SWNOVELS Chapter Twenty-One: Marley
It took a full day of talking before the king and queen granted their stay to explore their land for the heart. She was beyond tired of talking, from her story about her arranged marriage to her home island getting attacked, she was over all of it. But talking about themselves did have its advantage and that was, she got to know Sawyer just that little bit more.
She knew that he was a man that didn’t like to talk about himself and for that, she never pushed for it but hearing what his last name was and the small bits and pieces about his home, made her curious. Marley wanted to know more, she wanted to know everything about him. However, there was one thing that he said that is still on her mind now as she lay awake, listening to the early morning birds and Sawyer’s soft breathing on the floor beside her.
"She put a curse on all of us,” He said, thinning his lips as if he didn’t want to be telling his story in front of strangers and she didn’t blame him, this was awkward. "She made it her goal to remove our powers and to make sure none of us could shift. At the time, I was asked to collect flint in the caves and when I came back everyone was dragon-less. Nobody could shift and the village was in chaos but I could still shift, I was the only one who still had my dragon so we hunted for a cure, it took us months of searching to find information about this heart and here I am.”
"What makes you believe the heart is here?” The king had asked.
“I got a lead that an overpowered wizard was in The Kingdom of Thieves and knew where it was. What I wasn’t expecting was to be told where this heart was located and that I would be meeting and saving my mate.” He sighed, looking down at her with a look she couldn’t understand. “I was determined to do this on my own but as the wizard had said, I would have never gotten this far without her.”
Marley remembered how hard her heart had fluttered at his words. How hard it has been beating from all of his small comments about her and she liked it. Marley grew up never paying much attention to boys, she was never interested in romance or the thought of getting married but she knew that if she ever met the right person, her mind could be changed and it has. She has met her person, he might be stubborn and a bit of a jackass out of concern and care for her own safety but he was still her person and she loved that. She loved him, flaws and all.
She sat up and looked down to see Sawyer and his sleeping position, he looked uncomfortable. Marley felt guilty that she took the bed, he seemed like he wanted to fight her about it but the whole day was filled with talking and feasts with more talking that both of their energies had left them and instead of fighting her over it, he grabbed a pillow and passed out on the floor. She had thrown a blanket over the top of him before she went to sleep however she secretly hoped that he would join her and sadly her hopes didn’t happen.
She hadn’t realised how long she had been staring at his sleeping body until a sudden knock caused her to jump. Prince Lucas peaking through the door with reluctant light brown eyes. He was the nicer prince out of the two she had met, he was kind and sweet and he had a tendency of holding a book in his hands wherever he went. Meeting him reminded her of Ava and she wondered what would happen if they ever met, it would be sweet to witness, especially if they were mates.
“Did I wake you?”
Marley shook her head. “No, I was already awake.”
He nodded, biting his lip and looking behind him before he eyed Sawyer. “You might want to wake him up. I am not supposed to be doing this but I can take you to the cave where the heart is located but we have to do this now.”
Her eyes widened before she threw the blankets off of herself and cringed down at the fact that she slept in the blue dress, it was too comfortable and she hated how much she liked it. For a girl who hates dresses, she loved this one. She kicked her feet out and toed Sawyer’s arm. Marley didn’t know how to wake him, she has tried before he never budged once and at this point, she felt like it would be easier to wake a brick wall.
“I will give you a minute.” Lucas chuckled before closing the door behind him. She didn’t know what to do, her touch never made him stir nor did her one attempt to act like she was in trouble by screaming but that didn’t work either. She then looked down at him again and remembered the reaction she had gotten from him when she kissed his temple. Marley didn’t know what came over her when she did it but seeing his face turn red and watching his lips part as if he didn’t know what to do made her feel like she was the powerful one, made her feel like she had some form of control that she enjoyed.
With that idea in mind, she slid off the bed and hovered over him. Placing her lips in the same spot again before she was suddenly grabbed and flipped over. Her hair fell into her face and mouth as she grunted and stared up at a glaring Sawyer before the flash of realisation crossed his red eyes. “Shit! Marley, I thought you were trying to kill me or something!”
Her name coming out of his mouth sent shivers down her spine as she grinned sheepishly. “I was trying to wake you, prince Lucas said that he will take us to the heart.”
Sawyer was still hovering over her as her words slowly registered, his closeness made her body tingle in ways she tried to ignore when she was a young teenager going through the first stages of hormones but this time around, it was beyond difficult to ignore when you have a man holding your arms down and his holding your body captive. “Then we should leave now.”
His words disappointed her as he removed himself and helped her stand. They both freshened up before they met Lucas in the hallway, an anxious and annoyed look was on his face but he didn’t say anything about it. “Let’s go!”
The walk out of the castle made her feel like she had stolen something and was trying to hide it. The stares from the servants and maids as well as a few family members of the royal family caused her to feel out of place and unwelcomed as she found herself inching closer to Sawyer for comfort.
Lucas was silent, greeting people when he needed to but kept it all business as they exited the castle and found themselves in a garden. Her eyes had landed on a man a few miles away with a woman before she did a double take. Marley recognised him but she couldn’t place where before she was pulled into another area. Her eyes could no longer look at the stranger as they were led through a small maze and found themselves standing behind the castle, mountains blocking any form of view before Lucas finally spoke.
“I cannot go any further, I am needed elsewhere but just a few miles away is a cave. Through that cave, you need to follow the tunnel and trust the heart’s call. I found the heart when I was just a small child and I have never told anyone about it until now.”
“Thank you for doing this,” Marley said with gratitude. “I owe you.”
“None sense! Save your mate’s species. I know I would do anything for mine.”
Marley smiled, allowing herself to walk away as she felt sad for him. The longing look in his eyes made her want to go out and find his mate for him herself but she couldn’t. She needed to do this first.
Sawyer stuck close to her and took the lead, finding the cave quickly before they entered. It was cold, damp and dark and it was times like this when she wished she had powers like normal supernatural beings. She was two very different species after all and yet she was as useless as a normal human and she hated that.
The walk was long but Saywer’s closeness and the occasional times when she needed to hold his hand helped her think straight as a small light began to get brighter and brighter. “Do you think this is it?”
“I think so.” He responded. “But I smell something off.”
“What do you mean off?”
He looked down at her before pulling her closer to him. He didn’t need to say anymore as they walked through the opening to find a field of water and plants. Flowers bloomed everywhere as a small stream circled around the tall tree that sat in the middle. The whole area felt like it came out of a fantasy book as she softly gasped and took in the view.
But that was soon taken away by Sawyer’s loud beast-like growl and a hooded woman staring at them as she held the heart.