Chapter 153
After a two-day journey, they arrive outside the council.
“It is time that I accept the burden that chance has seen fit to lay on me,” Prince Deacon said out loud, taking a deep breath.
“Came for the birth of your child?” Prince Andre, the were-owl asked, startling princess Freda.
“Stop wasting my time and let us in,” Prince Deacon demanded.
“You brought a little peace offering? She smells supernatural, but I can't place her,” Prince Andre said, circling around princess Freda.
“She is a lycan hybrid,” Prince Deacon said.
“I can smell the wolf on her, but she does not smell half-dead to me,” Prince Andre took a deep sniff of her hair.
“Princess Freda, meet prince Andre. In case you are wondering; yes he is always this creepy,” Prince Deacon mocked.
“Princess? Interesting.” Prince Andre took a piece of her hair and turned it around his fingers.
“If you touch her again, it will be the last time,” Prince Ra jumped out of nowhere.
“Prince Ra, what brings you to the council?” Prince Andre asked, not letting go of princess Freda’s hair.
“My fated mate,” Prince Ra said, a growl escaped his throat.
“The offspring of a were-snake mated to a lycan hybrid? Never heard of it,” Prince Andre said, letting go of Princess Freda’s hair.
Princess Freda could feel her heart pound hard in her chest and wondered if they all could hear it.
“Haven't you heard? My biological father was a lycan before his half-brother killed him and claimed his pregnant wife,” Prince Ra said, standing between princess Freda and Prince Andre, filled with anger that another man touched her.
“I heard you took his wives, so do you really need another?” Prince Deacon chipped in.
“Why don’t you run off to your parents, little pup, and tell them that they have an important guest,” Prince Ra tried to compel Deacon but as soon as he picked it up he hymned the shaman rhym in his head, happy that he was wearing the shaman necklace that he grabbed off his mother's neck.
“I will as soon as Andre lets me in,” Prince Deacon said, pretending that he was compelled, wondering when and how Prince Ra became a hybrid.
‘I wish to un-mate,’ Princess Freda mind linked Prince Ra.
‘Not here,’ Prince Ra mind linked her back.
‘Why not?’ she mind linked.
‘If you are available, they will marry you off the first royal man that wants you,’ Prince Ra mind linked her, having no plans to un mate with her.
‘As long as he is not married already, I don’t care,’ Princess Freda mind linked stubbornly.
‘What changed your mind? A few nights ago, you made me believe that you accept my way of life. Was it just a trick?’ Prince Ra mind linked her.
‘I didn’t mean to trick you,’ Princess Freda mind linked him back and Prince Ra could feel that she meant it.
“After you,” Prince Deacon said to prince Andre.
“Are you coming?” Prince Andre asked, looking at prince Ra and princess Freda.
“Go ahead,” Prince Ra said.
Once prince Andre and prince Deacon left, prince Ra pleaded with princess Freda to leave with him. “It is not a good place to be for a princess right now, especially one like you.”
“One like me?” Princess Freda asked.
“You are a natural-born hybrid. What do you think they are going to do with you when they find out?” Prince Ra asked.
“So are you,” Princess Freda reminded him.
“Yes, but they don’t know it. They don’t know that I can shift or that I am even a hybrid,” Prince Ra said.
“But that man, that prince, he just smelled that I am a hybrid, so surely they will be able to smell you,” Princess Freda said.
“They are not familiar with natural-born supernaturals so they are not easily able to make sense of our scent unless we guide them and besides as you heard, I am the offspring so they think nothing more of me since they believe I cannot shift,” Prince Ra said, taking her hand.
Princess Freda pulled her hand away from him. “I want to go inside. I can take care of myself, so please let us un-mate.”
Before princess Freda knew what was happening, Prince Ra shifted and jumped her to the ground, biting her, claiming her as his forever mate.
Princess Freda screamed in pain. “What did you do that for?!”
‘Please go find me something to wear,’ Prince Ra mind linked her.
Princess Freda stubbornly stomped off towards the castle’s main door before blocking Prince Ra from her mind. ‘Go find your own damn clothes,’ she thought stubbornly as she entered the castle, blood flowing from her collarbone.
Prince Ra realized why Zuberi wanted him to claim Princess Freda. ‘She must have known that I will become fully committed to Princess Freda and put my wives aside.’
Soon prince Ra realized that princess Freda was not coming back, so he ran into the castle, still in wolf form. Prince Ra has been at the council once; shortly after it was finished and ready to be occupied by the royals of the supernatural world, for a royal meeting with his false father, so he knew his way around.
Prince Ra made his way over to the wardrobe room and shifted inside before grabbing a few items to wear.
Feeling uncomfortable in the formal attire he walked around sniffing the air to catch princess Freda’s scent but had a hard time since there were so many supernatural scents interfering. He only managed to recognize her scent from the others by the smell of her blood.
Prince Ra found princess Freda inside the hall that they used to cast judgment. Prince Deacon was standing next to his parents and brothers; Princess Freda fearfully standing in the middle. Prince Ra recognise Shysie in the accused stand. Prince Ra slipped in, unnoticed, and found a seat.
“Explain what happened and start at the beginning and don’t leave a single thing out,” the stern voice of King Thorvald said, worried that the arrival of prince Deacon and the so-called princess will ruin the plan. King Torvald didn’t know why Shysie has not given him up yet as the one that has compelled her to obey the royal lycans, resulting in her slaughtering a church full of innocents, with no link to the lycan royals being there.
The plan was simple, Shysie gets executed before she could speak but it appeared that the royal lycans have their own agenda and now Shysie was on trial until they get a confession out of her.
Princess Freda explained what happened, not mentioning that prince Deacon was the groom and Emily the bride as that did not seem to matter. Princess Freda lied and explained that Wynn attended the wedding with her as they have been dating and he was her plus one. She went on to explain that Wynn did sing some hymm over Shysie and when she realized what she has done she fled, leaving Wynn and herself to clean up the mess. Princess Freda ended her story there, not mentioning that they turned Emily into a vampire.
“Thank you. King Thorvald do we really need to drag it out? We have a witness, our only witness and unless there is a prehistoric vampire around to compel the truth out of Shysie it is clear that she was compelled and not in control of her own actions,” Queen Lana said, trying to bring the trial to an end after a month of back and forth.
“I agree,” King Makens said.
“Any objections?” King Thorvald asked, not liking that Shysie will now have bribing power against him.
After no objections Shysie was set free, giving King Thorvald a sly smile, yet wondering why he was so eager to kill her.
“Before you go, who is your mate,” King Torvald asked, pointing at princess Freda’s collar bone that was still bleeding.
“Prince Ra,” Princess Freda said, looking in prince Ra’s direction.
“Prince Ra did that?” King Thorvald asked looking behind him in the direction that princess Freda was looking at.
“He thought he will give it a go,” Princess Freda says quickly, remembering that no one knew that Prince Ra could shift.
“And did it work?” Prince Deacon asked.
“You know it didn’t work,” Prince Ra said, joining them.
“Excuse me,” Prince Deacon said walking over to Shysie that was about to leave.
“Miss Shysie,” Prince Deacon called after her, making her turn around.
“What do you want?” Shysie asked rudely.
“Where is your brother?” Prince Deacon asked, fighting the urge to rip her head off.
“I have not seen him since, well, since you’re wedding to your so-called Princess Emily. I thought the two of you are as thick as thieves,” Shysie said, eager to leave and confront king Torvald.
“I have not seen him since that day either,” Prince Deacon said, worry creeping up in him.
“I have been locked up for the past month,” Shysie said. “Now if you will excuse me, I need a bath,” Shysie tried to walk away again.
“I don’t care if you were compelled; one day you will pay for what you did,” Prince Deacon said, making her stop in her tracks and turn around.
“What I did? Why don’t you blame your parents?” Shysie said through grinding teeth.
“All of you will pay,” Prince Deacon threatened.
