ANNA'S POVWe stopped in our tracks, Alpha Lartes' voice the catalyst to our stopping.I gave Xavier a sideways glance as I sought insight from him on what to do.I had no clue what to do. My heart raced wildly and it was so loud that it was impossible for me to hear myself think or figure out what I had to do. Even though I knew I was supposed to act calm, I could not.I believed so much in coincidences. Especially the ones that carried a bad omen with them. This had become part of me when I had seen a vulture hovering in the sky when I was a little girl. The large bird had caught my attention for reasons I did not understand and I had not stopped looking at it, totally ignoring my friends whom I was playing with. The next day, my mum died. And when I had found her cold, greying still body, I remembered instantly the vulture I had seen the day before.Meeting Alpha Lartes on the same day I was to meet with my new comrades for the first time was a bad omen preparing me for the sorrow
XAVIER'S POVThe end had come. I could feel it.I was not sure if I was ready for the battle that was about to ensue but I knew that I had to do it.Blood was going to flow, I knew it. I just did not know if mine was going to flow. And if mine flowed, then I would be happy that at least I had died trying to get what was mine.My uncle looked at me with eyes that could kill me.I could see the realisation of everything coming to his mind. His eyes looked heavy with all the emotions that ran through them making his eyes which were an identical shade as mine–a family gene, look navy blue.I knew he hated himself for being so blind and gullible not to believe his little nephew's lies. I could see the disdain he had for the man standing before me.There was also regret. Regret for not doing away with the little boy when he had killed his parents. He would have had a total claim to the throne with no stress. He longed to go back to that night and kill the young boy. Although I had no eviden
ANNA'S POVI understood what Xavier was doing and I needed no prodding from him to join him.And so I forced myself to start laughing with him too."I knew it! You just wanted to prank your uncle," I said so as not to let him be the only one to be laughing even though he deserved it. After all, he single-handedly landed us in this mess.Alpha Lartes was watching us as if we had lost our minds. He looked from one of us to the other.He was an intelligent man and he could smell suspicion from afar. And everything that was happening smelled so suspicious."Sorry Your Highness, it had only been a prank. Sorry if you felt offended by any of it," I said to the Alpha as I tried to make sure I remained in his good graces.But it seems there was nothing we would say that would make the Aloha feel any better and I wondered if the damage Xavier had done with his words would affect him.I looked at Xavier and I sent him a silent threat with my eyes.If the Alpha did not forgive us, Xavier had him
XAVIER'S POV"Never in your flipping life, you pull a stunt like that ever again!" She screamed at me when we had pulled out of the palace and on our way."You would have gotten us killed! What was wrong with you?! " She yelled. The colour on her face had returned but now she was red with anger.I did not say anything to her. I just kept on checking for the spies that were definitely going to trail us.There was no way that my uncle was going to believe that excuse I had given him. I knew he was going to send a spy to follow us and ascertain where we were."Xavier?! Xavier?! Are you listening to me?!" She called out angrily.She had indeed been shook by what had happened as I could feel her body vibrating next to me.I felt the strong urge to pull her closer and hold her in my arms and assure her that she was okay. I was sorry for causing her to feel the way she was feeling but I did the exact opposite and kept to my space."Ouch!" I shouted as I felt a huge bout of pain as her small
XAVIER'S POVShe looked tired and I wondered whether her brothers were causing her trouble again. Those two boys were quite a handful for her.I watched as she came out to sell to a customer. I could not hear what they were saying as my head and ears were filled with the many sounds of the marketplace but I could guess they were bargaining.They took a while going back and forth and I watched as she journeyed from calmness to craziness.I had guessed she was going to go crazy on the man when I saw her start to tap her hand against the table. That had always been my cue to know that her temper was going to flare very soon."Fuck off!" I read her lips when she had sent the man away. He probably must have bargained way below the cost price and had ticked off her fragile temper.Today was the first time I had set my eyes on Abigail ever since she had come to the palace and tried to rat me out to my uncle. I had still not gotten over that incident."Are we moving along or is there somethin
ANNA'S POVI stood waiting for Xavier just where he had instructed me to wait for him. I felt so minuscule under the towering building and the massive clock that hung on it.There was a time when I would not have agreed to be left alone by him, especially at a place I knew nothing about because I would have suspected that he would leave me and go away but there was this amount of trust I had grown towards Xavier.I did not know when it had started growing but I knew it was there.And so I waited for him with the hopes that he would come for me.My mind kept on wandering back to Abigail. I had suspected that there was something between the both of them the time I had first seen her in Alpha Lartes' throne room. but I could not place my finger on what it was. Today, however, my questions as to who she was to Xavier were answered.I had seen the way he looked at her. She had been more than just a friend to Xavier. There had been something between them.I did not want to admit it to mysel
XAVIER'S POVMy heart dropped when I could not see her where I had asked her to stay. It had taken a while for me to make sure that our followers had given up their chase. Even after they left, I walked in circles as I kept my eyes on them to make sure they were not coming back. And when I came back, she was nowhere to be found."Anna?" I called out hoping to hear her annoying voice answer but all I got was silence. I looked around me, maybe she was planning a jump scare because she was full of surprises.I searched every corner of the building where I felt like someone could hide but everywhere was very empty.I was lost for words.I wondered what could have possibly happened. She wouldn't run off because she was excited to come. Or was this just part of her plan?No, I had to push away all my thoughts, maybe something happened. Maybe the goons had taken her away.I was tempted to scream her name but I did not want to draw any attention to myself that would end up reaching my uncle's
ANNA'S POVWe rode in silence till we got to a stop."Come down," Xavier said to me as he alighted from the carriage.We were in front of an inn and I thought of how they had their hideouts in the most weird places like the palace."Try to keep up, we are already late," Xavier said to me as he started to walk away from the inn and onto an isolated path.I followed him without saying anything even when we were going far away from civilization and from any help in case I had to call out for help. But I followed him still. The trust I had in him kept me safe.Some moments later, we came upon a dilapidated building and I watched as Xavier knocked on the door.He knocked in a particular pattern, three consecutive knocks, then silence, then two consecutive knocks then silence, then another three consecutive knocks."Are you a friend or a foe?" A voice called out from within."A foe," Xavier replied, and then the door creaked open. The feeling I had when I was coming and found its way back.