Chapter 69 Where Loyalties Lie
"Are you sure you do not want me to come with you?" Sebastian asked Fernanda as he escorted her to the palace's lawn where her carriage was already waited on standby for her. "No, I'm positive." She shook her head.
She gasped when she saw the amount of soldiers and servants waiting to escort her to her father's home. She whipped her head towards Sebastian, "I highly doubt I need this many security just to go see my father."
"That is non negotiable darling, I will not let you leave unguarded." Sebastian replied, the firmness voice leaving no room for protest. Fernanda tried to speak but Sebastian's face hardened, telling her he wasn't going to change his mind. "Fine... Whatever." She said, rolling her eyes.
Sebastian gently caressed her cheek with his thumb, staring intently into her eyes. "The moment I sense something you are in danger or something's not right, I'm coming over to get you." He told her.
Fernanda smiled, "You worry about me too much. I would be anything but in danger in my father's mansion. Except if you want to take into account my stepmother's constant hostility towards me but she's someone I can handle. So you don't need to worry." She assured him, closing her hand over his.
Sebastian smirked proudly upon hearing how confident Fernanda sounded, he dropped his hands down to her waist and firmly pulled her closer. "Sebastian! What are you doing–" Fernanda exclaimed, glancing quickly at the soldiers and servants on standby. Her cheeks immediately became flushed with crimson.
"You promise to be back before dusk settles in fully?" He asked, raising a brow. "I would be back even before dusk, I promise." Fernanda said. Even after her promise, Sebastian was reluctant to let her go. "How will I be able to get back before dusk if you aren't willing to let me go now?" Fernanda said, teasing him.
Sebastian finally released his hold on her waist but not after he kissed her lightly on the side of her face. The feel of his mouth on her cheek made butterflies flutter happily in Fernanda's stomach. She quickly turned around and began to walk to her carriage in a hurry, not wanting Sebastian to see the redness on her face.
Her hand flew over to her mouth just as soon as she got inside the carriage in a bid to suppress the scream in her throat.
Sebastian stood still on the same spot as he watched her carriage depart for the Parkinson's mansion. "Report to me every hour." He ordered one of his trusted soldiers who rode with her through mindlink.
"Yes your majesty."
Maya's eyes slowly fluttered opened after a long nap. She stifled a yawn as she got up unsteady on her feet. It turned out Levi was right after all, her body still needed some more rest. "That jerk," she muttered.
Then she remembered what she had told him and wanted to scream her lungs out. "Why on Lunareth would you ask him that?!" She berated herself. "He must have thought I was crazy." She concluded with a deep sigh and a shake of her head.
Her stomach grumbled loudly indicating hunger. Just as she was about to get up to go get some food, she heard a knock on the door. Maya rushed towards it and when she opened the door, she saw two maidservants standing with trays of food in their hands.
Maya recognized the two ladies because they were all once co workers, she immediately took it from them. "Oh no... You didn't have to, I was going to come get it myself." She told them with an awkward laugh.
They both looked at her impassively, "We were given strict orders to bring your your meals over." One of them responded. They were about to ask Maya how she got herself to be treated like royalty, but immediately stepped away and dispersed once they saw Levi.
Maya stood frozen in the doorway, the trays of food balanced precariously in her hands as Levi walked toward her.
Of all the things her mind could have chosen to focus on in that moment, it latched onto one humiliating memory. The question she had asked him earlier. The one that had slipped out of her mouth before she could stop it. The one that had lodged itself firmly into her thoughts and refused to leave.
Her ears burned, heat spreading fast as embarrassment crept up her neck.
Levi stopped a few steps away from her, his sharp gaze flicking briefly to the trays in her hands before returning to her face. A slow smirk tugged at his lips, one that told her far too much.
“You are just going to stand there and let the food grow cold?” he asked mildly. “Or were you not hungry after all?”
As if summoned by his words, Maya’s stomach betrayed her with a loud, unmistakable growl. The smell of warm bread and seasoned meat flooded her senses, making her mouth water despite herself.
She groaned softly. “Traitor,” she muttered under her breath, glaring down at her own stomach.
Levi’s smirk widened.
Maya shot him a look, mortified. “I was hungry,” she said quickly. “Very hungry. But then you showed up.”
“And that stopped you?” he asked, clearly amused.
“Yes,” she snapped, then sighed when she realized how that sounded. “I mean no. I mean… you are distracting.”
“Good to know,” Levi replied, entirely too pleased with himself.
She rolled her eyes and shifted the trays in her hands. “Why are you here anyway?”
“To check if you were awake,” he answered easily. “And to talk about the shadow wielders we took prisoner.”
That sobered her instantly.
“Oh,” she said quietly. “Right.”
She hesitated, then stepped aside. “You might as well come in.”
Levi paused, his body going still for just a fraction of a second before he nodded and followed her into the room. The door closed behind him with a soft click that sounded far louder than it should have.
The moment they were alone, the air shifted.
Maya felt it immediately, a strange awareness settling over her skin. Levi felt it too. His shoulders tensed slightly, his jaw tightening as he fought for control. Somewhere beneath his calm exterior, his Lycan stirred restlessly, pleased at the closeness, pleased at the privacy.
Maya did not notice the internal battle. She was too focused on the food.
She set the trays down and began eating without hesitation, tearing into the meal as though she had not eaten in days. She barely paused to breathe, shoveling food into her mouth with reckless abandon.
Levi stared at her in disbelief. “Slow down,” he warned. “You are going to choke.”
She waved him off with one hand, cheeks already full. “I am fine.”
She was not.
A second later, she coughed violently, choking as the food lodged in her throat. Levi moved instantly, crossing the room in two strides.
“Lunareth’s mercy,” he muttered, grabbing a cup of water and pressing it into her hands. “Drink. Slowly.”
Maya coughed again, eyes watering as she gulped the water down. Levi rubbed her back firmly, his touch steady and grounding.
“See?” he said. “Exactly what I warned you about.”
She finally caught her breath and slumped back against the chair, mortified.
“I was eating like that because I was embarrassed.”
Levi frowned slightly. “About what?”
She refused to look at him. “About the stupid thing I asked you earlier.”
Understanding dawned in his eyes.
Ah.
That.
To Maya’s surprise, he did not laugh. He did not tease her further. His expression softened instead.
“You have nothing to be embarrassed about,” he said quietly.
She glanced up at him, suspicious. “You are lying.”
“I am not.”
“You absolutely are.”
Levi sighed and straightened, crossing his arms. “If you must know, I liked that you asked.”
Her heart skipped. “You… what?”
“I said I liked it,” he repeated, his voice calm but his body tense. “It was honest.”
Maya stared at him, stunned. Then she shook her head. “You are impossible.”
“And you are still alive,” he countered. “Which means you should eat properly.”
She huffed but resumed eating at a slower pace this time.
When she finished, Levi finally brought up the reason he had come.
“The prisoners,” he said. “They refuse to speak.”
Maya nodded. “That is expected.”
“All they gave us were their names,” Levi continued. “Nothing else.”
“They were trained that way,” Maya replied. “The Order drills it into you. Names only. No matter what.”
Levi studied her carefully. “You said you know how to make them talk.”
“I do.”
“How?”
She hesitated. “It is not… pleasant.”
He accepted that without comment. “Sebastian also wants to know if there are higher authorities within the Order. Anyone above Damon.”
The tension in the room thickened instantly.
Maya looked down at her hands.
“There are,” she admitted. “But not many.”
Levi’s gaze sharpened. “And?”
“And what?”
“And are you going to tell me who they are?”
Silence stretched between them.
Maya’s thoughts raced. She thought of Sloane. Of the healer who had saved her life when she had been nothing more than a prisoner. Of the unspoken debt hanging over her heart.
If Sebastian learned everything, the prisoners would be executed. There would be no mercy.
Levi noticed her hesitation. “You are withholding something.”
“Yes,” she said honestly.
“Why?”
She swallowed. “Because there's someone I need to protect,"
His expression hardened, duty overtaking whatever warmth lingered there. “Your feelings do not outweigh the safety of the kingdom.”
She flinched. “I know.”
“Then choose wisely,” Levi said. “Because this is not just about you.”
Maya looked up at him, her heart heavy with uncertainty.
She did not answer.
The carriage rolled to a stop at exactly noon.
Fernanda stepped down slowly, her breath catching as the familiar sight of her father’s mansion loomed before her. Memories flooded her senses, sharp and unrelenting. The rain. The desperation. The night she had tried to run.
Jordan stood at the entrance, his face lighting up the moment he saw her. Caroline stood beside him, her posture stiff, her expression unreadable.
“Father,” Fernanda said softly.
Jordan rushed forward and pulled her into a tight embrace. “My child,” he murmured. “You look well.”
Caroline said nothing.
Fernanda greeted her politely anyway. The woman turned her head as if Fernanda had not spoken at all.
It did not hurt the way it once would have.
Once inside, Fernanda wasted no time. “I would like to speak with my father alone.”
Caroline scoffed. “I have a right to know what goes on in this house.”
Jordan turned on her sharply. “Leave us.”
Caroline stared at him in disbelief, then at Fernanda, hatred flashing in her eyes. She left without another word.
Fernanda waited until she was gone.
Then she looked at her father.
“Did you know who my mother was before you married her?”