Two: Is This a Dream?!!

CHAPTER TWO: 

Anastasia's POV: 

HOURS LATER…

I've barely recovered from what I heard earlier. I couldn't take it anymore, so I ran away. I didn't need to hear the man I love go on and on about how he doesn't like me, how he will never like me and all the way he preferred his psycho girlfriend to me. 

I couldn't do that to myself.  

Loving someone isn't a crime, is it?

A part of me doesn't hold any resentment for Kai. He's always been clear and never indicated he liked me, I was the one who was being delusional for six years.

 I didn't stand a chance anyway. 

He has a stronger bond with Vanessa. 

They have years of history together and even though she's at least ten years older than me, she hardly looked it. 

She was everything I wasn't.

 Soft, dainty, cute… everything an omega looked like. The male Alphas here mostly liked  omega females, hell, some of them would rather stay single than choose an alpha female. 

They liked omegas’ vulnerabilities so they could protect them, not someone like me who's a trained assassin and has been since I was twelve years old. These male alphas liked the softer feminine scent unlike female alphas’ harsher ones. They liked their big doe eyes better—and trust me, no matter how many makeup tutorials I watched on switching a siren eye shape to a doe one, it never worked out. Or I'm just very shitty at doing creative makeup.

In my next life, I want to be an omega female. I don't want to be a discarded orphan. Maybe then, Kai will have eyes for—

“Stasia, are you with us?” Kai's voice penetrates my thoughts and I blink, momentarily confused.

Oh, yeah, right. All the guards of  The Guilde are present here, waiting for Kai to announce the next mission

I clear my throat loudly. “Sorry, I'm a bit tired.”

Kai nods in understanding, his eyes dropping briefly to my damaged arm.

Why does he still pretend he cares?! It hurts.

“Now that I have your attention. Here's what we have for our next mission,” Kai's voice booms in the large, long room. Then, he swipes something on the projector. “Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you our next target point.”

The picture on the screen is one that everyone and their grandma could recognize even in their sleep. 

My brows dip, eyes narrowing on the image. “The… the royal palace?” 

“Yes,” Kai says calmly. “And you, Anastasia, this is your last mission.”

I gasp, eyes wide. 

My last mission? 

It was rare to retire at twenty-three.

But Kai goes on like he hadn't just dropped a bomb, like others weren't murmuring at the shocking news.

“...If you succeed, you'll be the first of The Guilde to retire before thirty so you can find a new path in life…” 

A new— what?! Was he discarding me? Because I'm in love with him or what? Anyone would be honored to be retired from The Guilde early because you'll be settled for life with a home and a huge sum hut…

My lips part in protest but he cuts me off.

“And… we’ll help you find your real parents after the mission is completed.”

That throws me off guard. 

What the hell is happening?! 

“My real parents?” My throat feels dry, knots tighten in my stomach. “Is that necessary?”

Kai tilts his head studying me. “Do you not want that? You wanted that as a kid.”

Yeah, but when I was around nine years old. Broken, abused and starved. I wanted to find them to let them know how much I hated them for leaving me in an orphanage that hurts children more than care for them. For the past few years. I've grown to care less and less about them. They didn't want me and I don't need them either.

If I ever find them, I know it wouldn't bring me joy.

“Stasia?” His voice snaps me out of my head. And I realize I'm doing it again, scratching off the skin around my thumbs cuticles—a nervous habit.

“I apologize if that's not what you want. I—”

“No,” I blurt, my heart racing. “It's fine. No complaints here.” 

He holds my gaze for a beat too long but I school my expression, hiding what I truly feel. 

Finally he turns to the others, pointing. “Rhea and Shane. You'll be a part of this mission. Stay behind.” 

“Yes, boss.” They both chorus. 

I smile at Rhea and Shane, my best friends. We weren't always lucky to go on missions together but when we did, it was the best feeling ever—a sense of comfort like being with a real family.

Well, a family that kills.

To the others, Kai says, “The rest, you may leave.” 

The others file out and when the last of them closes the door behind her, Kai turns to us—me, Rhea and Shane.

His face serious, his tone hard, “You're my most trusted and well trained assassins. But even I know this job will be tough especially with the royal palace being one of  the most guarded places in the world. Make any mistake, you're gone, and I can't save you.” 

Rhea lifts her hand up and Kai nods. “Go on.”

“So like, are we just spying on the royal family or killing someone there?”

His eyes darken with something unlike anything I've ever seen or maybe I'm imagining it. “You'll be killing the entire royal family.”

“All of them?” Shane asks, shocked. Rhea and I gasp.

“The princes, princesses, the king. Yes, Shane, all but don't touch the crown prince's mother, the queen. She's mine to deal with. All you need to do is capture her.”

O…kay… Like that's not strange at all.

We've had strange quests in the past, anything you could think of but something about this felt off. Not only was this our most dangerous and absurd mission… It felt like one Kai was sentimental about.

The royal family though… what had they done to be on our list? Do they all deserve to die?

I shove the thought away. It wasn't like I gave a fuck about the royal family.

“But there are things you need to do first.” Kai shows another slide and the rarest gem comes into view. I couldn't tell if it was glass or liquid, it looks ethereal, like something out of this world and so… blue. 

“This is the Eye of Valtaris. Hidden in the royal vault.” He presses something on his phone and all our phones ping. “I've sent all three of you the blueprint of the Palace, including how to get to the vault.”

“When do we start?” I ask.

“In three months,” Kai answers simply. “In three months, the crown prince will need to choose a bride and ladies from prestigious homes will be summoned to partake in the test…” 

Okay…?

He points at me. “You'll have to be among those ladies—”

“Me?!” My voice comes out louder than intended.

He ignores my outburst. “...I'll make the necessary arrangements. We’ll get you a fake family  and you'll need to learn all you need to about being ready for the palace and being a noble lady. You must make the crown prince fall for you. At least by the end of the selection. Make sure you're among the top 4 he is supposed to choose.”

This is nuts.

“But I'm not an omega!” I protest.

Kai pins me with a look. “We'll disguise your scent as usual, you've done it before, surely you can do it one more time, can't you, Anastasia?” 

But every time I disguised myself as an omega it only happened for a few hours! Not months! Bridal selection takes months! 

My heart is pounding at the base of my throat, my palms sweaty. 

Why was I panicking? Spying, Deceit, Stealing, Killing they all came easy to me. I'm an actual pro.

Kai approaches me, hands shoved into his pockets. “You don't have to fuck the crown prince.” 

“What?” 

He takes a deep breath. “You don't have to sleep with him and that way your secret will be safe until your mission is over.”

“You're one of my best. Can I trust you with this?” He asks, desperation flashing in his eyes.

And the love sick fool in me came to play, needing to ease all his worries, kiss the lines between his brows. 

I want to be good for him, to make this mission a success, it seemed important to him…

I hold his gaze. “Yes, you can trust me.” 

Maybe If I succeed, Kai might finally look at me the way he looks at Vanessa. 

He smiles, making my heart gallop. “Counting on you.” And he turns to Rhea and Shane. “I'm counting you both too, make sure to assist her.” 

And that night, as I retreat back to my room, my phone pings with an incoming message. I open it and my heart nearly stops at what he sent me.

I can't believe what I’m reading, so I sit up on my bed, blinking rapidly as butterflies take flight in my stomach. A big smile I can't even stop stretching my lips. 

Wait, is this a dream?!