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29

Author: Midika
last update Last Updated: 2022-07-26 07:01:34

~Akara

I stare up at the steps leading onto the temporary stage, shuddering.

The last thing I want is to be here, in this Jade Province village, expected to pretend like I'm marrying Tai. But if I want any chance of saving Marek's life, I'm going to have to act, until I can get that antidote myself.

"Take my hand," Tai encourages.

I stare down at it, knowing where he plans to lead me. "Do I have to?"

"Maintaining appearances, right?" He offers a smile, but I don't return it. I've dressed in this ridiculous garb to please him, so for now, I have no other choice but to plaster a smile on my face and gaze up at Tai like he's the love of my life, because we are about to step on stage before an entire village of people.

Sliding my hand into his, I allow him Tai to lead me carefully up the stairs and onto the stage, to stand before the people, who merely stare up at us blankly, waiting to decide whether they want to trust us or not.

They have survived a rebellion, which cannot have been goo
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  • The King’s Obsession   39

    ~AkaraI freeze, staring at him as the information sinks in."Where is she?" I question breathlessly.Tai's mother survived, or at least that is what I've been believing since I read Tai's journal, and now, this confirms it. I must have figured it out prior to reading the journal, meaning my distrust of Tai during that time was impossibly high."She's staying in the room next door," Grey tells me. "I found out where she was and wrote to her regarding you. Thankfully she came here to speak to you."I breathe out slowly, processing that. This is just what I need, to talk to someone who has a deeper insight about who Tai is."Take me to talk to her," I demand, closing the gap between Grey and I. Maria...I know her name only because Tai uttered it once.He grabs my arm, stopping me from barging past him and out the door. "Woah...hold on. Can't we talk first?""Grey, you need to understand that you and I will never happen, okay?" I tell him firmly. There is no point hiding it from him, tha

  • The King’s Obsession   38

    ~AkaraWith a bit of Zavian's help, I've managed to track Grey down.Someone in the men Zavian hired to infiltrate Tai's estate knew of a man who was once asking questions around town about me. From there, it didn't take long to have a note passed onto Grey, who unsurprisingly, hasn't left the Jade Province.And just like I suspected, he came to the meeting spot I mentioned in the note; about a thirty minute walk away from Zavian's estate."I wasn't sure I would ever see you again," he murmurs, coming to stand a few feet in front of me."You were meant to run away." I was hoping I wouldn't see him again. Not because he's apparently in love with me, but because I don't trust him. I need to trust my instincts, even if I don't know what my state of mind was during that time."How could I, when you're here," he says earnestly.I fight the urge to roll my eyes. This love sick act has to drop soon, I mean, he knows I'm in love with Marek, and I'm to be married to the King, and yet he still

  • The King’s Obsession   37

    ~AkaraI stare up into Zavian's earnest blue eyes, stunned.“I’m sorry…What?”“Think about it,” he breathes, going to grab my hands, but I pull them away quickly, unsure of his motivations, scared I'm about to be forced into another marriage. Zavian is my best friend, not someone I want to marry. “It would be a way around the law, if you became engaged to another King.”“I…I guess," I stutter. He's right, it could be a way around the law, but how would Tai retaliate? And the thought of this being something different...I've lost way too many friends. I refuse to lose Zavian.“It wouldn’t be for long. Just until Tai is no longer a threat," he assures me, seeing my flustered expression. Despite my panic, I believe him. He knows what I've been through, and wouldn't put me through that again without good reason. And being forced into a marriage with Tai is definitely a good one.I shift on my feet, lowering voice. “This idea is good, Zavian, but Tai is holding something over me.”“What?”

  • The King’s Obsession   36

    ~AkaraWe walk for a while, in tense silence.Eventually, Vaia's complaints become too frequent, so we have to stop, dead in the middle of the forest, with no civilization for at least an hour's walk from here. It doesn't bother me, though, because while I'm here, I'm not locked away in Tai's estate, and if I wanted to, I could run in a single direction and get far, far away from him."We are going to have to sleep under the stars tonight," Marek says, shrugging his long hunting coat off, laying it down across the forest floor."We don't have anything to sleep on?" Tai turns in a circle, looking distastefully at his environment.I stare at him blankly.Has he already forgotten what it was like to live in hardship? We did it for so many months together, and he rarely complained. It's as if those moments are lost on him now, having disappeared into an inescapable void."What do you want? To go to a village and maybe be torn apart by people who may not like you any longer?" Marek asks, k

  • The King’s Obsession   35

    ~Akara"We should go down and-"Tai grabs my arm, yanking me back from approaching the door. I yelp, wrestling out of his grip, frustrated. He has no shortage of guards who are downstairs, where something dramatic is clearly is happening."Are you insane, Akara? Were you not there for Vaia's rebellion?" he questions. I frown, rubbing where he had gripped me.Of course I remember that night vividly. I nearly died at Vaia's hand, but whatever is happening downstairs feels different from that night. There can't possibly be another Rebellion, right? Vaia is safely locked up, and people are relieved the political uproar has finally settled with Tai returning to the throne."Yes, I know, but-""We need to hide. This could be anything," he says, glancing at the door anxiously. My eyes narrow, realising that this isn't coming out of nowhere. Tai isn't shocked at the estate being attacked again, having anticipated it, because he knows his new motivations have angered people."Anything? But wha

  • The King’s Obsession   34

    ~AkaraWhatever headspace I was in before I lost consciousness cannot have been a good one.But I've never been more grateful for my own self preservation.Pacing back and forth through my room, the warning I wrote for myself is scrunched up in my hand. My instincts have failed me. I thought I could trust Grey, that he was nothing more than a victim to my incessant need to get back to find Marek.Marek and I spent the rest of yesterday afternoon checking every inch of that motel room, only to find nothing. The girl at the desk wasn't very helpful either, claiming she had only just started working there, and couldn't confirm whether I was alone that day with Grey, or whether I indulged where I was going."Akara..."I turn, having already felt the cool breeze coming through my opening window, heard the soft footsteps fall onto my bedroom floor. I knew he was coming tonight.Advancing on Grey, I slam my hands against his shoulders, sending him hurtling back a few strides. His eyes widen,

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