Captive: Hopeless

Chapter 76 - Trust Issues

"Calm down and stop fighting me; I will not harm you," Zeus said, undisturbed.

She caved, growing still, and the flow reversed, his power running into her veins an uncomfortable thing.

The door opened, and two armed guards charged inside, pointing guns at him.

"It is alright; he isn't hurting me," she managed. Would she believe her words in their shoes? "Leave!" she commanded, and as she expected, they obeyed.

"You do realize Thane will arrive here soon? And he might not be happy about me 'hurting' his favorite daughter."

"I am not his favorite daughter."

"But you are. Akira was, but you crawled right into that frozen heart and curled up in there, bringing a tiny part of it to life."

She didn't like the idea of having usurped Akira's rightful place in their father's eyes.

"It is only natural, Kay. All of us were his favorite at some point, and then another would be born, and soon enough, we'd find ourselves subtly replaced. It is nature's way of ensuring that we care for the young and they survive. Ask any mother; the youngest is their favorite. They may lie about it, but it is the truth. And the eldest they hold to the highest standard. That is why I am still here, even though we've made peace. That and the council's fear."

"Who is this council, and why did I only hear of it recently?"

"It comprises several of Thane's peers. He is the king, but to keep things fair, the council decides and votes on things before bringing them to his attention. Although he has the final say, they influence his decisions. They are his trusted advisors and his way of keeping his finger on the pulse of his kingdom. The council has been around since before my birth."

"My mother says that there are only about fifty thousand of us," she said, distracting herself from the searing pain of the transfer.

"Back when Father used to confide in her, yes, there were a few of us. At Azera's last count, it was closer to two hundred thousand. Not counting the millions of seedlings that are above eighty percent compatible. They get the best results for transformation and the most success in the high eighty percent area. Did you know you were ninety-six percent compatible? The highest percentage of any seedling ever?"

"Why did so many of the others die in my batch?" she asked.

"Because you were never part of the batch. Your parents created you the old-fashioned way, and no one messed with your DNA until your transformation. Those others were below the threshold. They were never candidates, but Azera faked the results to ensure Thane had no more offspring. Unfortunately, she didn't learn of your inclusion until it was too late."

"If she didn't know about my inclusion, how did she know all those things about me?" she asked.

"She knew about you from before the beginning, just not that he'd actually change you. Because of what happened with your mother and Father, she believed he would not risk your death. She was mistaken, and that bothered her. It is why she didn't trust you from the very beginning."

"Then why did she want me? Just to convince me of her madness and have my play spy without my knowledge?" she asked, and he finally let go of her hand.

"She wanted you for the same reason she wanted Akira. Azera had no way to take out her hurt and betrayal on Thane, so she settled for the next best thing."

"Is that why she kept you all and never killed you?" she asked.

Dizzy, she went to her bed and sat on it with her knees under her chin.