“You will fill a plate and eat every last bite. I don’t need to tell you what will happen if you don’t finish a full meal, do I, little omega?”
“No, Alpha,” she answered.
“Good. Now we need to figure out our next move and we’re going to do it together,” I continued.
“I’d like that,” she grinned.
Together, we would be unstoppable.
Chapter 11
Ariana
It was as if my whole life had changed in that single moment.
The bond was so much stronger than I could have ever imagined. I could feel where he was at all times and the moment we were apart, I’d yearn to be together with him once again. In his heart, I knew he felt the same. It was that intense.
I hadn’t been prepared for that.
When we were alone together, we didn’t have to hide our adoration for each other. I could challenge him again and again, and he’d remind me of my place as hard as he pleased, which always left my throat sore and my thighs shaking. Sometimes he’d take me over his knee, other times he’d give me a taste of his belt, but he always gave me his enormous cock. With him, I was insatiable. Behind closed doors, I was his omega, but more important, I was his mate.
We couldn’t always be that way, however. When in front of others, I was forced to temper my behavior to fit the expectations of those who could be watching.
For the most part, I moved around the castle freely. Now that I bore the king’s mark, no one gave me a second glance. In the dead of night when no one was watching us, I slipped into the secret passages with the castle with Magnar, showing him the stockpiles of liquid fire, the rusting stores of ancient weaponry, as well as the cot I had taken as my bedroom when I’d hidden not long ago. Finally, I showed him the jar of poison I’d discovered in the kitchen stocks. I hadn’t said a word when I’d tilted the vessel just enough to show him my father’s insignia, but he’d sucked in a breath all the same.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen that,” he’d said.
Between the two of us, we mapped out the entire secret passageway system just in case we needed to use it sometime in the future. I was able to disappear in those tunnels more often than he did because no one was watching me like they did him, and when I finally finished the maps, I hid them near the king’s quarters in the closet’s hidden room. There weren’t any entrance points within his chambers, but there was one down the hall in the nearby guest suite. I shared it with Magnar that night and the next day, I started to focus my attentions elsewhere.
I kept an eye on his advisors. I spent time watching Neegan, as well as the master of coin and commander of Kingsworth’s forces. The more I observed them, the more I suspected that Neegan was up to something. Sometimes he met with servants in his study and other times he left the castle entirely. I wasn’t able to follow him for fear of discovery, but I took note of when he left and when he returned in a small journal that I kept hidden within the bookshelves of my chambers.
One night when Magnar was attending a dinner with a royal guest from far away, I camped out in the observation point by Neegan’s study. For a long time, he worked in silence before there was a very quiet knock at his door. I’d almost fallen asleep when I heard it. Sleepily, I blinked, wondering if I’d dreamt it, but then the door opened, and I pushed myself up to a seated position as quickly as I could. Neegan called for the person to come in and a familiar face entered the room.
It was the same attendant that had visited him before, only this time he was carrying something in his arms. Neegan rushed to get up from his seat, locking the door behind him as soon as he entered the room. He sat back down, and the man placed the bundle carefully down onto his desk. He was so careful that it made me suspicious right away.
“Is this what I think it is?” Neegan whispered.
“It is. I had to travel well beyond the walls of Kingsworth to find a witch woman who knew how to make such a dangerous brew,” the man explained.
“I appreciate the effort you’ve put into this for me, Jorge. Know that when the time comes for me to wear the crown, you will be adequately rewarded for your steadfast loyalty to me,” Neegan said, very pleased with whatever the man had brought him.
“There are a few things you should know about this kind of poison, Neegan. It’s highly combustible. It’s nowhere near as intense as liquid fire, mind you, but you should be careful with it all the same. Move it slowly and carefully. Don’t jostle it unnecessarily. It’s safer in smaller amounts, so I’ve parsed it out in several jars,” Jorge explained as he removed some of them from the bundle in his arms.
“Thank you. I’ll keep all that in mind,” Neegan replied and Jorge cleared his throat.
“When are you going to do it?”
“Soon. I need to wait for the opportune moment,” Neegan said thoughtfully.
“I should be going. The less we’re seen together, the better,” Jorge answered.
“I look forward to many more years together, Jorge. Keep up the good work,” Neegan said and the man grinned.
“Of course, my future king,” Jorge replied, and I froze.
He’d referred to Neegan as his future king.
Neegan was going to betray Magnar. He was going to kill him.