Chapter 79

Sebastian

Not being able to look at Miranda during my dinner with the Rogue King is torture. I can feel my muscles tense every time he laughs and yanks on her chain. Whenever a look of pain flashes across her face, I can feel myself growing more and more angry. I have to hold back the urge to not lunge across the table and drive my steak knife into his neck and kill him right here and now.

Any move I take that has not bene planned out will be sure to cause chaos that I don’t need. I need the Rogue King to feed into his own ego, to believe that he has truly won due to the plan he’s set in motion years ago.

Every time he laughs, I smile. Every time his cup is low, I fill it. Every move that the Rogue King makes, I follow up with something to inflate his confidence. Little does he know I’m about to light a match to the gasoline I’ve surrounded him with.

“You truly were never a match for my plan, Sebastian,” my name rolls off his tongue way too easily. The hair on the back of my neck sticks up. A smile forces onto my lips and I nod, placing my silverware next to my plate. “Your father was smart but you? You’re a sucker.”

“Would you like a glass of whiskey?” I ask after his silverware clatters against the white porcelain plate. He wipes his filthy fingers on the tablecloth, leaving crumbs in his wake. I push away from the table and look down at him. “To celebrate your victory?”

The Rogue King’s eyebrows perk up. His posture straightens but his eyes hone in on me. The Rogue King’s nod is slow and methodical. I bow my head and turn around, my eyes glazing over Miranda’s trembling body.

It stings to not be able to pull her into my arms, to take her away from the Rogue King and Lily’s torturous lives. I want nothing more than to steal all of her pain and put it onto myself. She never deserved to get caught in the middle of this. It’s my fault for leaving her alone.

And it’s my fault for not heeding her advice to think twenty moves ahead.

I grab two glasses. They feel heavy in my hands, the glass emitting a faint clank when they collide onto the mirrored alcohol cart. My hand wraps around a nearby glass bottle. I pluck it from its place and the brown alcohol sloshes from the inside, swirling around the inside perimeter.

The top comes off with a pop and I slowly pour the liquid into the two glasses. I grab a small vial off the side, glancing behind me and back to the Rogue King.

He doesn’t watch me. Inside, he entertains Lily. Her giggles bounce throughout the room. I empty the vial into the liquid and swirl it around, turning around when the Rogue King’s voice catches the room’s attention.

“Hurry up, boy, I don’t have all day!”

“Yes, sir,” I muse. I approach the table, my pace cautious. Once I am at his side, I extend one of the glasses towards him, placing a smile on my face.

His sickly green and yellow eyes peer into mine. His gaze used to make me feel sick, but now all I see is the desperation in his eyes. His innate desire to rule a kingdom that was never, and will never, be his.

“What did you do to it?” The Rogue King inquires. I play coy and peer into the glass before looking back at him.

“Nothing.”

“Do not lie to me,” he slams his fist onto the table, “I am your king!”

“They are both the same,” I insist. He rolls his eyes at me and lurches towards the glass I hold next to my chest.

“I don’t trust you,” he looks into the glass, swirling the whiskey around. He brings it to his lips. He inhales and I can hear the air inside his lungs crackle. He sighs and finally tilts the glass back, drowning the liquid.

I slowly lower into my chair, keeping my eyes trained onto him, and watch as he slams the glass back down. His eyes flicker between me and the glass. He glares.

“Drink to your humble loss, False King,” his gravelly voice calls out. he gestures to the glass, waving his hand. “Drink! Your king demands it!”

“As you wish, your Highness,” I nod and raise the glass in the air, tilting it towards him. The cool rim connects with my bottom lip. The liquid burns down my throat as I swallow it in one go, resting the glass back down on the table.

The Rogue King laughs, clapping his hands together. He leans forward, eyes crazed and full of devilish chaos.

“Tell me…how long will it be before you die?” He asks through his cackles.

“You’ll die before me,” I cooly respond. I snap my fingers and the Delta officer immediately emerges from the shadows. He carries with him two glass vials filled with a deep purple color.

I steal a glimpse of Miranda. Her eyes are fixed on me, big and wide. The corner of her lips twitches while the rest of her face remains stoic. I allow myself to smile for the both of us as I take one of the vials from his hands, pouring it down my burning throat.

“You have about a minute left to live, so I’ll keep this short,” I stand from my chair, slowly stepping towards the Rogue King. I tower over him, his face turning a bright red color.

He holds his chest as coughs expel from his mouth. Drops of blood fly from his mouth, staining the white table cloth and place settings. I look down at him and tilt my head to the side, watching as his face turns purple.

“I’m feeling generous. I’ll give you the antidote before your organs burn away inside you in exchange for my future Luna. There’s a catch though,” I begin. A spray of blood splatters across my face when he looks up at me. I wipe it away, chuckling. “You have to promise me never to return. There will be no more war between us. You will leave me, my family, and my country alone. I will give you your freedom to leave, my soldiers will escort you out, but you need to accept this loss. Deal?”

The Rogue King nods. I lean in as he gasps for air, his finger nails clawing at his throat.

“Really think it over.”

His response is unintelligible. Just gargles as he chokes on his own blood. He nods and I wave the Delta over. He cranes the man’s mouth open and the antidote slowly works. I look at the Delta and wave to Miranda. He is quick to release her of her chains.

Miranda collapses into my side. I push her behind me, shielding her from the Rogue King’s sight.

As the Rogue King struggles, Lily throws herself at my feet. I push Miranda backward with me, backing away from her.

“Please, Sebastian, forgive me! I was a pawn in my parents’ game! I’m innocent! Please! Please forgive me!” Her begs are like nails on a chalkboard and her hot tears stain my shoes. I groan and wave to a nearby Gamma, who tears her off of me.

The Rogue King glares at Lily and grabs the chains Miranda was once in. The metal collar fastens around her neck as her sobs fill the mansion. One of the Rogue King’s soldiers takes the chain from him, dragging her away from the center of the room.

“You’re better as a slave than a wife,” The Rogue King spits at her. He takes one final look at me before turning away. He and his men retreat from the mansion. I listen for their cars to leave before I turn to Miranda.

I cup her red cheek and wipe away the tears that stream down her face. We’re unable to say a word. Instead, we take each other in, pressing our foreheads together. I melt into her and press kisses to her cheeks, trying to ease the pain she feels.

“You’re here,” she breathes out, grasping my shirt, “you’re real.”

“I am, yes, I’m here,” I pull out faces away from each other. “I am never going to leave your side. Never again.”

I take her hand and slip a diamond ring onto her finger. She gasps and stares at it, a smile overtaking her pained expression.