Lycan what?
Lycan king, my inner voice clarifies. She said Lycan king.
My lips part and a shaky breath escapes my lips. Adrinaelle points her chin towards the left and someone comes to cut the rope binding my hands.
They fall helplessly beside me, I cannot feel them. There's a numbing tingle, spreading to my forearms. Adrinaelle hoists me up, making me stand. My knees wobble, shaking like twigs underneath jars of ale.
Adrina tilts her head at me, pouting, "Whatever is wrong…." she stalls, needing me to say something. But all I'm hearing amidst the cackling laughter of the barbarians like bones that are breaking and the distant chatter, is the beating of my heart in my ear.
Her fingers touch my chin, pulling my face up to meet my eyes. Onyx, like her brother's. Like that devil.
"I'd like to know your name," she smiles with teeth. They're curved on the sides, I notice.
She'll probably pick out your bones with it when she's done with you.
My eyelids flutter, my breath hangs in my throat. "Dina."
"Come," her hands find my shoulders, rubbing, soothing, as she steps forward, urging me to walk with her. "Let's get you properly dressed."
My left foot drags involuntarily.
Don't trust her.
What am I supposed to do? I don't even know where I am.
And your best bet is to go with her? She wants to get you properly dressed to eat you. This is punishment! You deserve this. You left Anna and you're the reason why Eldarda hates you. I'm sure Dylan hates you too.
My eyes sting with tears and I blink rapidly. A foolish attempt to dry out the tears.
My feet drags through the mud, averting my attention to the ground. It's dark but I can make out the rough-hewn stone grounds. It probably rained here not too long ago, I can smell the earth and the faint wet dog stench. The mud tells me I'm still grounded.
This isn't the second floor of any barbaric housing, this is plain ground. If I make a run for it, I'll probably make it to the forest and find my way home.
I lift my face and sniff. The air is crisp, too clean for barbarians. It smells like fresh butter. Absurd, and so out of place.
I've always had a better sense of smell. That's why I was always sent on field missions even though I'm not qualified. The Grand Keeper Pael Juine made it clear most of my life that I wasn't hunter material, but my keen sense of smell begged to differ.
Dylan said it was amazing, but I always argued that it had its downs. Like having to smell a dead wolf or a nasty fart.
With that, the corner of my lips turned upwards.
You don't deserve to smile. Iclose my eyes, groaning underneath my breath. I can feel the numbness starting to fade.
You left Dylan, you'll never get your happy ending.
"Stop," it's a whisper, a plea to my inner voice.
Your parents left you, you never got the hunter's badge, Dylan doesn't even think you're worth anything.
That's not true. Just because some things happened and –
You're dumb. Thinking everything would go well for you. It never did and it never will. Everyone else will have a better life. You won't. You never will, Dina.
I come to a halt and I'm unable to stop the tears this time. My palms reach up to dry my tears but they keep falling down my face.
Adrinaelle rushes forward to meet someone. I think she's talking to the person, they look upset, like they're arguing. I don't know, I can't make it out. I'm going to die anyway.
In my peripheral vision, Adrinaelle shoves a figure away mercilessly and suddenly, there's a sharp ache in my chest. I look forward, Adrinaelle is in a heated argument with her devil brother.
My hands claw at my chest, hoping to rip the pain away if I can get a hold of it. I look left, right, there's no other person in sight.
That's right. If Dylan cared about you, don't you think he'd send forces immediately to get you?
"Dina!" It's a cry from Adrinaelle. She sounds sincere, almost like she doesn't want to pick my bones with her teeth. For a moment, I let myself believe such absurdity.
She runs towards me as I reach out to her. My body lowers, the pain brings me down to my knees but Adrinaelle catches me before I lie on the floor.
"It's the mark, Lysander!" She says between haggard breaths, "You need to come here, now!"
"What mark?" My throat gives way, drying up immediately. I'm parched unlike never before. Is this poison? Was I poisoned before I got here? I feel beads of sweat roll down my face.
My eyelids flutter shut, needing every strength in me to keep them open. "What mark?" I ask again.
Lysander turns away and he keeps walking towards the drawbridge. What did I expect from him?
"Lysander!" The ground rumbles beneath me under Adrinaelle's voice. "She's your mate," she says, her voice turns hoarse and there's a glint of amber in her eyes. "You have a duty."
What sort of powers are these? That the earth rumbles under the sound of her voice.
Weakly, I turn my head. Lysander throws his head back, his shoulders dance like he's laughing. How did I get to this? From Dylan who'd do anything for me, to someone who finds my death amusing?
"Brother," Lysander stops in his tracks, turning to face his sister. Just what sort of being is she? To have that much control over her brother, the Lycan King.
"She bears your mark," she says, holding onto me. "She's one of us now and you will perform your duty to your mate."
Lysander walks towards us, a bit of amber in his eyes. My chest rises and falls heavily and I'm gasping for air.
"I hate when you get emotional, sister." Lysander says with a smug smirk before staring at me. He takes out his hand and holds my wrist and I swear I can breathe well again.
The air returns to my lungs and as I look down at your contact, a form like black sand leaves my wrist and moves into his forearms until I can no longer see it.
As soon as there wasn't anything from my arm, Lysander shoves my arm away like I'm a plague.
"It will keep happening," he says plainly. "You will need me and I will not help you. Regardless of what…" he turns to his sister, "anyone says."
Lysander walks away from the both of us and Adrinaelle squats to meet my eyes. She offers a sorry smile and I feel my shoulders relax. There's an ease engulfing me, enveloping me in serenity.
"Why will it keep happening?"
She lets out a deep sigh. "Because you're his mate and he hasn't officially marked you yet."
"But you said there was a mark," I pull my arms forward, trying to check for this mark. "Where is it?"
"You can't see it yet, not now at least because you're human. That mark just shows that you're his mate. When my brother officially makes you his, the pain will stop."
"What if," I shake my head, "I don't want that?"
"I don't know," she confesses worriedly. "There's hardly ever been a lycan who didn't officially mark his mate. Lycan's hardly ever do have mates, so when we do, it's seen as such a blessing."
"I'm not gonna," I withdraw from her. "I'm not gonna let your brother mark me like I'm some possession of his."
"You cannot fight it, Dina dear," she pulls me up so we can keep walking. "It's this or death."
Death. But I don't say that to her.
As we keep walking towards the drawbridge, I dare to lift my eyes and behold, the fine architecture of a castle set on a hill is ahead.
I have so many questions. What are Lycans? What's this mate mark? Who really is Adrinaelle? There's no mention of if I'm vital or not but, with the way Adrinaelle had to make sure Lysander saves me gives me the hint that I am.
I need to survive here, play the fool, get the answers to my questions and then escape. I'll go back home to Eldarda, to Dylan. I'll tell them everything about this barbaric place and I'll come back to kill them all.
Save Lysander, I'll torture him first and then kill him.