Chapter 27
Ciara.
A few days had passed since the incident with Liam. On the bright side, I had been preoccupied with doing embroidery because the Luna was really impressed with what I had done the other day. She had been really kind to me, and I couldn't see how anyone could dislike her.
Blake had remained distant, but I had been checking up on him secretly. Surprisingly, I didn't notice him having any sort of affair with any of the maids and he remained in his room most of the time. Liam wasn't scarce and I saw him every now and then, but we had been ignoring each other. Alden... Alden hadn't been seen much, and according to the Luna, he was really busy with preparations for the masquerade ball.
For whatever reason, I had been feeling so unhappy and restless. Perhaps, it was the fact that neither of the brothers were speaking to me, but I wasn't sure. I knew I needed something to ease my stress, but I just didn't know what it was. I heard a knock on my door. When it came again, I stood up from the bed and went to open it and I was surprised to see it was Blake. "Can I come in?" he asked.
I was too stunned to respond in words and simply nodded my head, after which he came in and shut the door gently behind him. "It's been a while," he said.
I didn't know how to react as I felt a wide range of emotions overpower me. Was I to get angry at him? Should I hug him? Should I yell at him for the pain and emotional distress he had caused me? I was confused and once again, I just simply nodded my head.
"Ciara, I have been wanting to speak to you, but I saw you ride out with Liam the other day and I thought you had decided to just choose him. However, since I haven't been seeing you guys together, I decided to show up before things reignited between you two," he said.
I scoffed, now knowing how to react. "So, if it weren't for the fact that I wasn't in good terms with Liam, you wouldn't have come to speak to me?"
He sighed, avoiding the question. "Listen, Ciara. I sincerely apologise for everything. However, you can't fault me for how I acted. Any other person would have done the same," he said.
"No, Blake. Not every other person would have gone about sleeping with maids because their mate made a mistake. I cried and apologised to you, but you just walked away that day and now, you're saying you're sorry but still justifying your actions," I blurted out.
I didn't know why I was so angry at him, despite the fact that I had been blaming myself for everything that had happened. Maybe it's because he had actually overreacted or maybe it was what the Luna had been feeding my head with. "Can we just forget about this whole thing and start all over again?" he asked, drawing closer to me.
My heart skipped a beat and I bit my lower lip, trying to control myself. He was so close to me that I could literally hear his heart racing, but I knew that if I gave in so easily to him, he'd take advantage of it eventually. Like the Luna had rightly stated, I shouldn't make this easy for them.
"I can't just forget about this whole thing without a proper apology-"
"What are you saying? You're the one who got me upset in the first place," he yelled, causing me to shudder in fear and I stepped away from him.
"Leave my room!" I commanded in a shaky voice, only now remembering how Liam had warned me that he could get violent.ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .
"Ciara "
"Leave immediately!" I screamed as loudly as I could.
"You heard her, doofus. Get the fuck out!" Liam's undeniable deep voice said in a low, but authoritative tone.
"Fuck!" Blake cursed under his breath and stormed out of the room.
Liam shook his head, entering into the room. "Lucky for you, I was within the area. Who knows what he would have done? He would have totally hurt you physically. Once again, you have me to thank," he said, holding my hand as he tried to pull me in for a hug.
I flinched, pushing him away and he staggered backwards unprepared and surprised at my reaction. "You do realise I'm not Blake, right?" he joked, coming forward again.
"Stay away from me," I said.
"What? Why?"
"You've been ignoring me. Keep that same energy," I said, and tried to walk away, but he held my hand and stopped me from leaving.
"Where are you going to? To run after Blake? He doesn't deserve you, get that into your head," he stated.
"You don't deserve me either. In fact, you don't deserve me the most," I retorted, trying to break free from him, but the grip he had on my hand only worsened.
"I don't think so. We are good for each other, your silly feelings for Blake won't just let you see it and that's why you acted the way you did at the lake," he said, referencing something I was trying to forget.
"And is that why you also acted the way you did?"
"What do you mean?"
"You left me to leave all by myself. It was a long walk back to the palace, but you didn't care. I could have gotten hurt, lost or even attacked, but you let me leave all by myself. That showed your true nature that day. Blake might have a tendency to be violent, but you, you are the definition of evil," I stated, eyeing him angrily.
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"Say that again," he commanded, staring down at me with a piercing gaze.
I stared at my toes, avoiding his gaze as my mind raced, thinking of what to do. I needed to escape from him. He sounded different. He was always a terrible person, but he was even worse now.
"Greetings, Alpha King," I blurted out, and Liam quickly let go of my hand.
Of course, the Alpha wasn't present in my room and I had just used that as a means to get away from Liam before he did something dangerous. As soon as he let me go, I took to my heels and ran as fast as I could.
The corridors seemed endless and it was taking more than it normally would to pass through them and make my way outside where people were present.
My heart pounded loudly and nearly exploded out of my chest, feeling him closing in on me. I had come to a dead end, losing my way in my haste and wasn't sure how to avoid him now.
Panic set in, but just then, a hand reached out to me from a door I had never known existed in the palace and pulled me in.
I was terrified and was about screaming, but when I looked up, I saw to my greatest joy that it was Alden.
"Oh, Alden," I heaved a sigh of relief and ran into his arms.
He embraced me warmly and stroked my hair, and for many minutes, we remained that way. His hug was so soothing and I didn't want it to end. In his arms, I felt the safest I had ever been and I knew now that all I had needed to ease the burden and stress I felt was him.
He was home. My home.