“Can I see him now?” Alex questioned, her body filled with nervous energy as she prepared herself to see her father and ask him questions she had been desperate to know the answers to for what seemed like forever.
“Come with me,” Tobias stated, leading her into Fred’s dark and dank cell.
The room was small; the stone walls that she had come to associate as being a warm terracotta on the inside of the estate were instead a muddy brown. The floor was covered in what looked like straw and sitting in a corner was her father.
“Fred?” He was unresponsive to her call and so she tried again, raising the volume of her voice. “Fred?”
He turned to look at her, his eyes blinking rapidly as he tried to bring her into focus. When he realised who was calling him, his face contorted into a mask of hatred, his eyes blazing with anger while he sneered at her. “Look who it is, the little whore come to visit.”
Stepping out from Alex’s shadow, Tobias snarled at the man, pleased to see the extent of his injuries. His face was a deep purple in places, with his cheeks and lower jaw swollen. “Call her that again and I’ll tear out your throat before ripping your beating heart from your chest.” His eyes flashed amber and Fred trembled in response, remembering the brutal beating he had received at the hands of Tobias when his eyes had shifted from grey to amber. “She saved your life once and you should be grateful for it. Now she wants to talk to you and ask you some questions. You will answer her honestly or the consequences won’t be good for you and I’ll know if you lie. Ask him what you want, I’ll be here to make sure that he doesn’t try and lie to you.”
“Thank you Tobias, but you don’t have to.”
She looked over Fred’s frame, taking stock of the injuries he had acquired since the last time she saw him. After all that Sebastian had told her, she was amazed that he wasn’t in a worse state. A sense of disappointment rose within her at his relatively good state of well being. Just because she didn’t want Tobias to kill him, didn’t mean that she was opposed to the idea of the man suffering.
“Yes dearest, I do.” Someone has to make sure he doesn’t try to do anything stupid, something that will force me to kill him. He turned to the guards at the door. “Get her a chair please, we might be here a while.”
“Yes your highness,” The guard replied, quickly leaving the room to comply with Tobias’ orders.
“You can start to ask your questions dearest, he’ll be back soon enough.”
She moved forward, kneeling on the ground beside her father. “Fred?” He turned to face her and his hatred of her blazed from his eyes, almost causing her to stumble back in habitual fear. Tobias growled, the low sound filling the room and Fred’s eyes left hers, staring intently at the ground.
“Your highness?” The guard returned, with a well padded chair in hand.
“Put it there.” Tobias indicated the middle of the room, close enough to Fred that she could hear him but far enough away that he wouldn’t be able to reach her.
She took the offered seat, more relieved than she would have thought possible to be away from her father. “Thanks Tobias.”
“Ask your questions dearest.”
“Right. Fred?” She ignored the low snarl he emitted at the name. “Why are you here? You could have just left me; you’ve never seemed to care about what happened to me. Why put in all the effort it must have taken to find me? It wasn’t like Tobias left a note telling you where he’d taken me. Why are you here?”
His eyes lifted from the ground, fixing her with the full intensity of his hate-filled stare. “Why else would I be here? The money, Alexandria, the money. I’m owed and I came to collect. If it weren’t all in your name then I wouldn’t have spared more than a passing second wondering where you were. I want what I’m owed, I took care of you all those years, and I deserve that money.”
“Is that the only reason that you came?”
“Why else would I be here?”
“I don’t know, maybe because you decided to finally start acting like a real father, a father that cares about what happens to his daughter! But then again, why, after all this time of beating me day after day for no reason, would you care about what happens to me?”
“You’re right, why would I care?”
Well that hurt more than I thought it would. It’s not like I shouldn’t have seen it coming, but still… “Have you ever cared about me? Ever?”
“Parents are meant to love their children; it’s a biological imperative so I guess I must have cared about you once.”
“Then what happened?” she screamed, her nails biting into the arm rests of the chair, tears welling in her eyes. “Why did you turn against me, why did you hurt me?”
“You remind me too much of her.”
“Her?” she questioned confused.
“Natasha, your mother. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten her.”
“I could never forget mum, she loved me and I loved her more than anything. She was my world and you took her from me and then turned against me.”
“Look, I don’t see why you’re even getting so upset about this. She loved her stupid plants and that fucking garden more than she loved either of us. I did us a favour.”
“What are you talking about? Mum loved you! She took all the shit you gave her and wasn’t even fazed by it. You were her life!” she hissed, becoming increasingly angry with her father.
“No I wasn’t. Natasha was a freak, just like you. She could hear voices in her head, plants she told me. She said they whispered to her, called them her family,” he scoffed, reliving bitter memories. “I didn’t believe her at first, but then I noticed that the plants she filled the house with did strange things whenever she was around. It was very subtle, if I hadn’t been looking out for it I doubt I would have even noticed, but they moved. The plants would move, following her around in the vases, craning towards her like she was the sun or something. And that damn garden of hers? The slut loved that place, spent practically every waking minute in there with the damn plants, so like I said, she didn’t love you as much as you seem to think she did.”
Alex was silent for a minute, digesting the information her father had just given her, trying to remember if any of what he said was true. “You’re right, she did spend a lot of time in that garden, I remember her being there.”
“I told you, she didn’t love you.”
“But,” she interrupted; cutting him off before he could begin another rant. “It wasn’t like she spent all that time there alone. She took me with her when she was tending to it and she asked you to so we could spend time together as a family.”
“Why would I want to encourage her freakish behaviour?”
“Why wouldn’t you want to spend time with your family?” she retorted.
“Why should I have spent time with a slut who happened to be a freak as well? And you, I hear that you’re even more of a freak than she was. I saw what happened to that building on your university campus, that was you, wasn’t it?”
“It was an accident. I was scared and angry and it just happened. I didn’t know I was different until then. Mum never said anything to me about it so I was prepared for it.”
“You’re an even bigger freak than she was. I mean she only heard the plants talk in her head but you, you can control them, can’t you?”
“And what if I can? It’s not like you care one way or the other. I’m just a freak, aren’t I?”
“Yes you are and if it weren’t for the money that Natasha left you, I wouldn’t even be here. But as though it weren’t bad enough to simply be a freak you had to go and shack up with that animal over there.”
Her temper exhausted, she stood up abruptly, the chair clattering to the floor. “Don’t you dare speak badly of Tobias, you don’t know what he’s done for me.”
His eyes trailed the length of her frame slowly and she could practically feel her skin crawling. “Seeing as you’re following in your slutty mother’s footsteps, I can imagine exactly
what he’s doing to you.”
“Tobias has kept me sane all those years that I had to live with you and I didn’t even know it. He took me away from that hell to keep me safe and only wants what’s best for me. I love him.”
“I’m sure you do, but don’t come crying to me when he gets bored of you and tosses you aside.”
A low growl floated through the air and Tobias felt his heart swell with pride as Alex took a menacing step towards her father in his defence. The low rumble emanating from her chest wasn’t as aggressive as his, but the message was clear. “You don’t even know him.”
“And exactly how well do you think you know him?”
“I know Tobias as well as I know myself, he’s offered to give up everything so that we could stay together and that’s a lot. I don’t want you to talk about him anymore, he’s not your concern.”
“I’m sure that’s exactly what your mother’s lover told her, but he left her high and dry and she had to stay with me.”
“Mum never had a lover, for all your fucking faults she loved you. I can’t understand why, but she did and she was always faithful to you!”
Silence reigned as both reflected on the accusations they had flung at each other. A thought occurred to Alex, but she shook her head in denial refusing to believe that could have been the case. Not even he would be so cruel. Her eyes stared intently at him as he lay huddled in a corner of his cell and his responses to her questions flooded her mind. “You knew,” she hissed in accusation. “You knew that she considered the plants in her garden part of her family and you killed them anyway!”
He shrugged, disregarding the accusation and she felt on the verge of tears, her heart breaking at his simple movement. “You killed her. I know I’d always blamed you for what happened to her, but now I know that you might as well as taken the knife to her wrists yourself. She stayed with you despite all that you did, all the beatings, all the abuse and you killed them!”
Could she hear them calling out to her? Asking for help? Did she feel their pain when he mowed them down? She shuddered at the last thought, remembering the sole occasion that the whispers that resided at the back of her mind had flooded it, almost crippling her with their demands. It would have been worse. She raised those plants from seeds, if my orchid is any indication, she would have been able to hear their voices clearly, each and everyone. Her family. Her mind floated back to the first time she had used her ability, remembering the open acceptance into a new family the whispers had given her. My family.
“I remember you tore down the curtains.” Her voice was low as she recalled the events of that day, her mind far away. “You tore down the curtains so that she couldn’t just pretend it wasn’t happening. You took a pair of shears to all that she had grown; her family and you locked us in the house so we wouldn’t be able to stop you. Mum was never the same after that; she couldn’t cope with the world anymore. Those voices had probably been there for years supporting her and when you took them away she just couldn’t deal with it anymore and she killed herself.”
“She deserved everything she got,” Fred spat.
It took a moment for her mind to process what Fred had just said but when it did she felt her anger rising and a red haze of fury fell over her eyes. Stepping forward Alex moved to stand in front of her father. She pulled her arm back and slapped him hard. Her palm stung from the force of impact but the sound of her flesh meeting his was more satisfying than she had thought possible. After years of abuse she felt that she was owed at least one moment of retaliation.
“Bitch!” Fred screamed, he moved as though to stand up but as Tobias stepped forward menacingly, he chose to remain seated. While the slap had stung, it was nothing compared to the pain that Tobias had inflicted upon him yesterday and he didn’t want to invite another beating of that brutality.
“Mum deserved better than you. She didn’t deserve what you did to her, but you…you deserve everything that’s going to happen to you. Did you know that I kept you safe when we left England because of some misguided sense of family loyalty? I asked Tobias not to go after you and he kept his promise but here you are, literally walking into the wolf’s den and there’s nothing I can do to help you this time. In fact, the truth is after hearing all of that, I don’t want to help you. I have a new family now and I don’t want to have anything to do with you. There’s nothing you can do or say to make up for what you did to mum so the only way to pay for what you did is with your life. Tobias?”
“Yes dearest.”
“I’ve made up my mind about what should happen to him.”
“You?” Fred spluttered. “You get to decide what they do with me?”
“Why on earth shouldn’t she have the right to make that decision?” Tobias asked, stepping forward and wrapping an arm around Alex’s waist to pull her against him. “She’s my mate.”
“What exactly does that mean?!”
“It means that she’s my wife, a Princess of my people and one day she’ll be Queen, but right now she’s your judge and she’s about to pronounce your sentence so I suggest you listen. What do you want to happen to him dearest?”
“He’s going to die no matter what I say?” He nodded. “Well then I don’t see the point of putting off the inevitable, especially after what I’ve heard. Tobias I want him dead, I never want to see him again.”
His wolf roared in triumph, beyond pleased with her decision. “You’re sure?”
She turned to regard Fred, her mind already distancing her from him, before stating calmly. “Yes.”
“Alex, you can’t do this, I’m your father.”
“I don’t have a father, I only ever had a mother and when she died I became an orphan as far as I’m concerned. We have nothing to do with each other.” It was far easier than she would have imagined to distance herself from the man in front of her, but she supposed that it was only reasonable after all that he had done to her. She couldn’t even find it within herself to feel anger towards the man. He wasn’t worth the effort it would take to feel such an emotion.
“You’re going to let him kill me?” Fred screamed waving his hand frantically in Tobias’ direction.
“No.”
“No?” Tobias demanded confused, while he struggled to restrain himself from simply following through with her original instructions on Fred’s fate and killing the man where he sat.
“No Tobias, you aren’t going to kill him. I don’t have a problem with someone else doing it, but I don’t want you to do it,” she stated calmly. Now that the decision was made she felt relieved, but to allow Tobias to take his life was something that she couldn’t allow.
“But you still want him dead?” She nodded. “Fine, I won’t kill him, but can I at least teach him a lesson before the deed is done?”
“If you have to.”
He pulled her close against his chest, allowing amber to flood his eyes as he stared over her head at Fred. “Trust me, I do.” You’ll be begging for death when I’m done and only then will I let someone come in and finish the job. I want you to earn it, after all the crimes that you have committed against my mate, I’m owed at least that.
I still would have preferred to kill the bastard myself, the wolf groused.
Something is better than nothing, Tobias counselled. She could have decided to let him go.
After all that he just confessed to? I doubt that.
“Can we get out of here Tobias? I don’t want to be here anymore,” she admitted, turning away from her father as she began to put him and all that he had done behind her. Fred was the past and she was determined to move forward to her future with Tobias, even if that future, with her as a Queen, absolutely terrified her.
“Of course dearest.” He pulled her close to his body, shielding her from Fred’s hateful glare as they headed for the door.
“Wait! You can’t do this!” Fred shouted.
His wild screams followed them out of the door and she began shivering against him. Pulling her head deeper
into his chest he covered her exposed ear with his hand, hoping that she would soon be able to put the whole thing behind her. I, on the other hand, have a lot of work to do.
Correction, we have a lot of work to do. I want a piece of him too.
Yes, we do have a lot to do before the man dies. We’ve only got a short while to make him long for death; I don’t want this burdening Xandria any longer than it has to.
Don’t worry; I have already got plans for Fred. Wonderful plans. The wolf practically purred before retreating within his mind.
Chapter Thirty Four
Skulking around the perimeter of the estate, Sean felt his ire towards Fred increase with every anxious step he took. He hadn't heard from his friend since he had stormed off and entered the estate, insistent on simply demanding Alex’s return.
He’s probably dead by now and I’m no closer to finding a way to sneak into this place. It’s more like a fortress than a home. Who needs guards on every entrance and then feels the need to scatter more guards around the place? I swear the Queen probably has less security than this, he scoffed. Maybe I should just give this whole thing up and head home. I’m no closer to finding a way of getting to her than I was when I first came here and I’ve been here for days. I’m sick and tired of living like an animal. Besides, whatever attacked me, I’d rather not meet again and it’s probably not treating her too well judging from how it nearly killed me. It would have done if I didn’t have the ability to heal myself and now I’ve exhausted that power, it’ll probably be able to finish me off if I meet it again. I’m not sure I’m willing to risk the chance that it’ll just leave me for dead instead of finishing me off this time. She’ll probably be dead before the week is through. I’m sick of this! I’m going home; this just isn’t worth it anymore.
“Now what do we have here?” The dark voice crept over his skin, filled with menacing promises. His body froze, unresponsive to his mind’s demands to run. The voice crept closer and the hairs on the back of his neck rose, filling him with a distinct sense of unease. “An intruder? A human? You aren’t welcome here.”
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