Claude knelt at my feet as Samuel took his hand off my shoulder and rubbed my back. “Baby girl, it’s okay,” he cooed, massaging my calf. “We’ll get him soon, don’t worry.”
Vincent sat down on my other side. “He’s a dead man walking, I promise you that.”
Without prompting, Compton continued, standing up from his seat. “I’ve claimed her since the first time I saw her. PrinceWinston, you understand that, right? I saw her first. Before you did. I saw her and claimed her. But I’m willing to let her serve the Champions. It’s honorable. But she belongs to me. She’s disgraceful, but it’s easily rectifiable.”
Holy fucking hell. The man was certifiably insane.
Every word that came out of his mouth was like poison coating my lungs, my breaths growing shallower as more men surrounded our couch. “Give her room to breathe,” one of them said, while another massaged the back of my neck.
“It’s unfortunate that she escaped, but I’ll get more opportunities in the future.” Compton grinned. “She didn’t even dare go to the security since she already knew no one would believe her. She’s wonderful. But mine, Prince. Let me take care of her.”
“You don’t have to keep reminding me you think she’s yours,” Winston snapped, and for a moment I thought he’d completely break character, but he was still the Prince and was known for his good decorum.
Compton though? He laughed, then laughed some more. Almost cartoonishly. “Because you understand, Prince. That’s why I have to keep reminding you. You understandme.The girl is mine. I claimed her first.”
“We’ll talk again soon.” Winston had had enough as he left the fake sitting room, leaving Compton chuckling to himself even when he was alone.
Before I could ask what was next, Winston entered the room we were in, looking composed as if he hadn't just had a conversation with an unhinged psychopath. “That was very enlightening,” he muttered. “In any case, here’s where I need your opinion, Bea.”
“Let’s just kill him right now,” Theodore suggested, flipping his knife in his hand. “While Bea’s here to witness it. It’s perfect.”
“You told us you don’t want your kidnapping incident to be public information,” Winston exclaimed, ignoring Theo. “Julian Compton is the first son and heir of Marquis Compton, whose territories are next to Grimwald’s, fighting against the Demon Lord. If news of his heir getting murdered unlawfully reaches him, a civil war will be inevitable. The Kingdom’s relationship with them is already tenuous at best. The Marquis needs only a valid reason to rally against the Kingdom.” He stood straight, losing his usual smile. “Do you understand what this means, Bea?”
I might not be of this world; I might only be a silly, modern girl thrust into a world of nobles and politics, but I at least knewsomething. Thank you, strategy video games. “He’ll get away with it.” I said it loud and clear.
“What the fuck?” Claude growled, angry for the first time I’d seen him. “After everything that monster had done and said, he’llget away with it?”
“Killing him is nothing to it,” Uriel stated, a voice of reason in this sea of bloodlust. “The effect of that murder is the problem. Like Winston said. Unless …”
His eyes found mine, and I gulped. “Unless I accuse him of kidnapping me. I might only be a baron’s daughter, but a noble nonetheless, and kidnapping a noble is a capital offence.”
Winston nodded. “We’d undergo due process. We have enough evidence and his confession that he orchestrated your kidnapping. We have his henchmen and witnesses. Itcanbe addressed and solved. Eventually, he would die for it. But.”
“Only if I go public with the incident,” I continued for him.
Vincent narrowed his eyes at me. “But you don’t want to.”
“I talked about it the last time.” I glanced at everyone, taking in their mixed reactions to my choice. “When Winston wanted to make concessions with my family. It would mean a public declaration. I don’t need any disturbance right now. I want tofocus on my education. My family will have a valid reason to pull me out of the academy, and the Kingdom will let them or risk losing public approval even more. Honestly, I just want to forget it even happened.”
“I don’t understand. This is your chance to make the world less evil,” Amos groaned in disappointment, slumping against a nearby couch.
He had a point. He made an excellent point. I did want to make the world less evil, not just for me, but for everybody else too. Who was to say that monster would never lose the obsession with me and redirect it to someone else, someone who would have less support than me?
But the thing was — staying in this world wasn’t part of the plan. This world could be heaven, and it still wouldn’t stop me from trying to get out. I had to get out.It’s not my world. I don’t belong here.
I didn’t belong. I wasn’t reallyBea.Whoever these men were looking at and talking to and kissing wasn’t reallyme.Right?
As they argued among themselves on the right course of action, I watched Compton from his side of the room, and my heartbeat spiked when his eyes bore straight through mine.
He knew I was here. Somewhere behind the illusory wall.
It made sense. His Unique involved messing with memories. Did that somewhat enable him to sense people’s consciousness too? It wouldn’t be too farfetched to imagine that he could sense people to some degree.
It was too late now. We had to act fast. There was no more time to decide. He could escape any moment, use his status as a Marquis’s heir to accuse Prince Winston of malicious intent, convince his father to war, anyway.
Ihad to act fast.
“Can you promise to keep me safe?” I asked no one in particular, halting their entire discussion.
