Chapter9

Astrid

“No, please, I’m innocent!” I sobbed, the iron chains biting into my skin, shackled from neck to wrists and ankles, bolted to the walls. My body ached, my throat was raw, and my hope was slipping fast.

The biting cold had seeped into my wounds. They wouldn't heal as the little rat ran their tongue over them.

“Oh, Freya!” I exhaled.

I searched the dungeon, my eyes desperate for him. But Sebastian wasn’t here.

“Had he abandoned me?” I kept thinking, the tears broke out once again. This was more than I bargained for.

“One more word from that filthy mouth, and I’ll spill your blood all over this place,” Brandur snarled. His voice alone carried command, shutting me up instantly.

“His gaze dripped with disgust. “Can’t believe Sebastian actually wanted to f**k this thing.”

The guards laughed. My stomach twisted.

“It's because he lusts after this vermin that led to the Queen's death.”

“Iyanna left the castle that night—I never imagined it would be her death.” His tone darkened. “Seems Magnus has upgraded his methods. We need to be ready.”

“What were all these conversations about?” I kept thinking to myself. I had come to a realisation that the dead girl was Princess Iyanna of Høtenhiem—King Edward's daughter.

“Where is Sebastian?” I thought to myself. A man whose name I knew when I was brought down into the dungeon. His absence meant that he actually believed I killed the Princess.

This was truly the end for me.

The dungeon gate groaned open. A figure was dragged in. My eyes widened as tears broke through.

“Merabeth!” I yelled, tears rolling down my cheeks, as I forgot the rebuke of using our names. It had been days since I was brought in here. The only people I had seen were the King's brother, his right-hand man, the guards, and the damn rats scurrying around.

Brandur turned to her. “Is she the one who brewed the poison?”

Merabeth lifted up her head, her expression unreadable. “Yes, master,” she replied. “I had seen her several times, but she said it was for medicine so I kept quiet. I never imagined she'd do this,” she said. “Guess it's the vampire's blood in her after all.”

“She kept saying she and the King were fated mates, and that they belonged together. I didn't know she planned on killing the Queen,” Merabeth concluded.

I was speechless, life sulked out of me. Were my ears deceiving me, or was I hallucinating? I could not tell the difference. I just kept staring at her, trying to piece the puzzles together, hoping it was all a dream.

“Brew the poison?” My mind kept repeating it to me.

“ I have heard enough,” a cold voice rumbled from the shadows.

Cold. Terrifying. I could not see him, all I knew was that he had the power of an Alpha. His voice sent me shivering.

“Tell Sebastian I will have her head sent to Høtenhiem in the morning,” he said.

“Høtenhiem?” It came to a realisation that was the King of Høtenhiem, the mad King. It was over for me. I kept crying out and hoping Sebastian would come. The love he promised me had turned into a nightmare and I was about to be beheaded.

“I am very sure the Vampires had sent her,” said Brand. “This was meant to weaken us, to show us who the superior is,” he added.

I was certain war was about to break out, but it was none of my concern as I would not live to see the end of it. I had begun accepting my fate after the betrayal from one I considered a sister.

Reducing my hopes for survival had instilled a bit of peace in me; after all, I had never been accepted into this life, and I would prepare myself to leave it.

Brand ordered the guards to stay on watch as he and the Høtenhiem King left the dungeon. Merabeth was without remorse, it got me down to my knees as the tears rolled out unceasingly.

****

Wait, what? A snarl. Flesh ripping. Bones crunching.

I could not believe it. Fenrir was right before my eyes, tearing down on the guards on watch. My heart gave a wild rhythm, moving with a strong pace. He had come. Then he shifted back to his human form.

“Sebastian!” I called out to him, tears running down my cheeks. I was lost in my emotions.

“I did not do it,” I said, crying out like a newborn child. “I did not kill the Queen.”

“I know min søte,” he replied. “I know you have been framed. Something is afoot, and I will get to the root of it. But first, I have to get you out of here,” he said.

He pulled the iron bars on the dungeon gate apart, paving a way for me to pass through. I was weak and could not walk as I hadn't eaten for days. He swooped me in his arms and made for the passageway, but the gate at the end that leads out of the castle had been shut, leaving us trapped.

Sebastian tried to pull the bars apart but it would only give in a little. Just then someone appeared from the end as he held a key to the gates. He was one of Sebastian's personal warriors and a higher-ranking one, as Sebastian called him by his title.

He opened the passage gate and led us out into the misty forest. Sebastian thanked him for his help as he assured him his help would not be forgotten.

Soon howls of wolves filled the air. They had noticed my absence from the dungeon.

“Go through the valley that leads up to the plateau; you will receive help there,” said Luther, Sebastian's high-ranking warrior.

“That Valley leads to Castleburg,” Sebastian replied. “Why have you chosen that?” He questioned.

“Go, you will find out. Trust me Alpha,” he answered.

Not that we had much of a choice. The sounds of wolves were closing in on us. We needed to get as far away as possible.

In a blink, Sebastian had shifted, and Fenrir had appeared, lying down on the floor as he urged me to get on his back. I was soothed knowing that he hadn't abandoned me.

The sweet smell of his fur caressed my intestines as new hope surged within me. In a brief moment, I had forgotten all else as I dwelled in the soothing pleasures.

One more howl sound had sent Fenrir sprinting off into the night, as I turned around for the general. There he stood, watching me with an unphased gaze.