Chosen By The Dragon Kings novel Chapter 27

My eyes throbbing in my head, making me scratch at the light as it becomes blinding and all I can focus on. The pulsing moves over my entire body, literally feeling every cell in my body pulsating to its own beat. The beating gets stronger and stronger and all-consuming before I feel a shudder that pains me. I bite into my arm to stop from screaming when suddenly I feel the beating getting stronger and stronger until it bursts out of me. The entire room blasted with light and I felt it vibrate throughout my body. I scream before suddenly it is muffled by a hand and I feel cool hands go over my mouth. Muffling my agonised scream until I feel it burn out and I collapse on the floor.

Waking up, I see Marian kneeling beside me. She brushes my hair from my face, smiling down at me softly.

“Marian?” I ask, confused. She nods smiling down at me sadly,

“Hello Elora”

“Did they hear?” I ask, panicked but she shakes her head.

“No, I got here in time thank the heavens” Sitting up, my head is pounding. “What happened?”

“Take a look for yourself,” she says, and I stand up and look into the mirror, I gasp when I see my reflexion in the mirror, my eyes glowing brightly look like amethyst crystals but that isn’t all I notice, it is the purple vines going from my temple to my cheek, it looks like a tattoo with little purple blossoms.

“Shit, I manifested. I thought it would fizzle out.”

“No, dear. You are the chosen one.” She says softly, gazing at my reflection in the mirror.

“How am I going to hide this?,” I tell her, and she shrugs.

“Wait, how did you know?” I ask, confused.

“I knew your grandmother, recognised those eyes the moment you stepped into the castle. I am also the midwife that helped deliver you, so I knew what time you would be born,” she says.

“You know about fae magic?”

“Yes, your grandmother was my best friend,” she says, rubbing my cheek with her calloused hand.

“Now, we haven’t got time. Silas has ordered everyone to be in the front courtyard by dawn. We need to get Abigail out of here.”

“You know about her too?”

“Not much gets past these eyes, dear,” she says, getting to her feet.

Getting up off the tile floor, Marian sticks her head out the door looking in the bedroom. I follow her out as she makes her way to the door. Only when she leaves the room, I find the door quickly slammed in my face. Hearing Marian talking outside the door. I quickly rush to my bed, chucking myself in and pulling the blanket over myself and pretending to be asleep. I can hear Matitus outside my door in the corridor, I intently listen trying to catch their conversation.

“I asked you a question, why are you in this part of the castle and what are you doing near her door?” he bellows.

“I was just making sure she didn’t need anything” she stutters, and I can smell her fear seeping under the gap below the door.

“Well, did she?” he asks, and I can almost feel the way he is glaring down at her, imagine the anger on his face.

“She was asleep,” she murmurs, the sound only just audible to my ears. I hear silence for a few seconds before I hear him speak.

“Leave, If I catch you near this door again without permission I will have your head”He tells her and I hear her quickly rush away before I hear the door handle rattle. I close my eyes, pretending to be asleep. I smell his scent fill the room and I know he is standing behind me. I breathe deeply through my nose, calming myself so he doesn’t notice my heart rate. It must have worked because I heard the door shut before I heard it lock.

Waiting a few minutes, I get up and twist the handle but it doesn’t open. “Shit” I cursed to myself, how was I supposed to get out and help Abigail. I just have to hope Marian can get to her. Climbing back in bed, I give into exhaustion.

Around 430 am I am awoken by noise out front of the door. The door unlocks and opens, and I roll making sure to keep the blanket and my hair over my face. Dragus walks in and places a plate on the bench, and I can smell steaming hot coffee.

“I brought you your breakfast, meet us in the courtyard when you can” he says, and I can tell he is in a hurry as he doesn’t even glance in my direction when I hear Silas yell from the corridor.

“Hurry up, Dragus”Silas calls and I Dragus shut the door behind him as he left. I sleepily get up rubbing my eyes. Grabbing my coffee, I drink while getting dressed, when I suddenly hear the horrific sounds of women screaming, completely forgetting all about the Seer stones. My blood runs cold. Did Marian warn Abigail in time? Chucking on my flats, I rush to the door before running down the corridors. Just as I am about to run through the entrance doors, I am ripped to the side.

“You can’t go out there” Marian says, pulling me to the window in the study. I find heaps of women and children lined up out the front, reminding me of the night I came here.

“How many so far”?” I ask her.

“This is the last of them,”

“And Abigail?”

“I think she got out” and I let out a sigh of relief praying she is right.

“Well, how do I hide this?” I ask, pointing to my face.

“Only fae can see it unless you let them see it by dropping your guard,” she says, making my eyes snap to hers.

“You’re a fae” she nods her head with a sad smile on her face, yeah it definitely wasn’t a blessing to be fae around here. It was more like a curse or punishment that the fates bestowed upon us.

“Yes, but I don’t have magic and I am not of noble blood so I look human, that’s why they keep me here and it’s also why I may not talk to you” she tells me. We watch as Silas walks along the line. When he finishes and the stones do nothing but pick up his magic, he dismisses the line going to the next. I watch as those cleared run for the gates fearing for their lives.

He goes through the next line and I watch as they leave only when I look at the new crowd, he is about to examine, I freeze. Abigail is on the end of the line and I can see the fear in her eyes, she never got out in time.

“I thought you said she got out?” I tell Marian panicked. Marian looks at me and follows me to where I point. Silas is halfway down the line already and I turn to run to the door, unsure of what I can do, but I can’t sit still and do nothing.

“You can’t go out there, they will know you have your magic” Marian says gripping my arm as I was about to throw the front door open. I shake her off.

“I can’t let them kill her” I say running outside. The cold air whipped my skin harshly. Silas was nearly all the way to her position. I see Dragus eyes dart to mine, but I don’t stop as he pulls up in front of Abigail, I throw myself in front of her using myself as a shield.

“Elora, what are you doing?” he says when I shove past him and I feel Abigail grab the back of my shirt and duck her head behind me. Silas eyes dart to the stones as they spin at rapid speed. I hold my breath and I know what is about to happen, I know my secret is out, not that I had to keep it long.

Silas eyes snap to mine and I see the anger burning brightly in them making me step back and bump into Abigail. Silas grips my arm and yanks me away from Abigail before yanking my hands forward and dropping the stones in my hands.

Everyone watches as they spin rapidly, glowing the same amethyst colour of my eyes. I feel my shoulders slump and I give in before I hear everyone gasp and the stones freeze and start pulsating before they burst in a dust of purple and white. Silas grips my chin forcing my eyes to meet his and I flinch when I see the furious look on his face. I feel his fingers brush over the vines on my face and I know he can see them, no my guards are down.

“I offered you a chance last night to tell me. I told you there would be consequences for lying to me.”

“I didn’t lie,” I blurted out, but that was a mistake when I felt his palm hit the side of my face. My head whipping to the side and the noise of his slap makes everyone gasp collectively. I feel his handprint burning into my face, feel the welts of his fingers rising on my skin as tears burn my eyes.

“I gave you a fucking out,” he screamed in my face, and I feel hot tears running down my face as he grips my hair and yanks my head back.

“I didn’t lie, please,” I beg and he rips me against him, making me face the small crowd that was left.

“My workers inside now,” he bellows, and I watch Abigail and two of the cooks run into the castle.

All that is left is around twelve teenage girls no older than seventeen. I expected him to dismiss them as they all stood freezing and shivering in the cold, waiting for orders. I feel his breath on the side of my neck, making me shiver.

“Now you will see what happens when you disobey me,” he says, his voice cold and void of all emotion.

“Kill them,” he says with no emotion in his voice at all like he was ordering someone to do some mundane task, not slaughter a group of people. Silas grips my head and I realise he wants me to watch.

“No, no, I didn’t lie. Please they didn’t do anything,” I scream and thrash. I feel his hand wrap around my throat as he pulls me flush against his chest. I look at the girls’ faces and they scream when they see the vampires that guard the perimeter jump from the ledges they were watching from.

“No, no, no. Please,” I beg him and I try to fight against him yet his grip never waivers.

“Silas, please,” Dragus says, and all the vampires stop at Dragus' words waiting to see what he says. Silas growls and goosebumps run over my skin. Dragus tries to reach for me when Silas hand backhands him and he hits into the brick wall behind us. I see out of the corner of my eye that Dragus gets up to come at him when Matitus stops him.

“Kill them” he says, and the chaos and screams start again. I close my eyes and scream as I see the first one get slaughtered. Placing my hands over my ears and the only thing holding me upright is Silas arm around my waist as my legs give out under me. I hear people on the other side of the gates screaming for their loved one’s trying to get past the gates. One growl from Silas and the entire place goes silent except for the sobs of the people on the other side of the gate and my own hysterical screaming.