Chapter 4 #2
Setting his gaze on me, Sebastian replied much calmer than I’d expected, “Because we're talking about your life here. And we don’t know these people.” He gestured directly to Venay, Kade, and Archer.
“For all we know, they could go to Draemor and turn you in. Just because the gods put them here to protect you, doesn’t mean they will honor it now that the wards have been dropped. ”
Damn, Seb. Bold statement.
“I would never do anything to harm my daughter,” Archer snarled, sidestepping around the corner of the table and approaching Sebastian.
Sebastian stood his ground, squaring his chest and not succumbing to the intimidation tactics of my father. “Glad to hear it. Still doesn’t mean I won’t take every possible precaution when it comes to her safety.”
Delani leant into my ear, cupping a hand around her mouth. “Gods. If you don’t forgive him, then I will.”
Eyes tightly closed, Archer shook his head in dismissal and sighed. “This isn’t worth the argument. You and Kade can work together and decide who goes. Happy?”
“Very.” The possessive prince fell back into his seat with his arms folded, the flex of his biceps—
Nope.
Without hesitation, I threw my hand up like I was volunteering for a bake sale. “I’m going.”
“No, you’re not,” every single voice in the room countered.
“Do I really need to remind you all how this is entirely my fault?” I rebutted, going counter-clockwise around the table as I granted each person a brief glimpse of my death stare.
“No, it’s not—”
“Don’t give me the whole, it’s not your fault, Maeve, speech. I’ve heard it before and we all know it’s bullshit. None of this would be happening if it weren't for me. So I'm going. End of discussion,” I testified, shutting Sawyer down.
“No. You're not. End of discussion.” Sebastian did not even glance at me.
“You don’t get a say.” I shot him a longer view of my deathly glare, refusing to pull back until he met it.
“Fuck yes, I get a say,” he growled in response. “We literally just agreed that I get a say.”
“For the love of the gods, can you two knock it off?” Kohen complained from his seat, clasping his hands behind his head of curly, brown hair.
“No!” Sebastian and I barked in unison.
Archer slumped back down into his seat, pinching his forehead between two fingers. “So this is what I missed out on with raising two girls?” he muttered.
“If Beaumont is alive, but thinks you are dead, what would you do if he happened to see you roaming around his kingdom?” Kade pointed out—quite arrogantly, I should add.
“I won’t let him see me. I’ll wear a hat or something. I don’t fucking know,” I sputtered, pleading my case.
They weren't going to win this battle. I would compel every single one of them before I let them make this decision for me. I needed to see if Beaumont was alive, and if he was, I was going to be the one to kill the prick.
Delani gripped my wrist, pulling me back down into my seat. “Maeve, I love you, I really do. But I don’t think you should go. You’re barely healed, and Kade has a point. What if someone sees you?”
With a huff, I folded my arms over my chest. “None of you will understand where I’m coming from, because none of you are the reason why all of this is happening.
I am the reason Jocelyn is dead. The reason my mother is dead.
The castle fell because of a battle that started over me.
I’m the reason my father was locked away in this kingdom instead of being there to see my sister and me grow up.
” My faltering vision dropped to the tabletop.
“I need to know if he’s still out there.
I need to see it with my own eyes. Please, don’t take that from me. ”
“But, Maeve, your new power…We don't know what it entails.” Pia’s soft voice broke through the chaos in my mind, recentering me.
“I used it during the battle, and it worked out fine,” I stated, choosing to not disclose the part about how I was unsure if I actually controlled the power or just let it loose. “As Blythe said, it's the power to manipulate the stars. That's what my power entails. I’m sure I can handle it.”
“We just don’t want you to get hurt,” Pia continued, her face scrunching in remembrance. “Again.”
“I get that, I do. But please try to understand.” My eyes met my father’s with my final attempt of a plea. “I need to go.”
With a heavy chest, Archer blew out a drawn out breath. “You may go as far as the borders of Draemor’s castle. Do not enter the grounds. And should you discover that Cyprian Beaumont is alive, do not take it upon yourself to try and kill him. Return here, and we will devise a plan. Understand?”
I nodded. That was all I needed—for him to agree to let me go. What happened in Draemor, could stay in Draemor.
“Hold on a second.” Sebastian held a finger up. “Why do you get the final say?” His deep browns furrowed in Archer's direction.
“Because she is my daughter, and I am the king here,” Archer established flatly with not so much of a stutter.
“No disrespect, but I followed this woman around for almost a year, so I’m pretty sure I know her better than you.” Sebastian’s eyes skimmed over me briefly before returning to my father. “She is not a rule follower. She is not going to stay at the borders. No chance in hell.”
My eyes saw the back of my skull as I waved Sebastian’s claim off. “Ignore him.”
“Uh, no. Do not ignore me. If there is one thing I know for certain about this girl, it's that if you tell her to do something, chances are she will do the opposite,” Sebastian countered, pointing an accusatory finger at me.
My teeth gnawed at my lower lip to stop heated frustration from exploding out of me like a volcano.
“Dad,” I began sweetly—like how a little girl would speak to her father when she wanted a new doll, “I promise not to go past the borders. As I said, I just need to be there. I need to experience it for myself. I will lose my mind if I’m stuck here with the unknown while the others go.”
Archer glanced between the two of us a few times before settling his regard solely on me. “You may go.”
“Come on,” Sebastian grumbled under his breath while I fought a losing battle with my winning smirk.
“So it’s settled. Everyone takes a day or two to rest and acclimate, then we’ll go to Draemor. This meeting is adjourned.” Archer rose, thumping his fist on the table.
Chairs scraped across the floor as everyone began making their exit.
“Wait!” My sudden exclamation stopped everyone in their tracks. “During our travels, maybe we can pass through a few villages in Caelestis. See if there's any survivors?” Might as well kill two birds with one stone.
Kade shook his head. “I know you haven't seen Lumosia on a map yet, but Caelestis is way out of the way.”’
My lips curved downward.
Venay's voice was a much higher tone than I’d expected when she spoke for the first time. “I would be happy to take on that role,” she chimed with a cheerful smile.
“Really?” My eyes flared. “Thank you.”
“That’s very generous of you, but how will you know who you can trust to bring back?” Sebastian stepped forward to interrogate the woman, his tone making it clear that he was pissed I got my way.
“I am more than just a healer.” She smiled an excruciatingly, glorious smile while flaunting her bejeweled hand. “I am an enchanter.”
“And?” he added a slight scoff.
Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed—or couch, rather.
“I have ways of verifying the honesty of those I speak to,” Venay answered simply.
“Prove it.” Sebastian’s demand was so stern that you would be a fool to argue with the order.
A crooked smile parted the seam of her lips and she used a finger to gesture him forward. “Very well. Come here.”
I knew him well and could sense the reluctance in his body language as Sebastian sauntered over to her.
I doubted anyone else could tell, though.
He was able to disguise his emotions well enough for most people not to notice, but not when it was just us.
I could see right through his fake smiles and daring stares.
At least I thought I could.
The moment Sebastian approached Venay, she took his hands in hers. Her eyelids closed and she began to hum a repetitive melody. Her fingers slid up, locking around his wrists and searching for what I could only assume was his pulse.
“I will ask you a few questions to which you will respond with the truth. I will be able to tell if you are being honest by the way your blood flows through your veins,” she whispered as to not disturb her own inner peace.
Before he could counter with some cocky remark about how that sounded like bullshit, Venay asked her first question. “How many people have you killed?”
My throat bobbed as my fingertips found the pendant around my neck, using the charm to calm the sense of unease that flooded me with her question.
Starting off strong, I guess.
Sebastian shuffled in his boots. “I don’t know.”
Eyes snapping open, Venay’s mouth fell flat. “That is a lie. You do know. And by the way your pulse is racing and skipping beneath the pads of my fingers, I suspect the truth is a number you are ashamed to share.”
Sebastian paused to glare at the woman before repeating flatly, “I really don’t know. What kind of question is that, anyway?”
“If you insist on lying, we can attempt another form of the question,” Venay suggested, closing her eyes once more. “Is the number of people you have killed over ten?”
Seriously? Couldn’t she ask him for his favorite color or something?
“Pft. That's light work,” Sawyer quipped from over my shoulder. “Any soldier whose stepped foot on a battlefield has killed that many people.”
Empathy clouded over my anger with him, as I knew Sebastian had killed at least that many people before he even hit the age of ten.
“Yes,” Sebastian confirmed. His hands folded into fists, clenching so tightly his knuckles paled.
“Ah, the truth this time. Ready for another?” Venay didn’t await his response before asking anyway, her tone stringing along a hint of joy. “Have you killed over five hundred people? Have you taken over five hundred lives by your very own hand?”
“Woah. That's a little personal don’t you think?” Sawyer actually sounded shocked. At the number or the question, I was unsure. “Ask him to tell you about him and Maeve in the archives instead.”
A sharp jut of my elbow into his rib shut Sawyer right up.
Ignoring him, Venay repeated herself, tightening her grip on Sebastian’s veins. “Have you taken over five hundred lives with your own hand?”
I could hear Sebastian's jaw grind as he snapped his wrists free. He stormed from the room, his fists strained by his sides, the silence answering the question for him.