277 Old tricks

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Abi was dragged by Zeke up to the castle's top floor. He didn't say a word and just pulled her with him, tightly gripping her wrist. She so wanted to speak and ask where he was bringing her but she was afraid that her questions would piss off this prince. Whether she liked it or not, he was the only one she could rely on right now.

Thankfully, the moment they set foot on the top floor, where the rooms of the royal family were situated, he finally slowed down. Was he bringing her in his room? Was there a study in this place?

Even though Zeke was helping her right now, she felt a little apprehensive towards him now, especially when he casually admitted that he had once intended to kill her and how he regretted not doing it. Now that she thought about it, was he the one behind all those times that she almost died? Was he the one behind that car accident as well?

"Why did you want to kill me?" she finally asked. She remembered how Alex warned her about Zeke but not Xavier. "Alex warned me the first time I met you. Was it because Alex knew that you were after my life?"

Zeke paused and glanced at her. "Most of the vampires wanted you dead, Abigail. The rogue vampires, like Xaivier, and most witches wanted you alive so that you could fill the prophecy and kill Alex one day. The King had ordered to kill you since the day we confirmed that the girl in the prophecy was you."

"Because you guys don't want Alex to die…"

"That's right. Even though we all know that Alex has been desperately looking for you so he could finally die, we all didn't want that to happen. This kingdom needs him. Alex isn't just an immortal. His existence is important to us. He is the only one that all vampires truly fear, not the king or me. Just his existence alone keeps everything in check. As long as he exists, peace will continue forever. That's why your existence was a really big threat from the very start. You have no idea about all the things Alex did just to keep you alive every single day whenever you left his house."

Abi's throat ran dry after hearing Zeke's words. "Was that the reason why one of his rules was for me to be home before twilight?" she mumbled to herself.

"Vampires nowadays, except for the royals, have weakened tremendously. They are almost like mere humans during the day but their powers start to activate from dusk until dawn. He gave that curfew for your own safety."

"You said you changed your mind because you thought that we could win our battle. What did you mean by that?"

He paused again. Irritation, annoyance and a little anger were evident in his voice as his expression darkened again. He was obviously displeased, like a war tactician who lost the war he so confidently thought he could win because he had miscalculated one tiny detail.

She finally realized the reason behind all those times this guy intervened between her and Alex. So this was the reason behind all of his strange actions. It sounded like he had his own agendas and was very good at making things happen the way he wanted them to. He knew exactly how to push Alex's buttons to get what he wanted. This guy was definitely a master tactician, if not a puppeteer.

"But now it seems those old tricks are not working anymore."

Abi creased her brows. "What old tricks?"

"Making him jealous. Bringing out his possessive side. He didn't even bat an eyelid while we were dancing. Do you understand how serious that is this time?"

Abi looked away. "I think it didn't work because… he didn't see my face." She tried to justify Alex's zero reaction to Zeke, as well as trying to comfort herself from the twinge of pain stemming from Alex's lack of reaction.

As they reached one of the largest double doors on the whole floor, Zeke halted. He opened the door and as Abi expected, it was a bedroom. Did he really need to bring her to a bedroom? Was this his bedroom?

She took a peek inside to confirm but at first glance, she couldn't see anything in there to give her any clues as to whether this was his bedroom or just a spare room. She saw antique furniture laid out meticulously by the far wall. A large king-sized bed sat in the middle of the room, made of dark timber and covered by dark-gray toned sheets. A man's room.

However, as she thought about this man's personality, she suddenly didn't doubt that this room indeed belonged to Zeke. It was him, personified. The cleanliness, the meticulous way things were set, the gray tones - the same descriptions that could be used to describe this man standing before her.

Zeke stepped inside, holding the door open for her.

"Come in," he said, as curt as ever.

Abi stared into his eyes. His eyes were unfathomable as ever. She felt a little wary and nervous. What Xavier did to her made her doubtful of the intentions of everybody that was around Alex. Even if this person was the one who saved her and was now the one helping her, she couldn't help the small amount of fear that settled in the pit of her stomach. But she needed to listen to him, she had to know what to do and how to keep Alex safe from the enemy.

If Zeke wanted her dead, he could have easily killed her already. Those were the kind of thoughts that spun around in her head, and it somehow calmed her down. But it wouldn't hurt for her to be alert, in any case.

Taking a silent breath, Abi lifted her leg to take a step inside the bedroom.

However, before she could even take two steps forward, a strong arm suddenly wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her back into their muscled chest. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears as the adrenalin kicked in. She was too shocked to react and after a few more seconds, her body subconsciously relaxed and she felt herself lean back on him. She knew all too well this scent and this warm feeling.

"Found you."