The Alpha Queen

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Theia was sick and tired of waking up in strange places. Blinking away the black tinging her vision, she tried to focus on her surroundings, trying to figure out where she was. She had been placed in a chair, her arms tied so tightly behind her, she could no longer feel her hands and her legs tied down. A gag was in her mouth, the material uncomfortably thick.

Her whole body began to shake and tears clouded her vision once more as she realized she was in an empty tent, the flaps closed. Voices filtered through the thin material of the tent, but she couldn't catch any of the words as her pounding heart roared in her ears.

What had they done with Nova? Was he still alive? Was he tied up somewhere nearby like her?

She began to pull against her bindings, hoping to slip free of the rope, but whoever tied her down had known what they were doing. Sobs threatened to escape, but she swallowed them done, knowing she needed to hold herself together to try to figure out a way out of this mess. But was there really any hope?

The tent flaps were thrown to the sides and Theia stilled her struggling as Astra entered, her red eyes flashing excitedly. She stopped directly in front of Theia who stared up at her breathing heavily. Astra then reached forward, striking her red painted nails across Theia's face, slicing through the gag and her cheek.

Theia gasped as she held her eyes closed tightly, tears leaking out of the corners of her eyes because of her stinging cheek.

"What a prize," Astra spoke quietly. "This has to be the happiest day of my life, or at least it'll come in second to the day I descend my throne."

"That'll never happen," Theia told her through clenched teeth.

Astra barked a laugh and then scratched her nails across Theia's other cheek. She studied the blood trailing down Theia's face for a moment before saying, "you sure do talk brave for someone facing death." 

"Where's Nova?" The question caused Astra's smile to grow and Theia's heart to drop.

"Dead. But don't worry, you'll be joining him soon enough."

A sob escaped her at Astra's words. He couldn't be. But if that were the case – "Why don't you kill me already? What are you waiting for?"

"I thought we were having fun," Astra exclaimed, spreading her arms wide. She began to circle around Theia as she continued, "What's the rush? I finally have you in my clutches and I'd rather we savor this time together."

Theia shook her head, closing her eyes once again, wanting all of this to be over. This had to be a nightmare, it couldn't possibly be real.

Astra gripped Theia's chin, forcing her head up and her eyes open when her nails dug into her skin. "Tell me, were you sad when you found out you weren't the one the prophecy spoke of?"

"How did you know," Theia asked, her voice void of emotion.

"I've always known I was meant to be the true queen. I was only waiting for you to realize it too."

Theia narrowed her eyes, her curiosity getting the best of her. "But how? How did you know I found out the truth?"

"Well, I thought you'd never ask," Astra said, pushing Theia's head back as she released her and moving to the tent entrance to hold the flap open.

Anger rose in Theia as the last person she ever expected to see walked into the tent. "Arabella," she said.

The traitor looked uncomfortable standing there next to Astra, but something glinted in Arabella's eyes as she took in the sight of Theia tied to a chair.