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“One of the other Kings betrayed him after some girl died at Stormcloud,” I told her. I didn’t know all of the details about my father’s death. I just knew the main points, while the rest was hazy. “He was devastated by that… and it haunted him until he took his own life.”
Biba frowned as she listened to me, the tension in her body fading slightly.
“I’m sorry,” she said softly.
I lowered my eyes as I nodded. I wished that hadn’t been my father’s fate, but the life of a King or someone close to the Kings wasn’t easy. The chance of dying was high, and the possibility of the one holding the knife being someone they knew was even higher.
“The Kings have always been violent… brutal. A lot of lives end because of that, including my father’s,” I told her. I was sure that she already knew that, though. The Kings didn’t hide that they were willing to do anything to get what they wanted. “I fear that I’ll share the same fate as my father if I carry out my family’s wishes.”
Biba moved away from the table and walked toward me, stopping a foot away. She reached out to take my hand as she shook her head.
“You’re not going to end up like your father, Sol,” she assured me as her eyes softened.
All I wanted to do was sink into the comfort of her gaze. I wanted to pull her close, to taste how sweet her lips were. It had been too long since I last kissed her, and I craved her every second.
“My mother is still pushing me to kill you,” I said quietly, my voice bordering on a whisper. I couldn’t ever kill Biba. The thought of watching the light fade from her eyes made my chest tighten so much that it was hard to breathe. If her breath ceased, I feared that mine would too.
Biba swallowed hard.
“Are you going to?” she asked as she gazed up at me with her big, captivating eyes. They seemed to gleam like she was still scared I would turn on her. I wouldn’t ever do that to her.
“Never,” I promised her in a firm voice. I would never betray her or hurt her. I couldn’t.
Biba let out a slow breath through her nose, closing her eyes for a moment out of relief. She then gave me a perplexed look.
“Why does she want you to kill me so badly? Does my family name anger her so much?” Biba asked me as she frowned.
I let out a sigh, knowing that it wasn’t fair at all to her. When it came to the Kings and their families, grudges never seemed to die. Trust was hardly restored once someone had been wronged.
“My mother told me that the disloyal King had been allied with your father. She believes your family had a part to play in my father’s death,” I explained to her. Many people died by association, whether it was fair or not.
“And all of this started after a girl died? One close to the Kings?” Biba questioned me, seeming to piece some things together.
“Yes,” I replied.
Biba narrowed her eye thoughtfully.
“I think I know who the girl is. Her name is Estrella. She was one of Simone’s friends,” she told me.
I let out a slow breath as I ran my fingers through my hair. There was so much information to take in. When one question was answered, I suddenly had two more. It was an endless cycle, and it threatened to send me spiraling.
“I can’t even leave my room without worrying about getting attacked or killed,” I admitted. Being an enemy of the Kings was a terrible position to be in. I was tired of feeling so paranoid. It exhausted me to no end, and I didn’t know how much longer I could deal with this.
“I know what you mean,” Biba murmured as she gave my hand a comforting squeeze. “Things haven’t been easy… for a while.”
“Is it ever going to end?” I asked her. I doubted that she had an actual answer to give me, but I hoped that there was a light at the end that I could reach.
Biba frowned as her eyes met mine.
“I hope so,” she said.
I felt like I was running out of hope to hang onto. I didn’t want to think like that. I didn’t want to feel hopeless and lost like my father. Perhaps, I would actually end up like him in the end. Before I realized that they were even collecting in my lashes, a tear broke from each of my eyes, trailing down my face.
“Oh, Sol,” Biba sighed, giving me a sympathetic look as she cupped my face. “It’s okay.”
I shook my head, closing my eyes and wishing everything but her would melt away. Tears burned my eyes, and then I felt lips against mine. My eyes opened in surprise as Biba leaned into me, kissing me hard. The pillowy softness of her lips soon made my body relax, and my eyes slid shut.
