Heir To The Iron Crown: Dyrith

40 - Fjörutíu

He was alive.

As I fell to my knees from the pain that racked my body, I could tell my mate's pain would be at least ten times worse, but I could feel him still. And that was enough.

He was alive.

Valente was breathing.

There was a chance that he would survive this, but I needed to act fast. I had to get to him before Bayo could lay another finger on him.

Bayo looked at my mate maliciously, before turning to me.

"He won't die just yet, I want him to suffer," he said.

Nothing in my right mind made sense, as I tried to piece together this mere boy's hatred for my mate.

The hatred that seeped from his every pore as he looked down at him.

"I've waited a long time to take my revenge, I won't let you die that easy Valente," Bayo went on.

"Revenge?" Ima asked.

Bayo caught the tiniest hope that was building on my face.

"I wouldn't be that optimistic if I were you Rayne," he said, poking Valente's limp body with the edge of his bloody knife. "Valente is pretty much dead already. And it's not my blade that'll kill him."

I took a step back.

I don't understand.

Just as a hundred questions made their way to the forefront of my mind, Bayo dug his hand into his pocket, and pulled out a vial I knew all too well.

A Haykadi vial.

My memory regarding these was refreshed just yesterday, when Renee gave me the Cloveroot potion.

I glanced down at the sweats I'd worn, and realized the vial would still be in my trouser pocket.

Not that Cloveroot would be of any use to me right now.

These tiny vials were a Haykadi signature, and I recognized it immediately. But what was inside it, I couldn't figure out from the distance.

"It's the worst possible thing you can give to a werewolf," he said, answering my unspoken questions while shaking the bottle between his index finger and thumb. "A deadly concoction of Wolfsbane and silver."

His words caught me off guard.

Haykadi was famous for its potion making, but they didn't indulge in poison.

Was this the creation of someone who went against their pack policy in exchange for a large enough sum of money?

It was definitely plausible, since they were most definitely capable. But it still didn't make sense.

How did they get such a simple yet lethal poison sourced from my sister's pack?

Regardless, there was something about this whole ordeal that confused me.

They wanted me, they needed me as the person of interest.

They had taken over my pack warriors and my Alpha mate.

I was here, right in front of them, unarmed and alone, and all they had to do was take me.

Yet Bayo wanted Valente dead. And I couldn't figure out what he planned on doing with the others as of now.

My question was this: Why?

"It's me you want," I said to him, trying to reason with him. "Let him go. Let my warriors go, and I'll come willingly."

Bayo smirked before chuckling.

"You are in no position to make demands Rayne," he replied, looking around at the grim-faced warriors that stood in rows behind him. His gesture was a warning, one he knew I wouldn't miss.

"Please," I said, realizing my first tactic wouldn't work. I had to play the sympathy-card. "They have nothing to do with this. Nor are they resenting you and fighting back. Take me, but let them go."

There was emphasis in my words, and I'm sure they sounded more like a command rather than a sympathy-gaining tactic.

That's when Bayo let out a big laugh, which sounded very villain-like, coming from a young man like him.

The warriors of my pack struggled against their bonds, which seemed weak in comparison to the strength I knew they possessed, their growling evident even in their human forms.

"Valente crossed my path even though we never even met up until a few days ago," he said. "It's funny how some things catch up with you when you least expect."

He said the last bit in a voice much quieter. A tone a lot more serious.

"I think I know what he's talking about," Ima's voice came through our link. She sounded very worried.

Before I could ask her why she seemed so shaky, Bayo's hostile eyes turned to me.

"Valente killed my brother. And I will kill him."

Ima became restless, her suspicions confirmed. The word she let out in my mind was enough to tell me that no amount of reasoning would work with this man.

"Femi."