The Beauty and the Beast (1st book of Fantasy Series)

Chapter 27- Belle

I stood in front of the stairway that would lead to the king's area, my heart pounding in my chest. I had no idea if he would be there or if he even knew that I would be going to his part of the castle.

My dog bit back a whine and pawed at my pant leg to get my attention. She pawed at my pant leg again, and I looked down at her to see her with her cocked head and wide eyes.

"Go to the kitchen and wait for me there," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "I will be fine."

I hope...

She made a silent wine and pawed at my pant leg again. SHe didn't want me to do this, whatever I was going to do, but I knew that I needed to; I needed to see what the Moon Goddess had wanted me to see to protect this kingdom and its followers.

"Go," I said again and made a gesture for her to go to the kitchen. "Wait for me there." I had no idea why, but I had a feeling that he would take me there if I were caught.

If not, then I would go to the kitchen and make myself a cup of tea before I tucked myself into bed with whatever knowledge that I found.

I had no idea if I would try to escape with what I found out or not, but a part of me knew that I should. I should try to live my life the way that I needed to and find a way to help the king and the pack from somewhere else, maybe in the arms of my father.

Pippa whined but did what I told her to do and sullenly walked to the kitchen, her nails clipping against the tiled floor, and I prayed that no one was around to hear her.

I took a deep breath and licked my lips before I started to make the climb, my heart pounding faster and faster with each step that I took. I kept walking up the steps until I reached the top and paused as soon as the steps ended.

The hallway looked long and dark, and I couldn't help but begin to feel nervous because I knew that if I were caught, then I would be gravely punished or sent away like I hoped because I did not want him to fall further into darkness.

I took another deep breath and released it before I took a step forward and walked towards the king's room.

The walk was cold and long, and the whole place was filled with pain, sorrow, and loneliness that I understood all too well. The walls held many holes in it, and I had a feeling that it was his doing when he got so pissed about something that it wasn't even funny.

I had to be careful while I walked because there were many obstacles that could let someone know that I was there. I side stepped broken furniture and broken pieces of the wall.

My heart ached, and all I wanted to do was help the king face his demons because I knew that he was broken, especially when I saw many smashed mirrors, each one broken from one hit with a fist.

Goddess, help him heal his heart, I prayed silently, even though I had no idea how she would be able to help him. He shouldn't have to live in the darkness any longer with no love in his heart.

I stopped when I reached two looming doors that were a heck of a lot fancier than those doors of any other rooms I had seen or been in.

The doors were supposed to be white, but they looked gray in color because they have not been taken care of, and the paint was peeling off of some parts of it. There are golden swirls on each door, and like the rest of the door, they weren't bright in color and looked chipped.

I was surprised there wasn't a hole in the door, but I had a feeling that there would be many holes in the room.

I took a deep breath and opened the door to his office, my heart pounding hard in my chest. "Oh, Your Majesty," I said, breathing out the deep breath, my heart breaking for the male that I was supposed to be with.

The walls were filled with holes, some bigger than the others as if he had thrown something at it. The whole room was a mess, and the only thing that wasn't broken was the desk in the middle.

I cocked my head and started to move towards the desk, having a feeling that whatever the Moon Goddess wanted me to see was in there. My heart pounded with each step that I took, and I glanced at the door every so often to make sure that no one came in because I did not want to get caught.

As soon as I reached the desk, I reached out and touched it to feel the soft wood underneath my fingertips. I traced designs on the wood, the flashes of lightning lighting my path with each gentle stroke that I took.

Slowly, I went to the back of the desk and sat down in his chair, stunned that it had survived his weight and the destruction that followed him around the room.

I felt slightly guilty looking through his desk, but I knew that whatever the Moon Goddess wanted me to see was in here, and I had a feeling that it was the only way I could help him. Well, at least try to help him because he seemed like the type that didn't accept anyone's help, which I understood completely.

I took a deep breath and shook my head before I opened one of the drawers, listening to the small voice in my mind that told me to do it. My heart pounded hard in my chest when I saw a tiara with black pearls and then one pearl slowly turning black.

"Is this it?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper, and reached into the drawer to pull out the tiara. "Is this what you wanted me to find?" Concern for the king filled me, and I wanted to go and ask him what this meant, but I had a feeling that he wouldn't.

No, he would be mad at me because I had done the one thing he told me not to do and entered his "sacred" spot. He would yell, curse, and he would make me feel bad, more than I was already feeling.

However, that didn't stop the concern for him. That didn't stop me from trying to care about him or to put myself in his shoes because a part of me knew that he was afraid of love or showing his emotions besides anger.

The door banged open, and I jumped out of the seat and pulled my hand back without touching the tiara. I looked up with a small gasp and saw the king staring at me with black eyes filled with anger.

My heart pounded hard in my chest and jumped into my throat, and my face grew pale while I looked into his black, soulless eyes. I knew that I was in deep shit, and I had no idea how deep I was with each passing second that we stared at each other.

He growled, and it sent a shiver down my spine because it was menacing and so animal like that I forgot he had a human part to him. "You," he said in a voice that only had disgust in it. "How dare you be in here."