38!

BRIANNA

“Trish, wait. We can just go about torturing people,” I said, trying to keep up with her as she walked into the basement.

“Yes, we can. Especially if they threaten us and our livelihood,” she said as we walked through a flight of stairs.

“There has to be other ways besides you being this person,” I said and she stopped walking immediately.

“This person is who I am to protect you and our park,” she said, firmly.

“I don't need protecting, Trisha. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself,” I said and she scoffed.

“Why?” She laughed, “because you are able to walk through a massive pain and unbreak a spell and keep Akire at bay,” she looked like she was mocking me.

“You still have plenty to learn and I'm going to show you,” she said. She turned around towards the wall. There are still stairs left.

Trish said some words and the wall opened like a door. Lights came up as we walked. It looks like a hidden command center. Like in Batman.

“What is this place, Trish?” I asked her, trying very hard not to freak out.

“It's a command center, where everything that goes on in the Kingdom and in our park is being carefully watched.

“Attention!” Someone yelled and everyone in the large room stood up immediately.

Somewhere standing already, being diligent in the work they were doing.

“This is her grace, the Duchess Brianna of Greenwich,” they all bowed slightly.

“Your grace,” I heard Agatha's voice and I turned.

“Agatha–what are you doing here?” I asked her.

“Agatha is the head of the command center,” Trish said as she began to walk away again.

“Can you just stop!” I yelled, causing a wind to flow through the room.

“Breath, your grace, breath,” Agatha stood in front of me. I looked around to see everyone's eyes on me.

“Your grace, Brianna,” Agatha and Trish ran after me as I turned away back to the wall door.

“Where are you going?” I heard Trisha's voice and turned around.

“Home,” I said and she gave me a puzzled look, “I mean home, back to the human world,” I said to her and she scoffed.

“You can't be serious. You want to come here,” she said and I shook my head.

“Maybe that was a mistake,” I said to her. She walked towards me but I took a step back.

“Okay,” she stopped, “maybe I haven't been doing a good job of telling everything but that's because I didn't know you were going to need them,” she said, innocently.

“That's not your call to make,” I said to her, “it's like you taking me to that party in order for me to find my mate but you didn't know it was going to be Liam,” I said to her.

“Bri, I know you are angry but I'm only doing all of it to protect you,” she said.

“Who is going to protect you?” I asked her. I looked towards the command center, “is there anyone in there you can trust with your life?” I asked her and I heard her swallow hard.

“This time is different and even more dangerous. You have been doing this for a while but I'm here now. You have to tell me everything and don't leave any details out. Starting with Agatha,” I said as I walked back to the command center.

“Of course, your grace,” she bowed slightly as I walked past her. “You weren't planning on going back, were you?” She asked as she stood beside me.

“No freaking way,” I said to her as we walked towards another part of the building.

“This is where we will interrogate Akire,” Trish said to me. “You can't watch from here. Put it on,” she said to the officer in the room.

“Yes, my lady,” the officer said and pressed a button on what looked like a computer.

“We have everything, your grace and even better,” Agatha said behind me and I nodded.

“Do you want to go in?” Trish asked and I shook my head.

“No, you go in. If I really want to learn I have to see first,” I said to her and she nodded.

She walked into another room and began talking to Akire.

“She doesn't look scared or afraid,” I said, out loud.

“That's what makes a spy,” Agatha said and I looked at her. “I used to be a spy, your grace until I was appointed by your father to run the command center,” she said.

“Wow,” I bat my lashes, “you must have a long life,” I said to her and she laughed.

The door of the interrogation room opened, “what's going on?” I asked Trish.

“She won't talk to me, says she wants to talk to you,” she said to me.

“Okay,” I said walking towards the door but Agatha held my hand.

“Your grace, giving people like that their demands doesn't always end well,” she said.

I looked at her and then at her hand on mine, she quickly took them off, “don't worry, Agatha. I will be just fine.”

“Let's go, Trish,” I opened the door and walked in.

“Your grace,” Akira said as I walked in. “Where is Kaida?” She asked and I raised my shoulders high.

“She's in the next room,” Trish said to her.

“She doesn't belong here. She hasn't been read in,” Akira said and Trisha scoffed.

I touched Trish's hands and looked at Akira, “what exactly have you been read in on. What exactly is your mission in my park?” I asked her.

“To protect it and to protect you,” she and I looked at her confused.

“I'm sorry if my memory is a bit fuzzy. You are here to protect me and then you sabotaged our stream?” I asked her.

“I know what that looks like and yes that farmer saw me but I wasn't the only one there,” she said and I looked at Trish.

“Go on,” I said to her.

“You know I am part of the elite female warriors. I'm on a mission to root out the real threat,” she said and Trisha dropped the documents in her hands on the table loudly.

“What threat?” She asked Akira.

“The threat from Castillo,” she said and Trish gasped.

“Who is that?” I asked both of them.

“Castillo is the King of the second biggest Kingdom in our world but he is more ruthless,” Trish said.

“What does Castillo want?” I asked Akira.

“What he has always wanted, our Kingdom and the resources in it,” she said.

“So everything that has been going on. Villages have been burnt?” I asked.

“It's Castillo. He is looking for something. A lot of my friends have died trying to get that information but no one made it out alive,” she said, sadly.

“Wait, so you sabotaging our stream was a way to get close to Castillo?” Trisha asked her and she nodded.

All of a sudden there was a loud alarm everywhere. Agatha walked in.

“Agatha,” Akira stood up immediately.

“You two know each other?” I asked her.

“Yes, she is my mentor,” Akira said to me.

“Your grace, we have a problem. There is a village on fire.”