Anarameha

Chapter 29

Keoni didn't know what to say or think about Pierre's threat.

"He said that he will be king. You know what that means, right?"

Ana nodded regretfully. She didn't want to think about it, but she had to know.

"Did my father make a deal with him?"

"I was aware of a list of contenders, but I never knew who was on the list until later when Pierre became a threat. But before then, meetings were held, discussions and even arguments between your parents happened frequently. Then one day, the contender list was gone. It was never spoken of again."

"Tell me what you remember now that you've taken the pill."

"In the weeks beforehand, we received a lot of intelligence reports indicating that there was a threat. Rumblings in the city about people trying to drum up support for a protest. From what we learned, there was not much support. I think that's why Normace altered his plans. He approached me, made an offer, and I listened. To keep him talking to me, I had to ensure that he believed I was a willing participant. When I could, I spoke with your father and told him everything. That's when we figured out that he was angry that he didn't make the cut. He had no idea that no one made it."

Keoni shrugged, giving Ana a grim look.

"Now that I look back at it, your father probably should have explained it in person rather than just a letter to say that his application was not approved. It doesn't excuse what Pierre did, but it offers a little context to the situation. Before all of that, your father and I formed a plan to fool those who watched us for information. A lot of contingency plans were made that included escape routes for you, your mother and your siblings. Several safe houses were set up in case any were discovered. Bags were packed, and drills were performed. Your mother knew what she had to do. Get the children to the closest hatch."

"But she didn't make it."

"One of Normace's followers found her as she was searching for your brothers. I disagreed with your father wanting to stay and diffuse the situation, but he was determined and refused to be seen as a coward that ran away. When you appeared without your mother, I knew that things were not going as we'd planned. That's why I put you in the tube and shut the doors. They had no chance of finding you, and that was the first thing on your father's list. Hide Ana."

"Why just me, though? Romalethi was the heir."

"Romalethi was not the heir. You were. No one outside your immediate family knew it until you turned sixteen and your eyes changed permanently. Your brothers knew that you were going to be the leader."

"For like two years, maybe." Ana scoffed.

Keoni shook his head.

"No. Your father told me about it one day when we travelled to a meeting. The child was born with glowing eyes that subdued within days. She will remain that way until her sixteenth year, then the eyes will change with her needs. They always knew that you would be the next leader. That's why you were bound to so many more rules. It's why your father had to find you a husband that was more than just a figure that stood beside you. He had to be the confidant that you would need, someone that you could trust and could always rely on. He told me that he was relieved that you didn't object to me because he believed that I was what you needed. I disagreed with him but accepted it all the same."

"Well, I'm sure he'd be happy if he could see us, right?"

Keoni nodded.

"But we have a problem. Pierre is a tenacious person, and I know he will do everything he can to retain his leadership over this city."

She wondered if her father had seen something in Pierre or the other contenders that made him change his mind. Ana remembered the conversations they had regarding her future and what she'd asked of him, but he could have refused. As much as Pierre was a warmongering killer, he was human and probably better aligned than the vampire in front of her. They were different races, and even though they were similar, it was a strange union.

"Can I ask you what led to my father discussing marriage with you?"

Ana was wary of his answer, given what she knew of the situation. She hoped that her father had behaved himself, though she doubted it. He was cheeky like that.

Keoni shrugged, sitting on the seat near Ana.

"I think the first conversation happened just after you turned seventeen. He said that plans were being made for your future, a list of potential candidates was being made. I don't know who was on the list or if I had even made it at that stage. All your father said was to be on the lookout, to warn the other SC's because he was planning on discussing it with you after lunch. I think he expected that you'd take off in one of your patented tantrums."

Ana's eyebrow raised. Keoni smiled with a shrug.

"Don't deny it. You even had a name. Pitch a fit princess."

"Good grief. I was a teenager trying to find room to breathe in a stifling and controlling situation."

"Trust me, we all understood, and a lot of us sympathised. We could see the invisible walls around you, far more than your brothers. Do you remember the day of that conversation?"

Standing, Ana huffed.

"Yeah. There were a few sons of aristocrats on the list. No one that I knew. I said that to my father, and he said that there was wiggle room if I was agreeable to the future."

"He wanted an easy path."

"He wanted an agreeable daughter. So much that he even offered to alter the list if I could suggest someone that was worthy of the position. Anyone,"

The word was just a whisper as Ana turned away. Keoni didn't notice. He stood and moved closer, stopping near her side. Ana glanced at him, wondering if the foolish teenage fantasy was wrong. She couldn't say it even if it was on the tip of her tongue.

It was her father that noticed. She pretended that she was offended at the suggestion but was secretly elated when Keoni accepted the offer.

Now she wondered if he'd made a deal with Pierre then had to change it so that he could let his daughter have who she really wanted. It broke her heart to think that her parents and siblings died because she picked the wrong man.

"I don't even know when your father decided that I was an ideal candidate. At any rate, he approached me and offered to put my name on the list. It was a shock at first because before then, you weren't even on my radar, aside from protecting you, of course. Then months later, he said that it had been decided and I was the lucky guy."

Keoni smiled at Ana. She could read his mind. He clearly thought he was lucky.

"And that brought us up to your eighteenth birthday when it was officially announced, and we started the courtship that seemed curiously odd considering that you asked for my name to be put on the list."

Ana's mouth fell open, and Keoni smiled just a little harder.

"You think your father wouldn't tell me? Especially after I asked if he'd lost the plot. I thought that you hated me. Your father chuckled and gave me a rather enlightening conversation about you and everything that he and the queen had seen."

"Great," Ana muttered.

Keoni reached out, pulling Ana to him.

"Come on, it's not like I wouldn't have figured it out anyway."

Ana wrapped her arms around Keoni's waist, resting her head on his chest. She thought it was nice to be back in his arms.

"He's never going to stop hunting me."

Keoni sighed, pulling Ana tighter to his body. He didn't want to let go. Protect Ana above all others. Those were the king's final words to him. For a long time, Keoni would fail in his duty to his fallen king, but it was something that was beyond his control. Now though, he had his memory and the past that was full of training. If there was a breath left in him, Keoni would protect Ana.

"We will find a way through this."