The Alpha's Unwanted Bride

Chapter 761: BEARER OF WREATH

RUBY’S POV

The old woman landed with a thud on the ground before I finally gasped for air.

I placed my hand against my chest struggling, to breathe as I looked down at her body.

My palms were sweaty and my eyes were watery.

My entire body burned like flames and then soon it felt like I was choking again.

Under water.

I began to cough and cough, feeling the life being drained out of me.

I was drowning, my nose was filled with water, I was trying to reach out.

Screaming for help.

But no one was helping me.

I could see the ship up above me.

I could see a small figure on the ship looking down at me.

I tried to call out to the figure but I sank deeper and deeper until…

“RUBY!” Bale called my name and I felt him jerk my shoulders.

I startled awake, slowly coming to reality and looked at him.

“It’s okay.” He said through blurry eyes.

My body was still trembling, my mind was still very much a daze and he softly said. “It’s okay.”

Once I realised that the moment was gone, I quickly threw my arms and gave him a hug.

He provided me comfort, despite the fact that I was still visibly shaking.

I swallowed hard terrified at the feeling.

What the hell had just happened?

Drowning? A ship?

And then I remembered the words of the old woman as they echoed through me.

The old woman.

I jumped and hurriedly let go of Bale and looked down at her on the floor.

Her eyes were wide open, her decaying lips slight opened and her body lay motionless.

“Is she?” I asked.

“Dead.” Bale said quietly. “Yes.”

I felt chills in my spine.

I had seen dead people.

Few of the people mother would treat eventually died.

Even attended their funerals but never in my wildest dreams had I thought I would be standing over one.

“I had to.” Bale said quickly as he bent down over her body. “I didn’t mean to kill her.”

She was a frail woman.

A blow from him had sent her straight to her death.

I took in a very deep breath.

I didn’t know whether to thank him or rebuke him.

“She practiced magic.” Bale said surprising me.

“How did you know that?” I asked.

He pointed down at beneath her chin.

There was a mark.

“Users of magic have this. Especially when they are wolves.” He explained. “It was a way of the Queen enforcing the no magic rules. She had some mages cast a powerful spell enough to mark any present of future generation of wolves who went against the law and used magic.”

“She banned magic but still used magic to ban magic?”I said in disbelief.

With more of what I knew of the Queen I decided that i disliked her very much.

And then I remembered that I could heal and I began to be terrified if I had the mark too.

“What did you see when she spoke to you?” He asked me pointed.

I swallowed. “Nothing.”

It came out a very quick lie.

“I just felt terrified for no reason.” I said quickly.

He nodded. “She must have cast a spell on you. Ignore all that talk of impending doom.”

I shifted uneasily.

I wasn’t usually scared of anything but this experience had terrified me to the core.

“I think we should go.” He said rising to his feet as I assisted with his walking stick.

I was still shaken.

“Are we going to leave her here?” I asked slowly coming back to reality.

He sighed heavily. “No. I’ll speak to my brother. I’ll explain to him that she attacked us. Moreover she is using magic. That’s valid grounds.”

“What do we say is the reason why we got here. How we got here?” I asked looking down at the dead woman.

Bale sighed heavily.

“I’ll say I made you come along with me to go sight seeing and we got lost and she attacked us.” Bale pointed out.

I shivered and rubbed my arms.

He walked away from me and something seemed to have caught his attention.

I was too dazed to even noticed what had gotten his attention.

He returned back to me with a book in his hand.

The book was old and worn out.

It looked like something dangerous.

I flinched at the sight of it.

“What’s that?” I asked him perplexed.

He shrugged. “I don’t know.”

And then he put it in his bag.

“We should be going.” He said to me.

I blinked back to reality.

It felt cruel simply leaving the old woman there dead on the floor.

“Don’t worry.” Bale said to me. “I’ll inform my brother myself.”

I sighed heavily.

I wanted nothing but to get out of the place.

He noticed my discomfort and we started to head out of the house.

Once we were out, I took in a deep breath of fresh air and exhaled.

“Let’s go.” I said as I walked to my horse.

She was waiting for me.

I gently brushed her hair. “Hello girl.”

She nuzzled her head against my arm.

The warmth I usually felt against her, I no longer felt.

I climbed her while Bale came around.

I leaned back down and helped him up.

He held unto my sides and I gladly rode away from the scary place.

I swallowed hard as the memories of the chills came down my spine.

The drowning. The screams for help.

Her pointing her finger at me speaking words I didn’t understand.

“Don’t worry. She is just a crazy old woman. Nothing more.” Bale said behind.

How I so badly wished that were true.

And yet, I could not shake the feeling of de ja vu.

Of how real it had felt in the moment.

How familiar.

“Do sea creatures exist?” I asked.

He rose a brow. “Supposedly. But we haven’t come in contact with them for over a decade. The Queen banned them.”

What had happened that was so bad that we all had to suffer the wrath of a mad queen?

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