Chapter 59: A Bitter History

Kieran

The old shop embedded in the Western wall near the ocean was quite easy to miss. With the thick moss almost covering the door and walls, and heaps of trash thrown by the vicious waters over the walls, it was barely visible to someone who didn’t come to the place that much.

But I’ve been here countless times. And even if I’m blindfolded, I would’ve found the doorknob easily.

The wooden door felt damp, almost rotten to the touch. It creaked loudly, the rust in its hinges rattled by my arrival. But as empty as the streets outside, the shop felt abandoned. Various jars containing Goddess-knows-what sat on the shelves, untouched and collecting dust.

The floor cried as I entered, closing the door behind me. Lind won’t be back for an hour from the market.

I have plenty of time.

I didn’t panic as tentacles began to creep from the darkest corners of the shop, slowly reaching towards me. The longest and biggest one wrapped around my body. My wolf internally gagged as it felt its soft, squishy, and damp feel around us, with numerous small suction marks touching our skin.

I reprimanded Trigger. After all, it used to be a familiar touch.

It did not take long before the owner of the said tentacles showed herself.

“What brings you here, Kieran? I thought you’d forgotten about me.”

“Akasha,” I softly called, as her tentacle let me go. Akasha stepped out of the dark, her tentacles slowly turning into maiden legs. She did not hesitate as she ran towards me, greeting me with her lips, but before she could even kiss me, I had already stepped back. She frowned as her pale gray eyes glowed in the dark, her gaze falling on my wrist. “You’ve found her already.”

I didn’t answer her question. Instead, I placed a small bag of gold coins on the table. “I’m here to buy something.”

“We’re closed.”

“Please? For old times’ sake?”

She stopped dead in her tracks. Akasha turned to face me, her eyes filled with disbelief. “And when did you learn how to beg? You’re as proud as your wolf, as far as my memory serves me.”

I pulled a chair and sat across her, as Akasha settled behind her counter. I watched her as her tentacles organized the shelf filled with jars, each movement creating a soft clink. “I’m a Vassal now.”

She scoffed. “Yes, as I’ve heard. A Vassal and mate to the strongest Queen candidate, huh?”

I ignored the bitterness in her voice. “It’s not unknown that we’re set to ride the Queen Selena three days from now for the third trial. I’m after the Siren’s Tears. I’ll pay whatever amount you ask for.”

The Siren’s Tears. A rare, elusive drug that could suppress urges brought by siren song. It was too rare that people thought it was nothing but a myth. But I’ve known better.

Money wasn’t an issue. After my distant uncles reached out to me and told me about a secret inheritance my Mother, the late Lady White, left for me, I’ve learned how our family used to be richer and nobler than the Hunts.

Not until that vile woman and my bastard of a father decided to ruin everything.

Akasha’s laughs pulled me back into reality. “Oh? Now money’s not an issue to you? You’ve changed so much, Kieran.  I almost didn’t recognize you.”

I impatiently glanced at my watch. “I don’t have much time, so please, process my order now.”

Her grip on the rag she was using to clean around tightened. “You think you can barge in here and act as if nothing happened between us? Kieran, you used to love me! You think I could just accept that you—”

“Akasha, I wasn’t the one who left first,” I quietly reminded her as flashes of our memories together came back to me. “You chased after another Siren, and now it’s my fault that the Goddess showed me my true mate?”

She was a Lycan-Siren hybrid. And as a White treated as an outcast in my family and by society, I’ve understood her. Until the understanding turned to affection.

And just like Hestia, I’ve dreamt of simpler times before.

Not until the very last day of my mother’s funeral, Akasha arrived, carrying all of her belongings, after disappearing for almost a week. Telling me that she can’t stay with me and that she would chase who her heart truly wants: another siren named Mero. A siren, who, after a year, decided to dump her back into the land.

She only watched as my world crumbled around me, and then twisted a knife straight into my heart the very moment she found a reason to do so.

“If I had only known…” she softly sobbed.

“Crying over the past would do you nothing, Akasha,” I said as I walked towards the shelf, looking for the very same drug I was looking for. When I saw it sitting on the shelf, I grabbed it and placed another bag of silver coins on the counter. “Pleasure doing business with you.”

Before I could reach for the door, her voice rang in the corners of the small shop. “Would you truly do everything for her?”

“Why not? She’s my mate.”

Akasha bitterly laughed. “Don’t you remember the premonition I had when we were together, Kieran? The Goddess showed me that you’ll die protecting the person you love. I was so scared back then… Aren’t you afraid that you’ll die protecting that woman?”

I gave her one last glance before facing the door. “If it meant occupying a space in her heart, then I’ll gladly do that.”

“You fool! Kieran—”

I didn’t hear the rest of her words after I slammed the door shut. It didn’t matter to me what she thought of Hestia.  All I know is that I love her, and I want to protect her.

The rest is nothing but static noise.

I held the small vial against the sunlight, watching as it glistened in the sun. I know that Castiel and Augustus would be on the same ship with us.

A wicked smile crept on my lips. While I agreed to share Hestia’s heart, I would still rather keep her in my bed during our voyage than share her with those two idiots.

After all, they’re like walking landmines. One wrong move, and they would bring another scandal on Hestia’s plate.

I placed the vial in my pocket as I saw Lind approaching, carrying bags of produce and food. We had both decided to leave him in the manor to keep him safe.

“Kieran, I’ve found something on the floor!” he signed to me with his fingers, before showing me a coin, carrying the emblem of the Crown Prince of the Reds.

I immediately looked around, scouting the area. My senses picked up nothing. I’m well aware of the issues Alfonso has been bringing to Hestia lately, especially with that spy of his.

And if my hunch is right… We might see him during the trial.

I took the coin from Lind and kept it in my pocket. “Don’t tell Hestia. I’ll handle this personally.”