Chapter 21: Chapter 21

REYNA

The tunnel was a very scary place. Even with the candle, it was still dark.

I felt the hairs on my nape stand to attention. I couldn’t help imagining some beast jumping out of the shadows to grab me.

These thoughts made me pull out my dagger, holding it in one hand while the other gripped the candle. I increased my pace, walking faster than before.

Just because I had a dagger and could fight didn’t mean I shouldn’t avoid trouble.

It was a long tunnel with so many confusing routes, but I stuck to the left, hoping the map I had seen earlier was right.

I suspected the darkness made the walk feel longer, when it actually wasn’t a long tunnel. After a few minutes that felt much longer, I finally reached the end.

There were two doors here as well. The left route had served me well; it had brought me to these doors—two doors, to be fair—even if I didn’t know which would lead me to where I wanted to be.

I decided to take a leap of faith. I grabbed the rusted bronze doorknobs.

My heart was beating faster.

I yanked hard. The door was heavy, and it creaked louder than I’d anticipated before it started to open. Dust puffed out in my face from the little opening.

You could tell the door hadn’t been opened in a long time.

I placed the candle on the ground. Using both my hands, I used all my strength to open it all the way.

Relief coursed through me at what I saw. I knew this place. I was on the right path—this was the servant quarters.

I grabbed the candle and blew it out as I took a right.

I climbed down a few stairs, then I was there.

~In the dungeon.~

The dungeon was the coldest place I’d ever been. It was so chilly and dead silent, which made every step of mine sound louder and louder in my ears.

Fortunately, I didn’t walk for long before I finally saw the cells.

I lit the candle and held it away from my face so I could see inside the cells as I moved along them.

The first one was empty. The second one was too.

I startled and let out an embarrassing squeak when I suddenly heard a low growl before I could reach the third cell.

I walked slowly in the direction I heard the sound.

When I reached the middle cell, before I could shine the candle, I knew instantly that this was where they kept him. The sound seemed to come from there.

The beast was sitting on the cold cobblestone floor, his back to the wall, his feet shackled.

His hands were shackled too, to the long chains that dropped from the stone ceiling.

I tried to see his face, but the dungeon was too dark even with the candle.

It was when he lifted his head that I finally saw his green eyes glowing in the dark, eerily.

“What the hell happened to you?” he growled angrily, standing up in all his half-naked glory.

Big, tall, intimidating, and strangely beautiful.

“What do you mean?”

“Your face, who did this to you? I fucking want their names.”

Realization set in. Oh. He was talking about the bruises on my face, as if he…cared? Bullshit that. Why would he care?

According to Cassandra, I was nothing but food to him after he was done rutting me, that is. Yeah, she had said that to me when I insisted I go to the interrogation.

“It’s nothing. Where’s the other beast?” I asked to distract him from talking about me.

He narrowed his glowing eyes but allowed the change of topic.

“Probably dead or being tortured right now. You would know better,” he replied emotionlessly.

Aghast, I said, “I wouldn’t have asked if I knew. And isn’t he your friend? Shouldn’t you be more worried about him? But instead, you sound like you don’t really care.”

He grinned, baring those deadly fangs.

“How can you not know? You’re the princess. I’m sure you are being groomed and trained on how to skewer the beasts and all the other duties as the heir,” he replied.

“As I should. It’s my duty to protect my people from monsters like you.”

Despite what I just said, the mere thought of torturing this beast was unbearable. But I refused to let him know that.

He smirked.

“You’re cute when you’re angry, little human. And I’m not judging—I admire strength. And about Jakos, I did care about him. If he died, it was definitely a loss. But he knew what he was getting into when he decided to come with me. If he died, I would mourn him, but we’d all die someday.”

“He’s your friend, right?” I didn’t know what it was I was searching for. Maybe I wanted to understand a little bit about him, to know if they loved and cared about their own, or if they were just the way the books and everyone said they were.

~Mindless animals!~

“I’m surprised you came, Kitten. I was beginning to wonder if I’d dreamed you up there. You didn’t come to see the beast get tortured—why? Don’t tell me you’re squeamish?”

“I’m never squeamish,” I retorted.

He grinned.

“Good to know.”

“Is it true?” My voice was soft, not more than a whisper. I was afraid someone might hear me and wonder why they could hear a woman’s voice in the dungeon.

“Is what true?” he asked, in that growly, rumbly voice.

He tried to take a step closer. When he growled again, it was one of irritation, his red orbs glowing brighter.

I flinched but stood my ground. I wasn’t the whimpering, trembling type of girl, but I had been doing that a lot lately, and I hated it.

Though something twisted deep below every time he growled. And ninety-five percent of the time, I found myself wanting to get closer to him. Wanting to trust him, to touch him.

It was that five percent that kept holding me back, reminding me of how easy it was for him and his kind to break into our queendom. Of how easily they’d kill women like me.

Reminding me of how easily he could break my bones, even if deep down I truly didn’t believe he’d hurt me. Which was stupid—to believe that.

It was all these sudden feelings in my heart and the logical thoughts in my head that were constantly at war that confused me.

I didn’t know anything about him, and yet I felt like I’d known him all my life. Maybe it was due to this freakish connection between us.

That connection was only getting stronger, assuring me that I was safe with him, that he’d rather hurt himself than hurt me. But how could I trust a magical connection that was suddenly sprung on me?

How did I know that wasn’t his goal, that he didn’t do that to mess with my head and make me betray my people? I took a step closer even as that logical part told me to back off.

I could see how tightly he’d been chained. He wouldn’t be able to hurt me; the chain was especially made with pure silver for his kind. That’s what I’d heard, anyway.

“Is it true that you eat humans, tear into their chest and stomach to eat their hearts and other…”

He barked out a laugh that startled me. His laughter was so deep and husky it made me tingly in certain places.

Afraid that his loud laughter would bring the guardians down here, where I would be caught and probably punished severely, I took a step, trying to quiet him down.

“Hush… Keep your voice down!” I whispered more harshly than I intended.

That was when he moved, the chain making a rattling sound with every movement.

The chain only allowed him a little movement, because he stopped only a few feet from the wall, not even halfway to the barred iron.

Fortunately, together the candle and the glow of his eyes lightened his hard, handsome face.

I gasped, horrified at the bloody mess his handsome face had turned into. His nose was broken. His one eye was shut, and he was limping.

I knew what had happened to him. While Cassandra had said it was necessary, I didn’t like seeing him hurt.

I didn’t like seeing anyone hurt, beast or no beast, and seeing him hurt right now, I felt something tug at my heartstrings. I wished there was something I could do.