7 The Echo

(From Blue's Perspective)

My knees were trembling after only five minutes of walking. I felt like I would not be able to walk anymore. But I did not tell him that. I did not want to look weak. I knew I could do it.

But he stopped suddenly and looked down directly at my legs. I did not even wince in pain, but he seemed to see through me.

"Do your legs hurt?" he asked.

"Just a bit. Not so much. I can manage," I said.

"Hold onto me."

"Wha..."

Before I knew what he meant, he picked me up in his arms in bridal style. No one had ever held me like this, not in this way. I blushed and was surprised as well.

"I can walk," I murmured.

"Just relax," he said.

He started walking again. He was carrying me so easily that it looked like I was weightless. It was true that I was very slender, but the way he picked me up, was completely effortless.

Father had never let me eat properly. He said that if he fed me fully, I would get spoiled. I tried to steal food from the kitchen as well, but when I got caught, I had been struck with a belt twenty times.

I exhaled a sigh. Everything changed in the course of a single night. I felt safer than I had in a long time now that I was away from my family and in the arms of a stranger. Furthermore, the stranger claimed to be the King of Werewolves and desired me as his Queen, despite the fact that I was a nobody.

His scent was enticing as if it transported me to a different world of relaxation and addiction. I buried my face in his chest, trying to make it appear unintentional. And soon I realized that I had completely become addicted to his scent and it was making me relax more than I should. My eyelids felt heavy, and my mind reminded me that it had been a long time since I had slept.

Sleeping in his arms would be inappropriate. I tried to keep my eyes open and think about anything other than sleeping. My attempt, however, was too feeble to be effective. My eyes soon gave out, and I felt myself drifting away.

"You're completely useless. You're garbage. "You're completely useless. You're garbage. You will never be wanted by anyone. Accept it, you bloody whore," Father said, his voice booming and nasty.

"You cunt, do you have any idea what you look like? You piece of trash, bring my beer before I break your skull."

Draven's words made me cringe. I could tell that he meant what he said. He would not back away from breaking my skull. Furthermore, he would be delighted to do so.

"It's your entire fault, Blue. Why didn't you listen to your father? You've brought this up," Mother said, showing her fake pity.

"It's going to be alright, sister. I know it's hard for you. But trust me, everything will be fine. Just hold on a bit longer," Maxen's soothing voice came to my mind.

"Come back here, you slut!" Draven roared.

I could not see anything, but I could hear their voices. It was like they were never going to leave me alone. They were going to haunt me all my life and never going to let me sleep.

"You haven't brought cigarettes again, you bitch!" Father growled.

"That cunt stole all the money!"

"You deserve to die!"

"Don't even try to talk back, you bitch!"

"It's your fault, Blue, you and I both know that. Just listen to them."

"It will be okay, sister. Have faith."

Hearing their terrible remarks and then Max's comforting ones made me want to scream. Everything was killing me. And then I heard it suddenly.

"She is mine now. Don't you dare touch her or raise your voice at her. You don't have any right over her anymore. She is mine, only mine."

I jerked awake, gasping for air as his voice echoed in my head. Did he mean everything he said? Was I truly his? But why would he want me? I was nothing more than useless trash.

It took some time for my breathing to return to normal. In my panic, I was sweating profusely. With the back of my hand, I wiped the sweat from my brow. That was when I noticed that I was not in his arms anymore, but rather in a room, a completely unknown room, and oh lord... the room was bigger than Max's and mine combined.

I was in a tall, queen-sized bed with plenty of pillows and a thick comforter. The bedding was the same color as the walls. The deep blue color scheme gave the room a royal appearance. Silly me, I forgot that it was supposed to be royal when he was a king.

Some of the pillow covers were dark blue to match the bedding and walls, while others were royal gold, gleaming in the candlelight.

There was a large window on my right side. The long dark blue drapes hung there, fluttering in the breeze. I noticed that it was dark outside, kind of like evening. Had I slept for this long?

An exquisite chandelier hung atop my head, looking as magnificent as ever. It was golden in color with a silver tinge on top.

Beautiful golden artworks adorned the walls, giving the space a unique feel. Everything in the room was flawless, if not more.

"Can I meet her?" I heard the voice of a little girl from beneath the closed door.

"Not now. She needs rest. You can meet her tomorrow morning," he said. His voice was full of care as he talked to the girl. I wondered who the girl was.

"Please, Uncle Demetrius. I want to meet Aunt," the girl said pleadingly.

Did she mean me by aunt? I wondered what it would feel like to be called Aunt. It would be weird as I was not even eighteen yet.

"Uncle Demetrius told you that you can meet Aunt tomorrow. She will like to meet you too. But she needs proper rest for that. Especially when you're going to spend the whole day with her," a woman said. Her voice was calm and warm, very comforting.

"Okay, Mother," the little girl said.

"Come on then. Play with Alan," the woman said. "And brother, take care of my to-be sister-in-law."

"You know I will," he said.

The footsteps faded away. I thought all of them had left. But then proving me wrong, the door opened, revealing his dashing form entering, dressed in a black shirt with the two upper buttons undone, revealing a small but tempting section of his chest, just like before. 

"You're awake," he said, noticing me sitting and looking at him.

"Yes. I've woken up just now," I said. "It's a huge room."

"Do you like it?"

"Yes. It's beautiful."

"Good. The healer has taken care of all of your scars," he said, making me look down at myself. I noticed that I did not have any bruises on my body. It felt completely different. Nothing else was aching, which was a completely new sensation for me. Yet the most terrific part was that I was not wearing my cloth anymore, rather I was in a white nightgown made of satin.

"My clothes..."

"The maids changed your clothes," he said, stepping towards me, not in a threatening way though.

"Oh."

"I've told the maids to bring your dinner here. You must be too exhausted to go downstairs though my family insisted a lot to bring you down there."

"It's okay. I can go," I said even though I was not okay. Yes, I did not have any pain in my body, but I was not sure if I was ready to meet his family yet.

"Not now, Blue. You can meet them tomorrow morning," he said and I gave a nod. I could barely take my eyes from him. He was truly mesmerizing; every inch of him was a work of beauty, a lovely sight to behold.

"My niece is very excited to meet you. Since the day she has found out about you, she has been bugging me to bring you here. And now that you've arrived, she is over the moon and she will do anything to meet you. It took a long time to finally make her understand that you need rest and she can meet you tomorrow," he said, smiling.

"How old is she?" I asked.

"She is four now but talks a lot. You'll love her."

"I already love her," I said. It was not a lie. The thought of someone being eager to meet me made me fall in love with her instantly. How much I wished everyone would feel the same!

"I have some issues to take care of. I'll meet you in the morning."

"Ok."

He started to get out of the door. Suddenly I felt the urge to do it. I knew I needed to. It was the proper thing to do.

"Demetrius?"