16|She passed away.

Davina’s POV

“Wait a damn minute! Are those… hickeys?!”

“No—” I tried to say something, but Eva gently removed my hand from my neck. I felt her shocked gaze on me, and I sucked in a breath, keeping my head down. I didn’t know why I felt as if I’d been caught doing something wrong. He… he was my mate, so it shouldn’t have been wrong, right?

But then again, I couldn’t tell anyone that the king was my mate—that was one of the rules he’d given me in the car.

She looked like she wanted to say something but decided against it. “I must have seen it wrong,” she laughed awkwardly. “Come on, let’s get you something to eat. You must be hungry.”

I relaxed slightly at her words, breathing a sigh of relief. She didn’t push further, instead pulling me along to eat.

The dining area we sat in was designated for the maids. She explained that the king didn’t use the main dining hall; instead, he preferred to eat in his study. Since I was assigned to serve him, it would be my duty to bring his meals there whenever he was hungry.

As we ate, she shared some details about how things were run in the palace. The throne room, located in the north wing, was where the king presided over issues and passed judgments alongside his ministers.

The ministers would arrive early each morning, and the morning court sessions would typically last one to two hours. She mentioned the boundary surrounding the pack, and I took the opportunity to ask if she could show me around the perimeter.

I had to find an escape route soon. 

She agreed, but mentioned that we couldn’t go too close to the boundaries, as the hunting game was approaching and the king’s guards wouldn’t allow us to roam freely.

“The hunting game?” I asked.

Eva nodded and continued. “All packs are required to attend, and two people from each pack will compete against the others. The winner will be crowned the best pack for the year—it’s tradition,” she explained, though I already knew what the game was about.

When Father was alive, he would take me along to the games. I couldn’t remember much since I was young—around ten years old—but I did remember making a friend during one visit. That day, I had gotten lost and couldn’t find anyone from my pack, but there was a boy who stayed with me the whole time.

He was about five years older than me, and although he wouldn’t tell me his name, he protected me, especially during the rogue attack. A rogue had snuck in that day and attacked us but he shielded me and took a severe blow, leaving him injured.

Before anything worse could happen, the guards rushed in to restrain the wolf and Father took me back home almost immediately. 

Father never told me more about the boy aside from the fact that he survived but I had always wanted to meet him and thank him, now hearing about the games brought back memories.

“The game is in two months' time. After the game, I can show you around,” Eva said and I nodded, muttering a thank you. I could wait and escape during the game. Since the palace would be busy that day then it would be a perfect opportunity.

I just had to wait.

“Davina?” I lifted my head at the sound of the voice. It was Draven, I could tell by his tone. Though I couldn’t see, I had learned to recognize people by their voices alone.

“Beta!” I heard the scrape of a table being pushed back, and Eva quickly stood up beside me. I stood and bowed my head in respect.

“Can I speak to Davina, if you don’t mind, Eva?” Draven’s voice was soft, and I could almost feel the smile he was wearing, calm and reassuring. Even though I had only known him for two days, there was something about him that made me feel safer than I ever did around Hades.

“You know my name… oh my goddess!” Eva squealed, before quickly collecting herself. “Ahem, yes, Beta Draven.” She gave my hand a little squeeze before walking away.

“Please, sit” He said, taking his seat across from me. “How are you doing? I wanted to talk to you and ask how you are doing. If you need anything, you can reach out to me”

“Oh– I am doing okay, thank you” I replied, keeping my head down. I didn't know what to say or do since I was a bit nervous.

He must have noticed my unease because he didn’t press any further. Instead, he stood up, waved goodbye, and reminded me once again to reach out if I needed anything.

“What did you two talk about?” Eva asked the moment Draven was out of sight. I told her he just wanted to check on me. I could hear from her voice that she felt intrigued towards him.

“I don’t think you’re an ordinary maid, Davina,” Eva said as we walked to my room. Since the King hadn’t called for me all day, I’d spent my time helping in the kitchen with whatever I could.

“Why do you say that?” I asked, my steps slow as we walked.

“Well, Beta Draven literally came up to you just to ask how you were doing. He’s every girl’s dream here, you know. So nice and friendly, unlike…” she leaned closer and whispered, “the King. But he never comes up to us maids just to see how we are!”

I didn’t respond. I didn’t really know why he’d come to me either, though I suspected it was because he knew I was the King’s mate.

Hades, a blush crept on my face as I thought about him but I took a deep breath and pushed the thoughts away.

“Does he have a mate?” I found myself asking, not sure why I felt so intrigued.

“Oh… no, she passed away.”