Poison Rose(Roses & Kings #1)
Chapter 20

Reyna

Cassandra has been so busy lately that Reyna hasn't had a chance to speak with her about the condition of the houses of the villagers, so today when Sabrina told them that their training has to wait until later, Reyna decided it's time she looked for her mother. She searched for her throughout the castle and even asked her Nana to help look for her, they looked everywhere but she wasn't anywhere to be found.

Reyna decided to check outside the castle and fortunately found her outside the castle. Today Cassandra had on her black uniform with ornaments, stars and a cap. She looked cold and hard. And she's not alone, the council and witches are with her, Sabrina and the other Roses were also here as well and as always they are wearing their brown uniforms.

Except for the Roses who always wear sexy red dresses of silky materials mixed with red leather, with long sleeves. The dress also has a long slit on either side of their legs up to their thighs. Where they have daggers and guns tied to their inner thighs inside their sheath,the dress has a hood at the back. Their faces are grim, Reyna feels anxiety, something bad has happened or is about to happen.

"Come here Reyna, it's good that you are here, we were just talking about the beasts. Today we're sentencing one of the beasts in public. I decided after what you said the other day that you were in fact right. the people should know what's at stake. They should know the kind of beasts we're fighting it's the right thing to do. What's your take on the matter?" Reyna's heart plummeted into her stomach.

What?!

No, this isn't what she had meant, Reyna just wanted them to know what is outside their walls, and be educated about the dangers now that their magical illusion and barrier had been breached. Not for them to murder a man in public. Is Cassandra going to kill him? Or is it the other beast? Please don't let it be him.

"Mother, that's not what I mean, I just meant we needed to be educated on the outside world and the dangers of going out there, not for you to kill a man…" Reyna began frantically, scared for her beast.

"He's not a man, Reyna. He's a beast! a monster who wouldn't hesitate to kill you if he decides you're useless to him-which is a better alternative to the other things they do to women." Cassandra stared down at her hard.

Her blue gray eyes daring Reyna to argue with her, Reyna swallowed and averted her gaze trying to hide her feelings. Though it was hard for her to hear around the frantic sounds of her beating heart. Reyna heard murmurs of agreement from the council members.

She wanted to ask Cassandra which beast she's going to hang, when Lisa fortunately asked the question for her.

"Which one of them are we going to behead?" They are going to behead him?! Acidic bile rose in Reyna's throat but she forced it down fast.

"The one in the infirmary is low in their hierarchy, he doesn't know much. But the one in the dungeon is high on their food chain. After the beheading I want him to talk. I don't care what you do just make him fucking talk. We need to know everything about these monsters before it's too late."

While she was relieved that her beast won't be dying today. Reyna was horrified at the vehemence she heard in Cassandra's voice.

It made her wonder why she hates the beasts so much. Reyna thinks she's personally motivated in this war against the beasts. There must be a story behind the ordinary fear of being captured and turned into a sexual slave. A story no one knows about.

"What if he infects the people?" Reyna said desperately trying to replace a way to stop her, to save this poor beast.

"He won't. The men are in their quarters, and we've already taken precautions, thank God everyone has been vaccinated just recently, so nobody will be infected."

"Reyna, you and Lisa will ring the bell, when it is time." Reyna nodded hesitantly, she honestly didn't want to help in any way, just the thought of witnessing the beast's death in her mother's hand, made her feel sick to her stomach. But Reyna also doesn't have a choice. Together she and Lisa went up the tower to the giant bell hanging behind the clock.

"Are you alright Reyna?" Lisa was looking at her strangely.

"Yes?" Reyna's answer sounds like a question even to my ears.

"Why do you ask?" Lisa looked the same yet different, there's a sexuality to her every step that Reyna's beginning to learn from her lessons with Sabrina-which every rose seems to exude.

Only unlike Reyna, Lisa had perfected it; she sasheyed her hips provocatively and with ease as though she had always walked like this all her life.

Her dark red hair matches the red hooded dress. The front of the dress was slightly low to draw eyes to her displayed top breasts that were pushed up to make them look bigger. She really is a Rose. All the roses looked exactly like this. Dress for sex and provocation.

They make every woman in Marlenia look inadequate, like that is how a real woman should be. Sensual,provocative and lethal. Everyone admired them, and Reyna's finally going to be one.

"You look pale. You should try harder to hide your emotions, you almost gave yourself away and if I could see it, so can your mother, and weakness is something she loathes." Lisa said, surprising her. Reyna thought she hated her, but just now she saw a glimpse of the girl Lisa used to be before she joined the Roses.

"Thanks." Reyna replies not knowing what else to say. She nodded.

When they finally arrived at the belltower Reyna hesitated not wanting to have a hand in the beast's death, or for people of Marlenia to witness the horror of seeing someone die horribly, especially the children.

But they have their orders. And the first lesson beaten into them was to never disobey a direct order. Lisa shakes her head, sighs and rings the bell, once, twice and a third time. Reyna put her hands over her ears as the loud sound ricocheted off the castle and Queendom.

In no time people began to gather, coming from everywhere, talking, and asking questions,wondering what was going on. Curious eyes stared at the raised platform the queen was standing on. The same platform the beast would be getting beheaded in a short while, the little girls looked excited even from where they were standing watching down from the bell tower.

They ran around each other playing, while some, mostly the older ones, kept pulling their parents' dresses to ask what was going on. Before long all of Marlenia was gathered outside the castle, except for the guards on duty.

"Today we have gathered here to witness a sentencing of the beast. A beast that has been killing our own and has invaded our queendom. Those monsters have murder our families for generations. They have plagued our lives and made our existence miserable! Months ago two of our Roses were brutally raped and killed, and just few days ago our guards were murder outside our walls.

Those monsters that took our Roses and Guardians lives are now in our grasp and our people deserve justice! As such I have sentenced the last beast as the other has already died in our dungeon-to die by beheading, bring him forth." Cassandra commands.

Why did Cassandra lie and tell them the other beast is dead? My stomach sank as realization set in. Because to her he's as good as dead she's going to kill him too.

The metallic sounds of chains was what distracted Reyna from her inner musings. More than half a dozen guardians appear dragging a very large beast between them with chains and shackles around his hands and feet. It was his chains that were making metallic sounds as they dragged on the cobblestone.

There's a sack over his head,his clothes are dirty with so much dried blood that they look almost brown. From the way he couldn't walk properly, Reyna knew he was very weak. He'd been tortured for weeks,drained of his blood and had undergo whatever the fuck experiments doctor Elizabeth is conducting, of course he's weak.

He was dragged all the way to the platform, then forced to his knees. Cassandra walked to him and pulled the sack off his head. Reyna gasped horrified at his disfigured face,he didn't look anything like the beast she saw days ago, her stomach churned violently threatening to expel everything in it.

He wasn't fighting or trying to escape, his eyes were glowing almost gold, but it wasn't very bright as it should. That was when Reyna noticed his upper body no longer glows. That his inner light was… gone. Her heart breaks. She doesn't know how she knew but Reyna knows the inner glow is a vital part of him.

The crowd was silent, fear and curiosity making some of them move closer to the beast,while others took cautious steps away. Cassandra was saying something to him, he growled loudly, his fangs dagger sharp flashed out and the crowds began to scream, terrified.

Reyna saw Lydia climb the platform with a wicked sword in her grip. Three of the guards climbed up the platform and forcefully placed his head down on the chopping block.

Her stomach churning violently, her heart was beating so fast it was all she could hear in her ears. This is so wrong! Reyna knew the beasts were at fault, they invaded their castle and killed their guardians,but they only ever wanted them. They never intended to kill the guardians, that's what her beast had told her.

And for whatever reason Reyna believes him completely, the beast also didn't make them suffer when they killed the guards. It was swift and painless. They didn't know what they were doing. But her mother and the council had held them captive, torture them and now this! beheading? In broad daylight. Reyna knew she had to stop this.

Because if the beast ever found out, they would all pay severely. Right now Reyna believes her mother isn't thinking straight, she's blinded by her hatred. Reyna moves to run down to the stairs and ground floor so she can stop Cassandra and Lydia.

"Where the hell do you think you are going?! Lisa yelled, holding Reyna's hand tightly with both of her hands. Reyna yanked her hands free.

"I have to stop them Lisa. This isn't right."

“You would do no such nonsense.” Reyna knew Lisa was right, but something inside her was telling her to save the beast. Reyna fisted her hands getting ready to attack, if she had to beat Lisa to go down there then that's what she would do.

“Get in my way and it would be your head on that block Lisa.” Lisa's stance was defensive. They rushed each other and were about to crash, when the glint of a sword stopped Reyna.

"I'm sorry Reyna but you are already too late, look! You won't be able to make it."

Reyna glanced down with wide eye, as the sharp sword glinted in the sunlight, the beast growled loudly the crowds gasped as the sword came down hard and swiftly taking off the beast head, blood and gore splattered, spurting from the severed neck it splash on the platform and all over Lydia's body and clothes, the head rolled down to the ground the crowds scream and parted,the children screaming and crying as they hide in their mothers dresses.

Reyna turned and hurled all of her breakfast when the acidic bile she'd been forcing down crawled up her throat. Her stomach cramps, twists and lurch as she empty her stomach. Lisa patted Reyna's back silently while she vomited.

After the cramps had eased Reyna wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and stood up. She doesn't know why but she felt fear unlike any she had ever felt, and sadness. There's also something that felt like a foreboding. Like something has changed and something terrible is about to happen.

"We shall never bow down to the beasts, remember this day. They are also bone and flesh. They can and will be killed."

With those ominous words Cassandra got off the platform and went back inside the castle with the council and witches behind her.

Later in the evening when Reyna went for her training. It wasn't exciting like the other times, even John, Chloe, Sabrina and the others were not concentrating on the lesson. The atmosphere was glum. Reyna finally left the underground when it was time for her to get home. She didn't even try to go and see him.

How could she look at him and chat with him, when she'd witnessed his friend/brother or whoever he was to him get killed and didn't do anything to stop it.

That night after she went to bed Reyna couldn't sleep, her throat was choked with unshed tears. For the poor beast who only wanted love but found hatred and was killed, and for her people who had all suffered losses and are still suffering. And for the senseless war, when they could choose to change, compromise and live in peace. Reyna could sense her beast's violent rage in her consciousness, she was certain he'd known!

Hi guys! Comment, like and review this book. Honestly I love this story but I'm thinking of abandoning it. I can't believe there's not even a single review!