How could he have been such a coward? Yes, he had postponed the hearing, but he still wasn't convinced that Wikh could be innocent. If there was one thing that was newly discovered, it's that the vampires suck at passing judgements.

Her Father wouldn't jump to such conclusions. Her father.

Lyne sighed as she moved from the window where she had been since she left the courthouse back to her room. The stormy rain had picked up and she could hear the whistling sound of the wind and it irked her, just as Zeidan's irritating act did earlier. 

But was she overreacting because of her own opinion? He had told her that he lost a friend and he was quite sure Wikh was responsible. If he didn't see something important, he couldn't have accused him wrongly that way, or would he? 

"Maybe we need to talk." She concluded but it was 9:00 pm already and he still hasn't come into the room. 

"Right. He's avoiding me."

Still, hadn't her Father always told her that everyone had a reason for doing kinds of stuff and those reasons are mostly unknown to other people? Hadn't she been told her mother had always worried about going to the battlefield than standing about looking pretty?

It's time she stood her ground and drop her pride to go talk to him.

Walking through the hallway, she could hear whispers coming from the drawing room that was right after the breakfast room. As low as it sounded, she could still make out Zeidan's voice and a feminine voice.

"...I went to the pharmacy store that she wrote there. It belonged to an Asian with a large number of workers ..."

Lyne walked gently to the entrance and took a peek, but was careful enough not to let them see her.

She could see the both of them alone in the dark room illuminated with the lanterns placed in each corner of the room. Luana's head was bent on a pink pill bottle, the one she had seen with Zeidan, while he sat opposite Luana with his back facing the entrance.

"Did they tell you who came to buy from them?" Luana asked.

"No. I tried to ask politely from a young sales boy but he wouldn't budge and from the look of it, I think he just got employed last month."

"Wikh has been on drugs for so long a time, he can't know anything."

"Exactly what I thought."

Zeidan sighed audibly and rubbed his hands over his face as he leaned on the chair he sat on.

"Did you see the owner of the Pharmacy store?" 

"Yes. All he ever told me was that the drug was something common and unless he looked through the system or a receipt, they couldn't scan and reveal the identity of who had come to buy from them." He paused.

"Of course, that was after a little threat to get those words out of his mouth. That man was too stubborn."

"What did I say about transforming before humans?" Luana frowned like a mother chiding her daughter.

"I'm sorry. I just had no choice."

Lyne swallowed. They relate so well and no doubt, they both belonged together.

"what are we going to do? Torture Wikh until he confesses?" 

"Lyne doesn't think we should."

"Why?"

Her voice had a tone of disdain as she asked. Lyne's heart skipped a beat as she heard her name in the middle of their conversation.

"She thinks he is...might be innocent."

"She must be crazy! Who does she think she is giving orders?" She flared up and Lyne's heart stopped for a second, She wondered what Zeidan's reaction would be. Probably the same way he stood up for her back at home.

Unfortunately, he moved on to talking.

"I tried to convince her..."

"Convince her?" Luana laughed.

"She's not relevant. I mean, you know how she came to be. You know why she is here."

Lyne squeezed her palms so hard that her fingers dug into her flesh, causing her to bleed. However, at this point, the only wound that got her worried was her bleeding heart at Zeidan's silence. Does he agree with her that she is not relevant?

"She's got voice," Zeidan said and her heart sunk. Her eyes were glassy already.

Luana rose and went to sit on Zeidan's lap, her side to the entrance. Lyne was so lost in her thoughts, that she didn't know she now stood at the entrance, watching them with her teary eyes.

"Zeidan, you married Lyne for our benefit." She grabbed his face and she looked into his eyes.

"We did it for our people. She was our only key to increasing our army and we finally got her. let her be. The only thing she is useful for is to go about, look beautiful to avoid gossip, and make her father believe that you have delivered your end of the bargain."

"You don't understand..."

"I do understand clearly, my love. I just need you to..." She looked above Zeidan's head and her eyes met Lyne's. She looked away immediately and crushed her lips against Zeidan's.

"Hey..." Zeidan tried to protest but she pushed him back on the chest.

"I'm your Queen, Zeidan. Stop cringing." He became calm and let Luana continue the kiss.

Lyne's blood boiled and she couldn't watch any longer as she ran back to her room, crying hard.

She turned out to be just a pawn in the hands of the two. She should have known the day he claimed she was his. She placed her hands over her mouth as she cried. It was as though Zeidan had picked up her heart and shredded it into different pieces.

"No...no!!!" She yelled as she scattered the sheets on the bed and sat on the floor as she couldn't control her mixed emotions of anger, hurt, pain, sadness, and wash of bad memories.

"This isn't happening again!!"