Chained to old wounds

CH138

Morgan

“Wait!” She cried as I expected.

“Give me a reason why should. And it better include you coming quietly.”

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She hesitated. Then, the last remnants of her resistance crumbled. Mei’s shoulders slumped, and for the first time, she looked as fearful as she should be. She was cornered, and she knew it.

“You’ll regret this. I’ll make sure of it.”

“I’ll take that as an agreement.” I sheathed my sword and nodded at the guards.

As the guards moved to restrain her, I couldn’t help but wonder how she expected this to work out. She had to have known that I’d already found out about the poison. If she didn’t think I knew, then she had to think that I had suspicions. It was dicey place to be in, but why run?

She unlike some of the other ladies had a bunch of expenditures related to food. All she had to say was that she had eaten it all, secured it for her home territory, or negotiate to have it taken out of her future allowances. She must have panicked, or maybe she always planned to run and this had just given her a chance to..

Either way, I’m sure I’d find out soon enough.

The guards moved in swiftly, binding Mei’s hands with enchanted shackles that glowed faintly in the darkness. Her eyes flickered with fury, but she said nothing as they led her back towards the capital. Her gaze was full of venom, burning with a defiance that told me she wasn’t finished–not yet.

“You should have been burned to a crisp…”

“How do you expect to burn a phoenix?” I replied off–handedly. © 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

I called for the horse and mounted it again following the group back towards the city. As I watched her, my mind raced ahead through possibilities and paths of action. Capturing her was the first step, but what was the next one? Elia had so many different points of contact with the royal household….

How had it come to this?

What exactly had Hayato done to make Elia hate him so much? Perhaps he just resented the fact

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that Hayato had the throne and he didn’t.

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Greed. Power. Envy… It was somewhat nice to know that the celestials had some of the same

flaws that humans did.

But what had he done to make his concubines willing to betray him so readily? Though I suppose

I could have asked the same questions of Goro, Adele, and my father.

Maybe they had all been forced to marry Hayato and no amount of kindness could undo the pain of having that choice taken from them.

I could almost sympathize.

The streets now quieter under the evening sky. The tension hung thick in the air as we made our way toward the palace. The closer we got, the more agitated Mei became.

“Answer me this,” I said, dismounting and walking to face Mei. “Given what I know about the king. Why would you betray him? What would you get out of it?”

She didn’t answer at first, but I could see the way her shoulders tensed. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, her lips curling into a bitter smile.

You think you know everything, don’t you?” she spat, her voice dripping with disdain. “You think that just because you’re the Crown Princess now that you somehow have it all figured out, but have no idea of the truth. You have no idea what’s coming.”

your

Her words felt heavy, but I wasn’t certain that I could trust a thing she said. I kept my expression steady, though my thoughts were swirling. What was she talking about? The Convening or something else?

“Since you’re already caught, why don’t you get yourself some leniency and tell me?”

“I don’t need leniency from a human.”

“Oh, but you will from my husband, and he’s not a forgiving man.” I smiled at her. “You saw what he did to Ari…”

She paled. “It’s just money what’s the big deal? I’m a wife of the king I should be able to spend what I want that other human certainly did.”

I didn’t believe Haruka capable of being frivolous, but even if she had been she’d probably had permission to be.

“If it’s just money, why run?”

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She huffed.

“I don’t care what game you’re playing, Mei,” I replied, my voice steady. “But you’re going to have to come clean at some point, one way or the other. It would be easier for you and everyone involved if you just told the truth.”

“You don’t know anything about me or about what’s going to happen it would have been easier if you had just died.”

“Easier for who? No matter what happened to me, you still weren’t going to be the queen,” I said. She flinched. “Or was that the problem? Did you do all of this just because you were jealous of her? Did Elia promise to make you his queen?”

She flushed. “Shut up!”

“I can tell you he made that promise to several others.”

“You don’t know-

“One of them is already giving him an heir…”

She sucked in a sharp breath. I watched her mind turn my words over and smiled waiting for her

to finally get it.

She dropped her gaze and clenched her jaw. “I don’t believe you.”

“I have no need to convince you.”

I turned and ordered the guards to take her to the dungeons for questioning later. They led her away, feeling oddly successful.

Pyrą stirred in the back of my mind.

She knows something.

That much was obvious.

Perhaps if you were kind to her she would answer..

I scoffed at that. No one gave up the plans of their grand scheme because someone handed them a cookie, and I didn’t really need her to. It was pretty obvious what was going on. All I needed was the detail. And if I could get them all to turn on Elia, I had a feeling that their scorned Hearts. would drive them to give me the information I needed to stop him once and for all. Part of me wondered if Ari was caught up in this weird love game, or if she was just using Elia for her own

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ends.

I sighed and head back into the palace, headed toward the meeting room to find out how the rest

of the collections went.

As I entered the chamber where the others were waiting, the soft murmur of their conversation

quieted. Anya looked up first, her face a mix of concern and curiosity.

“Is everything alright, Morgan?” she asked, her voice gentle.

“For now. Mei has been apprehended, but she didn’t say much of use.” I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. “Let’s pick this up tomorrow with fresh eyes and a bit more patience.”

Then, a knock sounded on the door.

“Come in.”

For a moment, I turned and I was somewhere else I was some time there was someone staring at me glaring at me. The woman smile was vicious and dark.

I’m offering you a way out you think you’re safe you think it’ll be fine but you know nothing of this world and of Darkness…