Chapter 20 She won't survive the night

Chapter 20 She won't survive the night

"If I find out you're lying to me, you'll be punished." Cersei continued, keeping her gaze pinned on Rue.

But Rue didn't budge. She kept a straight face and made sure her expression didn't give anything away.

There was one person who knew about the golden light, and that was Thane. And she could bet her life that he wouldn't tell anyone.

So she shook her head and answered. "I'm telling you the truth. I don't know anything about a golden light."

Cersei narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but she knew that the more she questioned Rue, the more the latter would continue to deny.

So she gave up. For now.

"Alright then." She said and stood up. "Keep whatever happened here between us. Got that? No one must know, not even the Alpha."

Rue hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Yes, ma'am."

Cersei brushed past her and headed towards the door. Halfway there, she stopped and turned around.

"Let me see your hand."

The sudden request confused Rue. Without thinking, she placed her hand on Cersei's outstretched one.

Cersei ran her thumb over the smooth surface of Rue's palm. There were no calluses, no blisters, no old wounds. Her palm was smooth and soft to the touch.

Certainly not the hand of an omega.

Omegas were made to work. As the lowest rank of the pack, they were subjected to immense torture, and it was the custom in every pack.

But Rue? She didn't have the hands of an omega who spent hours working in the pack. Rather, her hands were that of royalty.

But she didn't say this out loud. She just released Rue's hand, turned and walked out of the room.

Rue stood there, her heart thumping, wondering what exactly just happened.

A second later, Aurora poked her head through the door and peeked in.

"Is she gone?"

Rue nodded and slowly lowered to the bed. Aurora came to sit beside her with a worried look on her face.

"What did she want?" She asked curiously. "None of the council members have ever ventured into the harem."

"She knows I tried to escape."

Aurora's eyes widened, almost popping out. "You what? How? When did this happen?"

"It doesn't matter." Rue brushed her questions aside. "I won't be trying to escape again. But something tells me Cersei is trouble."

"If you ask me, the entire council is trouble." Aurora said in a whisper. "They always try to rule the kingdom in the Alpha's absence."

As she kept talking about the council, Rue's mind wandered. What did Cersei want? Why had she asked to see her hand?

She was beginning to get worried.

...

Thane stood at the edge of the terrace, gazing at the mountains in the distance. His eyes were unfocused as he stared at the position of the sun.

Behind it, he could see the moon faintly. Which meant in two days time, there would be a blood moon in the sky.

That phenomenon happened once every month, and that was the only night Thane dreaded completely.

It was the night he would go through immense pain, transforming into a bloodthirsty monster.

He would have to be chained all night, with shackles of silver to keep him weak. This was what he endured every month. It was part of the curse he carried.

He broke out of his thoughts when Henry cleared his throat behind him.

He turned and looked at him, his red eyes glowing eerily under the glare of the sun.

"Well?"

"You were right, Alpha." Henry began. "She isn't an omega."

Thane took his time to digest this news. He had suspected for a while that Rue wasn't an omega. She didn't act like one. She didn't cower away in fear, or bow her head when being spoken to.

She was bold, brazen, fearless and wasn't scared to speak her mind. Those weren't the qualities of a lowly omega.

And then, when he held her hand that morning in the garden, he noticed how soft it was. The hand of someone pampered and cared for, not someone who scrubbed floors.

"She's an Alpha's daughter, isn't she?" He asked after a while.

"Yes, Alpha." Henry nodded. "She is, in fact, the daughter of the late Alpha and Luna of Bloodhound pack."

"Go on." Thane urged him.

"She was heir to the Alpha title, but she was accused of murdering her parents." Henry continued. "But instead of killing her as is the custom, Helsing sold her off."

"Helsing, the uncle?"

"Yes, Alpha."

"Mhm." Thane hummed. Now he understood why Rue was so fearless. She was a princess, with pure alpha blood running through her veins.

But she had lied to him.

"Keep this information between us, Henry." He said finally. "Make sure no one gets wind of it, especially the council."

"Yes, Alpha. But what will you do about her?"

Thane thought for a moment. He already felt drawn to Rue, but that golden light confused him. He needed to find out what it meant.

"Send her to my bedroom tonight." He said finally.

Henry's lips lifted into a small smile. "Yes, Alpha." He said and walked away.

Thane remained where he stood, brooding silently. He had to find out why he felt so drawn to Rue, why he couldn't get her out of his mind.

It had to be the alpha blood in her, calling to him. Because if it turned out to be what he was thinking, there was only one way out.

Her death.

...

Rue stayed indoors all day, not wanting to cross paths with Thane.

Memories of their breakfast together, and their walk in the garden, plagued her all day. She couldn't deny the fact that she was slowly getting drawn to him.

She already lost count of how many times she stood by the window, hoping he would pass so she would catch a glimpse of him.

That night, as she prepared for bed, heavy knocks pounded on her door.

She froze for a second, her mind racing. Who was it?

When the loud knocks came again, she forced her feet to move and rushed to the door.

Henry stood on the other side when she opened it, with two fearsome looking warriors behind him.

"Seize her." He ordered.

"No!" The word barely left Rue's lips before the two warriors grabbed and dragged her out of the room.

Fear seized her, silencing her voice as she tried to scream. She didn't understand what she had done.

They dragged her to the castle, up the stairs to the top floor where Thane's bedroom was.

Her eyes widened as she realized what was happening.

"Please," she begged. "I have done nothing. Please."

Two maids who were retiring for the night stepped aside and bowed their heads as they walked past.

One shook her head in pity, and as they walked away, she whispered, "She won't survive the night."

"Why do you say that?" The other one asked.

"Because it's two days before the blood moon." The first one said, "The Alpha is in heat, and we all know how feral he is when he goes into heat."