Chapter 39 âExactly. You were the King before me. But not anymore.â Micahâs voice was even as he tried to control his anger.
âWhat do you mean?â Arthurâs voice hardened even more.
âI mean exactly what I said. You are not the King anymore.â Micah didnât back down.
âThis isnât like you, Micah. Are you doing this to please your mate? Was she dissatisfied with something?â Arthur couldnât accept the way his own son just talked to him. âIâll talk to her and she will understand.â
Arthurâs suggestion made Micah go alert, as his body stiffened a bit.
Abby wasnât ready to meet anyone.
âMoreover, I still havenât met her,â the former king continued as he looked thoughtful. âItâs time I met her, after all, the ceremony was just around the corner.â
The ceremony was scheduled to be held in the following week, but the Kingâs father hadnât even met her yet.
He wondered whether at least the elders got a chance to meet the future queen of this kingdom.
Maybe they could all meet her at once.
However, Micah didnât think so. âThis has nothing to do with her. You donât have to meet her for this in particular,â Micah deflected in a heartbeat, sounding almost threatening.
Arthur was surprised by his choice of words, but why would Micah threaten him over nothing?
But then what was his son saying?
âHow is it not related to Abby when you yourself said Ruby is being punished for failing to take proper care of your mate?â Arthur asked the King, exasperated at his logic.
âBecause punishing Ruby was my decision alone,â Micah said as he folded his arms in front of his chest. âRuby needs to learn from her mistake.â
Even if Micah couldnât find any evidence to prove Ruby did it intentionally, the fact that Rubyâs carelessness escalated the situation that night until a guard was killed couldnât be stricken off easily.
And that was what he pointed out to his father.
However, Arthur still couldnât come to terms with it. âHow would she have expected for that guard to attack Abby of all people?â
âShe couldnât have. That was why she should have been careful enough,â Micah stressed.
âBut you saved Abby in time, there is no need to vent your anger on those innocent girls,â Arthur pointed out, 15:06 Fri, 8 Mar DB ·
Chapter 39 âWhat if I had been late?â Micah almost lost his control just at the thought of this âwhat if once again.
Arthur could see how Micah felt about the possibility of his mate getting hurt. And he could understand his son, but he didnât approve of his decision.
âThis isnât the way to deal with this situation, though,â Arthur couldnât help but criticize his son. He believed that Micahâs actions were being influenced by his emotions.
And he didnât miss the way Micah steered him away from the topic of himself meeting Abby.
âI know what Iâm doing, father.â Micahâs response only enraged the already frustrated former king.
âSo you wonât revoke the punishment?â Arthur stood up, almost toppling his chair backward.
Micah also stood up, out of respect for his father, of course. And the way his eyes hardened at his question let Arthur know his answer.
âIt would be best if you donât get involved in the court matters too much. I am perfectly capable of running the court,â Micah said as he pinned Arthur with a look. âIf you feel you are not busy enough, maybe you should think about going on a vacation.â
Arthur was taken aback by the hidden meaning behind Micahâs words. His son just told him to remember his own place.
âWhat do you mean?â Arthur shouted, feeling offended.
âYou donât need to worry about the kingdom anymore, itâs my job now. After all, I am the King.â Micah elaborated. His tone was a bit harsh, as he didnât want his father to take his words lightly.
He was adamant on not letting Ruby off easily after what she tried to pull. His father should be glad that he couldnât find the evidence or else those four women would be counting the iron bars in the dungeons now.
No one would be spared if they tried to harm his mate.
On the other hand, Arthur was stumped by Micahâs words that he couldnât say anything when Micah turned to leave after a nod in his direction.
âNow, if you will excuse me.â Micah threw over his shoulder. He didnât feel the need to continue this conversation when he was done saying what he wanted to say.
It would be better if his father could come to terms with his way of dealing things quickly.
Only the former king was not done talking with him yet.
Arthur almost ran after his stubborn son, but held back at the last moment. He couldnât help but shake his head as he watched Micah leave calmly.
Just as Abby opened her eyes this morning, she saw a bunch of yellow flowers placed in a vase on the table beside her bed.
2/5 15:06 Fri, 8 Mar DB Chapter 39 66%
This was her third time finding these flowers in that vase since she noticed Alyssa bringing a single stalk of flowers a week back.
These were the same flowers she saw in the back garden of this palace. That garden was filled with these flowers until it looked like a bright yellow mat. No. A sea of yellow would be a better comparison.
The very first time Alyssa and Reyna took her there, Abby fell in love with that place. She told the same to Micah that very night..
She remembered Micah looking at her with this gentle smile on his face when she told him how she wanted to spend her following morning in that garden.
Thinking about it until that point, Abby realized how badly she missed Micah in the past fortnight.
But every time she thought of Micah, the image of his black beast with blood dripping from his fangs assaulted her senses as well.
And she couldnât help but nip her urge to meet Micah in the bud for the umpteenth time every time she recalled that gruesome sight.
Her nightmares wouldnât go away either, but these flowers made her breath a little easier in the past week.
âThank you for these,â Abby told Alyssa in a soft voice the moment the maid returned from the kitchen after taking away the cutlery Abby used while having her breakfast.
Alyssa looked a little confused at her words.
Abby pointed to the vase of flowers with a small lift to the corners of her lips.
This was the first time Abby did anything remotely similar to smiling after that night and Alyssa. couldnât help but smile at this progress.
âThese? It wasnât my idea,â Alyssa said while looking at Reyna with a happy smile on her face.
âItâs not my idea, either,â Reyna immediately denied the silent question flashing in Abbyâs searching eyes when they fell on herself.
âIt wasnât either of you? Then...â Abby was genuinely confused for a moment as she couldnât connect the dots.
Only these two people had been here save for the few times Dax came to visit her.
But he always came when she was awake and never had these flowers with him. The royal gam ma had a cheerful personality and in a way, his goofiness that rubbed on herself until she started to talk with them again.
If neither of these three were the person behind this, that would leave her with the only other option.
Micah.
15:06 Fri, 8 Mar DB.
Chapter 39 66%
Only he knew how excited she was about going to the back garden where she could be drowned in these flowersâ beauty.
âYes, itâs the King, who sends these flowers for you everyday,â Reyna said excitedly when she saw the realization dawn upon Abby.
âYes, my lady, he has been waiting for you outside the door everyday,â Alyssa supplied, wanting to make Abby understand the Kingâs plight.
Only Abby immediately closed off and stopped talking altogether at the mention of the King.
Abby couldnât say she wasnât touched by his gesture or deny the fact that she too missed him. But she still didnât know how to look at Micah without the shadow of his beastâs cruel act plaguing her mind.
The scare she got that day was too huge, Abby didnât know how to look at Micah with the same eyes. she used to.
âSo you want to postpone the ceremony?â Alan, the royal beta, asked Micah.
He didnât sound interrogative, as he just wanted to confirm if he had indeed heard what the King just said correctly.
Micah only nodded at his royal beta, who could only lower his head in contemplation.
He wondered if Micah caught wind of the rumors circulating in the town, surrounding his attempts to search for a girl two weeks back.
People were gossiping like crazy as they were dying to know the identity of the girl who made the King himself step down into the field to come look for her in person.
Some speculated that the missing girl was the future queen but they couldnât confirm it when there had not been any official statement from the palace yet.
Only the important figures of the capital city had received the news that the King finally found his mate, while the commoners were still in the dark.
The authenticity of the rumor couldnât be proved when no one could gain information on Abby.
The people will be curious, My King.â Alan said when he thought about all of this.
âBut she wasnât ready yet,â Micah said with finality.
However, Alan still felt like pushing his luck. âThey had been waiting for years just to listen to the news of you meeting your mate...â
D 15:06 Fri, 8 Mar DG