Chapter 44

Flora’s P.O.V

I stretched the bow string, feeling the strain in my upper arm.

My eyes were set on the target that I had placed on the opposite wall. My room was big but not big enough that I could place the target further away. But this was the only place I could practice archery, because this was the only place where I wasn’t being monitored.

I let go of the string and it shot out, hitting the target a second later.

‘Keep the height of the arrow a bit higher than the target.’ I remembered Clay once telling me that when I had been practicing with him. ‘Gravity will pull down the arrow at least a few centimeters, so you need to shoot it higher.’

Clay and I had been training with different weapons secretly for a couple weeks already. It had right after I had stopped training with Garrick and Clay had taken over my training.

‘You’re a healer, so even if danger is right in front of you, you might not always be able to fight head on. So use weapons.’

Clay’s voice rang in my ears now and it instantly increased the ache in my heart. I missed Clay. I missed the days that we spent together in secrecy, in each other’s embrace or training in the forest. Our lives had been simple and our lives had been happy…before Clay turned twenty-eight and my best friend turned out to be Clay’s mate.

It wasn’t the first time I had wanted to be just human, to not be so tangled up in the vines of the supernatural world. If we had been human, then Clay and I could be happy now, far away from all of this and we would never have to worry about mating bonds and war between Gods. If only…

I went to the opposite wall and pulled out the arrow from the makeshift target. It wasn’t a bull’s-eye but it was close. I had gotten better in the past month at using a bow and arrow and several of our trusted maidens were practicing too. This was war and none of us could go unarmed. And with security getting heavy day by day, we had to practice inside the comfort of our rooms. It was a plus that I had had prior training, even though it had been limited.

I stowed away the bow and arrows and the target in a chest inside the bathroom, under the sink. Then I came to stand in front of the big glass windows to look outside at the forest.

I haven’t seen Clay in a month since I was dragged back into the castle. Andre had increased security at every turn and it was getting more and more difficult sneaking around. He had even raised questions as to why Ezra was holding prayers every single day. But Ezra had been brave enough to let Andre know that it was for their safety. The Maidens were afraid and they were insecure about the change in ruling of the pack and praying to the Goddess was the only thing that gave us comfort.

Andre had taken it as a huge boost to his ego. He thought that he had been successful in making us fearful and implementing his rule over us. But we never specified which Goddess we were praying to.

A knock sounded on the door then, breaking me away from my thoughts.

I hesitated a bit in opening the door. Somehow, I knew who was outside even before I went to open it, but I knew stalling won’t get me anywhere. If anything, it would encourage Andre to break down the door and create a scene. I couldn’t let him do that, so I went to open the door hurriedly.

Andre stood outside with a bouquet of red roses, his smile that of the perfect gentleman…as if he hadn't physically assaulted me a few weeks ago.

“What do you want?” I asked, stepping back out of his reach. But that just gave him the excuse to come inside my room and close the door behind him.

My heart started beating rapidly in fear. There wasn’t anything that Andre wasn’t capable of doing and he was very, very strong. I couldn’t keep up with a regular dominant soldier, and Andre was now the Alpha. If he tried to do something, I couldn’t win against him.

But Andre’s smile remained gentle as he held out the roses towards me.

I took them from him, trying my best to hide the tremors in my hand. Thankfully, Andre didn’t notice. I was grateful that I had removed the bow and arrow just in time before Andre’s arrival. If he had found out about it, I don’t think he would’ve waited till the Blood Moon to end my life and he wasn’t above hitting a woman, as I’ve already witnessed.

“See?” He said now. “That wasn’t so difficult was it?”

“What do you want?” I clutched the roses to my chest, as if they could defend me from Andre. Thankfully, there weren’t many thorns on them, so I only felt a few pricks.

Suddenly, Andre’s face was inches from mine as he lifted up my chin with a grip on my jaw. “If you continue to be civil with me, we won’t have any problems. I will give you everything you want and beyond. But if you try to act smart and go behind my back…I cannot promise to spare your little puppy. In fact, I’ll kill him in front of you, ripping out his organs one by one. I’ll save his heart for last, making sure that he begs for death every waking second, until I finally grant his wish.”

“Stop it! Please!” I whispered in horror, clutching the stems in my hand so tightly that they snapped.

Andre looked down at my hands in amusement, letting go of my jaw. The roses fell from my hands and it wasn’t until Andre took hold of my hands and held them up that I saw the thorns embedded on my palms, as droplets of blood rolled down my arm.

“Poor thing.” Andre shook his head. “If you continue to resist, blood will become a permanent sight for you; pain will be your most trusted companion. So decide. Become my mate and let your rogue puppy live or let him die a slow painful death. I have decided not to sacrifice you though. It would be much more fun watching you suffer every day for the rest of your life, regretting not choosing the right path.”

I felt icy fingers clutch my heart in their iron grip. “That wasn’t what you told me-”

“You’re in no position to negotiate, Flora.” Andre looked at me with vicious grey eyes. “My terms, my decisions. I can change them any time I want.”

No…he wouldn’t…he couldn’t…

“Tell me, Flora.” Andre said finally, his smile turning menacing. “What is your final decision?”

I grit my teeth, balling my hands into fists at my sides, pushing the thorns even deeper into my skin.

I was trapped. Time was almost up and I was really trapped. If we didn’t get to sacrifice a deer by tonight, it would all go in vain. The ritual that we had been performing for the last thirty days was at its peak and tomorrow was the blood moon. So I could either be a bride…or watch Clay be sacrificed at the altar, which wasn’t even a choice for me.

Either way, it would mean my defeat. But if there was one person that I trusted wholeheartedly right now, it was Ezra. So I did exactly what she had told me to do. I followed her command even though it felt like a block of ice was blocking my throat.

“I’ll be your mate tomorrow.” I told him, my voice gravel.

Andre gave out a dark of laughter. He thought he had already won…and maybe, he had. But even if he does win, I’ll make sure Clay get’s out of this alive.

“Perfect! I have just the dress for you!”

It was at this point that I knew Andre had already anticipated the answer. He had always known he would win, no matter what we did to stop him.