Chapter 7 Finding Her Face

6

His happiness knew no bounds when the commander broke the news. She was alive. His rose was alive and that too, in states. She came back, after years of tormenting him but she did. Killing her father did bring a wonder, if only he knew she would come back this way, he would have never waited a second to behead that pig. Finally, the mouse had come out of its hole to eat the cheese on the mousetrap. He heaved a sigh. His lips were curved into a small smile that he masked once he stripped out of the trance.

"Bring the lead to the castle and cage her. And if there shall be a mistake, only your deaths will rectify your wrongdoings," He grumbled calmly. The sword of honour knelt before him.

"I take my lord's word as my warning. You shall seek no misfortune, your majesty," Lucian expressed and stood up. Zebian raised his head and smirked gravely.

"Very well, my lion,"

****

Renai

A few hours had gone by. Dozens of hazy grey clouds merged to cast a shadow over the moon, splaying darkness all over the ground. It could be foreseen that the clouds would loose their break any time and cause downpours. The lightning clapped among the raging cloud, warning of a thunderclap. Without giving a rest, a loud uproar of thunder erupted in the air, jerking her eyes wide open.

Pain shot in her head. Her vision took minutes to get stable and just as it did, she found herself resting against the same tree that secured uncountable memories of her childhood, bitter and sweet. Her head slightly spun, surveying around. How did she fall asleep here? She breathed deeper and stretched her arms in the air. It was almost pitch black, she couldn't even see her own hands but somehow managed to trace the path as the route was ingrained in her head.

She took baby steps and entered into the woods that was engrossed in eerie, dead silence. She could even hear the thumping of her heart against her chest. With one way or another, she reached the outskirts of woods and found a streetlamp making it possible for her to see. Just as she stepped out of the wood, a rivulet of water dropped on the bridge of her nose, clueing her it was going to rain soon. She hastened her footsteps. Within a few minutes of jogging, the drizzle started gushing down with fierce force.

Renai got wet in a matter of seconds, droplets of water hit her skin like a slap, forcing her to sidestep under some house's roof. She draped her arms around her chest and waited for the rain to halt but it seemed like nature had no mood to be easy on earth. She crouched on the ground after waiting for more than ten minutes. Usually she gets smitten by the wet weather but today, it wasn't bringing her any solace. Instead, the rain was overloaded with pensive dejection, pain and remorse that stirred agony in her heart. Tears brimmed in her sockets, remembering her father and her childhood. Things would have been different if she had kept a distance from the prince. She wondered if he still remembered her. No, why would he waste his time on a pathetic being like hers. He must have been married to some princess by now.

Her heart cracked at the thought. For all these years, she regretted giving him her first kiss. If only she knew that would bring her doom. If only...

Her eyes were aimlessly locked at the ground when a hand came on her shoulder, jerking her whole existence. She snapped toward the touch with a blanched face, her soul departed and reappeared in her body within a blink. "Easy, Renai, easy," He consoled with his hands up in the air, gesturing to her to calm down.

"Madrix," She uttered between her audible pants. He gulped and offered her a hand. She glanced at it but chose to stand up on her own. Their eyes met once she stood before him. The man's eyes awkwardly roamed on her frame, her hair and dress were soaked.

"You came," He whispered with a slight punch in the jaw, his eyebrows knitted, his face pasted with shock, realising that she was alive.

"I had to," She replied, guarded.

"We thought you were dead. Where were you all this time?" He cocked his head to the right side to gain her eyes. She looked at him and found his orbs sparkling in curiosity, even the darkness could not conceal the eagerness brewing in his eyes.

"I was fine. I am alive, you can see," She gave him all signals to convey she wasn't interested in having any conversation. But, he was least ready to let her go just like that.

"Yeah, I can. I mean, I am happy to see you alive," He chuckled awkwardly, silence engulfed them. He wrung his fingers while she glanced at the rain that still had no plans of ceasing. He sheepishly side-glanced her.

"Wh..why don't you come inside," He offered politely, she turned her face to stare at him.

"We can have a cup of tea and you can meet my daughter and my wife?" He further elaborated. She blinked down to think whether it was a fair option to say yes or not.

She glanced toward the street again, Madrix followed the line of her gaze. "Ah, rain's not going to stop anytime soon. It's always been like this. And I can't leave you here on your own. Please, come on in," He gestured to her to step in through the opened door. She swivelled and realised she was standing in front of his house. Embarrassment embraced her tightly. She knew if she stepped inside the house, he would not leave her until she would give him all the answers, but waiting outside was no smart option either. So, without pushing it further, she walked in with him.

Contrary to her expectation, the house was cozy and welcoming. She glanced around as he led her toward the living room. The house was ancient-built but it looked revamped. He slid the door for her and asked to feel at home while he went to fetch his family. She passed him a small smile and got inside. She took off her shoes and walked to kneel in front of the table.

Moments later, he came back with a girl, who was nearly three, in his arms and a woman behind him. She turned her head and greeted them with a smile. Standing up, they changed the pleasantries and sat together across the square-shaped table. The baby-girl innocently looked at the guest. Renai gave her a wide smile and opened her arm to invite her in. The girl blinked a glance at her dad and stirred in his hold to get in Renai's embrace. All of them chuckled seeing her impulsive behaviour. She got down and crawled toward Renai with a line of drool dripping down the corner of her mouth. Renai took her and put a kiss on her stuffed cheek.

"She is such a sweetheart. What is her name?" She asked, playing with the baby's fingers.

Her mother tittered sweetly and replied, "She is Rimmel. I'm Felecia," Renai nodded in acknowledgement, a smile never leaving her soft face. The woman looked quite young, almost Renai's age. Renai turned back to the baby who was pulling a strand of her hair. She was busy cooing the baby when Madrix's hand came to stop the baby, but she stopped him, saying it was okay.

She loved babies. They were like therapy to her.

"I have heard a lot about you, Renai. My husband often recites to me his childhood stories," Felecia remarked, gaining Renai's eyes. She amusingly stared at Madrix with partially narrow eyes, a smirk dancing on her lips when she saw blush creeping from his ear to cheeks.

"Really? We were bloodsuckers to each other. Our friendship never really benefitted us, mostly endangered us and our families," Renai mumbled, making Madrix glance at her astonishingly. Even though they were first cousins, she never liked him in her childhood. A chuckle erupted from Felecia's mouth.

"I can imagine who would have been at fault," She laughed and Madrix gave her a playful, curt look. Renai grinned.

"Not completely, I was also hard to deal with." Renai revealed.

"Yeah, she liked exploring haunted places and such places wit-scared me to death. I used to hit her for going into woods but she was really stubborn, Felecia, I tell you that," Madrix sneeringly told his wife and she laughed, the conversation was going quite well until Felecia left for the kitchen, leaving three of them in the room.

Madrix lovingly looked at his daughter who played with Renai's hair. His face turned gloomy and Renai noticed that. "Where have you been?" He asked her out of the blue, but she was ready to hear this from him.

"I was sent to Calmia to help my aunt with her business," She fabricated the truth with another truth. Madrix's brows arched, creasing his forehead into an unconvinced frown.

"All of a sudden?"

She nodded, "Yeah. Her business was going to crash. She needed help and I was there to volunteer. Everything stabled within a year and she permanently took me as her daughter, so I never returned." Although these words rolled off really smoothly from her mouth but only Renai how much it took away from her.

It took almost everything in her to keep her eyes away from getting glossed. Her mind threatened to show her the mercilessness her aunt bestowed her with. Those days were terrible. First two years of her life in Calmia destroyed her bit by bit, after then, she made peace with her fate.

Felecia returned from the kitchen with a steel tray in her hand that had tea set resting over it. She offered the first cup to Renai who politely took it from her. As she took the brim closer to her mouth, Rimmel tried to grip the hot cup from her, making Renai jerk back the cup. Madrix took his daughter from her and just as she left Renai's lap. A loud roar of cries burst out of the baby's throat, clenching Renai's heart.

She put the cup aside and took the baby back from her father even after his unassertive objection. She stood on her feet, cooingly clapped the baby's back and rocked her. It took a minute for her cries to die down. Madrix and Felecia stunningly gaped at the miracle. The baby dug her nails in Renai's drenched gown, minutes later, she felt her asleep against her shoulder. Renai kept rocking her, her eyes landed on them. She slightly shook her head to question their amazement.

"She never stops crying, much less sleeps even if I rock her for the whole night. Wow, you performed a miracle," Felecia said, her eyes glittering in surprise.

"Yeah, she is a baby monster if she starts to cry," Madrix added dazedly.

Their remarks made Renai grin proudly. "I'm good with kids." Her heart rested in contentment as she side-glanced at the baby. Her tiny body against her wet frame brought unspeakable poise to her insides. She needed this hug more than ever. She needed to hold someone against herself and silently tell him how lonely she felt. But this baby helped her feel much better. She wished if she could take her to her place. Only she wished.

"Why don't you move in with us, Renai?" Her thoughts came at halt when Madrix's voice reached her ears. Her eyes averted at him. Her brows quirked when she found no signs of play in his words.

"Me?" She couldn't make sense out of his offer. He asked her to move in with them? Who would offer that?

"Yeah, you. You came back after so many years and you will be all by yourself in that house. I don't want you to live alone, if not permanently then at least until you get a decent job," He offered her the deal, turning to look at his wife.

"What do you say, Felecia?"

Felecia blinked at him and turned to look at her. "Yeah, why not?" She shrugged convincingly.

Renai pursed her lips and glanced at the baby. Maybe, they were right. She didn't have a job, her house was unsafe and most of all, she would be alone. Her mind was tempted to accept his offer.

She licked her lips and nodded her head in approval. Both of them smiled pleasingly, how courteous they were. Madrix asked Felecia to fetch a dress for her, she immediately went to get it and walked her to the guest room. Renai placed her on the guest bed. Felecia stepped in to take with her but Renai halted her, asking her to let her sleep with her. Felecia retreated understandingly and left the room.

Renai went to the bathroom that was outside the room and came back after changing into a white ankle-length nightgown. She slipped into the bed beside the baby who slept with no worries of the world. Renai held her head, her elbow resting on the mattress as the other hand went to caress the baby's soft skin. A smile broke on her lips. How adorable this blue-eyed was.

Just as the thought crossed her, his bluish eyes came before her eyes as a punishment, stripping her smile off of her. She swallowed the lump in her parched throat. His laughters, his sweet-nothings, his sensual touch on her skin crawled back to her mind and dropped on her like a bomb. Her eyes brimmed with tears that surged down from the corner of her eyelashes.

She sighed deeply and scooted closer to the baby, hugging her lightly and putting her head closer to her. She closed her eyes and let sleep consume her. Within minutes, she dozed off.

******

"The king has arrived!" The announcer proclaimed, making every servant bow deep before his Majesty. Everyone shuddered inwardly as they were aware of why the king had come here. There has always been one reason. He was in a fit of rage. It was rare that he visited this harem, but every time he visited this place, he made sure to inflict pain on the women until they'd reached close to their deaths.

He halted when all the naked women stood before him with their eyes lowered, ready to serve their lord. He greedily scanned each of them. All of the women had chocolate brown hair like hers, each whore bore resemblance to her. Some had her lips, some had her nose but nobody had her whole face that he desperately needed to see. He had specifically chosen them to forget her but every time they had come under him, he would leave them with one foot in their graves.

His eyes were looking for one specific woman, one of them was missing in the queue. "Where's Ethel?" He gritted a clenched jaw. One of the whores stepped in with clasped hands, eyes reaching to his shoes.

"My lord, Ethel is unwell. We shall be delighted to please you," She curtsied. Zebian stomped closer and gave her a neck-breaking slap, making her land on the ground. All of the other women trembled like leaves. Some even had tears welling.

Blood seeped out of her lower lip as she placed a hand on her throbbing cheek. "Forgive me, my lord," She kneeled and muffled under her breath, fuelling Zebian's ego with pride.

"Now I ask again, where's Ethel?" He seethed, raging mad.

"S..she is resting, my Lord. With your per..mission, I shall b..bring her immediately," Her words faltered.

"Now!" His vicious growl reverberated all over the hall. Some squeezed their eyes and their chins wobbled.

One of the women dashed inside the chamber and came back with a girl limbing next to her. Zebian's eyes closely scrutinised her from head to toe. Her face, neck, left arm, right thigh and stomach had several bruises etched brutally. She reached closer to him and curtsied, slightly writhing.

"I shall ask the forgiveness of my merciful Majesty," She spoke with difficulty which didn't go unnoticed by The King. He hurled his hand and seized her jaw, yanking her close. She yelped and crushed her grey eyes.

"Open your eyes! I said open it!" He jerked her face, his shout trembling her whole body. She frightfully opened her eyes and his eyes roamed over her plain features and halted at the bruise near her lip.

"Who had her?" He swivelled his head and asked the harem guard. The guard gulped and stepped ahead. His head dropped with shame.

"A..a second-grade guard, your Majesty," He stammered, earning a sinister hiss from him.

"Was I unclear that no one will touch her apart from me?" He shouted again. The blink later, he rotated and pulled the sword behind the guard's back from the scabbard. The sword was raised and halted inches away near the guard's neck. A melody of collective gasps enkindled from the whores' throats.

"I command you to bring that motherfucker in my chamber in six pieces by tonight. And if I say tonight! He shall not see the sun tomorrow or else, you would be the one ending up in twelve before dawn," He gnashed and hurled the sword away. Turning around, he spared a glance at the blood-deprived faces and spat. Grabbing Ethel's hand, he dashed toward the chamber. He dragged her like a sack and slammed the curtains shut.

He hurled Ethel on the floor, a quiet whimper left her mouth. Her mane veiled before her eyes that concealed her tears sprouting down. "Have mercy, my lord," she muffled, almost lifeless. Zebian clenched his jaw and reached her in two steps. Crouching to her level, he fisted her hair in a tight grip. He forced her face before his eyes, a petrifying inferno was blazing in his bluish, red-rimmed orbs. He always made her look into his eyes but never had she seen such fieriness in them. She feared if she kept staring into those pairs, he would burn her with that intensity.

Her spine chilled. For she knew what that fire meant. It meant the cause of her death.

He would kill her today.

"Mercy is the least offering I would grant you, my sweet." He exerted more pressure on her hair, earning a pleading hiss from her. Her tears were on the verge of falling.

"M..my l...lord," He cocked his head and gave her a once-over. Her body looked breakable just by a single touch. The hickeys on her neck flared up him, fucking him on another level. A burn of jealousy flamed his insides, wanting to chop that motherfucker's dick and throw it in his mad dog's mouth. He seized her neck and got her gasping hard.

"How long will you keep whoring? How long will you keep avoiding me?" He gritted with utmost disgust, his heart twisted in the taste of betrayal. Her eyes desperately fell on him. Her chin wobbled, begging him for his pity. He looked deep into her eyes, searching for the glint that used to bring peace to his heart eight years back. Her striking resemblance dramatically changed into her face. He partially frowned, his breathing getting deeper but jaw remained clench.

"Why have you done this to me?" Her innocent face overtook the whore's face. She was looking at him, her innocent eyes were blinking at him, making his heart melt in a snap. His grip loosened but when his mind reminded her what she did, the grip tightened even more.

"I told you not to do this to me," He fumed. The pain in his heart weakened him, broke him, threatened him to overpower his senses and kill him one day. But his mind didn't let her dominate him, not anymore. He hurled her away and pulled to his feet.

Ethel fell on the floor. Her eyes barely opened and her vision got fuzzy. Nothing made sense to her due to lack of oxygen. She just laid and begged God to save her from this brute.

"Why did you do this to us?" He asked in his mind. His nails digging in the palm of his hand. The bitterness of unrequited love sliced him every day. How much he wished to forget her like she had forgotten him but he powerlessly couldn't. He hated himself, he tortured himself for wanting her but his heart wouldn't just listen. She was the woman who it wanted, who had him wrapped around her tiny fingers years back. And curse on him that he couldn't stop loving her, even after she left. Her kindness, innocence, beauty, he was crazy for her like a moth attracted to a flame. He knew loving her was his destruction but he couldn't hold himself back.

His eyes craved for her face, her sweet smile, her hearty laughs.

Those days were the best days of his life.

And now. After eight years of agony and suffering. This was what he had become. A monster, a brute, a womaniser. And to get to the worst point, he agreed to marry the princess next week. It was to torture him. He would torture himself to become more toxic. But before the ceremony, he needed a fuck to lessen down her memories. It was a necessity. It was a habit to fuck a woman to punish her in his mind. It gave him some peace.

He turned around and gripped her from her elbow, roughly dragging her to the bed and hurling her on the mattress. She unresponsively let him treat her like a toy. He climbed in the bed and stood on his knees. "Kneel," She glanced at him with heavy-lidded eyes and tried to kneel, each fibre of her body burned as she presented herself before him.

"Remove my dress," He commanded hoarsely, his voice getting thick by the arousal. She nodded and started unbuttoning his cotton shirt as he was in his casuals. She took the shirt off him and reached for his pants. She gripped the waistband of the cloth and yanked it down with her lifeless hands. His boxer was the only fabric that caged his shaft. She looked at the bulging bump and gulped at its thickness. It was grown hard enough to scare her.

"Touch it through the fabric," He commanded and she wasted no second to comply. She ran her fingers on his shaft and gripped it. The thing twitched in her hand like a slippery soap. She rubbed her hand against his cock, shooting sensations down his leg. He was pumped enough to screw her. The overwhelming emotions of pain, frustration, anger made him impatient.

He removed his boxers to get away with these emotions. His cock sprung out achingly. She looked at him and wrapped her hand around his length, slightly pumping it up and down. He bit his lip and shut his eyes. Ethel knew what she had to do. So, she leaned in and licked the skin above his length, causing his back to arch with excitement.

She kissed the spot twice and trailed her tongue down the base of his cock. Her lips parted to smooch kisses down his length all the way to the crown of his mushroom tip. He gulped and looked down at her. Her lips quivered watching his cruel length. He leaned closer and smacked his girth against her cheeks. He stopped before her mouth.

"Take it all in, whore. Take it like you need it, like you will die without it," She bent closer and kissed the slit that had his pre-cum. Her tiny mouth teased him by sucking a small portion of his tip. He clenched his jaw and slid the tip inside her warm mouth and lolled his head back.

"Fuck," Bolt of pleasure blasted from his lower area, coursing all the way to his head. She bobbed her head in a perfectly delicious rhythm. He hissed and moved his hips against her mouth. Her hands were resting on the mattress whereas his hands lifted to grip her hair. He pulled his cock out and thrusted it all down her throat, his tip touching her jiggly vocal cord. She gagged with her mouth full, her eyes darted at him pleading.

He slowly started moving his hips at a sweet pace to accelerate all the way to roughly choke her on his swollen cock. He fucked her without restraint. She writhed, flung her hand on his stomach, squeezed her eyes to arrest tears but he didn't see any of it. He kept on fucking her until he shot a release down her throat, making her swallow every drop of it.

He panted hard while looking down at her messy state, dishevelled hair. The pain in his heart still lingered the same. He needed more. Of course, he did.

"Lie on your stomach," She wasted no time and did what was asked.

He gripped her waist and pulled her hip closer to his crotch. Her pink pussy showcased before his eyes, happily handing all rights to fuck it to him. His eyes shone darker. He traced her folds to find them wet. He hurriedly adjusted himself on her hole and in a long stretch, he plunged in without a warning. Ethel gasped at the sudden intrusion. He, with no restraint, slammed his tip deep inside her. She stuffed her mouth in the pillow as his brutal thrusts were aching her due to lack of lubrication.

He stabbed his cock in her heated canal and leaned on her body. Her back slumped as his hot chest brushed and towered on it. His teeth were grinding as her laughter rang in his ears, he closed his eyes and found her running away from him while he chased her. "Rose," He groaned and sped up.

Her lips against his own flashed into his sight. Their first kiss, which he had replayed a zillionth time, teased him to no end. He gripped her waist and hissed. He imagined fucking her against the tree. Her soft body, beautiful face and arousing moans encouraged him and prolonged his release.

Just as a loud moan erupted in the room, his imagination took to a halt as he flew back to reality where he was fucking a mere whore. She was holding the headboard while whimpering like a coward cat. Her pussy clenched around his length as she relished her release. He felt his own release lingering around the corner. He pulled out and ejaculated on her back.

Feeling slightly better than before.