•Cursed•

I woke up to the rising sun piercing through the window, and I just stared into emptiness. So many things happened last night and I wasn’t ready to leave her out of my sight.

They were onto her, King Theron, Elder Mara and maybe the entire council, they knew she was the cure to my curse.

Ayla lay across my bed, and I watched her breathe heavily, comfortably sleeping with her hair spread over the pillow in a dark fan.

A thought flashed through my mind, to kiss her neck, let myself melt into her perfect scent, and hold her body, which I was sure would mold perfectly against mine.

But I shut it down immediately, I couldn't allow myself to want her like that, I couldn't let these feelings take root in my heart, knowing well that wanting her could kill her.

I don’t want to watch her lose her life like Amaya.

Now I was comparing Ayla to Amaya. Perfect. As if my curse wasn't enough, my own memories had decided to hunt me too.

If I let my feelings for her grow and make sense, it will definitely kill her. I am not even sure if the prophecy was true or if it really means I will have to completely remove myself from her life.

But how do I do that if she sleeps on my bed every night? If I have to sleep on the chair to avoid myself from unknowingly crawling into her embrace in the middle of the night?

This was torture, I saw her shift on the bed, attempting to wake up, then after a few moments her eyes fluttered open, I could feel my breath catch in my throat.

I stood too quickly and went for the door, I couldn’t be close to her like this. Not when every second beside her pulled towards her presence.

“Are you leaving already?” she asked, voice rough with sleep but still soft. “It’s barely dawn.”

“Yes. I’m going out,” I said, keeping my back to her as my hand found the door handle.

“When will you be back?”

There it was, she wasn't being curious or trying to make small talk, it was fear dressed up as a question.

She was remembering what happened last night with Elder Mara and the way people could enter and do things to her while she couldn’t fight them off.

“Very soon,” I said. “No one will come in here to disturb you.”

I didn’t wait for her response. If I did, I’d turn around, and if I turned around, I’d stay.

I stepped out and closed the door behind me, then leaned back against it and let out a slow breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.

Avoiding her was difficult, but it was necessary.

The next few days were a careful kind of suffering, leaving the room before she woke up and returning right when others were asleep. It was more painful to watch her sleep and not be able to touch her or hear her voice.

As usual, I unlocked and opened the door slowly, to make sure she was asleep before I walked in as quietly as possible to avoid waking her and having to answer her probing questions.

I walked to the chair I’d been sleeping on for days, watching her sleeping beautifully on my bed woke something up inside of me, but I must ignore it, I cannot risk her life to satisfy myself or make myself feel good.

There was a knock on the door, and I saw her move in her sleep. She wasn’t a deep sleeper, so it was definitely going to wake her up if that person knocked again.

I stood up quickly to get to the door, wanting to open it before the person knocked again, and in doing so, I clumsily hit a pot that fell shattering to the ground, and I saw her spring up from the bed totally scared and hysterical.

“I’m here,” I said, going to her before her fear could swallow her whole. “I’m here.”

Her eyes landed on me and stayed there, but the terror in them wasn’t of me. It was what might come through the door and take me away.

“Rhydian,” she whispered, voice breaking. “They’ll come for you. Please don’t leave me when they come. Please…”

I cupped her cheeks, forcing her to look at me, grounding her with the only thing I could offer at that moment.

“Shh,” I murmured. “It’s alright. I’m not going anywhere.” The knock came again.

Ayla’s body sagged against mine and she fell asleep after a very short while.

I lay her back gently on the bed, adjusting the pillow and dropping her gently so as not to wake her again.

I went to the door and opened it just enough to see the guard standing there.

“The King summons you, Cursed One,” he said, I stared at him for a moment.

“Why exactly is the King sending for me at this time of the night?” I asked, the sarcasm barely disguised.

The guard blinked, clearly unsure whether he was allowed to react.

“I’ll be there soon,” I said. “I’m right behind you.”

I closed the door before he could attempt an answer.

For a moment, I stared back at Ayla, she must’ve been having a nightmare and I didn’t know if she would get those when I’m away.

So, I just watched and hoped that she’ll be okay when I get back.

The walk to the King's personal chambers was long and even more annoying than it usually was. I was supposed to be in my room, making sure that Ayla wasn’t having any more nightmares, and instead I was on my way to soothe a boy wearing a crown.

I walked into the room without any prior announcement because I believed Theron had heard my footsteps long beforeI reached the door. As an Alpha his senses were heightened but not like me, not even close.

I saw Elder Mara leaning in too closely to Theron when I walked into the room, she straightened the instant I walked in, but that didn’t change the fact that I might’ve picked up on what was happening.

“Why did you barge into my chambers?” he snapped. “Have you no respect?”

“Get on with it, Theron,” I said evenly. “Why did you call me here?”

His eyes flashed, anger fighting with something else. Unease, maybe. It came from him knowing he couldn’t actually command the monster he was talking to.

“The ambush,” he said. “What really happened?”

Across the room, Elder Mara watched me with scrutinizing eyes, as if she could look through me with a stare and check whether my curse had shifted.

“We have a mole in the palace,” I said. “More importantly, within your council. Someone has aligned themselves with the rogues and they’re feeding them information.”

Theron’s face twisted, disbelief crashing into him like a wave.

“In my council of elders? Impossible.”

“Yet it happened,” I replied.

“We have to find them and end them, we can’t afford for that to happen again.”

He stared at me, and for a moment he looked less like a King and more like a child trying to convince the world he wasn’t afraid.

“And the girl,” he said, voice tight, testing. “Ayla.”

“Leave Ayla to me,” I said. “She is my responsibility. Only mine.”

Theron didn’t flinch, he just stared at me not knowing what to say.

“And if anyone dares to enter my chambers and put their hands on her again,” I continued, letting the cold slip into my tone, “I will deliver their head to you myself.”

Elder Mara’s eyes hardened, but I saw the tremor she tried to hide. Theron was annoyed, and looked at me like I was the unreasonable one.

“I do these things for your own good, Rhydian,” he said.

“I never asked,” I replied.

I turned to leave and behind me, Theron spoke again, his voice calm in a practiced way that meant he wanted it to sound like control instead of threat.

“You have just four days left,” he said. “Don’t make me send my guards to come here and kill the girl.”

I paused at the door, wanting him to understand exactly what he was doing.

Then I looked back over my shoulder.

“Let them try,” I said.

And I walked out.