Twisted Kingdom (Royal Elite, #3)

by Rina Kent

Once I’m done, he studies my drawing. “What is that?” “An arrow.” “Why an arrow?” “Daddy says when you feel bad, you should keep that energy inside.” “Why inside?” “So you can store it for later. Bad things happen for a reason.” “Bad things happen for a reason,” he repeats, staring between the arrow and my face before a small smile breaks on his lips. I love that smile. I want to kiss it, not to make it better, but because I love it. So I do just that. I lean over and press my lips to the corner of his mouth.

Aiden I’m always here for you, sweetheart.

That will only happen after death. Even then, I might make a deal with the devil so I can haunt her from afar. What? I have to protect her.

“Don’t cry.” He said it a long time ago, didn’t he? That it hurts him when I’m hurt.

“What I want can wait until you find out what you need.”

“I always sang to myself so I wouldn’t get captured by monsters.” “Did it help?” “No. The fact that I’d find you at the end of the tunnel is what kept me going.” I glance at him over my shoulder. “You kept me going.”

God. I don’t think I can do this. I’m tempted to grab him and run away from here. I want to protect him. Actually, I wanted to protect him since that first time I laid eyes on him. I walk towards him on unsteady legs and wrap my arms around his waist from behind. His warmth seeps straight to my shrivelling heart. I rest my cheek on his tense back, the back full of welts and scars. The strong, strong back that never bowed down.

I won’t be that girl. I’ll be the seven-year-old Elsa who brought Aiden food and made sure he was okay. I’ll be strong. “We can do this, Aiden. We owe ourselves that much.” His hand wraps around mine. “I don’t care as long as you’re with me.”

I stare at the arrow she drew on the side of my arm and it’s starting to fade. I want to keep it. Every time I see it, I recall the focused expression on her face when she drew it. The line between her brows. The twitch of her nose.

I can’t help but smile despite not knowing what she’s so happy about.

Because if her dad helps me, I won’t see her again.

“While you look so much like her, you don’t have her empty gaze or her haunting voice. As long as you have this spark in your eyes, I’ll always recognise you as my Elsa.”

He’s trying to come back inside, but I won’t let him. I won’t let them monsters take him away. I’ll protect him.

Back then, I thought she was gone, too. I thought it was all over. The memory of that time when I no longer heard her voice has been a constant part of my nightmares.

When you have a light in the middle of the darkness and that light dims to nothing, it fucks you up.

That’s why my world became black after that.

Her beating, throbbing pulse. It’s a constant reminder that she’s alive, not dead. Her scar is proof she doesn’t have that gush in her chest. Her bright blond hair isn’t soaked in red like when she lay there lifeless. That’s why I’m obsessed with those three parts of her.

Maybe there’ll come a day where I don’t need her as much as I need air. There will come a day when I wake up in the morning and the first thought won’t be about her. Though, I doubt it. That day will only come with death.

“I thought you were dead.” “I’m not. I’m here, Aiden.” She is. This isn’t a dream or a nightmare. She’s right here with me. Like she promised.

“You used to smell like cotton candies and summer,” I tell her. “And fucking Maltesers.” “Hey!” She pushes at my chest. “Don’t go insulting my Maltesers. I love them, okay? Besides, you should be honoured I shared them with you. They’re delicious.” “Not really. I only ate them because you kept shoving them down my throat.” “You ungrateful arsehole.” I chuckle, running my fingers through her hair. “I haven’t eaten them since back then.” “Me neither. I remember wanting them when I was a kid, but Aunt’s strict diet didn’t allow me regular chocolate and sweets. I never asked Uncle for them, though.” Elsa pauses. “I guess deep down, I knew I shouldn’t eat them alone.” “I’ll buy them for you.” I smile. “I’ll share.”

“I regret many things, but saving you was never one of them. You were my light and I had to protect you.”

he wouldn’t hurt Elsa. Not with the amount of care and possessiveness I’ve seen in his eyes in my office.

“Your passion, your darkness, your fire, and even your damn stubbornness. I find all of them sexy and there isn’t a thing I would change about you. So yes, everything.”

I know because I’ve been studying the shit out of it since I learnt of her illness. That’s why I’ve been even stricter than her aunt about her special food. I brought her water with the highest concentration of minerals because I read it’s good. I’ve been watching her while she runs, looking for tiny clues about her breathing.

“Have you seen them play chess?” He raises an eyebrow. “You should. It might change your mind.”

“I love you, Aiden.” It’s barely a whisper, but it hits me straight to a sombre corner in my soul.

“What I feel for you isn’t only love, obsession, or addiction. It’s all of those and more. Do you know what that means, sweetheart? It means I can’t live without you, so don’t you fucking dare leave me.”

“Stay with me, Elsa. Don’t you dare fucking leave me.” That voice. That touch.

“Bring her back!” The voice shouts. “Bring her back before I smash this whole fucking place.” There’s so much pain in that voice. So much passion. So much… care.

Aiden is here. Everything is going to be okay.

“If you give me such a fright one more time, I swear —”

Lifting my head, I close the distance between us and seal my mouth to his. I was dead for a moment, but he brought me back to life.

Aiden lurks in the corner, cutting an apple for me, his face calm. However, the darkness beneath the surface radiates off him in waves. I can feel it without looking at him.

“Do you want to meet your maker, Astor?” Aiden’s sombre tone shoots towards us like sharp knives. I suppress a smile with the back of my hand. Ronan cocks his head as if deep in thoughts. “No?”

Being with Elsa is exactly like it was ten years ago. She always brought peace to my chaotic head.

Maltesers.

“I’m going to fucking marry you, Elsa. You’ll be my wife. My family. My fucking home.”

“You’ll be my home, too, Aiden. Always.” Always.

He’s even considering taking a second course in medicine. No kidding, he really is.

He wraps his arms around me and I squeal as he lifts me off the ground and hugs me. My arms wind around him as he kisses my mouth, my cheeks, my nose, and my forehead. “You’re the best gift I’ve ever been given, my queen.” “And you’re mine, my king.”