F I F T Y-T W O

When Kai and Sage searched the gardens, they eventually found Iris and Zoe hanging out in the garden with the rose bushes. Their talking and laughter led them straight to the middle.

The two were sitting on a bench under a tree, completely oblivious to Kai and Sage, who were hiding behind a bush a good distance away.

As they watched for a few minutes, Sage finally glanced at Kai with a skeptical look.

"I mean, are you sure this is the Zoe he was talking about?" Sage asked, narrowing her eyes.

"It's too coincidental. It has to be."

"But her?" Sage gestured towards the princess. "She doesn't look evil."

"Does not mean she isn't. It's just for show."

Sage looked at Kai and saw him glaring intently at Zoe. She rolled her eyes and decided not to push further since he was clearly on edge.

"Well, she's a good actor then."

In Sage's eyes, Zoe looked nowhere near an evil vampire leader. She looked and acted too kind, and if she truly wanted to hurt Iris, Sage couldn't imagine why she was taking her sweet time. So what did Zoe really want?

Zoe said something the two vampires couldn't hear that made Iris chuckle, and that made Kai sigh beside Sage.

She glanced over and noticed his anger had dropped and instead a confused expression took over.

He sighed again. "Why does he have to smile like that with her?" he mumbled.

Sage bit back a smirk. "Don't tell me you're jealous."

Kai didn't look away. "I don't get jealous," he answered quickly. "I just don't like this situation."

"Well, I wouldn't worry about him catching feelings, he's totally gay for you." Sage caught Kai rolling his eyes. "But if she really is just human, by the looks of it, it seems that our prince might not hate marrying her as much as before."

Kai didn't want to admit it but he thought something similar. Iris did look more comfortable with her, and since Kai couldn't see passed his disguise it was safe to say Iris wasn't wearing one. His smiles were genuine, even if he tried to push them down two seconds later it came back. He was opening up to her hurtfully quicker than he did with Kai.

With a small growl, Kai stood up from crouching down and attempted to come out of hiding when Sage grabbed his hand and pulled him down.

She shook her head at him. "Don't you dare," she warned.

"I'm not going to just sit back and watch him be manipulated!" Kai hissed back, jerking his hand away.

"Kai, I don't know what's going through your head right now but this is not the time to let your jealousy rage."

"I'm not jealous!"

Both Kai and Sage freeze in their spots as his voice echoed out and Zoe's voice yards away from them came to a stop. Kai quickly slapped a hand over his mouth and Sage glared at him.

They heard shuffling before someone called out.

"Kai?"

Using his eyes, Kai begged for Sage's help. She shook her head and held up her hands, saying 'I don't know' and 'you're on your own'. Kai groaned before standing up, his head poking above the tall bush they stalked behind.

"Hi."

Iris furrowed his eyebrows and watched Kai glare at something down to his right side, and he shook his head.

"Sage, too?"

Seconds later Sage popped up beside Kai, smiling innocently.

"Why, hello my prince–ah, princess." Sage acknowledged Zoe, and she smiled confusingly.

Sage began nudging Kai out from their spot and they hesitantly walked in the royals' direction.

"What were you two doing?" Iris asked. Automatically he wanted to smile at Kai, but he was too confused to change his expression.

Kai cleared his throat. "Talking."

"Talking?"

"Yes, about..." Kai glanced at Sage and she took a step closer.

"We apologize for intruding on your private time, sir. We were talking about action plans regarding our unwanted guests in the kingdom. We didn't realize you were in this garden as well." She finished with a pearly smile and released a sharp breath.

Iris wasn't gullible but he had a tendency to believe things more when someone spoke it so highly and confidently. Sage kept her chest out and back straight and hoped he'd buy her story.

He answered with a small smile, though his eyes narrowed with speculation both Kai and Sage hoped he wouldn't voice.

"Right...well, that's okay. You didn't interrupt anything important." He glanced at Kai, as if to reassure him, but was taken back when Kai was momentarily glowering at Zoe.

"Anyway–" Sage cut in, also noticing Kai's resurfacing anger, and she grabbed his shoulders. "–we apologize again. We'll be taking our leave now."

Kai shot a pointed look towards Sage and she tightened her grip on his shoulders and subtly shook her head. Her expression said 'it can wait' so he responded with a huff and turned away. Seconds later, only Sage stood in Iris and Zoe's sight.

She smiled at them, bowed her head, before disappearing after him.

The confusion and abruptness lingered in the air invested with the smell of roses. Iris didn't have anything to say about their odd behavior, so he was left with the feeling of surprise.

Zoe hummed beside him and curled her arm around Iris's, making him flinch.

"You know, I don't think your body guard likes me very much," she said. She started pulling Iris with her as they walked on the stones leading them around the garden. Iris didn't quote their closeness.

"He's, uh, he's like that with everyone."

"He doesn't look like the glaring type to me."

Iris held back a chuckle. "Don't worry, he always has a reason behind his actions."

Zoe peered up at Iris and pursed her lips with thought. "Iris, you seem fond of him. Is a friend to you?"

"A friend," Iris sighed out. "Yes. Yes he's a friend to me."

"The same applies with Hyde. We've been working together for a long time, it's hard to see him as just a bodyguard, someone professionally tied to me."

Iris nodded, understanding and in agreement.

They walked around the garden for a while longer, arms linked and mouths chatting away. Iris couldn't explain why he felt like he could trust Zoe, or why he wanted to so badly. He gave up tying to understand and probably for the first time ever, accepted what he couldn't put into words without going through an internal battle first.

His head felt lighter agreeing with his brain, but his chest weighed heavier with the uneasiness in his heart. But this time his mind trumped his heart; he just hoped deciding it was okay didn't have a negative effect on him.

††

No matter how hard they tried, how vicious they got, the vampire in captive would not give up anymore information. He was a broken, lifeless body shackled to a wall, and the only words he'd say was his leaders name.

Kai's patience was thinner than a sheet of ice and he was dangling by a thread. Sage stayed beside him the whole time, keeping him from charing after Zoe and demanding answers. They kept that information to themselves and made up a lie to tell the other guards. They still needed a plan, but Kai was making it difficult for Sage to come up with one. She was prepared to knock him out so she could think clearly and not listen to his feet tap rapidly against the floor, or his constant mumbling.

They stayed in her room to talk but all Kai did was pace around the room. Sage propped her elbow up on the small table and let her chin fall on her knuckles. She watched him for a good five minutes until he started voicing his thoughts. They ranged in ways Sage could have never imagined.

"This is so stupid!" he growled. "We really shouldn't be wasting our time like this. We should be confronting her. What if she's already making her move? We should go check."

"Do not touch that doorknob."

Kai stopped in front of the door and groaned. He ran his hands down his face before raking them through his hair.

"Sage, this isn't right! We need to do something now!"

"We need a plan first."

"We can think of a plan after she's away from Iris and in a place where we can watch her."

"I don't think you've taken her position into consideration. She's a princess, or at least everyone in this mansion believes so, including the King. Hell, she's Iris's bride! We can't just attack her."

"Who cares! We'll just tell them who she really is–"

"It won't be that easy."

"We have to at least warn Iris! I can't believe you're taking this lightly, Sage."

"I am not." Sage stood up from her chair and slammed her hands on the table top. "I'm being careful and considerate. You want to protect Iris, I get it, but guess what, Zoe already has his attention, we can't just rush in. We have to be tactful. She might attack first if she realizes we know her secret."

"That's just a guess, Sage. Yes, her kind is strong, but she's alone in a kingdom who hates their kind, she'll cower before she fights."

Sage closed her mouth to disagree. That was a good point, which made her believe her first idea stronger; Zoe didn't come here to hurt Iris. What could she want?

"Okay, but Kai–"

The door to Sage's room opened and Kai was already bolting into the hallway. She groaned before rushing after him.

"Don't do anything stupid!"

But saying that was too late. Kai was determined, angry, and worried, and all those blinded his senses.

They were back outside on the walkway just yards from a backdoor. Sage stumbled to a halt and watched the scene unfold.

Kai tackled Zoe straight on. She landed on her back and he straddled her waist, hands gripping her neck.

"I know exactly who you are!" he bellowed. Zoe gasped and clawed at his hands.

"What the–Kai!"

Sage turned around and quickly grabbed onto Iris's shoulder, who appeared behind her. He struggled in her grip, as she squeezed his shoulders and forced him back. She tried to calm him down but Iris had his wide eyes set on Zoe, and his concern was all too real.

"Let–let go!" Zoe screeched and kicked her legs. She tried glanced over Kai to peer at Iris, but Kai forced her head straight.

"Don't you dare look at him for help! I know who you are and what you want, I won't let you lay another finger on him."

Zoe whimpered and wiggled and fought to get free, but Kai knew right away it was all just for play. He knew she wasn't human, because despite his hands curled around her neck, she wasn't trying to breath properly. And the fear in her eyes wasn't from the thought of death, but the idea that she was caught.

"Show them," Kai seethed. He squeezed her neck tighter, blocking out Iris's protests and glared into her eyes that began to fade–fog.

"S–show?"

"Your fangs! Show them!"

Zoe, Sage and Iris flinched at his hollering demand. Iris broke free from Sage but stopped rushing towards Kai when he witnessed Zoe start to relax.

No way...

And with one final inhale, she began parting her mouth open.

But Iris didn't see the end results. Suddenly, a flash of black slammed into Kai, knocking him off of Zoe.

Everyone watched as Kai and Hyde rolled onto the floor before stumbling to their feet. Then as quickly as Hyde  appeared, Kai lunged for him and they both toppled over the four feet wall, sending them down with grunts.