Chapter 81 Eighty-One.
Chapter 81 Eighty-One.
OLIVIA’S POV.
My mind reels, a wave of profound confusion washing over me.
How did I do that?
Where did that explosive strength come from? I haven’t even awoken my Fae energy yet… or have I?
The announcer comes up and checks the pulse of the now naked man, “Dead! This is crazy. One of the most formidable contestants has been taken down with just a strike from Olivia the Fae. This is insane. Unprecedented! Olivia the Fae will be facing Ripper Ghost in the conclusion of this Dance of the Dead in three days!”
The crowd slowly erupts into a mix of hesitant cheers and stunned whispers.
I do not think too much about it. I cannot afford to analyze the strange anomaly, because at the end of the day I survived.
I turn around and walk straight back into the shadows of the tunnel, my mind entirely numb.
The match went smoothly. Too smoothly. But the victory brings me no joy, because I know what comes next. There is only one hurdle left between me and my wish from King Sven. One final match that will take place exactly three days from now.
Against the Ripper Ghost.
The serial killer of the kingdoms. A monster who has never left an opponent breathing.
When I finally slip back into the quiet, deserted corridors of the lower palace levels, trying to make it back to my room to process the terror of the upcoming final, a hand suddenly shoots out from a dark alcove. Fingers wrap tightly around my wrist, pulling me violently into the shadows of an empty, abandoned pantry room.
I raise my staff to strike, but a deep and familiar baritone stops me cold.
“Easy, Olivia. It’s just me.”
My eyes adjust to the small space.
Orion stands before me, a heavy midnight-blue cloak, one he wore the last time we spoke for the first time, is thrown over his shoulders, his ocean-blue eyes gleaming with dark amusement.
“You,” I hiss, ripping my wrist out of his grip. “Are you insane? I told you the other night I am not interested in your games. If King Sven—”
“Sven is currently screaming at his council members about the bodies that keeps piling at the borders,” Orion interrupts smoothly, crossing his hands behind his back. “He is entirely occupied. And besides, I couldn’t resist coming down to congratulate you. That was quite a show you put on out there, Olivia. One strike? Impressive. Truly.”
“I don’t need your congratulations,” I snap, keeping my staff raised between us. “What do you want, Orion? I already gave you my answer. I am not selling out the King.”
“Yes, you gave me your answer, but do you know who your next opponent is?” Orion asks, his tone shifting into something far more calculating. “The Ripper Ghost. Three days from now, you will walk into that arena, and he will tear you to pieces. You know it, I know it, and even your beloved King Sven knows it. You will not survive him.”
“I knew I would have to face him when participating, and I will find a way to win. I have to.”
“With what? That broken stick you point at me?” Orion snides, a bitter laugh escaping his lips. “Do not let today’s fluke blind your judgment. The Ripper Ghost wasn’t just a serial killer whose story was told like folklore myth. It took more than a hundred vampires to capture him. If you step into that ring in three days, you are committing suicide. And when you die, your brother Kyle dies with you.”
The mention of Kyle’s name makes my blood run cold. “Leave my brother out of this. That was not what you said. You told me you’re not bothered if I win or lose, so what changed?”
“I can’t leave him out of it, because he is currently laying half-dead in my cabin,” Orion counters sharply, his ocean-blue eyes locking onto mine with terrifying intensity.
“What do you mean half-dead?” I stammer.
“Apparently the guards he fought against shot him with arrows filled with poison. While his wounds healed, the poison remained in him and has caused him severe migraine. He lays in bed shivering as we speak,” he explains.
“You monster,” I whisper, my eyes stinging with tears of pure rage. “You’re using my brother as a pawn.”
“If I was, I would think of a better lie than just saying he got poisoned.”
I bark a laugh, still unable to believe it. “You are lying.”
“Why would I?” He raises a questioning brow. “The Omega— Katniss, is out searching for herbs to help cure him. But even that is not guaranteed because she does not know the poison circulating inside of him, and getting a physician only means we risk selling him out. Which is why I offer you a new deal…”
I try to calm myself down, but the thought of my brother dying keeps making me panic. “So, what’s your new deal, I’m listening?”
“I am willing to help you and get a physician from the South for your brother. Someone I can fully trust if only you cooperate with me.”
“Damn it. Just get straight to the point. What is your new deal?”
“Fair enough,” he says with a dry chuckle. “I’ll cut to the chase. I need you to confirm what I already suspect. Tell me Sven is a Fae—”
“Again with this bullshit. I already told you he isn’t a Fae. Why are you so obsessed with this? It’s getting boring already.”
“I had my suspicions since we were kids, Olivia,” he says suddenly. “Sven had just returned from wherever he was. Maggi was attending to him, helping him with his bath because for some reason the maids were not granted access to him. When he was stripped I saw it… two scars on his back. As a kid, I didn’t think much of it. Until you called him a Fae. It struck a memory inside of me back to then. Those two scars I had seen were just evidence of his wings which had been cut.”
I swallow, staying still. Just like I assumed Orion does have a reason for believing my words and I suddenly feel stupid for ratting King Sven out in the square.
“Listen, Olivia, I need that truth to unite the Southern Alphas and help grant the South sovereignty and finally drag him off that throne while I take over what should be rightfully mine.”
I swallow hard, my voice shaking but firm as I back up toward the door. “And why would I do that? Even if I knew anything, starting a massive war isn’t going to save me or my brother.”
“No, but my physician will and so will helping you stay alive,” Orion says. His eyes look incredibly cold now. “Here is the deal, Olivia. You swear to help me bring Sven down when the time comes. In exchange, I send a doctor from the South to that cabin with the antidote before the poison reaches Kyle's heart. On top of that, I’ll get you out of the palace before you have to fight the Ripper Ghost. You can just walk away with your brother, healthy and free.”
The offer hangs between us, and for a second, it feels completely intoxicating.
An escape from a suicide match and my twin brother cured. It feels like the freedom I have wanted all my life just got handed to me.
But then I remember Sven’s hands around my waist in my room at midnight. I remember the tired, vulnerable King who actually found peace when I sang him my serenade.
If I take Orion’s deal, I am signing King Sven’s death warrant.
“You want me to sell out the King for an antidote I haven’t even seen,” I whisper, my fingers finding the iron handle of the pantry door behind me. And I feel stupid for gambling with Kyle’s life. “I won't do it, Orion.”
“Why?” Orion asks, but it comes out as rhetorical.
His voice is like a low heavy warning that follows me out into the hallway as I push the door open.
“Three days until the Ripper Ghost takes your life, Olivia. Let’s see how much your loyalty matters when you go up against the Ripper Ghost and that poison takes your brother’s last breath,” Those are his final words to me as I shut the door.