Page 24 of Kingdom Of Veil And Vow

“She is the king’s to deal with. Did the princess have aspirations to rule as the true heir to the throne?”

“I am the king’s to deal with too, and you still bring me food.”

“Because you must be kept alive—”

“How kind of you.”

“Don’t mistake my urgency to spare your life temporarily with me being kind,” he says, a slight snarl to the words. “You will only be left disappointed.”

“You? A disappointment? I couldn’t fathom it.” That seems to set him further on edge; though in truth, he has been walking a fine line since he showed up today. His nostrils flare, the beat of his heart quickening.

“Did Princess Rhea ever talk about being queen?”

I purse my lips, tamping down my own curiosity at his question. “It must be exhausting asking these questions while knowing you are not going to get answers.”

“Perhaps as exhausting as it must be knowing that fighting them is useless, Bella. The king will force answers from you. You’re choosing the option that will only result in more pain.”

Bella. I want to remind him again not to use that name when I pause, an idea forming. “What if I give you permission?”

“What?”

“To call me Bella.”

His gaze narrows as he shakes his head in frustration. “As I’ve already established, I can call you Bella now.”

“You can, but I’m giving you permission to call me that name without argument.” The armor at his chest rises with a deep breath. At least the irritation is mutual. “Ensure Immie is given food, and in return, you may call me Bella.”

As far as leverage goes, it isn’t great, and as he studies me, I think that he won’t agree. But then the guard shifts on his feet and raises his arms to remove his helmet. “Fine,” he says, his deep voice blanketing the dungeon with its echo. “It’s a deal.”

“Thank you.”

“I’m not doing it for you,” he grumbles, fixing me with a glare. He then takes note of the unlit torch, and works for a few minutes to bring the flame back. Finishing, he turns to face me again, firelight dancing over his armor. “Are you going to answer my questions?”

“Depends on where you want to start,” I say, backing away from the bars to take a seat on the cot. I rub gently around the healing arrow wound, the muscles there still tender. Xander’s eyes dip to the movement, his expression unreadable.

“The beginning seems like the best place, all things considered.” I nod. I can tell him about my arrival—what I remember of it anyway—and try to keep the conversation off of Rhea for as long as possible. “How did you get to the Mortal Kingdom?”

“I came on a ship and left the docks to explore.” I can still recall the salty air on my face as I walked away, told by the captain that I had a few hours before they set out to sea again.

“And why did you come here?”

My gaze drops to my lap, my fingers still working the muscle of my thigh. I move them closer to the wound, the bite of pain from the still swollen area keeping me from sinking too deeply into the memories. “It was the first ship that was leaving the island. I didn’t even know it was coming to the Mortal Kingdom until two days in. My intent was only to linger there for a few days. Find somewhere to lay low, maybe sneak onto another ship heading north.” Shrugging, I picture that version of me walking the edge of the beach, marveling at the trees that grew on the other side of the Spell. “I was looking for an escape, and I thought I had made the perfect plan. Unfortunately, some men spotted me and took an interest.”

“What do you mean?”

I chew on the inside of my cheek. “Two men approached and asked if I needed help.”

“What is a pretty little thing like you doing here all alone?” one had asked, his tongue dragging along the front of his teeth.

“I was seventeen and in a foreign place, and they knew, based on my answers to their questions, that I was… vulnerable. When it was clear they weren’t going to leave me alone, I ran. They gave chase. I didn’t know where I was going, and my animal instincts took over, forcing me to shift. Despite doing my best to lose them, I wasn’t familiar with the layout of the land and became trapped in an alleyway with them.” My hair untucks from behind my ear, and I let the strands curtain me, hiding the way my cheeks flush at the embarrassment I feel. Or maybe it is the shame. I know I can’t control the whims of men who want something that they believe they are owed, but to be viewed as an object has been a persistent theme my entire life. Kenji. Those men. The king. This guard. I am just as much female as I am animal, and yet, so often, I have been treated as nothing but the latter.

Xander waits until I look back up again before asking, “What happened?”

“They closed in, and I made the split-second decision to run through the Spell. It was… awful. The pain. The way I felt like I was being turned inside out. Every muscle burned. The magic stung like a million needles prickling at my skin.” His mouth opens like he might say something, but he doesn’t, so I keep talking, my voice dropping lower. “They continued to chase me, and I forced myself to keep running, even though I had no idea where I was going. It was utter agony,” I whisper, flexing my fingers where they now lay in my lap. “Every part of me burned, but eventually, I realized I had lost them, and when I spotted a hole in a large stone fence just big enough for me to fit, I didn’t hesitate to go through it. There was a wooden gate and then these great trees. I remember feeling grateful that they shielded me from the rain that had begun to fall.” I pull my brows together as I reach for more of the memory of that first day, but all I can vividly recall is what I felt. What I smelled and how the soft soil squished beneath my paws. “It was a garden, I think, where I eventually collapsed. At some point, I was forced awake again and found a set of eyes staring at me. I tried to hide amongst the flowers, but I was too big and had already been spotted. The next thing I knew, I was being carried. Pressed against cold metal as I was jostled up a winding set of stairs for what felt like forever.”

“You were brought to the tower,” he says, head canting. “By Alexi?”

I nod. “I can’t say why he brought me to her. Or if he knew I was dying. Perhaps, he just thought I was a cold wet thing left in the storm and wanted to give me shelter.” I lift a shoulder with forced nonchalance. “He was a good man.”