▪︎ Kaitlyn Winchester ▪︎
Clad in the flowy off-white gown with honey-locust leaf patterns that I'd worn the first time I came here for the king's guard selection, I ascend the carriage and take a seat inside. Queen Narcissa followed right behind me with a deep frown etched to her otherwise carved face.
Shortly after Valerian had left the room leaving me in a mess of confusion, Narcissa had come in a few minutes later asking me to go along with her to Lycor, the lycan kingdom, as I'm the rightful princess of the Verakov royal family ruling the place.
At first I'd been ready to deny her offer outright but. . .
My eyes dart outside the glass windows of the carriage to Dulcamara standing silently next to Queen Eleanor and Marilla who are here to bid me farewell. As I tried my best to ignore looking at Valerian standing next to his step-mother, the ancient witch's words from earlier ran through my mind.
* * *
F L A S H B A C K
* * *
The very moment Valerian had walked out of the room along with Eleanor and Marilla's retreating silhouette following shortly behind him, my lycan spoke to me for the first time.
'HE'S LYING.' Were her first words to me. She had a soothing and baby-ish voice. Something about it reminded me of Marilla's voice.
'I know.' I retorted back to her as I took a seat on the couch next to the beige walls.
I knew he lied from the moment he said he was seducing me to save himself. You don't hold someone while they're in pain if you're trying to seduce them. You don't try to save someone repeatedly if you're trying to seduce them. And you definitely don't worry about them if you're trying to seduce them. There's a difference between seducing and caring. And if he thinks he can fool me by throwing a few harsh words of blasphemy, than he's oh-so-mistaken. I've seen the emotions in his eyes whenever he's around me.
But what I don't get is why he is lying?
There has to be a reason behind it.
As if hearing my thoughts,
"Every action has a reason behind it." Dulcamara said as she approached me.
I had totally forgotten she was here too. She'd been so quite the whole time.
"What's important is how you use this action to your advantage," Her scrutinizing gaze fell upon me, "Valerian might have his reason and his actions are going to affect him, in a good way or bad way, we don't know. But it's upto you whether you want to use it wisely for yourself."
I lifted my confused eyes to her wise brown ones, "How do I do it when I don't even know the reason behind his actions?"
"Sweet child," She smiled but there was something eerie about the glint in those sharp eyes as they bored into mine, "Let's leave Valerian for now. What do you know about yourself?"
"I. . ." I tried to speak but no words came out as the sinking realisation that almost everything I knew about myself was a lie digged it's path into my head.
"Find out about yourself first and then everything will fall into place." Dulcamara's unsettling smile widened, "But have you heard? In chess, the queen can move wherever she likes. That's the closest hint I can give you." The fortune-seer witch passed me a wink over her shoulder as she turned around and walked out of the room just as Narcissa walked in.
* * *
E N D OF F L A S H B A C K
* * *
Although Dulcamara's words many times didn't make sense but if we pay enough attention and try to sort the riddles, we could get the biggest hint of our future.
I know Queen Narcissa isn't the best option to begin with but I had to start somewhere. Find out about myself, isn't that what she said? Where else would I know about myself more than my birth family? And a queen can move wherever she likes, right? So that means I can collect more information in power as the princess of Lycor than an assassin in the creed.
Assassin reminds me-
Despite the lack protests of my mind, I couldn't help myself from stealing a glance at Valerian as the carriage started moving at a snail's pace.
Valerian's eyes instantly connected with mine only for them to turn another shade sadder. His hair was disheveled and I don't know how but I knew he must've ran his hand through them a million times in frustration. At that moment, as he kept staring with an unseen longness in those green eyes, all the traces of the mighty king was gone. He suddenly looked like a boy who hated every second of his life. I know I should look away but I just couldn't.
Why? Why are you doing this if it's affecting you so much?
I felt my heart squeeze to the size of a pea as the carriage moved forward taking away the lastest of his image away from sight. It was like he was a running train I had to catch on fast enough before it vanished out of sight.
Find out about yourself first and then everything will fall into place.
Dulcamara's words whisked through my mind again reminding me of the work in hand. The faster I find out about myself, the closer I'll get to unleashing the twisted mystery that runs in Valerian's head.
I have to do this quick. And I'll start it with Victor.
Letting out a shaky breath, I turn to Queen Narcissa who still had her ever-present frown since the moment she entered the carriage.
"I need to halt somewhere." I say.
"I know where you want to halt. And whom you wish to meet. We're going there itself, my dearest assasin." She huffed.
So she knows? I couldn't even say I was surprised to know that Victor is one of the three people helping her to kill Valerian.
As we rode through the busy kingdom of Raveria towards the forest leading to Helvon where the assasins base is situated, I saw the frown on Narcissa's face deepen.
"I was told I'd receive a surprise upon arriving at the High king's castle. But I don't think I like the surprise a least bit." The lycan queen said out of nowhere.
My brows raised on their own accord at the venom lacing her tone, "You were told priorly to be at the castle today?"
"Now why would I tell you that?" Narcissa crossed her arms over her chest haughtily, "Look at you lowly girl asking me things without any fear. Don't think you're greater than me now that you know you're a princess."
What in the world is her problem? And didn't she say just a few minutes ago that she was told to be in the castle for the surprise? Gee, is this woman dumb as well?
I accessed the delusional woman who sprew nonsense with a newfound keen-ness. Something about her has me feeling bitter without any reasoning. Maybe it is because I knew she's the one who's trying to kill Valerian but I don't understand why that should affect me.
Now that I look at it, maybe all those confusing feelings I felt around him was all because of the mate bond?
'LET ME REMIND YOU, THE MATE BOND ISN'T RESPONSIBILE FOR FEELINGS. IT JUST BOOSTS THE ATTRACTION. BESIDES, YOU DIDN'T EVEN FEEL HALF THE BOND BECAUSE I WAS BLOCKED AWAY DUE TO YOUR FOOLISH ASS GALLOPING VICTOR'S POTION. NOW THAT I'M FINALLY OUT, YOU'RE GOING TO SEE HOW STRONG THE MATE BOND CAN ACTUALLY BE THE NEXT TIME YOU'RE AROUND VALERIAN.' My lycan huffs defensively.
I chose to ignore her big rant although I feel the sharp stab of betrayal at her confessing about Victor stopping her from reaching me. He knew all this while and he lied to my face. About me being the lycan princess and also about Valerian being my mate. I'm sure he knew both of it. Otherwise why would he constantly ask whether I still felt edgy around Valerian? I want to know why he'd do that. I didn't ever realise his hatred for Valerian ran this deep.
Focusing back on the woman in front of me, I feel a smirk pulling to my lips as I get an idea of why she might be so itchy at my sight.
"You feel threatened by my presence, don't you?" I state leaning back against the seat, "It's the Verakov family's rule. After the death of the ruler, their direct heir would be the one to acquire the throne. Since everyone believed King Acheros' children died on the same day of the king and queen's assassination, you were the only bloodline left. So you got the throne. But with me in the picture," My smirked stretched as I saw a dark look cross her face, "You might lose your throne. And I might become the queen."
So, this is why Dulcamara said queen and not princess? That sneaky woman. She knew it all along.
Narcissa's face contorted in anger, her blazing grey eyes burning with fire. If looks could kill, I'd be well dead by now. But before she could do anything, the carriage halted in front of the three-storey building of the assasins creed in middle of the forest.
Narcissa squeezed her mouth shut as she spotted Victor and the troop of assasins waiting outside. I tilted my head in amusement as I spotted the tiny hint of awareness in her eyes. Look who's scared. But with the kingdoms deadliest assasins at a place altogether, who wouldn't be?
The coachman opened the door of the carriage and I descended down without waiting for Narcissa. Victor was there instantly as he gestures me with his head to head inside the house.
When Narcissa decided to follow, Victor passed her a blank glance, "Queen Narcissa, it would be good if you could give us a moment. Kaitlyn will be there in a few minutes. Why don't you wait in the carriage until then?" It wasn't a question, it was a statement right from the leader.
And if leader didn't like outsiders entering his base, then there wasn't going to be an outsider entering.
Narcissa looked like she would explode at the prospect of him telling her to do something but upon seeing the end number of assasins surrounding us and barely two guards there from her side in middle of a dense forest, she chose to eat her words and nod begrudgingly as she hoisted back into the closed confines of her carriage.
I followed silently behind leader into the large stone building. But the moment we walked past the high grey ceilings of the hall and into the sound-proofed walls of the meeting room,
"You knew it all along, didn't you?" I exploded not bothering to conceal my expressions the way he'd thought us, "You knew I was the lycan princess! You knew Valerian was my mat-"
Before I could complete the sentence, he rushed upto me in his vampiric agility and placed his palm on my mouth shutting me from speaking the words.
"Are you out of your mind, Kaitlyn?!" He barked but for the first time in so many years, I could hear the hint of anger in his voice mixed with an odd emotion of fear which confused me.
At the confuzled look on my face, Victor sighed as he took his hand of off my mouth and his expression shifted back to it's hard-to-comprehend look.
"Never say that out loud if you don't want to be killed. And that's not an option. It's a warning, Kaitlyn." Leader said folding his arms above his chest.
"Why?" I gazed up at his dark maroon eyes that almost looked charcoal coloured.
"Why I hid it from you?" He voiced out the question in my head.
At my nod, leader's eyes observed me for a minute before he gestured me to take a seat on the chair placed around the twenty-seater table.
Taking a seat himself, Victor crossed his arms over the table and looked at me, "Long ago before you were born, when Valerian had just taken over his father's throne, there was a girl who always roamed around him and Marilla. Her name was Katherine Romanov."
Intrigued by the starting of a tale, I listened with focused attention.
"Valerian said she was just another member from his court. But one day, someone from the castle saw them kissing and spread the rumor that she's his mate. She was a simple guard's daughter from the Raverian army and had no defense to protect herself when Valerian's enemies came looking for her thinking she's his mate. The very same day the rumor began, she was abducted."
I couldn't help the tinge of jealousy clawing at me knowing Valerian kissed someone but a larger part of me felt bad for the girl.
"What happened then?" I gave Victor a quizzical look as he stopped.
Victor's face took in a hooded expression, "The next day, the raverian court received a parcel. The said parcel consisted of Katherine's remains. Her body was torn into pieces with all the blood and gore and delivered to Valerian as a gift."
I couldn't stop the gasp that escaped my mouth as he concluded. Based on a rumor, they did such a horrible thing to the poor girl. If they'd ever come to know I am the actual mate. . . .
For the first time in my life, I felt my hands tremble under the table as I pictured the image. How would've Valerian felt that day. . .
"I might want Valerian dead. But believe me, I've never wanted any harm upon you. What happened to that girl might happen to you too if someone knew." Victor's expression remained unchanged but there was sincerity in his voice, "So I'm telling you this, don't ever reveal to anyone that he's your—you know who."
"How do I believe you're not lying when all you've told me about myself my entire life was a lie?" I clenched my fist to stop the tremble.
"You think everything I told you right now is a lie?" Victor's eyes accessed me, those charcoal gaze boring into mine.
"Don't get me wrong but there's no proof what you said isn't made up to scare me. Besides, you're telling me to hide about the bond but Narcissa and the other three helping her probably know about it already since you know." I reminded him.
"They don't know. There's no one except me who knows about it. And I'm going to keep it that way. I'd advise you never tell them either." His face was stoic but something about the way his head nodded stated he was pleased to see I wasn't trusting so easily, "If that's not enough proof, I'd give you another reason to trust what I just told you."
My brows crease together thinking what it might be but I wasn't least prepared for what I heard next,
"Katherine," Victor's maroon eyes bored into mine, "She was my daughter."
Oopsy Daisy.
Not my favorite chapter but now you finally know why Victor hates Valerian so much👀
What do you think will happen now?
Thoughts on Victor?