Matthias shoved the clothing into the bag and closed the cupboard doors, pondering for a moment on whether to bring the fur blanket on his bed or not. Deciding against it, he took the bag from his bed and placed it over his shoulder, carefully avoiding the sensitive tips of his wings.
As he was about to winnow out of his room, the door creaked open and Snake stood in the doorway, leaning against it, an insufferable smirk plastered across his face. Matthias cursed silently under his breath–he’d forgotten to lock the door again.
“Hello Prince of Darkness . . . it’s been a while. Where have you been hiding, with your tail between your legs?”
The king’s advisor filled the atmosphere with an invisible taste of doom. It followed him wherever he went, and Matthias tried to avoid him at all costs. Snake was older than him by fifty years, making him one hundred and fifty-nine, but still looked youthful in his appearance.
The blond-haired Thorn had been by his father’s side for as long as Matthias could remember. Snake had always hated him, most likely because he was the true-born son of the king.
Something Snake would never be.
When Matthias was a young boy, he wanted to like Snake. He could have been the big brother he never had, but Snake had other ideas. He treated Matthias as if he were nothing but a pebble in his shoe. Always dismissing him, speaking over him, or completely ignoring him. Time after time, the prince tried to win the favour of the king’s advisor, but he was left disappointed.
That disappointment turned into resentment.
Snake was always weaving his way between the king and Matthias, telling on him for the mistakes he made and feeding his father the constant lie that Matthias was just a troublemaker.
Once Matthias was a young adult, he tried to speak up for himself, which resulted in beatings from his father—who didn’t take kindly to the backchat.
Snake never came to his aid, only ever standing off to the side, grinning as if he enjoyed watching. The first time it happened, Matthias swore to engage as little as possible with Snake again.
Matthias’s lip rose in one corner as he glared at the blond figure before him. “Get out of my room, Snake.”
“Well, technically, I’m not in your room. I’m in the hall.”
Matthias took a step towards Snake and snarled. “You’ll be through a wall in a moment.”
He knew he could take the viper on in the fighting rings and win, but this argument was wasting precious time.
Snake laughed out loud. “Such violence, for someone of high status. I simply asked where you had been for the last few weeks. No need to rip my head off.”
“You ask questions when you’ve no right to their answers. So, I’ll say it again—get out of here before Iactuallyrip your head off,” Matthias growled at him.
“Why are you in such a hurry to get rid of me? Stay and talk for a while. We could talk about that pathetic prisoner that you let free. Your father certainly wasn’t pleased about that petty act of yours. It’s too bad, for a Lightner she was definitely a feast for the eyes. Don’t you think so? All that luscious dark hair, flawless skin—not to mention that backside. I just wanted to take a bite out of it . . . literally.” Snake smirked and Matthias refrained from lunging across the room to wipe it off his face with brutal force.
“I hadn’t noticed.” Matthias bit back.
He knew if he gave Snake any inclination that he found the woman even slightly attractive, the bounty on her head would triple. Snake would make sure of it.
“Well, if that’s the case, if I ever come across her again, maybe I will take a bite. Taste that delicious skin in my mouth. I’ll sink my teeth into her warm flesh until she screams my na—”
Matthias didn’t let Snake finish his sentence before he lunged at him and grabbed him by the scruff of his jacket. “If you want to live, I suggest you shut your mouth . . . or I’ll shut it for you.”
Snake let laughter ripple from his body, his teeth gleaming in the dull light. “Calm down, prince, I didn’t realise this was such a touchy subject for you. Is there a chance you want to find her and keep the enormous sum that’s been placed on her pretty little head all to yourself?”
Matthias shoved Snake backwards as he let go of his jacket. “It’s not a touchy subject. I’m just sick of hearing your voice. And no, I don’t want a dime from the king. Now I assume you came to spy on me so you can feed my father more lies. Either way . . . get out of my face.”
The blond-haired male took a few steps backwards. “Of course not, Your Highness. I only ever have wonderful things to say about you.” Snake chuckled as he looked Matthias up and down. “Don’t have too much fun while you’re gone. Or don’t come back. Either is good for me.”
Snake didn’t wait for Matthias to reply as he sauntered down the hallway. Matthias fumed as he watched the advisor disappear around the corner before he slammed his door and locked it, pocketing the iron key. Not wanting to waste another second, he winnowed from his room.
Within moments, he was outside the cabin in the woods. Far enough from the palace that he could finally breathe. Stepping inside, he was greeted by a thrilled Bones, who pounced on him instantly.
“Down boy. You’re too big to do that.” Matthias grinned as he scratched the wolf on the head in greeting.
Dropping the bag from his shoulder to the small, square wooden table in the corner of the room, Matthias sighed in relief. As he unloaded its items, Bones whimpered, sighting the cans of sardines stacked on the wooden surface.
“I know, you’re starving. Here, have these.” Matthias reached inside his leather boot and pulled out a small knife to carve the can lid open. He emptied its contents into a small dish by the door and smiled as Bones devoured it with haste. As he watched the wolf scoff his food down in a few mouthfuls, he knew it was time for something heartier than just fish. “We will hunt for some fresh meat tomorrow.”
