~ Rhys ~ Benny led him to the storage room, confirming the inventory of the books. Rhys was taken aback when he realized that Amira, the woman who had attempted to assassinate him, a vicious rogue, someone he considered beneath him, was the mastermind behind such an ingenious idea. Rhys was starting to understand why Amira was one of the leaders of the rebels. The notion of facilitating exchanges of goods instead of money proved to be truly ingenious, benefiting the less fortunate. However, he couldn't help but wonder how someone genuinely impoverished would navigate this system. Then again, they were unlikely to visit a shop selling garments. It was surely a good system and something he would take note of and tell Baltir when he was back at the palace… Rhys’ thoughts trailed off as he glanced at his tiny hands holding a rusty blade. That was if he ever returned to his body. His perfectly shaped brows pulled together at that notion, reminding him once more of this cruel and irr
~ Rhys ~ Collapsing atop the bed, Rhys stared up at the ceiling, both grossed out and stunned by the sensitive tissue between his legs. This was something he needed to explore. It wasn’t his priority considering where he was, but today had turned into shopping with Nova and sexual harassment by Caz. He couldn’t call it sexual harassment, though, because it seems Amira and Caz were… He snarled, unable to conjure up the word ‘lovers’. It shouldn’t aggravate him, though. Unable to deal with these ludicrous thoughts, Rhys wanted more than anything to bathe off Caz’s stench. Where was the bathtub? He jumped up from the bed and left the room in search of the water closet. After opening a few unlocked doors and seeing some of the state of people’s rooms, Rhys rushed down the stairs, frustrated and in search of Amira’s cousin. He didn’t think it would come to this, but he was making a gamble. He stopped just before the table, a little wary at the group of men sitting at the circular tab
~ Rhys ~ Upon seeing the water closet closest to the study, the one Amira frequented the most, he felt as though he’d truly woken up in a nightmare. There was a bathtub, but it was empty. There were no taps to run water. But there was a bucket and a well beside it to gather water from and a grand open fireplace. “What am I supposed to do in here?” Rhys asked, putting his hands on his hips as he stared up at Zayyan. Zayyan continued to chew his gum as he looked back at the tub. “What? You forgot how to fill a tub?” He sighed and scratched the back of his head. “Have your memories returned to when you were a little lady?” He snorted and strolled further into the dimly lit room. The only source of lighting was from one of the floor-to-ceiling high stained glass with images of roses, and there were some candleholders on the fireplace and melted candles on the iron chandelier above. Zayyan lit a few candles but left the chandelier, stopping just before the bathtub. “You have one lux
~ Amira ~It had been days since Amira left the king’s bed. Rhys’ body had really taken a hit this time. Both times the aconite poison had been injected close to his heart. It was shocking that she hadn’t died.While Amira writhed in pain, confined to her bed, she resumed plotting the king's assassination as per her usual schemes. The aconite had proven its usefulness, yet it fell short of taking his life. Although her dose was remarkably potent, that same poison coursed through his body the very next day. It left her no choice but to fight him to the death or contemplate beheading him.The idea of beheading him was a little… gruesome, even for her. Amira never liked the idea of beheading someone, not since her father’s execution. This was, of course, if she ever returned to her body.Other thoughts did occur to her, risky ones, and she wasn't going to try it. But if she killed herself in this body... Did Rhys die, and she'd return to her body? Or would she die and Rhys? If she wasn't
~ Amira ~Amira stared at the path ahead as she held a warm, large hand. She inhaled deeply to the fresh air fluttering the ribbon under her chin to the hat she wore along with the ends of her hair. The smell of apples and roses wafted in the air, making Amira turn her nose in their direction.The garden was unfamiliar to her, yet familiar. Slowly, as realisation hit her, Amira’s eyes returned to the hand holding hers, leading up his arm until her eyes rested on her father, Alpha Dashiell. A pang of sadness made her look at her father more in this dream. No, this was not a dream; it was a memory. Still, Amira tried to look at his sharp features for as long as she could until her body followed the movements of what happened in real life. At such a young age, Amira still hadn’t ventured far from their territory, and without a mother, she was close to her father. As Amira and her father approached the rounded pergola adorned with flowers and lanterns, they encountered the imposing coup
~ Amira ~Amira groaned as the pain from her reality crashed down on her again. She was still recovering from the effects of aconite, though the pain was lesser than before. Still, that dream was bizarre. She felt both nostalgic and longing to see her father again, to utter rage at his death and to who was responsible. She felt sickened at seeing Alpha King Theon again and his smile. He did adore her and treated her like a daughter. Since her father’s death and the eradication of her pack to growing up around rogues who fought for scraps and the chance to be at a better status, Amira did not trust anybody again except for Zayyan. Somehow he crawled his way into her tight-knit circle of one and turned it into two. Then there was that last bit at the end of the dream before she woke up. Rhys asked for his body back. Was he somehow still in this body, listening to her? It made her more confused, but what could she do about that?Shaking her head, she avoided such thoughts for now and
~ Amira ~Amira had to hide the surprise on her face. She looked away, rubbing the back of her neck as she accepted what they said. So, Rhys was not too much of a dick to take a married woman and seemed concerned with consent. That didn’t mean he’d asked the others before, though? Rumours spread for a reason, the women he slept with died, so why would anyone thrown his way accept bedding him?Or were these women foolish enough to believe they might be the ones that might change his tyrannical heart?“And you?” Amira asked, gazing down at the woman who had been touching her inappropriately. “Me?” The woman squeaked. Amira took that as a no. “Do you like to toss me off?” She asked with a sigh, already feeling exhausted from the conversation. The maid nodded. She even nodded whilst blushing! It must have been her change in attitude that scared her. Admittedly Rhys was a good-looking man. It was still weird that they happily wanted to 'assist' in his needs.With a sigh, Amira stroked
~ Amira ~After the luxurious bath and eating breakfast, Amira was dressed in the finest suit, ready to go to the meeting with the elders. She stared at herself in the mirror and rolled her eyes at Rhys’ good looks. He also seemed to have a permanent line between his brows from where he most likely scowled so much. Whenever she wasn’t paying attention and was staring at his shoes that cost almost two weeks' worth of food for a household, she caught her reflection of his furrowed brow. If Rhys continues to look in such a way, he will start to get wrinkles. Amira snorted and shook her head. Rhys was never going to live that long.Turning away from the mirror, Amira dismissed the maids and left through the double doors to Rhys’ bed chambers. The guards stationed on either side of the doors straightened their backs more once she walked through. “Mornin’,” she greeted with a nod.“Uh.. Um…”“Good morning, Alpha,” the guard on the right cover for the stuttering guard on the left of the do