Their Hidden Princess Chapter 100

The dull beeping of the infirmary was becoming the opposite of an omen.

It signaled that whatever trauma, whatever bullshit, I’d been through was over. I sighed deeply as I woke up to its low noise. Immediately, I felt a hand squeeze mine. Warmth moved from the tips of my fingers up to my brain and down to my toes. It felt like my entire body was held in a hug. I felt more peace wash over me. My neck lazily rolled towards my hand as my eyes fluttered open.

It took a moment for them to focus but when they did, I let out another sigh. Maximus’s gold eyes were staring at me. His lip was quirked in the teeniest, tiniest of smiles. His hands were wrapped around mine.

“Hi,” I rasped.

“Hi,” he said back.

He continued to stare at me as my eyes roamed the room. I noticed we weren’t alone. In his usual position was none other than Valentin Lunerly. He was still in the same casual shirt and trousers he’d been in the forest. I noticed a smear of my blood across his thigh. My eyes worked their way up to his. Just as he always was, his face was set in an impassive mask. He nodded gently at me and another bout of warmth worked its way through my other hand.

I continued to explore the room, lazily. However, that changed when my eyes landed on the third person, leaning against the wall. I tensed immediately as I recognized the auburn hair.

Kairos Moonraiser was in my infirmary room.

He must’ve felt me staring into his back because he turned around to face me. All of the hardness he usually held was gone. His freckles felt like they were twinkling on his tan face. His harsh gold eyes were softened and welcoming as they looked at me.

Another surge of warmth spurred through me, and I fidgeted. It was becoming far too hot. I kicked the blanket over me free of my feet and sighed in relief when the cool air hit the burning of my feet. I settled back in the bed and pressed my hand to my face.

“What happened?”

“What do you remember?” Valentin said, gently.

I closed my eyes as I tried to fish through my brain for the memories. There was a fuck ton of pain. A lot of burning and the smell of charred flesh. Then, I vaguely remember two wolves bursting out of the forest. One auburn and one the ashy brown. I dropped my hand and opened my eyes to glance at Valentin.

“You were there,” I turned towards Kairos. “And, for some reason, you.”

Kairos’s softness vanished for his hardened eyes and jaw. He opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by Valentin.

“Mr. Moonraiser was the one who alerted me you were in danger,” he said. “He’d found Princess Amara wandering the campus in a daze and brought her to me.”

I frowned. “Amara? Is she okay?”

“She will be,” Valentin huffed. “She just needs to detox.”

“Detox!?” My eyes felt like they were going to burst out of my skull. “They drugged her?”

“She drugged herself,” Kairos snapped. Everyone in the room slowly turned to look at him. I must’ve looked confused because he sighed and dropped his arms to his sides.

“She drank vampire blood,” he continued. “It causes delusion in wolves.”

“Like you’ve done a hallucinogenic,” Valentin added.

“Gods,” I hissed.

“Also highly addictive,” Valentin sat back in his chair and crossed his ankle over his knee. His hand went to rub his face. I noticed the very light starting of a beard on his chin. “She’s detoxing so we can understand what happened.”

“Does wolf blood do the same for vampires?” I asked.

“Sort of,” Maximus said. “It’s more of a depressant for them. Think of like human marijuana. That’s why they were draining you. To get high and have a supply.”

I frowned again. In my memories, I vaguely remember one of the vampires trying to taste my blood and then, he was gone. My head started to pound at that moment, so I figured I’d ask Mona later. I pressed the heel of my palm into my eye socket. I was about to ask everyone to leave me to sleep when the door burst open.

A flurry of dark robes swirled through the room and ended at the foot of my bed. The person wearing the robes was tall and adorned in various gold chains and pins. They slowly pulled back their hood and my breathing stopped for another moment.

Queen Victoria Luna was at Alpha Academy.

“Your Highness,” Maximus scrambled to spit out. He stood up from the edge of my bed and bowed his head. Kairos was doing something similar. To my left, Valentin simply crossed his arms over his chest.

“At ease, Alpha Wolfham,” came my mother’s voice. She sent me a soft smile before addressing Valentin.

“I got your message,” her eyes drifted back to me. “A vampire on campus?”

“Two, Your Highness,” came Kairos. He took a step forward so he could face my mother. “The Headmaster and I killed one. The second has been brought in for questioning.”

“Gods be above,” my mother whispered. Then she nodded once at Kairos. “Thank you, Alpha Moonraiser. The headmaster told me you held yourself with honor and power.”

Kairos tipped his head again. “Your honor,”

“I will meet with you in a moment,” Victoria said to Max and Kairos. “For now, I’d like to hear Miss Smith’s story.”

Maximus gave my hand one final squeeze before he and Kairos left the room. Then, it was just me, Valentin and my mother. As soon as the door slammed shut, Victoria’s hands were on my face. She searched my eyes desperately.

“Are you hurt?”

I shrugged. “Just sore. I—”

“This is why I shouldn’t have brought her back, Val,” my mother hissed at the Headmaster. “Someone must’ve tipped them off. They know about her. They damn near killed her!”

“She’s alive, Victoria,” Valentin said, trying to soothe his friend. “Those two vampires were weak. Gammas, if they were wolves. They were nothing—”

“But they’re working for something!” Victoria seemed hysteric as she turned towards Valentin. The two shared a brief glance before Victoria was back looking at me again. Her eyes searched mine before she stroked down the side of my face. “My sweet girl,” she said softly. “I could’ve lost you.”

I pushed her hand away gently. “I’m fine,” I said. “But I would’ve been better if you’d told me that these kinds of threats still existed. If you told me that I’m some sort of wolf weapon!”

“Weapon?” Victoria blinked at me. She glanced sideways at Valentin then at me again. “You’re not a weapon.”

“Victoria,” Valentin warned.

“She’s not!” My mother snapped at him. She looked back at me. “She’s not.”

“She deserves to know,” Valentin said plainly.

“Tell me,” I begged.

Victoria sighed and sat down at the foot of my bed. I’d never seen her look so unlike a Queen. Her hair was wild, unbound as it usually was. Her eyebags rivaled Valentin’s and she looked puffy from tears. I watched her eyes flutter shut as she sucked in a deep breath.

“There was a prophecy,” she started, voice low. “When you were born. Of a wolf who could take down the vampires.”

“Take them down?” I interjected. “I thought you and Valentin had already killed most of them and imprisoned Renatus.”

My mother shot Valentin a scathing look that said he should not have told me about the vampire king. Then, her face softened as she looked back at me.

“We couldn’t have killed them all,” she said. “But we drove them out of the British Isles. We knew they were bound to regroup off shore and come back to try and enslave us again. But when that happened, we’d be ready. Because we had you.”

“Me?” I whispered.

Victoria nodded. “The prophecy I was given told of a wolf who was born from the queen. She was said to have five fated mates, a number that was completely unheard of.”

Five!?

Wolfham, Lunerly, Moonraiser, Blythwitch, Mona said back. There’s four.

My heart thudded deep in my chest. I looked at my mother and held her gaze as she continued.

“The wolf was said to bring down the vampires,” she continued. “Once and for all. And bring back balance to the world. When the seer told me this, I laughed. I had never lain with a man. I assumed my line would end with me. But then, I remembered the night after the war was over. My cup had run dry and my mind was a hurricane. There was darkness then warmth and a man’s warm hands.”

“Victoria,” Valentin gasped besides me. It was clear he didn’t know. He’d told me she didn’t know my father.

Victoria frowned then looked at me. Tears were springing in the corners of her eyes. “You were so little,” she whimpered. “And yet such a perfect baby. I knew I’d been gifted you by the Gods. You we’re to be our savior.”

“So I am a weapon,” I breathed.

“Yes,” Valentin said. “A weapon. Our weapon. The one who will wipe out all of the vampires.”