"Keith won’t be going with you," the King ordered as we made the teams to go search for my father.
“Why?” I asked confusedly. “We are talking about my dad, and I have been looking for him for months.”
“I know you feel like it’s your responsibility, but I assure you. Once my son finds Daniel Vanburen, you’ll get your wings back,” the King smiled warmly. “Plus, I can’t trust my soon to be son-in-law with two savages.”
I stared at the man in front of me in disbelief before gritting my teeth in annoyance. “Without disrespect your Highness, but my mate is Ryan, not the Prince. I refuse to be with anyone else than my true mate.”
“None taken. Once we get rid of that man, you’ll realize that mating my son is the right choice.”
“How many times?”
“Excuse me?”
“How many times does it fucking take for you to understand that I would kill myself before mating with the Prince of assholes?!” I shouted feeling my patience running thin.
"Watch your tongue!" one of the guards interrupted our conversation, but he didn’t add anything when the King lifted his hand.
“What you say now doesn’t matter. But remember, if you ever want your wings and family back you better do what I tell you,” the King threatened as his wings extended a little to make him look more imposing.
“Thank you for your advice, but let me give one to you too. You take my mate from me. I’ll make sure I’m not the only one who will go away with him,” I answered back while crossing my arms.
I could see the anger on the King’s face, but he only clenched his fists before leaving the room with his guards closely following him. I sighed in relief before leaning on the wall behind me. This was intense.
Soon, Ryan and a woman entered the room. She had no resemblances whatsoever with my mate, but her wings were similar to his. They were pitch black and the texture looked like a snake’s skin. She had raven long hair with eyes sharing the identical colour. Not only was she tall and slightly muscular for a woman, but she was also irradiating with confidence and self-esteem. It was as if every Ignis people were born to be a warrior, a knight.
“I apologize for the late introduction, but nice to meet you. I’m Keith Vanburen,” I greeted as I extended my hand for a handshake.
“Please, do not worry about it. I’m Helena Carter. I’m honoured to meet my King’s mate in person,” she greeted back with a solid handshake and a beautiful smile.
After I had explained my discussion with the King, we all left the office to go to the garden. What surprised the most was the crowd gathered in front of a similar stage where I lost my wings. With no surprise, the Prince was the only one on the stage. At first, I didn’t care what he was saying until I caught a few words that made my blood boil. He was explaining about the duel Ryan and him will have in order to “save” me from the savages coming from the Ignis Kingdom. He also added that they brainwashed me, so I would accept to mate with the Ryan, the King of those savages.
I didn’t want to listen to his speech anymore. I was about to go on the stage and go talk with the Prince since he was telling lies. Everything he was saying was lies. I couldn’t believe that everyone believed him! But before I can even take a step, I was stopped by my mate.
“Don’t,” Ryan warns before adding, “If you go up there, it’ll prove everyone that he is right.”
I was about to protest, but before I could someone got on the stage and punched the Prince on his nose. I stared at the man in surprise like everyone else. No one in his right mind would ever do that. But the young man didn’t stop at one punch. He pushed the Prince down on his back before punching him again and again.
The guards who seemed to get out of their shock rapidly gather around the two men before pulling the aggressor from the Prince. We were too far to see who it was, but when they started to yell, I immediately recognized the owner of the voice. It was Sebastian!
Without waiting one more second, I ran toward the stage while pushing people who were in my way. Once I got there, the guards were still struggling to keep Sebastian in check. As for the Prince, he was pretty beaten up. His nose was definitely broken and bleeding. Also, his left eye was already starting to bruise into a yellow hue. It took everything in me to not laugh at his face. He definitely got that coming.
“Sebastian, wait! Where are you bringing him?” I shouted as two guards blocked my way as two more were dragging my friend somewhere.
“Put him in a cell,” the King ordered as he finally got on the stage.
“What are you going to do?” I still asked trying to fight my way through to my friend until I couldn’t see him anymore.
“Sebastian did attack me. I could have died,” explained the Prince who was sitting on the ground surrounded by nurses and a doctor.
"You're not going to punish him, are you?" I asked in a panic.
“That’s negotiable.”
“How? What can I do?”
“Kiss me,” he ordered as I could hear Helena trying to stop Ryan from murdering the man in front of me.
“You want to kill the only person who can convince me otherwise to not kill you? That’s not very smart,” I threatened the Prince.
“If you’re trying to scare me, it doesn’t work. You’re so cute when mad,” the Prince smiled.
I smiled back at him before getting close. I closed my eyes and moved as if I was about to kiss him. When I got close enough, I clenched my fist and thrust it on his nose. I heard him shout in pain, but I didn’t stop there. I wrapped my hands around his neck and squeezed hard.
“Am I scary enough now? Remember this. It is not that I can’t kill you. I only don’t want to. Not yet, at least.”
I let the man’s neck go before jerking his head hard on the floor causing him to groan in pain. The guards were so confused with what was happening that they let me walk away without saying or doing anything. I don’t blame them. Apparently, I heard rumours that I was actually the Prince’s mate and Ryan stole me away. Quite convenient for me if I have to say.
I quickly walked down the stairs leading to the dungeon. I was so angry with them. I never taught the King and the Prince were so detestable. How couldn’t I see it before?
As I walked through the dark hallways, multiples guards were trying to stop me. They were all saying that I was trespassing. Thankfully, Ryan and Helena were there with me. They easily knocked out all the guards for me.
"Sebastian!" I shouted loud and clear hoping that my friend would hear my voice.
"Here! I am here!" he answered loudly with his hand out of his cell to signal his location.
With a sigh of relief, I ran toward him before kneeling down, so we were face to face.
“Thank the Gods. You’re alive, but what the hell were you thinking back there?” I scolded while holding his hands in mine.
“Come on, I bet you wanted to punch him too,” my friend smirked as I let out a chuckle.
“I did punch him after they had taken you away,” I admitted as my best friend laughed.
“I just couldn’t hear him badmouthing you without even knowing you,” Sebastian admitted while looking at my mate.
“I’m glad you guys made up. I had a feeling you didn’t like each other from the beginning,” I added with a smile.
“We learned that we could trust each other, right?” Sebastian asked my mate with a side glance.
“As long you don’t destroy my face, yes,” my mate joked while putting his hands on his hips.
“Nah, you’re safe. But it seems like I won't live long enough to enjoy our new relationship," my friend muttered as he covers his face in his hands.
“I think you’ll be okay,” I assured him.
“How do you know?”
“Let’s say that we made a deal?”
My friend squinted his eyes as if he didn't believe me. At the same time, my tone wasn’t as confident as I wanted it to be. Though, I was grateful that he did let the matter go. Instead, I filled him with the details with my conversation with the King. Hopefully, Sebastian could convince his family about the true intention of the royal family. I knew his parents since I was little, but we never talked about politics together, so I didn’t know how they would react to the news.
One thing was certain. The Ignis people weren’t like they were described in the books. They weren’t cruel and savage. There must be a reason why the King spread these false rumours. Therefore, the royal family couldn’t be trusted. Finally, we had to find my dad before the Prince. Or else, we may have a war on our hands.
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