Chapter 123: Stay Still
Queen Cassia;
"It’s my fault. How could I be so irresponsible?! Rhydian told me, and I absolutely forgot. How could I forget??" Koda mumbles in panic as he paces back and forth, and I let out a sigh as I examine Elián.
"He has an internal injury, and I went and let him ingest so much alcohol. I’m hoping to build a family with him someday, and yet, I can’t even take good care of him." He adds, and I take my hands away from Elian as I look up at my son, whose pacing is starting to make me dizzy.
"Koda, calm down, will you?! I told you he’ll be fine!" I scold, and he turns to me with worry in his eyes.
"How do you know? You found him unconscious so far from our hut. Who knows how long he’d been there? And he’s been knocked out since last night. I’m worried. This is my fault. If I... If only I had stayed with him last night instead of joining the interrogation, all of this wouldn’t have happened." He replies with tears in his eyes, and my heart breaks at how worried and scared he is.
I had to lie to him that I found Elian unconscious last night. I couldn’t tell him what I saw. I couldn’t tell him in what state I truly found Elian.
He’s not ready for that truth yet...
However, I can’t stand his heart breaking like this. I need to protect him, but I also have to protect Elian by keeping his secret for now.
Both my sons need different things from me, and somehow I have to be there for both of them.
It’s too early for anyone else to know that Elián is a primordial. Not even Koda, or any of his brothers, can know. Not yet.
"Mom... Please help him... Wake him up." Koda begs, and I smile softly at my little boy.
"Come here," I order as I hold out a hand to him.
He clings to me like a lifeline, and as he sits beside me, I gently stroke his cheek, while his tears coat my fingers.
He’s trembling, and his grip on my arm is desperately tight. My poor boy... He’s so scared.
"Do you love him?" I question, and he nods with his eyes begging me to save Elian.
This is the first time I’m seeing Koda cry about something since he was a little boy.
He’s grown so used to hiding his pain and fears. But now... faced with the fear of losing Elian, he’s crumbling.
I think the problem is that he doesn’t know what is wrong with Elian, and he feels guilty about letting him drink. If only he knew that alcohol and the injury are very far from what has happened to Elian.
"Ma’, will you help him? You can help him, right? He’ll be alright... right?" Koda questions, and I gently punch his cheek.
"You underestimate me, honeycomb. Of course, I can help him. I’ve been studying medicine since I was eight, and just yesterday, I delivered a baby. Do you really think I’m incapable of saving my child?" I question, and he sniffles.
He looks back at Elián, and my smile grows when I see the longing in his eyes. He may not know it yet... but he can do anything to keep Elián safe.
And Elián, on the other hand... he had the power to protect Koda and all his other Alphas. I wonder how he intends to use his powers.
I take a deep breath and look back at Koda.
"Now, dear. If you trust me... You’ll give me some privacy with Elián so I can fix him up. You can come back after the surgery." I reply, and his eyes widen.
"What? No. Why can’t I stay?" He questions defiantly, and I let out a breath.
He can not stay.
Especially not after Elián’s injury seems to have healed up.
I’m suspecting that his encounter with the goddess must have healed his injuries. I can’t find anything wrong, yet, I can not say that because it will arouse suspicion and increase Koda’s worry.
My plan is simple. To make this believable, I’m going to have to make a small Incision at Elian’s side and patch it back up.
That way, I can give the illusion that I did something.
But this act won’t fly with Koda here.
"Mom, let me stay with him. Please." Koda begs, and I shake my head in disagreement.
"Koda, I need to focus. I need maximum attention to do this, and I will not be able to focus with you forgetting and watching me like a hawk." I note, and his lips part.
"But, Ma’ I..." He begins, and I cut him off.
"That’s enough, young man. Your omega needs help. Will you let me do my job, or will you stand in my way? Only one of us can be in here, so you decide." I scold, and he falls silent.
"Would it be me, fixing him up, or you, holding onto his hand and sulking while his condition worsens?" I add, and he swallows.
He stares between Elián and me for a while before getting off the bed.
"I’ll be right outside if you need anything." He says, and I nod stiffly.
I watch him walk over to the door, and when he’s there, he turns around.
"Mom?"
"Yes, dear?"
"Don’t make him hurt much... okay?" He pleads, and I scoff softly.
"I won’t harm your baby," I reply with a smile, and he smiles back faintly before pulling the curtain aside and walking out of the hut, leaving me alone with Elián.
I stare at the young boy in silence, and goosebumps rise along my skin as I remember what I saw last night.
There, under the moonlight. He was beside Goddess Thalyra’s statue, on his knees. Eyes pure white and glowing... white tiger-like patterns glowing brightly under his skin.
His hair was longer, had claw extended and canines protruding.
Just like I Wilhelm on the night I found out why he was so different from the others.
He was right all along.
The reason he let the boys buy Elián. The reason He’s tolerated him, been patient with him, asked me to protect him at all costs...
Elián is a Premodial... just like him...
Now, our real duty begins.
Shielding this young man from the dark forces that are going to start hunting him down.
If he fails... we fail as well...
***************
Alpha Liandria;
I stare at my bare feet as I hug my knees to my chest.
I listen to the silence of the cell and the winds that blow through the hollow, cold walls of this place. While the damp, musky scent of the place fills my lungs.
My feet dig into the hay beneath me as my mind wanders.
How long is Wilhelm going to leave me here? It’s been days now... Does he plan to leave me here permanently?!
He wouldn’t dare!
...Would he?
"You look graceful when your guards are down." His voice suddenly floods my cell, and my head snaps up.
I turn toward the bars holding me captive, and there on the other side is Wilhelm. Watching me with that familiar unreadable glint in his blue eyes.
"A lovely weather today, don’t you think?" He questions as he turns his back on me and walks over to the table and chair that have been reserved in front of my cell just for him.
My fingers curl into a tight fist as I stare at him, while he smiles at me as he sits.
I push myself off the floor and walk over to the bars.
"How much longer are you going to keep me here?!" I demand as I grab the cold bars separating me from the rest of the world, and he shrugs as he picks up a sketch book and a piece of charcoal.
"I don’t know. To be honest, you’re still alive and breathing because I’m deciding to break the rules for you. If I were to follow the rules, we both know you wouldn’t have the opportunity to ask such a question." He says as he looks up at me from the book in his hands.
"Now, stay still. I’m not done with my sketch." He adds as he casually licks his thumb and starts rubbing it against some spots on the paper.
I watch in silent awe as he starts drawing strokes against the paper with the charcoal, and my grip on the bars tightens.
"So you’re just going to keep me here?!" I demand, and he hums.
"For the time being, yes." He replies, and my jaw drops.
"You can’t... Do you enjoy seeing me like this?! I’m your wife! You can leave me in this cold, filthy cell! I’m your queen, and I’m wearing rags and sleeping in hay! Isn’t that a stain on you!?" I growl, and he doesn’t even bother to look up from the book in his hands.
"This is the most beautiful I’ve ever seen you." He says, and my heart skips a beat.
"Stripped of all that distracting paint you usually colour your face with and those obnoxiously loud outfits. Outside this cell, you usually try so hard to hide your true self. You always try your best to hide the raw beauty I was first attracted to." He says, and he looks up at me with the last words.
"Now, I get to see a glimpse of the girl I married. What makes you think I’m in a rush to give her up? You’ve hidden her from me long enough, Liandria. Now that I get to see her again... I’m not letting you put her back in a cage. Not yet." He adds, and my heart starts pounding in my chest as his gaze holds mine.
I throw my face away from him in anger, and silence falls upon us.
"Now, stay still. Your constant moving is ruining the sketch." He orders, and I shut my eyes, unable to look back up at him.