460 Harrowing Future
Honour stared at the man lying in the hospital bed, her mind wandering through the memories they shared. It was impossible to think the royals were right about his changing behaviour.
It almost made her question who was telling the truth. Perhaps the prince was pretending when he was with her. If that was the case, then he would have to be really good a fooling the mind link and that seemed highly unlikely.
The second option would be that the prince was hiding something from the royals as well. That would make him act strange but then, it would be the same with Honour. As much as the goddess knew, he had no secret worth keeping from the royal family except for the fact that she had powers.
They had spent a lot of time together and Honour hadnât noticed anything wrong with him.
It had completely slipped under her radar and she hated herself for it. The queen cleared the air on his erratic behaviour, but now Honour was eager to know his explanation. She wanted to hear his side of the story⦠beginning with what possessed him to go into the Trials alone and nearly get himself killed by rogues.
Not to mention, the prince had brought one of the rogues with him.
âWhy does everything have to be so complicated?â the girl wondered.
After a short conversation with the royals, they had left to go and check on Lina while the girls had stayed behind with Honour for a little longer. The goddess barely noticed her changing surroundings. It all seemed too distant to her... like her mind was occupied with far too much for her to focus on anything else.
âHonour, arenât you going to see Lina?â Madeline asked her.
.....
Honour continued staring at the man in the hospital bed, wondering how and when she had gotten so close to the royals in her life. Aside from her family, the two injured royals were the most precious thing to her and she couldnât choose between the two of themâ¦
She wouldnât.
When Honour was just about to leave the room, the door swung open to reveal a girl dressed in a white tracksuit that was a few sizes too large for her⦠no doubt an order from the king.
The girlâs face was much clearer and composed from the mess theyâd seen earlier and she carried herself better. Honour also took the time to stare in amazement at her striking resemblance with her sister.
Lina walked into the room holding a bouquet of flowers. Her hair had been tied into a high ponytail, highlighting her flawless features. She looked even more like Katie when she tied her hair upâ¦
The only thing she was missing was Katieâs menacing aura when she tied her hair the same way.
It was a signature act that had garnered a reputation over the years, âHow is he doing?â Linaâs voice broke through the silence.
Contrary to what they had heard about the girlâs condition, Lina looked to be at the top of her game. âHow long have we been here?â Honour couldnât help but ask.
âYOU⦠have been here for about seven hours,â Crysta notified her. Honourâs eyes widened in horror.
âWhen did I lose track of that much time?â the girl thought to herself.
âAnd in that time, I pulled myself together⦠unlike you whoâs here mopping all over yourself,â the princess huffed. Her smug expression dropped almost immediately, a sad smile replacing it. When she spoke again, she wasnât so confident anymore, âDonât keep me in the dark, Honour. How is my brother doing?â
Honour turned to the sleeping royal and approached him, âI guess heâs the same as he was earlier. The same⦠not changing.â
âI donât understand why he would risk his life to save a traitor,â Madeline yelled through gritted teeth. While her mini-tantrum was cute, Honourâs curiosity was piqued and not in a friendly way.
âWhatâs that supposed to mean?â she asked her.
âThe man he brought here. It was Victor,â the girl replied.
Honour gaspedâ¦
âSo it wasnât a mini-tantrum,â the goddess corrected her thinking. She knew how much history the girl had with the treacherous wolf, but then again⦠It was just like Drake to be kind towards someone like that.
âI donât think he would have let him die out there. Maybe he brought him here to answer to his crimes,â Honour replied, trying to make sense of the manâs actions, âThe royals are all similar in that way⦠Just look at Kyle. Heâs walking around like a free manâ¦â
âKyle? What about Kyle?â Madeline asked in a rush.
Honour drew a sharp breath, âDamn itâ¦â
Turning around slowly, she spoke softly, âYou might want to sit down for this one⦠Or⦠Or, we could visit Victor first.â
âNo⦠Honour. No, all of you will tell me what you meant by that phrase. Whatâs wrong with alpha Kyle?â the girl was now yelling at the top of her voice.
Lina chuckled and regarded the girl momentarily, âTake a seat then.â Before starting the tale of Kyle, the girl walked up to her brother until she was standing at the side with his head.
âYouâre a doofus, you know that, Drake,â the girl whispered to him. She then placed the flowers by his side and brought her lips to his forehead, placing a kiss on his temple.
The prince remained still⦠his chest rose and fell at a calm rhythmic paceâ¦
..................â¦.
When Madeline was seated, they started the story they knew of the man she had come to know as Kyle. However, for her own sake, they tried to make it sound lighter than it actually was.
There wasnât much they knew about Kyle, and the most they knew about him was how heâd betrayed Katie, his childhood friend but then fate had brought the two back together in rather questionable circumstances.
Madeline was quiet for a bit after they had told her the story of the wolf. She couldnât believe what she was hearing. The jolly man she had met in the Royal suite only moments ago didnât seem like a criminal that was capable of what they were saying.
âNow I know why you were being protective of me,â the girl replied.
Honour turned pale, âNo no no, Mady. Thatâs because he was being way too comfortable around you. Heâs harmless now and incapable of doing anything bad.â
âHow do you know that? Itâs not like you heard Katie commanding him to become a pacifist,â the girl replied shyly.
âI knew this was a bad idea. I should have warned you,â Bree sighed, leaning away from them.
âYou are not helping, Bree,â Lina complained.
âIf you want me to be of help, Iâll suggest officially introducing the two of them. Itâs not like it could hurt to prove heâs harmless to Mady,â the girl said in a bored tone.
The other girls stared at her like she was crazy, âYouâre forgetting the part where he looks straight through her disguise.â
It was Linaâs turn to be surprised, âIâm sorry, what?!?â
The girls had to explain their encounter with the beta alpha and the story of how he had seen straight through the girlâs disguise. Lina was stunned by the story. After spinning off topic this much, the girls arrived at a question that Lina had hoped to avoid a little bit longer.
âLina⦠what happened to Wyatt?â they asked her. Considering the injury he had was similar to the one the prince had on his shoulder, they thought it could be connected. As it so happened, the girl was the only one present at one of the scenes that they could talk to.
Linaâs smile faded and was replaced by a gloomy expression. The girl sank into her seat and sighed, âI honestly donât know. He didnât say much about the one that attacked him. What he did say though⦠was that his attacker was frightening. Iâm not sure how many things can scare Wyatt, but I can make a few guessesâ¦â
Honour looked at her friend and made a move to speak, however, her body didnât respond in the way she wanted it to. Her words got caught in her throat and her heart beat faster, trying to force the words out of her system.
She wanted to tell her friends so much but seemed completely helpless. Sighing, she remained quiet and listened to what Bree had to say.
No one seemed to have noticed Honourâs internal struggle, âWhat if it was the Rogue King that attacked him?â Bree asked.
âI donât think Wyatt would have made it out alive if that was the case. I would only be coming here to announce the news of his death. He said he crushed the wolf against a tree and ran without looking back. Also that he heard a struggle as he ran but he was too focused on getting away,â Lina said.
âCome on⦠Wyatt has seen rogues before. What would frighten him about one that he hasnât even seen with his own eyes?â Bree tried. Even with how well she tried to mask her fear, it leaked through her voice.
The room went deathly quiet as the four girls thought. Linaâs mind was⦠surprisingly calm. She had sorted out all of this before coming here to talk to her friends. Three people had been injured and all of them were significant to her.
Well, at least to the royals in some way. Drake had rescued the traitor Victor and both of them had been injured badly. Victor, however, was in a worse condition compared to the prince.
âHonour, you could stay here longer if you want. I know Drake would want nothing more than to have you by his side,â Lina spoke up suddenly.
Honour turned red, âWhatâs that supposed to mean?â
âThat we are not fools,â Crysta intervened, wiggling her brows at the goddess.
âYou will stop that right now, Crysta. Drake and I⦠areâ¦â
âUgh, you donât have to make excuses. What if the man is listening when you say something youâd regret? We are not judging you for it, you knowâ¦â Crysta stopped her. She paused for a moment, âBut if youâre going to continue on this path, you should at least tell him what heâs going supposed to expect.â
Crystaâs words struck true. Honour turned to the man sleeping peacefully in the hospital bed. She had so many questions and had so much to tell him as well. She was also not sure just how much she was able to tell him.
She wanted to know what was going on in his head. She wanted to reveal to him what was going through hers... What she had been going through for the past two years and why being with herâ¦
was probably the worst mistake either of them could ever make.
..................â¦..