CHAPTER 141: ONE HUNDRED & FORTY ONE

Evadne

The heel of Astrea’s boots dig into the sand. "No."

Sebastian’s dark eyes light with something sinister and I feel it in my gut, even before he closes the distance.

I lurch, shoulder slamming into Astrea just as he swings the sword vehemently, with enough energy to cleave her in half. My hands rise to meet it and it snaps against the binds holding my wrist together, snapping it free and embedding itself in my chest.

Pain erupts from my chest and I grit my teeth, ignoring it as I spring for him, slamming my fist into his face. He ducks faster than I’ll ever give the fool credit for and rams the pommel of his sword into temple hard enough to crack my bone.

I snarl in pain but refuse to go down just yet. I grab his torso and tip my weight into his, taking him down so hard, his back slams into the tree.

His sword clatters to the ground somewhere beside me. Astrea is screaming in the distance for us both to stop, but I only have a few seconds before the guards pissing in the distance catch up to the sound of her shouting and hold me down once more. It’s now or never.

Claws jut from under my fingertips and I gouge them into his side, pushing in deep until I feel his blood on my fingers.

He growls, ramming his knee into my head to get me off him as I stab again and again, aiming to carve him out from inside out.

But something hard slams into the side of my head--a stone, possibly--and I lose my bearing for a few seconds, in which he flings me off him and I slam into the bark of a tree, cracking the trunk in half.

Pain splinters down my back, my limbs numb for all of five seconds. But even that is more than enough to grant him an advantage because he lifts me by my vest and punches me.

See? Chivalry is fucking dead these days.

My eyes shut and I spit my blood in his face, laughing. "Go on. Hit me harder. We both know that’s the only way you get your one-inched cock hard enough to fuck through a piece of parchment."

His expression darkens at that and he wrenches my arm forward so hard, it dislocates from the joint. I swallow a cry, biting down on my bottom lip until blood fills my mouth, as he presses my fingers against his swelling crotch. "Does that feel like one inch to you?"

I release my lip only to snarl, "Get that diseased thumb away from me."

A startled, pissed off laugh escapes him and he pushes all of his weight against me, trapping me against the tree. I wiggle, jerking back to slam my head against his jaw but I’m too short to reach and it only hits him square in the chest.

"Every time I think I shouldn’t hurt you, you give me a thousand reasons to," he murmurs ferally against my ear, trapping my hands above my head with surprising strength. His groin digs into my ass swelling even harder. "I despise your foul tongue. I despise your disgusting scent. I despise the very blood in your veins that makes you haughty and think yourself better than me--"

"I *am* better than you," I breathe, inching towards the tree as my limbs begin to lock down on me, images of the last man who had me in this same position flashing through my mind. Panic begins to set in as I wriggle and thrash and find myself in an absolute shit position where I cannot move.

"Get off me," I demand.

"Say my name first," he murmurs, voice husky. "Sebastian. Seb. Bas. Bastian. Anything. Just acknowledge me."

"Pig."

"Bitch."

"Retard," I grit out, but my voice trembles on the word. And something about it must have gotten to him because Sebastian stills in his movements and sniffs me.

I know it when he sniffs the panic rolling off me. Amongst the fear and the way my body trembles and inches out of the way. He grunts, lips parting against the shell of my ear and his hands soften by a fraction before begining to pull away. But before he can say anything, a wet, dull crack echoes in the night.

His weight comes off me and I whirl to see him drop to the ground in a silent thud. Astrea’s brown eyes are wide and she is clutch is a large stone wet with his blood in her hands, panting and looking utterly sick.

"Oh gods." She begins hyperventilating. The stone falls from her grasp. "Oh gods. Is he dead? Oh gods. I’ve killed him."

I crouch over him, pressing my fingers to his pulse. "Bad news. He’s completely fine."

She deflates, but I’m already moving, stripping him of his coat and draping it over her shoulders. I reach into his pockets and grab his coins and everything of value. And when I’m done, I grab his great sword and heave it over his head.

Only to be stopped by a hand on my wrist and Astrea’s too pretty face looking shell shocked. "What on earth are you doing?!"

I frown. "I’m going to cut off his head and then, his dick and put them in a sack."

"What?! No!" she yells.

I shrug her off. "He’ll only follow if we leave him alive. And I quite prefer to take care of my loose ends before they return to bite me back in the ass--"

She shoves me away from him. "You’re not killing him."

I raise the sword to her chin. "You’re seriously beginning to annoy the shit out of me. Whose side are you on? His or mine? Because I don’t fucking understand you."

She casts him a downward glance and chews on her bottom lip, worry bringing her brows closer. "Yours. I’m on your side. But..." Her hands shake at her sides. "He’s my brother."

My brow arches. "You don’t say."

"Not by blood. We’re foster siblings. Not that any part of my life concerns you, but that’s why I won’t have his blood spilled in the middle of nowhere." Her jaw clenches. "I’ll come with you, but leave him be. Please."

I take one look at the fucker’s face and know that I’ll regret this shitty, stupid decision. But something about tonight’s exchange was so damned weird, it disturbed me. So, I turn on my heel and begin walking for the horses.

"Wait!" Astrea calls. "You can’t just leave him lying in the snow. He’ll freeze to death!"

"Even better," I murmur, climbing atop the horse holding most of the supplies. "Are you coming or would you like to freeze to death, too? I can make that happen."

Astrea actually looks torn between coming with me and leaving her shit-eating prick of a brother or whatever they are to each other behind and I hiss in irritation, kicking the horse’s arse into a gallop.

"Fine!" she yells, running towards me and I catch her with a hand around her wrist and tug her up. She cries out in surprise and fear as I toss her behind me and at the vicious jump, she wraps her arms around my waist and mutters against my neck, "Has anyone ever told you that you’re insane?"

A smile kicks up my lips. "All the time."

****

Valka

The wind whips back against my hair and I squint against the sun’s glare.

If I was told months ago while I’d been dragged forward in chains by Lucien’s horse through these very gates that I would once more have to go through this same spectacle, but his time with the very same brooding male behind me with his arms wrapped around me tightly, I would probably have bashed in someone’s nose.

My limbs tremble with nerves and a soft breath touches the shell of my ear. "Relax, sweetheart."

I lick my lips and try to keep my hands away from my neck and the itching markings on my skin. It is hidden underneath the high-necked tunic but I’ve been naked for so long, I don’t know how to feel... not naked. "Can’t we... go through a different entrance?"

Lucien’s fingers curl on my waist protectively. "We cut off other entrances during the siege." His chin tucks in the centre of my head gently. "We must walk this path, Valka. Not for them, but for you. You deserve every bit as much recognition as I do, because if it hadn’t been for your ploy that had Voss pull out of this war, there wouldn’t have been a Kingdom left for me to save."

The gates begin to part and he adds with a smile, "Remember what I told you that day underneath the kitchen table?"

I think for a moment. "That I smell delicious?"

He laughs and the rich sound carries on the wind. "Yes, you do. But I was referring to the other part."

"There were several parts of that conversation," I grumble, even if I know precisely what he’s speaking about.

You’ve never tried to hide or conform to expectations. Don’t start now. ...the moment you start folding yourself up to make other people feel uncomfortable, you hand them control over you.

I suck in a deep breath and relax, leaning back into him and his thighs press flush against mine. Almost immediately something hard pokes against my ass. "You can’t be serious."

"Your ass is on my cock, Valka. It is merely reacting to ownership." He nips the tip of my ear. "Chin up."

From this vantage point, riding along the path as the people toss petals against the cobbled path and cheer, Lucien’s and my name on their lips, my worries are instantly forgotten and I understand why he wanted me to have this. For a moment, I marvel at the thrill that rushes through me at it.

At the signs they make in my name. At the people who fight to take my hand and press it to their forehead like I am some deity. Someone places a garland on my hair, another on my wrist and I laugh at the explosion of fireworks in the skies, painting the blue in streaks of orange.

"There’ll be more tonight," Lucien promises. "To welcome you home."

Tears sting my eyes and I choke it down. "Since when are you this nice?"

"When have I never not been nice?"

But the ride to the castle is over quicker than I’d have liked and I find myself stiffening, my smile draining as I see the royal families up front, waiting.