Eyes Behind The Pillar

Eyes Behind The Pillar
Myra folded her arms, pressing her back on the cold wall. She didn't like this corner of the palace. It was too cold and silent.
Moonlight didn't touch this abandoned corridor. Just flickering light from the torches that hung on the walls.
In the distance, she could hear the faint hooting of owls beyond the hills. Their sounds only spooked her nerves.
She hugged herself for some warmth, wondering what was delaying him. The Alpha.
The one who had summoned her hours ago.
Just as she thought about him, he stepped into view, the familiar click of his boots instantly recognizable.
His hair was tousled with vengeance, his eyes bloodshot, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows.
He was nursing the same anxious frustration she was fighting.
"You sent for me" she said flatly.
"Didn't think you'd be foolish to come?"
As usual, his words made her blood boil. "I had no choice" she spat out then jabbed a finger at her neck.
"You gave me no choice."
His eyes narrowed slightly. "You brought this upon yourself."
A quick, bitter laugh passed her lips. "Are we falling back into the usual cycle of accusation? Is that why you sent for me ?"
"No" his voice was tight, his expression wasn't. "I summoned you for a much serious observation."
Her eyes widened involuntarily. "What is it? Has anyone find out? I will kill you if it's true" she blurted quickly.
"No one has....yet"
Her eyes sharpened to dagger-like slits. "What do you mean?"
He crossed his arms, watching her carefully, then took one step forward. "Your scent is leaking off me in waves. And some are noticing it"
Her heart felt a prickle of fear. "Does that mean....."
"Like I said, no one has caught up on it yet. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't be careful"
"I'm doing my best Alpha" her gaze sharpened. "I'm the one wearing the damn curse"
"That's my mark, not a curse" he murmured, his eyes blazing like twin pools of fire.
She stepped up to him, ignoring the way their breaths mixed in the cold. "That's what I'm talking about Alpha. Your mark is a curse. A curse I have to bear till you find a cure"
A muscle in his jaw twitched. He leaned closer, their lips barely touching. "There is no cure princess. So accept that brutal reality and think like an adult. There's no point in hoping for something hopeless"
His words stung. His heat tickled the mark. His musky scent of spice filled her nose.
But she fought those sensations and rewarded him with a scowl colder than the air around them. "That's such a comforting news to hear. The perfect good news for this ugly problem you caused"
"This is reality princess" he replied bluntly, pulling away from the temptation of her soft fragrance. "Get used to it"
Once again, she fought the urge to stab him with her nails. "Get used to what? Living in bondage? Carrying the weight of your mistake?"
"I'm also suffering from this" he pointed out, calm as ever. With a grip of his emotions.
Myra lost control of hers. "Suffering from what? I'm the one with the mark. I'm the one who lost my virtue. I'm the one suffering. Not you"
Arthur barely blinked. "You really enjoy painting yourself as a martyr"
"That's because I am Alpha. I'm the victim of this unfortunate fate"
"You're wrong" he refused. "Do you think I enjoy this? Do you think I wanted this?"
"Maybe you—"
"I didn't want this. I don't want you" he clarified with a clenched jaw. "I'm the Alpha. Do you think my pack would rejoice if they ever learn that you're my mate? The princess-turned-slave"
"That's none of my business. I have enough on my plate. Everyday, I wake up and wish this had never happened. My sister's life is on the line here—"
"And it will be as long as you're bonded to my wolf" he interjected with a threat.
Anger coursed through her veins, rolling off her in little bursts of light that went unnoticed.
Flames on the torches flickered for a brief moment even though there were no windows.
"If I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have touched you" he admitted in a surprising murmur. "You are the worst mate fate could ever give"
Myra scoffed and pulled the scarf tighter. "Bless your black heart Alpha. Because I curse that night" she broke off as tears burned her eyes.
Shit. She turned around before he could see the moistness in her eyes.
"If you had kept your wolfish lust in check, this wouldn't have happened Alpha. This is all your fault"
Arthur didn't speak. He didn't move.
But behind a pillar not too far away, someone else did.
Amber had come for a late-night snack in the kitchen. Because midnight honey buns always tasted different.
But then she heard voices coming from the other end and she paused her steps.
If Amber heard whispers, she listened.
So she tiptoed her way down a forgotten corridor and saw the silhouette of a tall figure.
Curiously, she slipped behind a pillar and watched. Her eyes immediately narrowed.
Arthur. And he wasn't alone.
She craned her neck slightly and saw a mop of ginger curly hair. With a scarf.
The slave princess.
Why were they here? Together? In the middle of the night?
She could hear whispers and murmurs but couldn't make out the words. She strained her ears yet nothing.
Amber sensed something fishy. The air was loaded with tension and suppressed heat.
Arthur looked.... tensed. His back was ramrod straight and his jaw was stiff.
Something was wrong.
The slave princess looked up to him with fire in her eyes. She was saying something..... something furious by the looks of it.
And Arthur leaned closer, towering over her, yet she didn't back away.
Amber's eyes widened and her lips curled upwards.
They were hiding something. Something big like her mother said.
The slave princess was the first to leave, looking tensed and ready to explode.
Arthur stared at the spot a second longer then his fingers clenched into fists before he walked away.
Amber came out of her hiding spot with a malicious smile. "Interesting"

The Halls were cold. Deserted. And silent.
Myra walked at a fast pace, her eyes darting between the shadows on the walls.
She had to slip away before anyone would see her.
"Myra?"
She jerked to a halt and spun around. Her heart dropped very, very low.
Lily clutched a bundle of linens, surprised to see her there. "What are you doing here? At this hour?"
She swallowed the sudden knot of fear lodged in her throat. "Me?" She laughed breathlessly. "I could ask you the same thing"
Lily's eyes narrowed. She walked closer. "Don't dodge the question. What are you doing here?"
Myra licked her lips. The truth burned at the top of her tongue. But she couldn't let anyone know.
"I forgot the way to my room" she explained lamely.
Lily didn't buy it, evident in the suspicious light that lurked beneath her gaze. But she let it slide. Like always.
"If you say so" she murmured, her eyes still narrowed. "Good night. And try not to forget next time"
Myra nodded, smiling anxiously then walked away, conscious of Lily's piercing gaze.
Lily's brows pulled to a deep frown. "She's hiding something"

When the door shut behind her, Myra finally sighed in relief.
Her hands reached up to her neck and carefully unfolded the scarf that hid her neck.... and the mark with it.
She brushed the rough edges, feeling its faint energy beneath her skin.
"I hate this. All of this" she murmured, crawling into her bed.
It was getting harder to hide as the days passed. Suspicions had begun to rise. And their scents were leaking off each other.
Myra looked up at the sky through her little window. The moon hung low in the sky, pulsing faintly like the mark.
"I don't want this. I don't want any of this. I just wish my life could go back to normal" she whispered.
It was foolish but deep down she couldn't shake off the feeling that someone.... or something heard her.
"I don't want to be his mate. I don't want to be anyone's mate. I just want to be Princess Myra" she spoke her thoughts aloud.
But no one answered. Just her and the darkness that soaked the room.
She bit back a sigh and prayed some celestial being heard her. Her eyelids grew heavy and slowly, she succumbed to sleep.
She was unaware of the sudden dash of red in the dark like a little burst of flame.
She missed the ancient whisper that echoed in the walls:
—All in fate,
All bond to mates,
Shadows to flames,
Blood to gate—