Chapter 24
CHAPTER 24
Author's POV
"Go and clean Magnus room." Nerissa commanded Zara, despite working all day long. Zara had no choice than to obey, despite the exhaustion weighing down on her. But then Zara felt a kind of strength when she heard it was Magnus room. She had been worried about how he's been doing since he fell into coma and now is an opportunity to know about his health status.
She made her way towards the room, her heart pounding so fast that she could hear it in her ears. Her hands trembled slightly, as she could literally feel his fears in his unconscious state due to the mate bond.
The moment she stepped into the room, it was like a load of emotions crashed down on her. The room was eerily silent, the air thick with the pungent smell of medicine and a trace of Magnus scent.
"He doesn't even smell like he normally does again." She thought as she stepped further into the room.
Despite the paleness of his skin and the way he looked lifeless, one could still take notice of the sharp features of his face. He looked so handsome, still.
Zara swallowed past the lump in her throat. She couldn't tear her eyes away from him. The sight of him this weak, still sent a pang of pain and guilt through her chest.
Slowly, she moved closer as if drawn to him by some kind of invisible forces. Maybe it was the mate bond or something else, but she didn't realise when her trembling fingers brushed against his hands and before she could stop herself, she took it in her own hands.
It was warm.
In the depth of his unconsciousness, Magnus stirred. He was in a vision. Thick and suffocating darkness surrounded him as he sat on the cold floor of a confined room. But suddenly, a light managed to get into the room and then a warmth came from the cold floor.
Zara.
She appeared inside the room, stood before him, smiling, her hand outstretched towards him. Magnus who was still seated weakly, hesitated before taking her hand. But when his gaze locked with hers and then the smile playing on her lips, he found his strength and stood up. He stretched his hand and Zara took it, guilding him out of the room, out of his abyss.
In the physical, his fingers twitched, the sensation of her touch pulling him towards consciousness. Zara too felt the flicker of movement but before she could even process what she had just seen, a sharp sting exploded across her cheek.
The force of the slap sent her stumbling backwards. Zara hand held her cheeks, stunned, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.
"You dare touch him?" Nerissa's voice was ice, her eyes ablaze with fury. "You're still flirting with him despite everything."
"I... I...." Zara tried to talk but the pain from her cheeks won't let her.
"I can't believe you Zara, after everything you've done, you still had the gut to want to touch him, huh?" Nerissa said, her rage barely contained.
"He.....was moving," Zara whispered as the tears finally rolled down her cheeks. She looked down at Magnus, who was unmoving, but in his subconscious, they were almost out of the room until Zara disappeared and everything went dark again. If only Zara could touch him again, he'd be out of the room and probably regained his consciousness.
But Nerissa wasn't having it. The mere thought of them being mates annoyed her, and she believed that the mate bond had held Magnus back and made him weak. If not, he won't be lying here. He would have seized the throne already and she would have become his Luna.
"Seize her!" Nerissa snapped at the guards.
Two men stepped forward, ready to grab and drag her out, but before they could Viktor's voice rang out from the doorway.
"That's enough, Nerissa." His tone was firm, warning, enough to make the guards halt mid step. He stepped inside the room, and locked eyes with Nerissa, his jaw tight. "It's enough that she's a maid, you can't treat her like a criminal. This is too much."
Nerissa's eyes flashed dangerously. "You don’t get to tell me what’s too much," she spat. "This is my house. My rules. I'm in charge here Viktor. And I advised you leave if you can't take it."
Viktor's anger boiled over. "You know how important she is. What if she ends up dead or something? Magnus won't like this when he wakes up."
Nerissa stepped closer to Viktor, one of her fingers poking into the wall of his chest, her voice was a low, dangerous whisper. "I don't care how important she is. I don't care if she ends up dead. And I don't care if Magnus likes it or not." Then she crossed her arms. "And most importantly, you seemed to have forgotten your place, forgotten where your loyalty lies. I think I need to remind you of that."
Viktor couldn't believe his ears. Was she trying to imprison him too? He opened his mouth to argue, but his phone vibrated in his pocket and quickly retrieved the device. A message. He glanced down at the screen, his expression darkening instantly.
A spy from Ashen's pack. His stomach twisted as he read the words.
Ashen is coming. He's bringing men. Tonight.
Viktor looked up, his gaze sharp. "We have a big problem."
Nerissa turned to him, annoyed. "What now?"
"Ashen is planning to launch an attack."
The room fell into tensed silence as the words settled in.
Nerissa exhaled sharply, frustration gnawing at her. Her face twisted with both anger and validation. "This is exactly why we should have never shown kindness to her," she hissed, throwing Zara a look of pure disdain. "Ashen is coming for us because of her."
Viktor felt weak and helpless. He had defended Zara seconds ago, but now he wasn't even sure of what to do anymore.
Zara's blood ran cold. Ashen was coming? Again? Even when Magnus is still unconscious?
Fear coiled inside her as she wondered what type of man Ashen really is and why would he still try to attack a man who was already dying. Before she could react, Nerissa waved at the guards.
"Take her out of here. Now. You will tied her up to the pole at the gate, so that when Ashen comes, his bride's face is still first thing he saw."
The man reached for Zara and grabbed her.
"Please......" Zara pleaded desperately.
But then—
A weak, hoarse voice cut through the tension.
"Leave.... her.... alone."