Chapter nine

Xander POV

Chris pushed the door open and I was met with a dark room, well the candles were lit and it gave a bright yet welcoming glow and for once, I smiled at the nostalgia.

I walked in and closed the door behind me, despite being scared of what was to come, I decided that I should be a little strong and not show them that I was weak.

The room smelt nice, fresh as the curtains swayed against the wind and allowed the room to breathe.

I looked around the room in order to find Amos and get whatever he planned over with. However, he was nowhere in sight. I sighed in relief before I made my way for the balcony and leaned against the stone rail that prevented me from taking a deathly drop.

I looked over my kingdom and once the reality set in, I had felt my heart sink when I saw how quiet it was. It was usually never like this, people hiding away in their homes and some of the outsiders patrolling the area with knives, bows and arrows.

There were even some soldiers standing guard against their will and I felt their pain. I narrowed my eyebrows at the cry of my people. It was at that instant, I wanted to know what was happening.

A gasp left my lips once I felt arms snake on my sides and holding onto the stone right beside my waist, caging me. A hard chest pressed against my back and a nose nuzzled into my hair.

I felt shivers run down my spine and goosebumps rose over my skin in shock, my body was not used to such touches and such manhandling. The scent of musk filled my nose and it suffocated me.

The gown I was wearing had a dip in the back so I felt the warmness of a bare chest against my skin. The king was shirtless and I felt my cheeks flame, I was not used to this.

"You look divine."

His voice was deep and husky against my ear and once again, goosebumps burst all over my skin. The cold wind was not helping either so I unconsciously pressed against this man's chest with the only intention of getting warm.

Besides, I was not in the mood to fight anyone. I just wanted to discuss things with him and go to sleep. Suddenly, Amos seemed like an angel compared to the others.

Chris, Belle, Erin and Yoon.

I shivered at the memory of them and yep, Amos seemed so much better in my eyes albeit him being responsible of my parents being dead. I will never forget what he's done and I know one day, I will take back what's mine.

"Tell me what I need to know Amos." I cut straight to the point, I look down for a while before I look up at the moon, this caused for Amos' lips and nose to drag against my skin and I shivered again. I tried to push him away and try to move away but I was caged against him and I sighed.

"Which part exactly, my Queen?" Amos asked and I could feel his eyes looking down at me possessively.

"Let's start from the beginning... " I say and trail off as I begin to draw into the stone, nervousness and anxiety taking over. I was scared of what I was about to find out.

"Why did you challenge my father?"

"Revenge."

The instant answer, no wavering of tone had my stomach churning in an ugly way. I closed my eyes tightly, I wasn't sure if I was prepared to hear what was the truth and what were lies. I was not ready for what was right and what wrong.

Suddenly a chuckle was heard behind me and the vibrations reverberated onto my chest and I shivered from the feeling. It was deeper than I had expected.

"It doesn't seem like you're ready for the truth yet, beautiful."

I blushed at the nickname but it was because of embarrassment. I shook my head immediately,

"No, no... I want to know. Whether it hurts me or not... How much worse can it get?" I asked and I really hoped God wouldn't prove me wrong and make everything worse. I stood there thinking what would make now any worse and the thought of Christian dying had my knees shaking.

But I already knew what I had to do in order to secure his life. Be obedient as possible and not piss this man off.

"Why revenge?" I asked once I received no reply.

Things had went quiet for a little while before he opened his mouth to speak,

"Your parents ruined my entire life. My every being was destroyed because of your disgusting parents." He said it monotonously, as if his soul was tired. I felt myself become angry at the down speaking of my parents.

But I decided to bite my tongue in order to get the story out quicker.

"I lived in a small village a little away from here. The village wasn't so well off, we were poverty stricken, we lived on land that did not have extremely fertile soil and so it affected our food and our animals... "

The king paused, he was quiet for a long while and I thought he had left but then just as I was about to turn around, I felt his nose nuzzle into my hair again.

The King's eyes were closed as he did so, trying to ease his mind.

"God knows how we were able to survive for so long. My people didn't have money or resources to just pack up and leave so we were forced to remain. From a young age, I was able to glance into the distance and I was able to see this magnificent castle, blame my oblivious age, I thought it was a fairytale. Therefore I wanted to see the King one day, he was my unknown hero because a childish part of me believed he could save us... That one day he would." His voice was definite.

"My people died almost everyday due to sickness and malnutrition. Hell, I was malnourished. People were always on the verge of dying but God, we fought. We fought for our lives in whichever way possible."

He did not waver, he did not stutter, there was no crack. He seemed emotionless as he spoke. To some extent, it scared me.

"I always loved horses because at that age, I had never seen one. My curiosity ate me at what they were like. So one day, the king and his men galloped like guardians in a fairytale, atop beautiful white mares, their bodies giant and healthy. I was so excited,"

Amos actually laughed a little at the memory and for some reason, I smiled a little. Only a little. I smiled at his innocence.

"Curse my stupid self, when my father warned me to stay away... I hadn't listened. I ran toward them with the biggest smile, I boldly asked for help, I asked them to save my village, my people... Me."

I felt a lump form in my throat at the pity I began to feel. It had become so hard to swallow as I allowed the last part to settle in and so I knew the worst was coming, so I anticipated the worst.

"Take a guess on what your father tried to do?" He asked and I remained quiet, I felt guilt trickle its way inside of me.

"Your precious father looked at me with disgust, he called me a peasant and then he tried to kill me, I nearly got trampled by his horseman..." Amos continued, I felt horrible after he said those words but it seemed as if the story was not done yet as he went on.

"I was devastated, I did not understand why he would donc such a thing. Weren't Kings supposed to save people? My father had later explained me that he had been begging the king for years for help but your father hated us because we were poor and.. Sick."

"He believed that we were abnormal people."

I could tell that Amos began to get angry as he recalled the information, I could tell by the way his arms gripped onto the stone and dug into my waist. I felt my own self become scared, I had no idea what the king was capable of.

Despite fear, I felt ashamed. Utterly ashamed of my father.

"And no, it didn't stop there... One day, everything had came crashing down like a castle made of sand. Your father had set our village alight.. As if we were one of his candles. You don't understand how many lives were taken, you have no idea how our very living was burned beneath our feet."

I slapped a palm over my mouth in order to muffle my gasp.

Was he telling the truth? Was what he was saying all true? My father... Killed people..Because they were sick? No please...Tell me it's all lies.

"I.. Lost my parents that night. My main happiness was gone, you don't understand how important they were to me. I fled into the woods, along with whoever was left. All these 'outsiders' are all that's left. Many of us lost our families at young ages and Yoon was one of them. He was eight and I was six, Belle was four and Chris wasn't even born yet... "

"We rose up from the scraps your father left behind and we trained, we trained hard. I looked after everyone as if they were my family, they are my family. Which explains their loyalty to me... They will never betray me."

I felt sick, my mind rendered blank and no words could form beside feelings. Shame, pity, sympathy, disgust. I was at war with myself, my mind was jumbled. I didn't know if I should believe him but something made me believe him.

My eyes burned with tears but I refused to cry, I just stared out into the sky.

Suddenly I felt strong hands grip my shoulders and I was turned with force until I was facing the king, I whimpered at the force.

I was met with fiery eyes and I began to shake in fear and for once, I didn't think I could hate Amos at that moment.

"Your people hated us because we were poor, they thought we were useless and pathetic. What would you know of struggle Xander? You were born with a golden spoon in your mouth and you've always been pampered. What did we have? Huh?! Why were we forced to grow up?! Why couldn't we be happy?!" Amos began to yell in fury and I cowered away, I felt fear at its purest form and I was terrified of what Amos could do.

His eyes dark and his teeth grinded. I wanted to curl up into a ball and cry, at this moment... I wish I was dead.

"Pl-please stop, A-Amos... I d-didn't know, it isn't m-my fault. I'm s-so sorry." I whispered through my shaking voice, my heart clenching in pain and hurt. Suddenly I was angry at my parents, because of their inhumanity, I was going to suffer the consequence.

"They say women are affectionate and empathetic creatures... But your mother was something else, she allowed your father to do it all. She hated us!" The raven glared and I recoiled, my back pressed into the stone and I whimpered as it was grazing and I was held tightly by the king.

I hung my head low in shame, my lips wobbled and I was afraid that if I spoke, my voice would crack.

A long time had passed and Amos managed to calm down, he took a deep breath. Ridding himself with negativity before he let go of me.

"Come to bed whenever you're ready."

And with that, I watched his retreating back disappear into the poorly lit room.