. Then he turned slightly towards me, and grabbed my hand.
“She’s my mate.”
The room broke out in a flurry of flashes and reporters jockeying to be called on.
“Premier!”
“Premier Corvane!”
“Premier!”
Victor pointed to one in the front, who stood, salivating at the salacious news. “Have you begun divorce proceedings with Madam Accalia Corvane, then?”
He blinked slowly, the muscle in his jaw ticking before responding. “I have no plans to divorce Accalia at this moment.”
The room got even louder, with some of the reporters now shouting at me.
“Ms. Hexwood, how do you feel about sharing your mate with his wife?”
“How did you and Premier Corvane meet?”
“What’s your relationship like with Madam Corvane?”
The questions didn’t stop, and combined with the heat from the lights, I was beginning to feel dizzy. Victor noticed me wavering and wrapped his arm around my waist, bringing me close. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. “We just need to get through this.”
Then he spoke into the microphone. “I hold the deepest respect for Accalia. She is a terrific wife and mother to our son, Alaric. But for all her wonderful qualities, she has always been my friend first and foremost. My mate bond with Sage may have changed some things, but not the foundation of my marriage.”
I really hoped Accalia wasn’t watching this. He’d pretty much admitted to all of Lundaria that he’d never loved her.
There was more shouting, more questions, but Victor ignored them as he continued.
“While this arrangement may seem unorthodox, it isn’t new by any means.
Our grandfathers and grandmothers often took consorts in addition to wives and husbands, recognizing that different partners can fulfill different needs for love and companionship.
And Accalia, being a werewolf, is well-accustomed to the idea of a ‘pack’ family, and remains my steadfast supporter. ”
It was such a load of kraken shit, and anyone with half a brain could see that Victor was just making this up as he went along.
I simply wanted this to end, to crawl back into my bed and sleep.
To spend the rest of my life in blissful unconsciousness, unaware of how the rest of Lundaria would feel about me, how people would begin to look into my background, and how shocked they’d be when they realized there was nothing to find.
And how Ronan would react when he eventually saw my face plastered on the news.
Victor finally lost his patience with the shouting. “I will not be taking any further questions on my mate bond with Sage or my marriage with Accalia at this time. Further information about the incident in the Godscar Basin will be released once it becomes available.”
He reached out to take my hand, and I hesitated, just for a moment. It was enough to earn myself a quiet growl, too quiet for the mics to pick up.
I finally took it, and he led me off the podium and back into the green room, where his Communications Director was waiting, and she didn’t waste a second.
“Premier, Ms. Hexwood, good job holding it together. Victor, you’ll need a concise statement ready for the morning feeds. Social media is already picking up threads; we’ll want to get ahead of those.”
She swept past us, checking monitors and typing notes. “Every headline is going to exaggerate, so remember, we stick to the core message: you’re mates in love. Repetition is key here, and anything else will make the narrative slip away.”
Her eyes darted between the screens, her gaze sharpening. “I know this was your first press conference, Sage, and you look, well… scared. But Victor, I think you come off as very protective. That’s good, so let’s see more of that alpha-omega dynamic. You’ll garner a lot of sympathy with that.”
I watched with a morbid curiosity, seeing us for the first time in anything other than a mirror.
We just… didn’t match. Even with the styling, I couldn’t help but feel like we were two pieces from a completely different puzzle jammed together. I unfocused my eyes and imagined Liora, at least from the pictures I’d seen of her, by his side instead.
They would have made a lovely couple.
I went back to us, then imagined Ronan taking Victor’s place, and I couldn’t hold back the tears.
They stopped talking and turned back to look at me. “Sage?”
I shook my head, opening my mouth to say I was fine, but my voice cracked, and Victor rushed to my side. “Darling, you did well. Really.”
The Communications Director took out her phone, scrolling and scanning.
“We’ve got some initial reactions on MagikGraph right now.
It’s mixed, as predicted. I imagine the greatest push back will be from werewolves as they’ll see this announcement as an insult to Accalia.
Relations with Fenmoor have been tricky for years, and they’ll use any excuse to pounce. Fucking mutts…”
I gasped when I looked up at her, her cheeks reddening slightly. “Pardon my language.”
Victor stroked my head, pulling me into a hug. “I could not care less about public opinion in that flea-infested hellhole. Noctis is where we live, and the vampires will support us. They will love you as I do, Sage.”
I snorted. An involuntary response that hadn’t been conditioned out of me yet, and Victor stilled. “Was something I said funny?”
The snort turned into a burst of uncontrollable belly laughter. Victor stepped back, and the room grew uncomfortable.
“Artemia, leave us.”
I could hardly breathe with how hard I was laughing, and just barely heard the door click close when Victor grabbed me by the shoulders, shaking me as he growled. “What is wrong with you?”
“Oh man,” I sighed, chuckling and dabbing my eyes. “What isn’t wrong with me? With us? Because this?” I pointed towards the screens with my thumb. “Is a complete shit show. A circus.”
And as much as Victor probably thought he was the one in charge, I knew who the real ringmaster was.
My back was against the wall in an instant, pinned by Victor’s much larger body.
“This is for us,” he hissed. “So you will stop fighting every fucking thing I do and finally just submit to our bond! You bitched for years about feeling like my dirty little secret, and now that I’ve claimed you before all of Lundaria, you still find something to complain about? ”
I shimmied up the wall as I raised on my tiptoes, leaning forward to whisper in his ear. “Because I don’t want to be with you.”
I closed my eyes, waiting for him to rip into my neck.
Instead, he took a deep breath and calmed down.
“Looks like it’s time to start your therapy, darling.”
I opened my eyes, the icy cold expression on his face scaring me more than the heat of his rage.
“Th-therapy?”
He grinned, his fangs impossibly long and sharp. “You’re never leaving my side again.”
* * *
The room was silent except for the faint hum of the ventilation. Victor stood near the center, hands clasped behind his back, mouth closed in a thin line, and eyes fixed on me in a way that made my skin crawl despite my resolve.
But it was Vorthain’s presence I felt even more. The dark priest’s robes seemed to absorb the light, and every word he spoke echoed in my skull before leaving his lips.
“Your instincts resist, Sage,” Vorthain said, his voice calm and deliberate. “That is expected. The bond has been disrupted and won’t be made whole until your omega nature is realigned. You’re made to submit, and Premier Corvane will guide you. But do not confuse comfort with alignment.”
Victor’s lips twitched. “You understand the exercise, darling?” he asked softly, though the affection he was trying to infuse in his tone felt more like antipathy.
But I understood perfectly, even if I hated it. I had to remind myself that I was here by choice. I had chosen this hell to protect Ronan. I would endure.
“I understand.”
“Good. Then begin with posture,” Vorthain instructed. “Eyes lowered, shoulders relaxed. The body follows the mind. Omega instincts are innate, but they must be cultivated.”