Page 152 of The Wild Prince's Favorite
“I want to see her,” Alezya said, hardly suppressing tears as the need to hold her baby became more urgent. “I want to see my child!”
“You do not give orders around here,” her father hissed. “The child is staying with us until you give birth to the dragon.”
Alezya’s heart dropped. She had braced herself for this, but it didn’t stop the wave of panic rising.
“You promised!” she shouted.
“I promised to give your bastard back once you give me a dragon,” he scoffed. “We’ll have to wait until you finish your part of the deal, won’t we?”
Alezya let out genuine tears. She had expected this much, but it didn’t make it any less heart-wrenching.
Thankfully, she had an idea. She had spent a lot of time, while confined in Kassein’s shelter, thinking about her plan andhow to save Lumie. She was already crying and desperate; she didn’t need to act much of her despair. While two of her father’s sentinels came to grab her, she began fighting them, her eyes on her father’s retreating figure.
“You can’t!” she shouted. “Father, please! I need my child! I need to protect her, or the dragon–”
She stopped herself as if she had said one too many words, biting her trembling lower lip. Her father stilled and turned back to her with a gleeful expression.
“Or the dragon what, Alezya?”
She went silent, now avoiding his gaze.
Her father slowly walked up to her, and grabbed her jaw painfully with his hand, forcing her to look up at him.
“Or the dragon what?”
“I-it will take her,” she cried. “The dragon... It wants to eat my child.”
Her father’s eyes opened wide. Alezya shivered, more horrified by his greedy eyes than the thought of Kein near her baby. The man-eating beast wasn’t nearly as frightening as the monster in human skin before her. Alezya hated that she had to dangle Lumie’s life like a negligible treat before him, but there was no other way.
He stepped closer to her, and despite the men holding her arms and shoulders, Alezya jerked back.
“Eat your child?” He narrowed his eyes. “Why would the dragon want to eat your child?”
“I-I don’t know,” Alezya mumbled.
“Answer,” he hissed, unconvinced. “You know something, Alezya. Don’t you dare lie to me, or you will pay for it.”
“I’m not scared of you,” she retorted. “You can do whatever you want to me!”
She already knew he wouldn’t. As violent of a man as her father was, his belief that she was pregnant far outweighedhis short temper. He wouldn’t risk harming his most precious piece of the bargain before the upcoming council gathering. However, he sneered, looking at Alezya like she was nothing but disposable vermin.
“I certainly can,” he hissed, “and that goes for your little bastard too. Should I chop off her arm so you’ll start to speak?”
Even if she had expected it, a lump of coal dropped in Alezya’s stomach.
“You...” she huffed, furious.
“Speak, Alezya,” he hissed. “The council gathering is tonight and we don’t have all night. Start talking now, or I will have to see how much the dragon wants to eat your bastard myself.”
Alezya swallowed with difficulty. She had expected it, but at least now, her father would think she was talking merely out of fear, under duress, and against her will. She averted her eyes, looking down at the cold floor, watching her tears drop near her toes.
Those were tears of frustration, but it worked fine to fool them into thinking she had lost the battle already.
“I-I... I understand them,” she mumbled.
“What?”
“The Dragon Clan,” she whimpered. “I understand their language. I heard them speak... m-many times.”
