145 Unnecessary Beef
The faint ringing of a bell didnât seize to stop when Annaâs gaze remained locked on the glacier, neither did the sound of her heartbeat drop as it drummed repeatedly against her chest, leaving her flustered.
But the bell... like another sense of deja Vu had hit her, she could swear sheâs heard something similar to this before, except, instead of feeling over the moon that the love bell rang, an uneasy feeling swept through her system instead.
Funnily, Roshan didnât avert his intense gaze either, as though both were lost in the eyes of one another, searching for something despite being so far apart.
Only when the confused Gemma tapped Anna lightly by the arm did she break from her trance.
âHmm?â
She met Gemmaâs stare, her hazel eyes were filled with questions that made sense to Anna and when she looked at Becca, the puzzled maid was also staring, exchanging glances from the stairs and Anna, probably confused by her sudden blackout.
âEverything alright?â
âI_The bell_it rang.â She stuttered, finding it very strange cause she didnât even wriggle it this time around.
âWhat?â
.....
âI heard it, it was faint, very faint.â She stared at the golden bell in her hand before wriggling it again and when she did, it was as stiff as it was before. Gemma claimed it was a love bell, but why wasnât she convinced by it?
Looking up once again, Roshan was no longer standing at the top of the stairs, making her wonder if it was her imagination or if she was overthinking.
âWhere did you get this?â She asked Gemma who smiled guiltily and Anna tried to keep herself composed as she spoke.
âCome on, itâs not nice to take peopleâs things without permission, you can get in trouble because of this, be a good girl and return it safely to wherever you took it from, okay?â
A little disappointed that she had to return it, Gemma nodded regardless before taking the bell back and exiting the kitchen.
Anna got to her feet, looking conflicted for some reason and she snapped out of it when she felt a hand gently placed on her shoulder.
âAre you okay?â
Seeing it was Becca whose lavender eyes flashed with genuine worry, Anna smiled at her concern before shaking her head.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âYes, Iâm fine. Itâs really nothing to worry about.â
âYou had me worried for a sec, isnât that what humans call it when you try to show concern?â
Anna nodded, âyes, but you donât have to be worried, something just...did you really not hear the bell ring?â
Becca truthfully shook her head, âI didnât, if I did I would have said something, are you sure you didnât just imagine it?â
âItâs not important anyway, we should hurry up with this and get done with the rest so we can finish on time.â
âWell...if you say so.â Although Becca was obviously not convinced, she chose not to pry in further and the earlier conversation continued.
~
At the Palace Field.....
âHey, the green-eyed boy finally decided to brace us with his presence. Shall we offer him a bow?â Came the charming, yet scornful voice of a young demon with reddish brown hair as he rested his back against his white stallion, folding his arms and staring at the glacier who composedly walked past him.
âIâd rather have you save it for when next you hire a governess to teach you colors properly.â Roshanâs monotonous, yet nonplussed response made the cocky smile on Graysonâs lip fade and his emerald green eyes darkened as he dropped his act.
The snickers coming from different directions made Grayson send a death glare towards the remaining Demons standing at a corner and they maintained themselves, not daring to offend their âassumedâ leader in the slightest.
âI see, your tongue still has a silver lining attached to it.â He feigned contemplation as he nodded his head slightly, âafter everything that has happened to you I thought youâd lose the right to speak,â he sighed in disappointment, âI guess my father was very linient with you.â
Roshan stopped before a beautiful dark stallion, standing before Levi and Azazel who attended to their own horses.
âLenient?â Roshan let out a bitter scoff before approving, âyes he was, thatâs why I returned the favor by giving him an arm.â
âYou fucking A**hole!!â
âHey hey.â Levi stood between two of them before Grayson could lay a hand on his brother. Obviously, Roshan had hit a nerve by mentioning his father and unlike Grayson who looked like someone who wanted to tear Roshan apart, the glacier was enjoying the moment as a sinister smile curved his lips.
What a good way to start the morning.
âRelax.â
âRelax?? That son of a bitch..!!..â
âNo oneâs here to draw blood Gray.â Levi straight-out interjected, reminding the angry red-haired demon with a serious gaze, âbesides, Roshan didnât start any of this, you chose to pick an issue and he gave you what you asked for. So deal with it.â
One of the guys resting in a corner close to his horse suddenly intervened, âisnât this meant to be a family bond?â He tried not to laugh at the thought, âwe might as well end up dead before the main event.â
Grayson ignored the remark, he had a lot more to say to the trioâs standing in front of him but forced himself to remain quiet as he unclenched his fist, exhaling the anger that evaporated out of his mouth.
âIâm coming for you,â he pointed a finger at Roshan, sending him the clear message, âdue to our borders being distant and my reign of becoming the next Duke, you were spared from my wrath but within these three days, Iâll make sure you bleed.â
âLike how I made your father bleed?â He raised an inquiring brow, finding the topic even more interesting and Grayson almost lost it when his eyes went bloody red, but the presence of Lady Odette, Gravion and of course, the demoness approaching the field forced the angry red-haired Demon to keep his cool as he backed away.
âWhat a good boy.â Roshan added after seeing his cousin lower his guard at the sight of higher Demons.
âHas it started already?â Roseline chimed in with a sweet smile as she saw the guys all gathered in the field. Her Auburn hair was tied in a long ponytail, swinging from left to right due to the calm and satisfying wind blowing in the field.
âSister, youâre not so blind to see theyâre just getting ready,â Melrose, her sister curtly pointed out while eating some grapefruits from a small oval platter she held.
The heavy air that was starting to loosen, made it clear to almost everyone that a fight could have broken out. It was filled with such unexplainable rage but looking at everyone present, no one seemed to hold a grudge.
Taking their seats on the modified stone chairs at both sides of the field, Roshan got himself on his horse, his eyes scanned through the people present and to his disappointment, Anna was nowhere to be seen amongst the maidens that followed suit.
The ladies on the other hand were by far taken by the looks of Roshan and their mouths were left agape, most especially by Roshanâs physical appearance and Roseline couldnât help but blink in admiration.
âIs he the one?â
âTo my delight, yes.â Lady Iris, who sat beside her happily responded, only Melrose didnât have the look of infatuation in her eyes but she couldnât deny his appearance was commendable.
âWhy didnât anyone tell me??â Roseline half-panicked, âhearing he was half Demon, I wasnât expecting such a majestic appearance!â
âYouâre being dramatic, the rest of them are actually just as noble.â Melrose calmly pointed out, but Roseline swatted her words away.
âI see them everyday, that is not my business.â
Almost everyone rolled their eyes at her words, âyou mean, if I get to be his mate, Iâll marry him?â
âRead the history of Family balls if youâre this clueless.â Lady Laura half-taunted.
Everyone noticed his gaze was shifting to their direction, as though he was searching for someone and Roseline leaned close to whisper to her sister.
âWho is he searching for?â
âHow am I supposed to know?â
âIs he searching for me?â She grinned at the thought, flashing her white teeth as she waved at the nonplussed Roshan who was baffled by it.
âItâs obviously not you, come down from your high horse Rose.â Lady Iris couldnât hold back her irritation as she eyed Roseline who barely paid her any attention.
âSay what you like, unfortunately you arenât worth my time.â
âOf course, even my wardrobe collection has more value than you.â Lady Irisâs sharp retort stung like a bee to a human flesh, leaving Roselineâs expression to fall like someone whose face got splashed with mud.
Unwilling to act rude in front of everyone, most especially his highness, she cleared her throat and adjusted herself.
âIâm going to pretend like I didnât hear that.â
Lauraâs fox-like eyes widened at Roseâs unexpected comeback, âas shocked as I am by your quick forgiveness, you wouldnât want to lower yourself before his highness, seems to me your brain works only in the morning, care to share the secret?â