One Heart

38. Royal line

Sorah retreated into herself. She didn't speak to her captor, nor did she look at her. She went through the necessary motions with no emotion, and only a blank stare on her features. At five weeks being held hostage, she wondered how much more she could take. She sat daydreaming about her escape. About all of the ways she would kill Alyssa Kahahn and her allies. She wondered what life would be like when she returned home. How the realisation would finally set in that her wife was gone. She wondered about the two fragile lives she was now responsible for, hoping beyond all hope that one of them was the heir. Because if not, she would be the one who had broken their line. The line that dated all the way back to her greatest of grandmother's, the First Companion.

Alyssa had for the most part left her alone since the night she assumed Sorah's consent was irrelevant. Sorah wondered if she understood exactly what she had done. One or two comments made by the blonde gave evidence that the answer to that question was no. Sorah acknowledged that her captor was insane. Alyssa genuinely believed that she enjoyed the experience, that just because her body responded to her touch, her mind did too.

Sorah was well aware that unless she escaped soon, such experiences were likely to be repeated.

"Sorah."

She heard her name being called and continued to stare into the abyss.

"It's about your babies."

Sorah's attention snapped toward her in the form of a furious glare. "What?"

"I can't hear them anymore."

Sorah's heart pounded in her ears. This couldn't happen, she couldn't possibly be losing the only thing she had left to live for. She wracked her brain, searching every royal pregnancy known to her, wondering whether any of them had failed. None had. "What have you done to me? To my children? It's your serum, it has to be." Sorah's words blended together as tears stained her cheeks. "Haven't I given you enough? What more do you want? I don't have anything left for you."

Alyssa watched on in horror. "I'm so sorry, Sorah. They might still be okay. I'll speak to my father, we can get his magic wielder to come and check on you. I'll call him now."

Sorah was vaguely aware that Alyssa was making hurried phone calls somewhere in the room. She heard her argue with the person on the other end, Ehrik Kahahn she assumed. It seemed her father did not care as much about the companion queens pregnancy as his daughter did, a fact that was of no surprise to Sorah. The cretin ordered the murder of her grandparents, her mother, her Ahein Rah, and now, indirectly, her children. Her heir. She wasn't certain, but Sorah's instincts told her that one of her twins would be the next queen. Or at least had been.

Her people were doomed to live in chaos. Humans were doomed to be victimised by those much more powerful than themselves. Everything every other queen before her had built was on the brink of desolation.

"He'll be here this afternoon, evening at the latest."

Sorah grunted in acknowledgement, not prepared to listen to her repeat her name for the next five minutes.

Alyssa's eyes grew wide at the small morsel of attention. She shuffled closer. "Sorah... I know you regret what happened the other night, but you shouldn't be so hard on yourself. She's gone. It's okay to move on."

The rage simmered from Sorah in invisible waves. "Regret? I can't regret something I had no choice in doing. You promised me you wouldn't take me without my permission but you did!"

Alyssa sighed. "But I didn't, I know you didn't say it because of the guilt but you wanted it. I kept to my word, just as I've kept my word that I wouldn't drink from you—not that my body doesn't ache for the time when I can... to be able to drain your blood, knowing that it will regenerate again and again," she said dreamily. "But I'll wait. I'll wait for you, Sorah. Until you're ready."