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

Chapter 22- Belle

I flinched and jumped up when he came into view, and I instantly bowed my head, not meeting the King's hard gaze. My heart pounded in my chest and leaped into my throat, and I felt like I was choking, even though there wasn't anything that I could choke on.

"What is your grandfather's name?" the king asked. "On your father's side?"

"V-V-Valter Schmit, Your Majesty," I replied through the lump in my throat. I cleared my throat and didn't meet his gaze and only stared at the wooden floor that was placed throughout the palace. "His name is Valter Schmit, but I am not in contact with him. I-I haven't even met him yet."

Words flew out of my mouth before I could stop them, and I had no idea if he cared about that or not. All I knew was that I had to protect myself, protect myself from what that last name meant to him.

The king snarled, and I flinched before I ducked my head closer to my chest. Anger filled his eyes, turning the dark brown eyes to black filled with red. "You are related to him? How could you do that? Do you know who he is, what he has done to us?"

I didn't reply and shook my head. I wanted to be a slight smart ass and tell him that I couldn't control who I was related to because of genetics, but I knew that it wasn't the right time to be a smartass.

"Well?" he asked. His voice was hard and cold, and there was this twinge of hatred in it that I had never heard before, not even from my ex, the male that had given me so much grief in the past. "Do you?"

I shook my head and cleared my throat. "No, Your Majesty." I was surprised that I didn't stutter like I thought I would. However, it didn't matter because I was still shaking even if the male before me couldn't see.

He growled furiously and gritted his teeth. "You stupid bitch," he snarled. "Why did you set foot on my property when you share blood with him?"

I don't know, I thought sarcastically, not replying. Maybe because you had my dad?

I didn't answer him and looked away down, feeling slightly guilty about my bloodline.

What did my grandfather and his side of the family do? I silently wondered. Were they Werewolf Hunters? Did they know about Werewolves?

The king snarled and grabbed my arm, wrenching me in the direction that he wanted to go, and it stunned me because I had no idea why he was so angry. Anger came off of him in waves while he dragged me somewhere, and slowly, I started to become afraid of him.

I didn't say a word while he led me to the kitchen and ignored all of the curious and worried glances that were sent our way.

No one intervened, and I had no idea if it was because of the fear that was coming off of me or the anger that was coming off of him. They were tense and quiet, and I had a feeling that they knew what would happen to me even if I didn't.

The king brought me to the kitchen and tossed me like a rag doll to the floor. Fury filled his eyes when I looked up at him, and saliva dripped from his bared teeth. His whole body was shaking from fury, and I saw just how dangerous he was, especially since I had no idea what my family had done to him and his pack.

Power came off of him in waves, and I looked down, not wanting to meet his gaze any longer.

"Get out," he snarled. "You are not welcomed here any longer."

My mouth went dry. Fear filled my body because I had no idea what that meant for my family and me. I had a feeling that I would fall deeper and deeper into depression because he was rejecting me, and I was intuned with that side of me. "Why not?" I asked, my voice cracking. I didn't look at him, not wanting to meet his gaze.

"Because you are a Schmit," he snarled. "That whole clan had pained my family and me for years and years, and to be mated with one? No. I will not allow it. I do not care what my human has to say."

Human? What did he mean by human? I silently asked. I thought I was talking to his human.

"What do you mean?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. I moved a little away from him when he growled and took a threatening step toward me. "What do you mean by your human?"

"Don't play stupid," he snarled. "You know what I mean by that, Hunter." He spat 'Hunter' with such ferocity that I couldn't help but cringe. "You are all taught about Werewolves and everything." He bared his teeth and took another threatening step toward me.

I backed up until I was pressed against something and shook my head. "If I had known about Werewolves, then I wouldn't be searching for information on them, Your Majesty," I said. I didn't meet his gaze. "I don't even know what you mean by Hunter." I licked my lips and cleared my throat. "I don't think you mean by hunting squirrels or birds."

The king scowled and folded his arms across his chest. He narrowed his eyes further and bared his teeth. "Are you being funny?" he asked. "That is not what I mean by a Hunter, and you know it."

Impatience filled my body, and I looked to meet his hard gaze. Anger and annoyance followed the impatience with this strength that I had no idea I had. "I do not know it," I snapped, and the king reared back in shock from the venom in my voice. "I know nothing about Werewolves, mates, or these Hunters. All I know is what I have read from books, and I have seen some inconsistencies in the texts that I have read. So please, for the love of God, do not say that I know something when I don't. I have not been taught about Werewolves or other Supernatural creatures."

"Bull. Shit. Your grandfather ha-"

"I HAVE NEVER TALKED TO THAT GRANDFATHER!" I yelled, interrupting him. Fury and rage filled my body, and I stood from my kneeling position and glared. "I don't even know that grandfather," I said, my voice becoming slightly deadlier. "So shut up about it. Yes, my grandfather is Valtar Schmit, but the only thing that I share with him is my last name, and even then, I have my mother's last name."

The king's tail went between his legs, and he took a step back when I took a step forward. The anger in his eyes turned to fear, but I didn't care while I walked towards him, pushing him to the wall.

I jabbed my finger into his chest and stared up at him, not even caring about the height difference between us. "If you want me to leave, fine. Just know that I will never come back even if you are supposed to be my mate. Is that understood?"

He nodded, staying silent. His eyes were still wide, and his ears were pressed against the back of his head while he looked at me, waiting for me to do something now that I had him cornered against the wall.

"Now, do you want me to leave because I am a Schmit, or am I allowed to stay?"

The king opened his mouth to say something but closed it. He opened it again before he closed it and cleared his throat. "You may stay," he said. "However, because of these circumstances, the only places you are allowed to go are your room, the kitchen, and then the stables as well as the arena. You are not allowed to eat with the pack any longer. Do you understand?"

I held back an eye roll and nodded my head. "Yes, Your Majesty," I said. "Excuse me." And with that, I left, going straight to my room while the anger left me, leaving me feeling exhausted.

I had no idea what had come over me, but I liked that power. I liked being able to correct him when he was wrong, which scared me a little bit. I had no idea what the future would hold for us, but I hoped that there was still a way to fix it.

If only I could ask someone what he meant about his "human" wanting me and not him.

If only my questions could be answered and not lead to more questions.

If only...