Louisa's POV
I opened my eyes and saw doctor Jafar's face.
He was leaning against the edge of the bed, taking a nap.
I lowered my head and saw Will curling up in front of my chest.
I snuggled him and kissed his hair.
He woke up and lifted his head.
"Louisa! You're back! I almost thought I lost you!" He cried out and huddled against me.
"Oh, Will," I whispered with my heart melting. "I won't go anywhere without you."
Jafar woke up as well. He placed his hand gently over my head and said, "The fever is gone. You're doing well, Louisa."
"What happened to me?" I asked.
Jafar said, "They've found some wolfsbane residue in your teacup. Someone must have put it in there, trying to kill you. Lucas was mad and the soldiers were doing a carpet search in the camp. Don't worry. They'll find the person who has poisoned you and you're safe in His Highness' tent now."
His Highness? I thought to myself and looked around.
I realized that he was talking about Zackery's brother Zabel.
The tall, lanky man who took me to the Grand Ball.
"Where's Leo?" I asked.
Will looked up at me and said, "They took Leo away and locked him up. They said it was Leo who put the poison in your tea because he was the only one in the tent during your argument with Josephine."
"No... Leo wouldn't have done that to me! They're making a mistake. I have to see Lucas and tell him..." I struggled to get up, but I fell down immediately because of the headache.
"Don't try to sit up. You haven't fully recovered. You need to stay in bed for a few days. His Excellency is working on the investigation of this case as well. The sooner we find the person who poisoned you, the sooner Leo will be set free," Jafar said.
"Leo must be terrified now. I have to see him," I insisted.
"Hey, little girl. You're awake," Zabel showed up at the entrance of the tent, holding a bunch of flowers in his hands.
He put the flowers on the table and quickly walked towards my bed.
"How are you doing, little girl?" He sat on the edge of my bed and asked.
"I need to see Leo..." I said.
"Ah, he's fine. I was just in his tent. Zack is with him now. You don't need to worry about him. Nothing is going to happen to him," Zabel said.
His cyan-blue eyes looked bewitching in the dim light of the tent.
I struggled and said, "No, I mean, they try to blame him for poisoning me, but he's innocent. He hasn't..."
"Louisa, you've almost died. Stop thinking about others. Concentrate on yourself," Zabel said.
He looked at Jafar, who took a bow and said, "I'll be waiting right outside the tent when you need me, Your Highness."
Then, he left the tent.
"And you, little bat. You look very hungry and tired. I asked the soldiers to prepare some livestock for you. They're waiting for you outside. Do you want to go and check it out?" Zabel asked.
"No," Will said while licking his lips.
He looked very vigilant and held me tightly with his arms.
"Are you sure? That's warm and fresh blood. Very delicious." Zabel said and peeled him off me like a little bandage.
"Don't touch me! I won't leave Louisa," Will protested, flapping his arms.
"Will, go ahead and have something to eat," I said. "When you come back, I'll sing a lullaby for you."
Will frowned and looked at me, "And you have to promise to hold me while I'm sleeping."
"No problem. I promise," I said.
"OK," Will stayed put in Zabel's arms.
Zabel smiled at him and said, "You're so adorable. I wish I could dress you up and put you in a doll house."
Will pressed his hands against Will's face and said, "Put me down! I'm not a doll! I'm almost a thousand years old!"
Zabel chuckled and passed Will to the soldiers, who took him out of the tent.
"I love vampire boys. Back in the academy, we had some vampire exchange students. They were all so friendly and charming," Zabel said and he looked a bit sentimental. "Then one day, they all had to leave. I was very young at that time and I couldn't do anything to stop them from going away. It was the Red Queen's Order. She wasn't particularly enthusiastic about embracing innovative ideas."
"Queen Daliah? I know she was the mother of Duko the Hawk King," I whispered.
Zabel looked at me and said. "She's your grandmother, little girl. You must have already learned about it."
"She cast my mother away. My mother was pregnant with me at that time, and Daliah wanted to kill both of us!" I said. "What did my mother do to deserve this kind of punishment?"
"She didn't do anything wrong except get married to our father. Their marriage wasn't supported by the Red Queen and that's why she had to go," Zabel started to put the flowers into the vase and carefully arranged them.
"But why? My mother wasn't just a random farmer's daughter! She used to be the Princess of Blade Ridge Pack!" I said.
"I know," Zabel said. He picked up a pair of scissors and started to trim the leaves of the flowers. "But she's mixed-blood. The ancestor of Blade Ridge Pack was Wray Fay the Witch Queen. Daliah hated witches, and she believed, morbidly, in Guillaume's Principles."
I continued, "A Lycan can only get married to a person with pure Lycan blood? But that's ridiculous! A person's character shouldn't be determined and classified by the blood in his veins! Marriage is the natural consequence of love. It shouldn't be arranged!"
Zabel stopped what he was doing and stared at me with a harsh look on his face.
For a brief moment, I thought he was about to stab me with the scissors in his hands.
But then, he put down the scissors and started to rearrange the flowers as if nothing had happened.
"You talk like Lucian, little girl. That's a very dangerous thing," Zabel said. "But I don't blame you, because you have never been to the academy and read Guillaume's books. Plus, you know nothing about our ancestry, and that's why you know nothing about the effort we've made to remain the most powerful species on earth. It's OK. I'll help you to get there in time."
"What do you mean?" I frowned and asked.
The arrogance and pride in his tone annoyed me.
"You're our half-sister, little girl. You're one of us. We've been looking for you for so many years and we thought you were already dead. That's why Zack was overwhelmed when he found that you were still alive. Zack has told Lycidas about your existence, little girl. And he's coming for you."
"What?!" I was shocked.
Zabel said, "His Majesty the King is coming to the camp for Lucas' wedding. And he'll take you away with him when he leaves. You're the King's younger sister, Louisa."