I took a step back unconsciously and glanced at the guards beside me and saw that they wore unreadable expressions on their faces making me wonder if they had heard her threatening words. But the more I stared at them, the more their expressions looked unreadable. It was like they didn't hear any of her threatening words.However, I knew deep down that they heard everything because of their heightened hearing. They weren't werewolves and the King's special force for nothing. They had undergone more vigorous training than any other guards to be able to qualify as one of the King's special forces. Hence, their hearings and any other senses were sharper than the normal guards, and because of that, I knew fully well that they heard her words clearly but rather chose to be indifferent about it.I can't blame them for their actions, though, they were justified even if I was the Prince's mate.All I could only do was try to control my shivering and hide my fear from her.However, she caught
Immediately after she left, my legs gave way immediately, and I staggered, trying to find my balance.I quickly reached out to the pillar beside me and used it for support. Sweat dripped down my body as I tried so hard not to let her words get to me.I looked at the guards standing motionlessly beside me and saw that they still wore their indifferent attitude, behaving as though they hadn't heard nor seen what had just happened. They didn't care at all about what had just occurred.Though I didn't expect much from them, but their indifference got to me. However, I could not blame them.Taking in a deep breath, I pushed away from the pillar and resumed walking toward the room, with the guards following closely behind me.We soon reached the entrance of the room, and as I was about to push it open, I heard one of them clear their throat, hence, getting my attention.I paused and slowly turned to look at them, not sure what to expect. "Um...If you don't mind me saying this, though we've
I didn't need her to show me the way because I knew where the dining hall was located in the Palace when I was walking as a maid. Though I wasn't among the maids assigned to the dining hall, I'd heard all there was to it from the other maids. In no time, we got to the door leading to the dining area and waited for the concierge who was waiting at the entrance to announce my presence. "This is Lady Divya, Concierge Matthew," the maid said, facing the pot-bellied middle-aged man standing at the dining hall entrance. He gave me a brisk look with a hint of what I caught as disgust before quickly covering it up with a strained expression and bowed slightly toward me. "Entering, Lady Divya." He simply said before indicating for the guards to open the enormous doors for me to enter. As the door opened slowly, I brushed my shaky hands against my dress to calm my trembling nerves and stepped forward slowly with my head slightly bowed. As I stepped into the opulent dining hall within
Their voices were loud enough to attract everyone's attention, and the people present got the picture of what had happened and fully realized who I was. Even those who were not present that day now know who I was. Their expressions changed gradually and settled with hatred, disgust, anger, name them. As I listened to them and felt the gazes of everyone on me, I wished so badly for the ground to open and swallow me up. I had never felt so completely scared and humiliated like this before, and I visibly trembled. Even when I was working as a maid, no one acted toward me in such a way. As I stood there at the entrance, hearing as everyone was saying hateful words, I didn't know what to do. I thought to turn and run out of the hall but, on second thought, didn't because that would be me disregarding Queen Ashley's summon, which would lead to being on bad terms with her, which was not a good thing for me. Since leaving was out of the option, I could not think of anything else. I kne
The entire hall became quiet at the sound of the booming voices. It was pin-drop silent. The only thing that could be heard was the fast intake of breath by those around. I could also not help myself by holding my breath upon hearing those voices. I would recognize those voices anywhere, anytime, and as I was sure of that, so would anyone present. Everyone quickly bowed toward the direction of the voices. "Your majesty!" "Your Royal Highness!" "Your Highness!" Everyone quickly greeted the three majestic women in their Royal garments. Their entry was so grand that it took my breath away. However, I quickly lowered my head before I attracted the eyes of any of them to me. Though their outburst just now wasn't directed toward me, I still tried to be as less visible as possible in their presence. I was not confident enough that I would not offend them as soon as they became aware of my presence. Yes, the Queen has made it known that she has no issue with me; however, I couldn'
The faces of the people around who heard her words turned sour, feeling hurt inside but couldn't show how they felt outside."Alright, that's enough, Audree. Let's join your mother at the table. Your father and brother will soon join us, and we don't want them seeing us still standing about at the hall." Princess Alexa said, cutting her off and leading the way."Yes, aunt." Princess Audree responded before following her. As soon as I heard Princess Alexa mention him, I became tensed immediately.Has he recovered?I stopped walking and looked towards the entrance of the hall, expecting his arrival.However, I was not the only one who heard Princess Alexa's words and was curious about his presence; those around us also heard her.Whispers and murmurs could be heard almost immediately. Some even went to the extent of saying that they would wait for his arrival in the hall, while some went to the entrance to gather in small groups on the claim that they wanted to be among the first to s
Still tryiing to comprehend what had just happened, I received a hard blow against my cheek making me cry out in pain from the impact. Holding my cheek, I looked up at Lady Samantha and asked, "Lady Samantha w...what was that for? How have i offended you to deserve such reaction as to you hitting me from you?" However, before i could finish my sentence, i receieved another slap from Lady Lora. "How dare you? Who do you think you are to ask us questions? You, a little nobody, just lucky enough to be the Prince's fated mate, thinks she has the right to question us?" As she said that, she raised her hand againt to land me another slap but was cut off by Lady Samantha's words. "Lora, that is enough for now." She dusted her hands and walked toward the basin, switched on the tap and rinsed her hands. Not wanting any more trouble from them, i decided not to say anything and got up from the floor, dusted my clothes and tried to leave the restroom again. Yet, as i moved toward the door
On hearing the scream, those who were standing around me rushed toward the location where the scream came from to check what had happened.My heart raced without me being aware of it as another resounding scream filled the hall.The scream was bone-chilling and terrifying upon hearing it. It was more heartwrenching than the first.The first scream sounded like a shock, while the second one was filled with pain, extreme disheartening pain.As I stood there, watching as people rushed into the dining hall and listening to whispers from there, I had a nagging feeling about what had happened and trembled on the spot.Cold sweat formed against my forehead as I imagined what was going on in the dining area. I was lost on what to do.I didn't know if I should step forward to see what was going on or to stay put and not get involved. I wasn't sure if I wanted to witness the scene.However, as I was still contemplating, I heard another scream, and a raging growl followed the scream. I knew in
"Yes, we are changelings. We can change our appearance at will, blending seamlessly into any environment or society. We are a rare breed, feared and misunderstood by many. But to those who truly know us, we are loyal and protective friends."Hmm, loyal and protective indeed.With a sly smile, he added. "For thousands of years, we have stayed hidden, isolated ourselves from the rest of the world, until recently. There are those who no longer like the way we keep to ourselves and want to let the world know of our existence. It's probably one of them that you encountered before me and that tried to harm you. The reason behind that attack is unknown to us, but rest assured, I will protect you from anyone who tries to harm you and also find out who has done such a thing and the reason behind it. I will get to the bottom of it. But for now, this is all I can tell you. I will leave the rest to your father to explain to you when he comes to see you."The whole information about their being wa
"What do you mean by that?" I was confused by his words.Why is it his duty to protect me?"Protecting you is my sole purpose," the mysterious figure replied with a calm and reassuring smile. "I was privileged to be appointed by your father to protect you at all costs."Perplexed, I repeated questioningly, "My father?" I wasn't sure if I heard him correctly.Growing up, all I heard about him was that he was a beast that had forced himself on my mother and had his way with her. I never imagined that, apart from hearing about my father in the same sentence as a monster, I would hear about him in a different sentence entirely different from the ones I had grown up with. I had no idea if he was even dead or alive, or who he was or even looked like. There was nothing to tell me anything about him. The word father to me was more like a passing word that was used to insult me when needed."Yes, your father. He is very much alive, and he sent me to look for you and protect you as soon as he go
I quickly walked toward the door and hoped it wasn't locked, but my hope was dampened when I tried the handle and found it wouldn't budge. I became more anxious as I realized that escaping was going to be much more difficult than I had anticipated.What to do?What to do?I searched around the room to see if there was another way out.The window.I quickly darted toward it and checked if it was unlocked.To my joy, it was.However, that joy was short-lived because, as soon as I pushed it open, I realized that it was way high above the ground, and attempting to climb out would be extremely dangerous.To be precise, the room I was placed in was at the top of a tall tower. I was trapped.No wonder they hadn't bothered sealing the window shut. It was impossible to escape.Feeling extreme despair, I collapsed onto the cold stone floor and held my head with both hands. A sense of hopelessness washed over me as I realized there was no way out.I stayed that way for a while, only to hear a wiz
"Hehe, I didn't think it would be this easy after everything that had happened so far," another male voice said."Of course it is. That was why I told you guys to let me do it since no one would suspect me and I have the closest access to her." I heard Agatha's voice say, surprising me. I didn't expect her to be involved in this. I never for once thought she was involved in the whole thing."Yeah, let's get out of here before they notice her absence and come searching for her," the first male said."As if they would. No one cares about her that much, especially not her so called mate." With a smirk laced to his voice, the second male replied."Let's just get out of here before they notice her absence for too long. "Before they realize she's missing and start looking for her," another voice said, and I felt my body being lifted and moved right before I completely lost consciousness.Prince Dante's POVI know I've not been the best mate to her, but I needed to keep my distance from her
By the time I finished taking my shower and came out of the bathroom, the prince had gone, with no sign of him ever being there in the first place. I couldn't help but feel a sense of disappointment and longing. I had thought that since he had taken the time to come to the room today, we would have had a chance to finally talk and get to know each other better. But now, it seemed like that opportunity had slipped away.Talk of someone who goes and comes as he wishes, it was clear that he had no intention of working on our mate bond—at least not now.It was quite disappointing, but who was I to blame if not me? I could understand his unwillingness to complete the mating bond between us.After all, I was the one who worked as a spy for the enemy and is still being suspected of working for the enemy, no matter how subtle they seem not to show their suspicions towards me.I let out a deep breath and went about doing my usual routine for the day.By evening, the dress finally came from the
On getting to the prince's private quarters, I was extremely tired and fell asleep immediately.However, I was woken up by a loud noise in the middle of the night and jolted up from the bed, frightened. Initially, I thought it was the prince who had entered the room, but to my surprise, it was a shadow hidden in the darkness of the room that sent chills down my spine."W…who is there?" I called as I quickly reached out to switch on the table lamb that was placed beside me on the bedside table. However, when the light illuminated the room, there was no one there. Instead, only a cold, empty silence filled the air.But I could not be wrong about what I had seen. I was certain that I saw a shadow in the corner of the room right before I turned on the light, and I couldn't shake off the feeling that someone or something was watching me. But since I didn't see anything, I tried to put the unease feelings aside and went back to sleep. But the lingering sense of unease stayed with me through
The days stretched into weeks, and the weeks turned into months, and during those periods, with the help of Princess Audree, I had been able to improve my skills and relationships with a small portion of the pack members, but there were still others that remained distant and untrusting. However, I decided to ignore them and keep on training so as to be able to protect myself and prove my worth as a member of the pack. Oh, and yes, as you've probably guessed, Princess Audree was the person the Prince spoke to to help me train, which so far has been great. "Nice Divya, you are doing an excellent job. If you keep up with this pace, you will in no time be able to defend yourself against my attacks when we train. And that will make you a formidable opponent," Princess Audree said to me with a proud smile on her face after one of our evening sessions. I smiled gratefully in return, feeling a renewed sense of determination to continue improving, as I knew I still had a long way to go. But
I was filled with confusion due to his response, and I wondered why he had brought me here and what his intentions were. I didn't know if I should get up and leave or wait for him to come out of the room and ask for an explanation or something. However, I was too scared to ask for fear of his reaction; hence, I decided to leave the room before he walked out of the room. However, as I stood up and started towards the door, he suddenly emerged from the room, catching me off guard. I froze in place, unsure of what to do next as he looked directly at me. "What do you think you're doing?" he demanded, his eyes gauging me. "I…I…I thought…I" I stammered, unable to find the right words to explain myself. "I thought to go to my room so as to give you some privacy," I finally managed to say, hoping he would understand. He stared at me for a while before finally breaking into a smirk and saying, "Well, aren't you the considerate one? Well, sorry, but you will be staying in my chambers from
Everyone bowed at her appearance while the questions hung in the air, demanding answers. The tension in the room grew thicker with every passing moment.Prince Dante hesitated before finally responding, "I don't know, Your Majesty. I was not there when it happened, and by the time I got there, she had already been attacked with no guards in sight." He responded through clenched teeth. He turned and glared at me as I lay on the bed, receiving treatment.The intensity of his gaze made me feel uneasy and on edge; hence, I turned my head away to ignore him. After all, it could hardly be counted as me disrespecting him at this moment.The feeling of frustration was evidenced by his countenance and my obvious dismissal of his gaze, but he could do nothing about it."I will get to the bottom of it, Mother. Don't worry," he said, determination in his voice."Better do that. It would not be good for us if your mate kept getting attacked without proper protection and support," his mother replie