Chapter 32

"L-Lyra.” Alekai repeats my name in disbelief, slowly walking down the stage before sprinting to my side and instantly pulling me into his arms. Tears roll down my face at the familiar scent of roses and mint washes over me, my own arms wrapping around him. I am finally where I belong, beside Alekai and in his arms.

“Where have you been for the last six days?” Alekai sobs, his body shaking as his own tears fall into my hair. I sob harder, realizing that what I thought was two days held captive was actually longer. Six days spent away from the man I love, six days of him looking for me frantically.

“Li-Linnate. She abducted me.” I answer between sobs, feeling Alekai stiffen as he pulls away to look at me, his tear-filled eyes also holding rage in them.

“You sure?” He asks, and I nod, my sobs making it hard to speak.

“Guards!” I hear the sounds of men standing at attention, ready for their King’s order.

“Arrest Lady Linnate for treason against the Crown and harming the betrothed of the King, the future Queen of Symphrain.” Loud gasps fill the room as guards make their way to the front seats, where Linnate is quickly surrounded by four burly men, instantly captured after a futile attempt at escaping.

“Please gag her so she cannot speak,” I call out after calming my sobs enough to speak, watching as Linnate goes to say something only to have a guard stuff some form of fabric into her mouth. I smirk, feeling triumphant as the bitch sends a hate-filled glare my way.

“Your Majesty, you cannot be serious!” A man stands, and I glare at him, Alekai standing protectively between this man and me as he marches towards us.

“Oh, but I am. Lady Lyra was abducted six days ago from our room. Whoever took her left no trace but one thing they missed, a book with a message stating “Save Me” in Lyra’s handwriting.” Alekai explains, the room exclaiming in shock and asking about the rumour of me leaving in the dead of night only leaving a note behind.

“Lies, of course, a rumour I made while searching for my fiancée.” Alekai answers. But the man in front of us is seething with rage, sending a glare toward me.

“I refuse to believe the words of a slave. My daughter is innocent!” This reaction explains a lot, and I chuckle, looking around the ceremonial hall and noting the monitors that display Alekai standing together in front of Linnate’s Father.

“You may not believe me, but video proof is all we need.” I state, taking the necklace off and motioning for Elisa, who quickly takes the necklace. Before she runs off, I whisper instructions into her ear to skip some of the video, explaining I did not want Linnate’s pregnancy to be revealed. Elisa looks at me in shock and then nods before sprinting off toward the stage. The room is filled with soft murmurs, some questioning how I can take off the luxury collar, others talking about how despicable Linnate is. The video of the day I was kidnapped is shown first, my attempt to escape only to be captured and the note I left behind, me being carried by someone out of the room through a hidden passageway and the trek to the catacombs. The video is muffled before it goes blank, only for the images of yesterday and this morning to be played. A loud gasp sounds from the crowd when Alister reveals Linnate’s affair with the previous King as well as the fact his daughter was kidnapped by Linnate to force Alister to help her. Her plot was revealed to kill me and my unborn child, the heir of Symphrain, inside me. Elisa looks to Alekai and I, and he signals for her to end the video transmission.

“As you can see, your daughter is vile, and if I am not mistaken, so are you. Guards, take Lord Rushard away as well.” Alekai orders, the father-daughter duo being dragged out of the ceremonial hall.

“Alekai, don’t harm her. She is pregnant with your half-sibling.” I whisper, the dizzy feeling returning but stronger this time. I want to say something else, but my vision blurs, and I feel my body growing weak, happy that Alekai has his arms wrapped around me before my legs give out and darkness consumes me.

…

“She is indeed pregnant, Kai. Linnate did not lie about that.” A quiet voice pulls me from the darkness, and I groan, my eyes feeling weighed down as I try and open them. Two familiar voices converse quietly, the words fading as two sets of footsteps alert me to them walking away. Turning towards their direction, I finally open my eyes and see Alekai and Doctor Ridley standing by the bedroom doors, deep in conversation.

“Al-Alekai.” I call out softly, watching the man I love straighten and turn towards where I lay, a look of relief on his face as he rushes to the bed and plants a kiss on my forehead.

“Thank god you are okay.” He sighs out, our foreheads pressed together.

“Where am I?” I ask, taking a look at the dimly lit room as best as I can as Alekai pulls away, his hands taking hold of my left one.

“Hospital wing. You fainted after revealing Linnate’s true colours to the Nobles, and I rushed you here. Part of me wanted to make sure that her revealing you are pregnant was real and not a ploy against us.” Alekai answers, explaining his intentions of bringing me to Doctor Ridley. I turn and smile at the old Doctor, him coming to stand beside Alekai as he too smiles at me.

“Glad to see you are back, Lyra.” He greets me, and I chuckle.

“Glad to be back,” I reply.

“We already know the answer, but I must ask out of protocol. Is the baby Alekai’s?” I smile, placing my right hand on my flat stomach, Doctor Ridley confirming that I am indeed pregnant and the future of our country is being created inside me.

“Yes. He is the only person I have been with.” I answer, a large hand resting on my own, and I turn to see Alekai looking at me, unshed tears in his eyes.

“We are going to be parents!” He exclaims in a whisper, and I nod, turning my hand over under his and linking our fingers together.

“Well, we can still do a paternity test if you two would like. There may be some nay-sayers when the little royal is born.” Doctor Ridley suggests. I agree instantly, not wanting trouble to be stirred anymore after the last few days I have experienced, and see a shocked expression on Alekai.

“We don’t have to, Lyra.” He states, and I roll my eyes.

“I know that, but this will shut up those against us. I am doing this for us, for our years to come as King and Queen.” I reassure him, seeing a look of relief on his face as he bends forward and places a soft kiss on my lips.

“Hey, kissing and cuddling only. The future Queen has been through hell and needs lots of rest.” Doctor Ridley exclaims, causing me to giggle as Alekai rolls his eyes.

“So no sex for a while, I assume, Doc.” It’s a statement, not a question, as Alekai turns to look at Doctor Ridley, who nods his head.

“Nope. Lyra needs to rest and get proper food in her. These last six days, she has barely eaten by the looks of her bloodwork.” Doctor Ridley confirms. My stomach grumbles at the mention of food, and I blush, now realizing how hungry I am. The two men chuckle, Doctor Ridley giving me the okay to go to bed and relax, but I ask if I can go to the coronation ball.

“As long as you sit and relax all night and maybe have one or two slow dances, you may go. If I find out you pushed yourself, I will put you on bed rest, young lady.” I accept this recommendation, and so does Alekai. I am scooped into his arms and carried away from the hospital wing. We take the regular route through the Palace halls to our quarters, passing by the coronation guests and Palace workers who bow or curtsy in our direction. The attention makes me blush, and I hide shyly in Alekai’s chest.

Once in the safety of our bedroom, I notice it has been renovated, including a few security cameras in the common area and facing the secret passageway doors. Alekai carries me straight to the bathroom, where a bath filled with vanilla-scented bubble bath greets us along with a cart filled with food. The sight causes my stomach to growl loudly. Alekai sets me on the edge of the bathtub, helping me to undress. I remind him to take the note out of my pocket and put it somewhere safe before he helps lower me into the water, before removing his own clothes and joining me. The warmth from the water seeps into my sore muscles, and I relax against his chest, with Alekai feeding me food from the cart.

“I am sorry, Lyra.” He whispers, his chin resting on my shoulder after helping me bathe and deciding to soak a little longer before we have to attend the ball.

“For what?” I asked, confused at this sudden apology.

“I couldn’t protect you properly, and you almost died twice now by the Rushard family.”

“You couldn’t have known they would try to kill me,” I reassure him, turning around to straddle his lap and forcing Alekai to look at me.

“But you are so important to me. I have watched you for years and knew just how much I loved you.” He blurts out, only to cover his mouth with wide eyes. I stare at Alekai in shock, wanting to put some distance between the two of us until his free arm wraps around me, keeping me in place.

“I can explain!” He backtracks, and I cross my arms over my chest.

“You better.” He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes as I wait patiently for this explanation. I don’t wait long as he opens his eyes to stare out the window.

“When I was younger, I used to sneak out of the Palace. Even back then, Joseph wasn’t a good father and would rather be with some random maid over teaching me how to rule. Elisa and I would change into regular clothes and take the passageways out the Palace and towards the city.” He begins, and I nod. I remember the few times news would spread that the Crown Prince was missing, many buildings on lockdown as a child until he was found.

“Well, one day, I went to the poverty-stricken part of the city. The only well-maintained building was a church. There they had choir practice, and this one girl always stood out. I remember going every week to sit in the pews and listen, sometimes bringing novels to read, sometimes bringing work. I did this for three years until one day she stands behind me, asking me what I am doing and scaring me so badly I thought I had a heart attack.” He chuckles, and a memory surfaces from four years ago. It was my last year of choir as school was picking up, and for years I watched a handsome teen around my age come into the church, always listening. I was shy and scared to approach him, but becoming friends with Jaida and Aime brought me out of my shell. So I took a leap of faith after practice and went up to the boy.

“What you up to?” I asked the boy, watching him jump in fright and fall onto the stone floor. Without meaning to, I started giggling; the way he fell sprawled out was a funny sight for a fourteen-year-old.

“N… Nothing.” The boy replied with a blush across his face and emerald eyes holding an emotion I couldn’t see.

“Well, it sure looks like something.” I retorted, walking around and picking up the scattered pages. The boy gets to his feet, thanking me as I hand over the papers. I sat down at the pew he previously occupied.

“I’ve seen you come in for the last three years. Sometimes with another girl, sometimes on your own. Are you planning to join the choir?” I pointed out, asking the question I had always wanted to ask.

“No, I can’t sing. But I like coming to listen to you sing. You sing like an angel.” I blushed at his compliment, turning to look out the window as I played with my hair.

“I don’t want to be an angel. Angels are bound by laws and trapped,” I stated, hoping my dress covered the bruise on my leg from the kick Father gave me yesterday.

“Well then, what do you want to be?” the boy asked, and I smiled. Then, out the window, I saw white doves fly past and into the vast sky.

“I want to be a bird so I can be free,” I admitted, getting a chuckle in response.

“Okay, Little Songbird, I will never call you an angel again.” I smiled, turning to look at the boy, his emerald-green eyes watching me, causing my cheeks to heat up. Then, the church bells rang, and I froze, quickly standing and ready to rush out the door for curfew, only for someone to grab my wrist gently, stopping me in my tracks.

“What’s your name, Songbird?” The boy asked, and I smiled.

“Lyra. What’s yours?”

“Kaito.” I smiled at the boy and released my wrist from his hand, letting him know that I had to go and hoped to see him again soon.

“I never saw you after that. Honestly, it was a fluke that day, walking into the Pet store and finding you. I never thought of owning a slave, but seeing those men staring at you pissed me off.” He sighs, rubbing a hand over his face in frustration as the realization that the boy who was my first crush is the man I love today.

“And then I went and acted like them instead. I felt terrible, but for once, I had the one thing I wanted, the one I knew I could never have if my father had a say in it. And I hurt you.” He continues, and I smile sadly, wrapping my arms around his neck and holding him close.

“I already forgave you for that night, Kai, because I love you,” I whisper reassuringly, feeling his lips kiss my shoulder as he holds me close.

“I know I said you were my fiancée in the ceremonial hall, but that was–“

“To protect me, I know. So why don’t you ask me?” I finish his sentence, a playful smirk on my face, when Alekai pulls away to look at me in shock.

“What?!”

“I am not going to repeat myself, Kai.” I roll my eyes, chuckling at his reaction before a pair of lips crash into mine in a heated kiss, which lasts only a few seconds before ending a little too quickly for my liking.

“Lyra, will you marry me and be my Queen, my life partner and soulmate?” He asks, eyes staring into my soul, and I smile.

“Yes.”