Page 59 of The Botanist and the Beast

"Hey!" Theo called and rushed back towards them. "What are you—"

Before Theo could finish, something hard struck his head and the world went black.

Chapter Thirty-Three

Theo groaned as slowly woke. His wrist and ankles were bound tight in ropes.

"What is going on?" he demanded. He struggled to get to his knees in the middle of the road as Lyle looked down on him. A grunt drew his attention to Oliver and Jacques. They were also tied up and bruised as they sat at the edge of the kingdom between Lyle's followers.

"You fight this, and I'll toss Oliver and Jacques into the veil and their death will be on your hands," Lyle said, standing over him. He took a torch and lit it in the lantern.

"What is your problem with me?" Theo glared up at him as he tried to decide the best way to get out of this. "I'm sorry things didn't work with you and Sebastian. I am. But this is a bit extreme, isn't it? Why threaten his friends and hurt me to get him back? He won't forgive you for this."

"This isn't about getting Sebastian back, though I do think I'm better suited for him. I need you to listen closely." He kneeled to look at Theo. "What do you know about the curse?"

"The King was cursed to watch the kingdom fall into endless winter and the people to turn to stone while he turned into a beast. The curse jumped to Sebastian. What does that have to do with anything?" He spoke quickly, trying to do whatever Lyle wanted so Oliver and Jacques would be safe. He winced as the heat from the flames licked his cheek.

"Sebastian left out how to end the curse, didn't he?" Lyle said with a scowl. "No one wants to talk about it because they pity him."

"I don't understand," Theo said, furrowing his brows. "Why does it matter to you if I know?"

"Wynter's final words of the curse were 'only when you prove you respect the veil by accepting your chosen that can make love bloom in your heart and on the lands will you and your people be free.' Do you understand?"

When Theo just stared, he huffed and went on. "Sebastian has to find his Chosen and whoever that is, they can make life bloom on these cursed lands. You're a human and it'll never be you. He should be looking for his Chosen, not rolling around in bed with a dead end. I don't want to turn to stone because he's distracted, and I certainly won't let my people suffer because of it. I will ask you once. Do the right thing, leave Sebastian behind, and go back where you came from so we can find where his heart belongs and be free."

All of Sebastian's confliction came into sharp focus.The entire time he fell for me he must have felt so guilty.For the briefest of moments, he considered letting him go, but then he thought of the fear in his eyes when he thought Theo had left again and selfishly how deeply he wanted to keep him.

"If his Chosen comes, I'll step aside. But right now he wants me to stay. Right now, he wants me. Doesn't that matter?"

"No. It doesn't." Lyle brought the torch down to Theo's shoulder.

Theo's screams ripped through the night as an unimaginable pain radiated from his shoulder and down through his body. Lyle pulled the flames away and Theo threw himself down in the snow, still letting out guttural sounds as he tried to soothe his throbbing skin.

"Lyle, we didn't agree to this!" one of his lackeys called. "We were supposed to scare him out of here. You didn't say we'd hurt him."

"Quiet," Lyle snapped and stood over Theo, looking at him with disdain. "Last chance. Say you'll leave and stay away, or I will burn you to death right here. The prince knows how to grieve. You'll just be another death in this place."

"Lyle, please," he said through teeth gritted in pain. "Please don't do this." A burst of heat hit his upper back, and he screamed again as the blinding pain enveloped him. This time, Lyle didn't pull away. The flames sprawled out over his back and down his arms. It burned the ropes on his wrist away, but he was paralyzed in pain so use of his arms didn't matter. He tried to roll away and snuff out the flames, but Lyle's heavy boot held him in place. The image of Sebastian and his sisters waiting for him flickered through his mind as he started to go numb.I'm not going to keep my promise this time,he thought as the world went blurry.

Then all at once, the boot was lifted. As fast as he could, he rolled on his back and put out the flames. Still, the searing pain persisted as the flames were eating at his body. On shaky hands he got on his hands and knees, the cool air stinging his raw skin. He searched for Lyle to make sure he wasn't coming back and through blurry vision he saw a snow leopard with five tails on top of Lyle raking claws down his chest as he cried out in pain. The torch laid on the ground next to them.

"Sebastian," Theo rasped in a weak voice, but it was clear he went unheard. He struggled to crawl towards him in the snow but collapsed again. Then Theo saw Lyle reaching for the torch and in a panic, he fought harder to get up and crawl over. "Sebastian, look out," he rasped again.

"Get off of me!" Lyle snarled as his hand finally wrapped around the torch handle. In one swift movement, swiped it atSebastian. A yelp rang out and Theo's eyes widened as he saw Sebastian partially shifted back on his feet and patting flames on his leopard ear out. The scent of burnt fur filled the air.

"Lyle," Sebastian said firmly. "This has to stop. I know you're mad at me, but hurting people isn't the answer. It isn't you."

"None of this was my fault. Yet I've had to watch so much death," Lyle yelled in a voice ragged with hurt and rage. "I cared about all our men, too. I loved our people, too. I lost everything, too."

"I know, "Sebastian said gently. "I know you did but—"

"But nothing! You don't care about us anymore." He swiped the torched at Sebastian and it got dangerously close to his face. "You resigned yourself and all of us to death by focusing on the human. You should be out there in town or meeting with people to try and find your Chosen." He swiped again, and Sebastian stumbled back and fell into the snow.

"I tried. You know I tried. There isn't anyone out there that is my Chosen. I would of found them by now if that was the case. Let go of the torch and let's talk."

"I don't want to talk!” Lyle snapped. He lifted the torched and swung down.

"No!" Theo cried. Still dizzy, he reached for Lyle. Then there was a crack.

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