Page 42 of Heart of the High King
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For a month, Rafferty focused on building his bravery as Court Kestle settled into a comfortable routine. Their Majesties had pared down their phone calls to check in on them to only once every few weeks, which had lessened Charlton’s anxiety. Charlton and Sullivan dated and hung out most nights, leaving Rafferty on his own. To the amusement of the twins, Rafferty was trying several different aerobic activities to hopefully get in shape. Refusing to give in to their teasing, he’d discovered that he liked to jog. It cleared his mind and although his pants were only a little looser since his dragon was again relegated into an angry, menacing beast that wished for freedom and his mate, Rafferty was determined to continue.
Since Nollan and Neil had finally found some fear of the Order of the Fallen Knights, they were behaving themselves. When they weren’t laughing at Rafferty, the twins were in the living room, playing the video game system Sullivan bought them to keep them out of trouble. They made friends through the online features and rushed to fill mealtime with details about their new pals. Rafferty had no interest in finding new buddies; he devoted himself to talking to Aleksander. Since Charlton had refused his requests to visit, Rafferty had stopped asking. His feelings for Aleksander only strengthened with each day that passed, and he was tired of hiding it.
Fear filled him at the idea of coming clean to any Kestle, but he was sick of missing Aleksander and annoyed at his lack of courage. Needing to be strong, he was ready to tell them about his mate so they could come to a resolution that would allow him to leave Kestle without any guilt or remorse for leaving his father in a tough spot.
In order to move into the future, Rafferty had to set a new course, so he was both terrified and anxious when Sullivan told them at dinner that his date had canceled. The twins had left half their food on their plate to join some event with their game, and Charlton was wrapping up his meal to head off to meet a woman he’d been seeing regularly.
“Okay, boys, enjoy your night. I’ll return in the morning,” Charlton said on his way out.
“See you later, Your Highness,” Rafferty responded. When Sullivan scooted his chair back, Rafferty let out a shaky breath and set his fork down. “Sully, can I talk to you?”
“I guess I don’t have anything better to do.”
“The study maybe? I want privacy.”
Sullivan shrugged and Rafferty followed his brother out of the dining room. They made the short walk in silence; then Rafferty shut them in the study where they kept their small supply of books. His older sibling sprawled over the sofa and Rafferty grabbed the chair across from him. Hands trembling, Rafferty suddenly wondered if he was going to be able to get the words out.
“What do you want, Paunchy?”
“I have something to tell you.”
“I know that. That’s why I’m in here, so get on with it already.”
“It’s not easy.”
“Why not? Did you get in trouble like the twins? Are the fallen knights going to show up on the doorstep again?”
“Nothing like that.”
“Well, what?”
“Didn’t I just tell you it wasn’t easy?” Rafferty snapped. “I’m working on it.”
Sullivan rolled his eyes dramatically. “You know it’s not too late for me to find someone to fuck tonight. That would be a lot more interesting than sitting here watching you sweat.”
“High King Aleksander D’Vairedraconis is my mate,” Rafferty blurted out.
Sitting up straight, Sullivan stared at him and there was nothing in his gaze to read. Rafferty was baffled as the silence stretched—he’d expected yelling, name-calling, and any manner of insults, but instead Sullivan just sat there.
“Did you hear me? I’ve got a mate and it’s a man.”
“I heard you.”
“I’ve decided I want to be with Aleksander. I think, anyway. I’m not sure about the future, but who could be,” Rafferty babbled. “I need your help to tell Father. I don’t want to let him down or make him think I’m simply walking away from my title and responsibilities. I’m willing to find a compromise so I can still help him. I don’t know if Aleksander would want me to come to D’Vaire now or later when our relationship is stronger. That’s supposing, of course, that we can make things work.”
Sullivan’s expression never changed as he stood, crossed the room, and opened the door. Rafferty was sure he was going to walk out but at the last minute, he turned. “I will think about the best way to tell His Highness.”
A wave of relief hit Rafferty, and he didn’t even get the chance to thank Sullivan. His brother disappeared into the hallway, and Rafferty was so proud that he’d been brave enough to take the first step into a new future. Although he nearly told Aleksander, he wanted to wait until his entire family knew his secret, so he spent his evening reading what he could on the Council and decided to go to bed early.
Rafferty woke up in the middle of the night and wondered what had pulled him from sleep. A second later, the door was shoved open with such force that it slammed into the wall and stuck there. Four men pushed their way inside as Rafferty struggled to sit up and, with a mounting sense of urgency, tried to figure out what was going on. With the only available light coming from behind them in the hall, it took a terrified Rafferty a moment to recognize the figures as his family.
“What the fuck is going on?” he demanded as they rushed in. Neil ripped the blankets that were half covering Rafferty and tossed them aside as his father advanced toward him. Rafferty opened his mouth to ask again since no one answered him, but he never got the chance. Charlton’s fist smashed into his jaw, and the air whooshed from his lungs as Sullivan landed a blow to his midsection. Nollan’s hands gripped Rafferty’s legs, keeping them in place, and Neil charged up onto the bed to hold his chest down by sitting on him.
Realizing quickly that he needed to get away, Rafferty fought against them. When he tried to punch Neil, his brother held one arm to the bed while Sullivan grabbed the other and shoved something in his mouth, preventing him from getting any sound out. That only had him struggling harder, but his father landed another blow—this one to his temple, and it was hard enough that his ears rang. Dazed, Rafferty stopped moving long enough that it allowed Nollan to get a rope around his wrists. Once it was tied and cutting into skin, the four men he had spent his entire life with pulled and tugged until they managed to get Rafferty to his feet.
Knocked back slightly but held in place by his brothers, Charlton punched him in the nose, and he heard a sickening crack a second before the excruciating pain hit. Rafferty was offered no time to recover as cloth was slapped onto his eyes and he was blindfolded. The scant light was gone, and Rafferty’s panic and terror grew exponentially. It was hard to breathe, his face was throbbing, and he was still gagged by whatever fabric Sullivan had forced nearly into his throat. Something was dropped over his head; then one of the four grabbed his shoulders as Rafferty was struck again and again. Deprived of his senses, Rafferty could only stand there in the darkness, hoping that all they had in mind was a beating.
As he was struck and pain bloomed across what felt like his entire body, he nearly pitched to the floor when his feet were tied together. His head was growing fuzzy as the hits to it grew in intensity and number. Still, Rafferty continued to fight his desire to simply allow unconsciousness to take him, as he was afraid that he would never wake again if he did. There should’ve been shock that it was his own family pummeling him to near death, but there was only Rafferty’s dragon screaming for their mate. A knee slammed into his groin, and he had to fight off the need to pass out as colorful stars filled his vision.
“Fuck this,” his father muttered, which he barely made out through the roaring in his ears after a seemingly endless nightmare of knuckles colliding with nearly every inch of him. Too weary to do anything more than accept that Sullivan had told them he was gay and that no one had taken the news well, Rafferty refused to wish he’d kept his silence. Fate had decided Rafferty was destined to be with Aleksander, and the reality that his family could not accept that filled his mind.
Charlton had often stated that no son of his would be a homosexual, and Rafferty was flooded with sadness and horror as the inevitability of his demise became reality. Would anyone even tell Aleksander what had happened, or would he simply accept that Rafferty had tired of texting him? Without any warning, whoever was holding him let go, and a booted foot connected solidly with his back. Rafferty’s fall to the hard wooden floor finally robbed him of consciousness, and the last thought he had was of Aleksander—the man who owned his heart and who he would never see again.
