40

Word Count: 2238

~Kiva

Taven keeps a strong hold on my arm as he knocks on a hardwood door at the lowest level of the compound.

It's opened a crack, and then enough for an arm to reach out to yank me into the room.

The door slams, locking Taven out. I doubt I'll see him again anytime soon.

Turning around, I see a few people scattered about and then Ark, standing in the centre of them.

An immense weight of emotions crushes down upon me to the point I nearly choke on them. It takes me a moment to force away the fear, but once it's gone, it leaves pure rage in its wake.

"You..."

His expression softens as he approaches me.

"Kiva, let me explain-"

"You lied to me." I hate that my voice cracks. I hate that I sound so weak, so betrayed.

But that is exactly what I am.

"You're angry, that's understandable, but-"

"You told me you didn't work for them. You made me feel safe." I take a step away from him, hating the way he draws closer.

I hate that he looks the same. He should be uglier, like his face was just a façade to trick and betray me. His true form should be revealed, and yet he looks like the Ark I thought I knew.

He's still so beautiful it hurts...his dark eyes are wide and searching, his hair still slightly too long. I hate him.

"I know. I'm sorry about that," he breathes.

"Are you? You infiltrated my life, you made me feel safe. Now you're their puppet?"

I blindly motion around the room at the few people about that have fallen silent upon my entry.  They all blink with confusion, exchanging glances between themselves.

Ark follows my gesture with a frown before he drags his gaze backs to me "I don't work for them."

"How can you stand there and say that?" Is he really going to lie right to my face?

He sighs, seating his gloved hands in his pockets.

"Because I don't work for these people. I command them."

Hideous, sickening horror overcomes me. The room spins for a moment, my shaking knees giving out.

I don't hit the floor, hands grabbing me before I make it there. It's Ark and his firm, sturdy arms that I cling to. Immediately I push away from him, brushing my hand against my sweating forehead.

"So you're their leader?" I whisper hoarsely.

He nods.

"You're a monster," I gasp out. I feel like I'm going crazy, like this is a nightmare that I can't escape from. I want someone to shake me awake and tell me that my mate isn't someone who is plotting against me.

"Please allow me to explain."

"Explain what? That you came into my life as my bodyguard and pretended to help me? You were helping me defend against people who you sent to kill me!" I snap.

I can't breathe fast enough, can't contain my anger enough to even see straight. I'm on the verge of panic, and right now, I'm anticipating throwing up all over the floor.

"We never intended to kill you," he soothes.

I wrap my arms around myself. "I don't believe that."

He takes another step, approaching me like I'm a wounded animal. "Had that been the plan, I would have killed you the first moment you followed me down the hallway."

He's a stranger to me. The Ark I knew is gone, and any attempt he is making to regain my trust is just to calm me down enough to manipulate me.

"I can't believe this."

"I will not do you the disservice of lying to you any longer, Kiva. My intentions upon becoming your bodyguard were not to protect you from me, or my people," he tells me slowly, letting me absorb every word.

"Fuck you," I choke out.

He sighs. "I was trying to help you protect yourself from someone else-"

"You new about Taven. You lied." I doesn't matter if I'm mostly relieved that Taven is not my mate, I shouldn't have been decieved like that.

He rubs at a frown line in his forehead.

"I hired Taven, yes. He was a decoy. You were learning about me before we were ready for you to," he explains, as if it remedies that at all.

"Recruiting people for what? What is this?" I question, looking at each person in turn.

I've seen none of their faces before, and yet they all know me. That's the most terrifying thought...who knows what they all have planned for me, and by the cold looks in their eyes, it isn't good.

Ark looks at them too. They seem to share a look, coming to a silent understanding on something.

"We are trying to expose and kill your father," he tells me solemnly.

For a second, I swear I black out.

I blink and I'm back, striding forward to slap him across the face.

With all my training I have enough strength to knock his head to the side. He grimaces, shaking the hair from his eyes before he focuses on me.

A few of the people around us step forward in defence of their leader, but Ark holds his hand out.

"Touch her and I kill each and every one of you," he growls.

They immediately slink away, pressing back against the wall. Seeing them bow so easily to Ark's commands is chilling.

He shifts his attention to me again, tenser than before. "Your father isn't a good man, Kiva. He is a liar, a cheater and...he is a whole manner of evil I won't tell you about here, right now when you're already in shock-"

"You hate him because he is King. How are you, a mercenary, better than him?" I snap back.

How can he stand there and pretend like he's a good person?

He shakes his head. "You don't understand yet."

"Oh I understand." I wipe at an angry tear that has slipped from my eye. "Just kill me, because I'm going to return and I'm going to have my father hunt through these lands for all you cowards."

Father will be merciless in how he deals with them. They all deserve it too, and once Ark is dead, I won't look back.

Ark's eyes darken. "You will not be returning to him. You are safer here."

"I don't even know you..." I grit out. "How could I have been so stupid?"

"I am still your mate," he assures me gently. He's taken more steps forward without me noticing. He's now close enough to touch me, and with the wall behind me, there is no where for me to go now, unless I want to throw myself out the window and into the night.

"Mateless I shall die and I will be better for it."

My back bumps against the wall. Staring up at Ark, he suddenly looks taller, bigger and more terrifying. He isn't just a guard anymore. I mean, he never was.

"Why don't I have someone take you to a private room so you can cool off?" He offers.

"You betrayed me. I thought I knew you, I thought you cared for me..." I continue. I can't walk away now. Not with all this anger, with so much unexplained.

Ark closes his eyes, and when he opens them again, I see a deep sadness. "I care for you more than you will ever know."

"And yet you tried to have me killed."

"That first night, I sent in many men, each with the intention of frightening your father, of killing your guard so I could get in. We didn't want to hurt you," he explains softly. Everyone else in the room nods quietly in agreement.

A cold reminder rattles through me.

"You killed Andri," I breathe.

He grimaces. "I know, and for that I am sorry. But it serves a bigger purpose."

"He was a good man. Unlike you." I loved Andri. He was like an older brother to me that took time to care more than a guard usually would. He was gentle and respectful, and now he's gone.

"The second break in, we intended to take you in. I wanted you to see us as not the villains. I wanted you to feel safe in our hands, without revealing who I was," he tells me.

"But something went wrong, didn't it? You took your time..."

"Our resources got strangled for some time, so we had to put off our plan. After that, it got harder to get in, to get to you. I could have taken you myself but...I couldn't have revealed the plan." He sweeps his hair back.

"Was it part of the plan to sleep with me?" My voice comes out shaky and strained.

"Did I intend to fall in love with you? No. But you are my mate," he breathes.

"Let me go..." I whisper.

If Ark still cares about me like he claims, he may be willing to let me go. I need to get to that part of him, so he can see how desperate and scared I am.

But his expression doesn't shift. He doesn't show a hint of mercy. "I can't do that."

My throat tightens as I scan the area. This room is old, practically falling apart. A few steps away from me is a broken shard of something...maybe a dish or a vase?

Ark follows my gaze, but I'm moving before he is, snatching it up, pressing the sharp edge to my neck.

"Let me go or I kill myself," I warn, hands quivering.

Ark tenses, holding his arm up to stop his people from closing in on me. I see the flicker of fear in his eyes, figuring that I may just be crazy enough to do it.

"Okay Kiva. Calm down..." he says steadily.

"Get away from me." My back is now pressed against the cold glass of the window. "I have a pure evil mate. Don't think I won't do it."

I need to get out of here. There is an entire hoard of people who stand between myself and the door, which means I'm going to have to smash my way out the window. From the feeling of the glass it's single pane, which means I have a chance.

"I can't let you go," he exclaims.

"So you will let me die?"

Ark's eyes survey the sharp object pressing into my skin. He's trying to find a way out of this that doesn't end with me dead in a pool of my own blood on this very floor.

"I...Come on. We can talk privately, and I will tell you our motivation behind this plan," he offers.

"Go fuck yourself Ark. If that's even your name," I snap.

He looks sad. "It is."

Inhaling deeply, I decide on my plan. There is only one chance to escape and I'm taking it.

Lurching forward, I step toward Ark.

He startles at my approach until I throw my arms around him.

He smells good, just like how I remember. He's tense beneath my touch, but relaxes after a few moments pass.

When I tilt back, he cups my cheek. "Hey..."

Then I strike.

In one swift movement, I aim blindly for his neck or his face with the sharp shard. I don't care where I hit, as long as it hurts. Then, I draw my knee up, striking him in the stomach.

It's enough for his grip to loosen on me. I fight through his arms before running blindly toward the window, ignoring the shouts from his people.

It's not much space, but it's enough momentum to shove myself into the window, the glass shattering, sending me toppling through.

I fall for a second before hitting grass with a horrible thud.

Groaning I roll onto my back. I've managed not to wind myself, although my side aches as I force myself up. I need to run.

Turning, I stumble up. I'm in a forest, and considering it's snowing, we just still be in my territory...

At least one thing has gone right.

Holding my side, I run blindly into the dark forest, leaving behind the looming compound.

Because of the thick, fluffy snow, I'm going to leave tracks, which means I'm going to have to find a river. It's not going to be easy with this darkness, with the cold that sifts through my light clothing.

Shouts echo from behind me. Shit, they are out pursuing me already.

With a thundering heart, I draw to a stop. I'm never going to outrun a hoard of people.

Without thinking, I choose a tree, lurching up it. My cold hands make slow work of climbing, but as torches draw near, I manage to lay flat along a wide bough, concealing myself amongst the leaves.

Voices draw near, the golden light of their torches cutting through the darkness.

"Find her, or Angel's know what Ark will do," one of the rebellion members mutters tightly.

I hold my breath. I can't go back there, I can't be caught.

But knowing Ark is my pursuer means it's only a matter of time before I am found.

💚••💚

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! and as always it is available 10 chapters ahead on Radish!

THE DARKEST TEMPTATION— OUT NOW ON WATTPAD!!

~Midika 💜🐼