Word Count: 1790

Kailor sits in front of me behind a veil of smoke, regarding me with a rigid smile.

The smell of his cigar is overwhelming, the scent of spices and cedar, making my head spin. I sit in a leather chair in front of him, painfully uncomfortable being in his private suite right now, although it's the only place he would agree to speak with Tai and I.

"Tell her she's insane father," Tai insists, pacing behind me. Kailor's dark gaze tracks his son, a thoughtful expression on his face.

Kailor waves his hand. "Tell me that again."

"I would offer a negotiation with Vaia, then allow myself to be kidnapped by her," I explain, my voice hoarse from the smoke. "From there, I would be inside the estate, and I would spy."

Tai pauses behind me, anticipating his father's reaction to my idea. It's an idea I've thought over quite a lot, especially since Marek saved my life last week. Naturally, Tai completely freaked at the sound of my idea, immediately disagreeing. As much as I appreciate him caring about my wellbeing, he also needs to think about what is strategically best for coming back to his throne.

"I quite like the idea," Kailor admits, his smile widening.

Tai slips into the seat next to me, his expression contorted in both anger and confusion. "That's because you don't care if Vaia kills her."

"Vaia is too smart to kill me," I insist, knowing Tai is going to be the only roadblock to my idea. "She knows I'm the one thing she can have over you Tai. We need to use that to get what we want."

"You have no idea how she would treat you," he exasperates, looking so alarmed, I almost feel bad enough to concede. If Tai were offering to do this, I would fight to not have him go, knowing the amount of risks. But he doesn't have someone like Marek to protect him.

I watch Kailor take a deep drag of his cigar, making me swallow uncomfortably. "It would be worth it."

"Are you hearing yourself?" Tai questions, ignoring his father. I'm the one who pressed to come see Kailor, knowing he would side with me on this. "I'm not letting you sacrifice yourself for me."

At the end of the day, I'm required to abide by Kailor's orders as King.

"If you do this Akara, and pull it off, I give you every permission to marry my son once you return," Kailor offers.

I exchange glances with Tai, suddenly unsure of what that means for us. Tai and I haven't spoken about that in awhile, at least not since we have given our relationship a chance. We no longer have a reason to get married, so if we did so, it would because we love each other, and because we want to.

"No...No, I refuse to let Akara do this," Tai continues, practically begging his father at this point. I look down at my hands for a moment, feeling guilt for forcing this on Tai, while also knowing this is a good idea, that this is what I need to do.

"I won't be in there for long. Once I have enough information, I'll escape," I explain.

He looks bewildered. "How?"

"With Marek's help," I say slowly, glancing at Kailor, whose eyes narrow slightly. Tai looks just as skeptical as his father, not bothering to hide it. They probably think this is coming out of nowhere, making it sound as though I trust Marek.

Tai blinks. "Wait...What?"

"Marek is protecting me. I'm not sure for what reason, but if he wanted Vaia to have me, he would have handed me over to her by now. Instead, he is keeping me at a distance from her. I can use that," I explain. I'm sick of Marek knowing more than me, using me for his personal agenda.

Now I want to use him for mine.

"His plans may be far worse than Vaia's," Tai reminds me, dismissing his father's offer of alcohol in a crystal decanter. He's too focused on me, looking as though he may fall out of his chair trying to convince me out of this.

"We won't know unless we try," I say with a shrug, looking at Kailor, who seems to be assessing the dynamic going on between Tai and I.

Tai sweeps both his hands back through his hair. "You're trusting a man who once betrayed you, Akara. I won't allow it."

"I'm going to do this, Kailor. I have faith that I will return with information for you," I say, concentrating all my efforts on convincing Kailor to allow this to happen, since Tai seems to be a lost cause. Kailor doesn't mind the risk, and as King, he isn't really losing anything if I never come back.

"Then it's settled. You'll go," Kailor announces.

I nod, thanking him. As I get to my feet, ready to leave Kailor's suffocating room, Tai stares me down, stunned, before following me. I imagine he's going to come right back into Kailor's room after he's spoken to me in an attempt to convince him to change his mind.

"I want you to except this," I mutter, once the door to Kailor's room is safely closed.

"I can't. None of this is reasonable," Tai replies, following me down the hallway. He grabs my hands, stopping me short. Seeing his pained expression, emerald eyes consumed in desperation makes me feel sick to my stomach. What if I never see him again after this?

"If Marek doesn't get me out, then perhaps someone else can," I decide. Tai is right, I can't put all of my trust in Marek, no matter what he has said to me, or who he has saved my life from. "Maybe Zavian."

Tai frowns. He doesn't realise why I would trust Zavian to be capable of it.

"Zavian cannot compare to any soldier. He's a pawn for matters of diplomacy, that's all," he reminds me, gazing at me sceptically. When looking at Zavian's slender figure, you wouldn't assume he would be capable of very much in a fight, so I understand Tai's rationale. "Why do you wish to have him save you?"

"He's stronger than you think. And he can claim to be handing himself over to Vaia's side if things get desperate," I explain.

In truth, I'm sure Zavian would be capable of getting me out of there, even maybe capable of being as strong as Marek in a small window with Tani blood in his system. If there is anyone I could rely on in that moment, it would be Zavian. But of course, I cannot tell Tai that I have that much confidence in him.

Tai tilts his head back and forth. "And you're sure he will agree."

"Yes. Him and I both need a purpose right now," I mutter, as we walk into Tai's wing of the house, and into his bedroom.

Tai pauses near the door. "Akara..."

"Let me do this for you. This is what I want," I assure him, reaching up to hold the sides of his face, feeling the familiar contours that I could only admire from afar for such a long time.

Tai closes his eyes for a long moment, summoning a calm breath. "Okay, we will have someone arrange the meeting."

***

The morning of the meeting has come by too quickly.

I'm not sure how Kailor managed to get in contact with someone close to Vaia, but they decided on today, at a neutral meeting ground with no one but myself and Vaia. I already know she is going to turn against me, that she is lying about not bringing anyone with her. She just so happens to have no idea that's my plan.

"I'm giving you a few days. If you're not out by then, I'm coming for you," Tai tells me firmly, holding my shoulders tightly. He's no longer scared, but preemptively angry. He spent all night trying to convince me out of this, but I haven't budged.

It is very possible that Vaia could kill me the moment I'm in her line of sight. I'm relying on the idea of me being valuable to her.

"You can't risk that, Tai," I say grimly. Tai is the last person who can put himself into Vaia's clutches.

"I'll risk everything, okay?" he tells me earnestly, but I shake my head.

Looking behind me, I see the footman opening the door to the carriage that is going to deliver me to the meeting site. It's in a village that borders Tai's old territory and Kailor's. The King hasn't even come to see me off, having given me a dismissive good luck at dinner last night, and that is it. I've spoken with Zavian, so he knows what to do.

So now, everything is in place. The only person left to rely on is Marek, the most unpredictable part of this plan.

"I'll be back, I promise," I assure Tai, trying not to get upset seeing his conflicted expression. It's going to be hard being without him for the next couple days, especially since we have basically been attached at the hip for months. "If Marek doesn't get me out, I'll get myself out."

"I shouldn't be letting you do this," Tai mutters, sweeping his hands through his hair.

Before he can grab me and demand I stay, I step into the cabin of the carriage, looking out the door at him.

"This is my decision. I'll be back soon, I promise," I assure him gently.

Reluctantly he nods, before stepping forward to lean into the carriage, kissing me. For a long moment, I allow the feeling of his lips against mine to quell my nerves, to convince me that I'm okay, and everything is going to go according to plan.

When he pulls away, he runs his hand gently down my face, the look in his eyes unbelievably telling. It's breaking him, allowing me to do this.

"Good luck," he whispers, stepping back before the door closes.

Now, there's no going back.

🤎••🤎

If you guys want to read ahead, you can read more of KING'S SEDUCTION on Radish! It's chapters ahead of Wattpad (:

You'll will find it under KING'S POSSESSION on Radish, as season 2!

🧸••🧸

I'm officially rewriting Alpha Jasper's story now on Radish! It will be following the same storyline with the same characters, but with revised scenes and some new ones!

I love Jasper's story so much that I wanted to go back and rewrite it. I hope you guys will enjoy it, you can find it now on Radish (:

Snapchat: midikacrane

Instagram: Sophie_Midika

~Midika 💜🐼