Chapter 169 - Dictator
"Why would you do that, Fang?" I asked as I saw everything falling back into the same void of conversation, where Fang asks for a price and I have to pay. But I wasn't expecting Fang to put up something so ridiculous that was like putting my freedom on the line. "Why would you tell my father-"
"Because you can only be mine," Fang said through his clenched teeth.
There was so much going on behind his black eyes, and I did not want to decipher those emotions. It was never possible for me to choose either Channing or Fang, even though Fang was my soulmate.
"I cannot be your Fang. " I stared at him with my creased brows as I felt my body tense. This was the same person who was there with me last night, and for a split second, I had wished that Fang would do what he wanted to. To run away with me. But both of us had harsh realities, and he had his revenge to fulfil while I had my duties as a princess. "I am betrothed. Do you understand I am about to marry someone else in a few more months to come?"
"I can dissolve the marriage," Fang retorted like a small child. He was long out of the deal when my in-laws had met with my parents. Fang sighed, "that marriage was just a trade for the queen to get you out of the way and to save her son's life."
"Then I will marry for my brother's life," I spoke as if it was the most obvious answer on the face of this planet for me.
"Oh please, Selene, that boy was always destined to have a short life from birth," Fang deadpanned. "There is no cure to him. And I'd rather let him be that way."
I knew there was no cure for my brother. The worst was I had only heard about his condition from Dandeline and never even got to see him. It was too risky to let my abilities be known to the queen because if using the healing once didn't work, then my mother would not think even for a second before keeping me as the only source for my brother's cure. Extracting blood from me every day and making me use my abilities on him.
But because I can't help him directly did not mean that I wouldn't consider helping him at all. He was my younger brother, after all. Even if I had never met him his life meant something to me.
"How cruel can you be?" I asked Fang. A life is a life and if I had to save any life I would not think twice before doing it.
Fang took a step closer to me and I did not budge. Not today, I wasn't going to just kneel like that. Fang brought hand near my face but did not touch me and somewhere my skin yearned for that touch, "There is nothing above you for me," Fang replied and my hazel eyes looked through his dark eyes where an eternal darkness shone. "That is why I am saying be wary of Channing and keep your distances from him or I promise you I will tell the king about it," Fang grunted as he clenched his fist beside my face with his raised hand.
It was unbelievable how much Fang actually wanted and to what extents he went. Channing was one of my only close friends who could understand me, but here Fang was taking that away from me instead of granting me freedom.
If my father knows something like what Fang had just mentioned, then I was sure to be thrown back in the dungeons.
"Fine," I said. There was no winning this man, and I did not want to ruin anything unnecessarily. Even if I had to keep my distance from Channing, I would still be seeing him in the professional settings. Just that my personal life would be void of that uncontrolled drunkard. I had bigger things to do here, and it was okay to keep one man out of my personal life. It wouldn't hurt much.
I turned around and stomped away from there. "Where are you going?" Fang questioned from behind me. I could tell the jealously he felt even when I thought about Channing.
"What? You are done here right," I answered, "you got what you wanted Fang, bye now."
How stupid can one's life be? I finally tasted the winds that passed through the forest and heard the laughter of people chime in my ears, but at the end of it all, my life outside gave me shackles again. Why did Fang have to be my soulmate? Why not someone more understanding and simple.
My feet made their way through the forest ground as the leaves some leaves crunched under them.
I realised that Fang was not following me because there was an only sound of my footsteps that filled in the darkness of the night apart from the crickets and occasional owl hooting. I turned around to see Fang was not following me. Rather, he kept looking at me walk away with a dense smoulder on his face.
It was like Fang was about to blurt something when I turned back to my front, not wanting any more of his dictatorship or possessiveness. The moment I turned, I almost bumping into someone.
My hand immediately came to cushion my front, and the man stopped in his track. I looked up to see who it was, "Oh Bane, what are you doing here?" My words rolled out as if I was angry at him and not Fang. I observed he was holding the same bottle of drink that was made of poisonous wolfbane flower and Bane's antidote blood. At this moment, what was the need for him to bring this drink here? Was he some kind of sit alone drinker? I wouldn't be surprised, given his quiet personality.
Bane looked straight at me, as our heights did not have much difference. He passively raised the bottle of drink and said, "I had saved the last of the drink for Alpha-"
"Good!" I exclaimed, taking the bottle from his hand. "I am stressed, and I didn't get a chance to have it before." If this was for Fang, I'd rather drink it myself. I was already fuming with rage and having never tried some funky alcohol like this one before, I unscrewed the bottle lid with acceleratedly.
"But it is for Alpha Fang," Bane said, but he could not bring himself to get the bottle back from me. Maybe Fang had restricted him from being hostile towards me.
Suddenly I heard feet beside me and a hand came to rest on my shoulder. I knew this familiar irritating yet nice scent of burnt ember. "Bane, you go make sure no one comes here," Fang ordered Bane and while I continued to open the bottle cap. I turned it around with such speed that it fell down and I did not care about that, neither did Fang's eyes went to it. He only looked ahead at Bane, waiting for him to react.
Bane was the only one who nonchalantly stared at the rolling bottle cap as it went ahead and hit his foot before stopping. Bane looked at me and then at Fang before bowing, "Yes Alpha."
Bane turned around and started walking away from us while looked at him go not once turning to look at me.
I brought the bottle to my lips and threw my head back where Fang's forearm touched the back of my head, as he had his arm over my shoulder. It was funny how I had got used to his touch and him being around me like he was allowed to do that. I felt the liquid trickle down throat and there were huge shocks that travelled like a burning sensation through my neck. The drink was sure strong, but I closed my eyes before the bottle was suddenly pulled away from me.
"Stop drinking that, Selene, it is poison!" Fang shouted at me, looking inside the bottle with one of his eyes closed, and checked how much I had drunk and I was sure it was a lot.
But I wasn't satisfied. I shook my head aggressively as there was an odd feeling that engulfed me. It was burning in my stomach and everything was starting to feel hot. I could feel the drink was very strong as it had already started to make its way to my brain and it felt like I had a blackout for a moment. I stumbled when Fang held me.
I swat Fang's hand away from me. I wasn't drunk yet, and Fang was no one to tell me what to do and what not to do. "Don't you dictate my life any more than what you already have!" I said as I grabbed the bottle back from him.
Fang was dumbstruck at my words. He stood there watching me and this time I did not let go of the bottle till the last drop of it wasn't down in my stomach.
The liquid felt so hot in my insides that I the heat started to radiate outside as well. I did not know this was how it felt like to get drunk. I was getting tipsy slowly but with the amount that I had drank and how fast I had gulped everything, heat started catching up to me. There was an odd tranquillity as all the thoughts in my head stopped suddenly and all I could focus on was standing straight.
Fang held me by my waist as I was about to fall and I sucked in my breath quickly at the closeness. "Come with me.. I want to show you something," Fang said.