A deep and carefree chuckle echoed in all through the corridor, causing the silver-haired man to glare at Zeke.
"I am just stating the truth! You're too heartless. I'm certain you're the most cunning creature I've ever met in my life! Right, Alexander?" Zeres blurted as he looked at Alex in the hopes of seeking for an ally.
Alex just glanced at him with a raised brow and then looked over to Zeke. He tilted his head and looked at Abigail. "I'll let my wife answer for me." He said with a playful smirk.
Now that Zeres looked at them, he finally noticed that the two were holding each other's hands and Alexander was all over Abigail like a moth that is inescapably drawn to the flame. His eyes were glued on her alone the entire time.
A hopeless sigh escaped Zeres' lips and he immediately looked ahead, dragging his eyes away from them as his grip on Alicia slightly tightened.
"I think… I would have to agree with Zeres," he heard Abigail's voice drift over and his attention was back on Ezekiel.
"See?" Zeres lifted a brow at him, feeling smug that Abigail concurred with his statement that Alex brushed off earlier. Zeke smirked but as always, his eyes remained flat and emotionless.
Finally, the group arrived inside Zeke's large study.
"My room's just on the other side of this study, Zeres. Why don't you go ahead and tuck the queen in to bed first?" Zeke said as everyone moved to seat themselves on the luxurious chairs arranged around the low mahogany table in the centre of the magnificent study room. Abigail had initially asked Zeres to bring Alicia to one of the vacant rooms in Alexander's wing, but the man was obviously wary. He argued that he couldn't leave the queen anywhere in this palace of vampires alone, unguarded and far from his reach.
Everyone understood why Zeres was being overly cautious. Alicia was in a very vulnerable state and he was the only witch around in a palace filled with vampires. Abi tried to explain but she understood that it would still be hard for Zeres to trust the vampires fully on his own accord. Only time can prove to him that things are now different than they were like compared to the ancient times.
"No. She's comfortable enough in my arms. Can't you see she's sleeping well?" Zeres replied. His distrust was obvious.
Everyone could only relent. They prepared a couch in the study and Zeres finally put Alicia down.
Sitting across of each other, Zeke had his long legs crossed as he sat in the middle, utterly relaxed and unbothered with the slight hostility that was coming off if spades from Zeres.
The room was silent for a moment until Zeke opened his lips.
"So? What did you guys want to know?" he nonchalantly asked, almost acting like a haughty king that was about to be interviewed by the media.
"When did you find out about the prophecy?" Abigail was the first to ask.
"Three months ago."
Everyone's eyes widened except for Alex who had his eyes narrowed at Zeke's answer.
"The prophetess had seen it that night you stabbed Alex." Zeke continued. "The prophecy is a little cryptic though at that time. The prophetess only saw you being killed by me as the dragons disappeared. The situation surrounding it and how it would turn out after, those were unclear."
"Why didn't you tell us anything about it?" Abi asked again.
Zeke shot a glance at Alex and gave an almost silent snort. "Do you think I'd still be here right now had I told you about it? Your mad husband would definitely have killed me in the worse way possible the moment had he gotten wind of any of it. And had I died, the prophecy would never be fulfilled."
"So, what's the point of you siding with Dinah?" Alicia's voice suddenly echoed from behind – giving everyone a shock. Wasn't she unconscious just a moment ago? All eyes fell on the witch queen as she stood from the couch she had been lying on and walked over to sit next to Zeres. She looked straight into Zeke's eyes. "What was the reason in creating those hybrids? Why were you so hellbent on gaining Dinah's trust?" she continued.
Zeke was stared back at her. "Because I had to know how to turn her and Zeres into full dragons. It was an experiment. The only thing I knew from the prophecy was that the dragons die if and when Abigail dies. The problem was, I had no idea what it took for them to reach to that point." He explained. "That woman was truly cunning and extremely careful. Even with all the manipulations and tactics I used to gain her trust were futile. She was sly enough not to be fooled. That's why I had to up my game."
"By using not just your foes but your friends as well as your pawns." Alicia made that statement and a short period of silence followed with everyone else mulling over all that had been said.
"Yes." Zeke finally replied after that very pregnant pause in the conversation. "Powerful and trustworthy pawns." Something glimmered in his dark eyes as he said those words and then too doon, those glimmers disappeared. "I always knew that Alex would trust me … Just as long as he does not get the details related to Abigail and the prophecy. What surprised me was that everyone – even you, Alicia – decided to trust me until the end."
Alicia pressed her lips tight. "You're wrong." Alicia averted her gaze. "My trust in you didn't last until the end. It shattered when…" Alicia trailed off.
"When Zeres turned into a dragon?" Zeke continued. "That was the end of your job in the game Alicia."
"Y-you… stop being so –" Zeres was about to rise from his seat but Alicia held his arm and pulled him back down.
Alicia sighed, not surprised anymore on how straightforward and heartless Zeke spoke.
"You had trusted me until then. If you had not, there might have been more sacrifices that would be needed for Zeres to turn into a dragon. Not forgetting, Dinah could've killed you right there and then had you not listened to me."
"So, if I hadn't listen to you that time, you'd let her kill me?"
Their eyes met for what seemed to be a very long time.
"I don't know." He could only speak honestly. "I was still on high alert all that time because I still couldn't verify the authenticity of the information I gathered from her. One wrong move and the flow of the game will be ruined, and everything will crumble. But… I knew you'd listen to me without a doubt."
"So, you're saying my trust… our trust in you was a part of your perfect game plan too?"
"Yes."
Alicia's lips twitched into a disbelieving smile. "A devil, indeed." She could only murmur to herself.
_____
ANNOUNCEMENT (JANUARY 3, 2021)
[Dear hellbounders, I am sorry for the scarce update. I think I pretty burned myself out T^T. I've been writing every day since February last year and I think hell bound pretty burned me out. I am feeling the effect on me now and it's very bad. I thought 3 days rest is enough but I was wrong. I am still stressed and I've been suffering from excessive hair loss since December. My family is worried about me, so I am sorry but I need to go slowly. I will be updating 1 chapter every other day. I will make sure to come back once I'm better.
Please give me time to recharge. Again, my update will be 1 chapter every other day.
Thank you so much hellbounders! Love you guys.
❤Kazzen]
P.S. I hope my loyal hellbounders will still vote for me everyday even without daily updates.
