Damian
I returned to Hayley's room after leaving the dungeon. Ethan decided to further interrogate the hostages before they were put to death. He believed he could make at least one of them talk, and I left him to the task. Unlike him, I didn't have the patience to wait for any of them. If they weren't willing to save their lives, then I would help them to dispose of it.
With a gentle knock on the door, I entered the room and found Miranda and Hayley immersed in their little conversation. They both seemed happy, and it didn't seem like Miranda had spoken out of line.
"You're back already?" Hayley asked with a bright smile on her face. She was elated by the sight of me, and I was even more excited to see her happy and unconscious on a bed.
"Ethan said he'd handle the rest, so you have him to thank." I replied before leaning in to kiss her on the forehead. I turned towards Miranda, and appreciated her for her efforts with a nod. "You two seemed to be having fun, what were you talking about?"
The two ladies exchanged glances at each other before bursting into a short laughter.
"I don't think Hayley and I are comfortable discussing that with you, Alpha Damian." Miranda spoke for the both of them. Hayley nodded affirmatively to Miranda's words, and I arched a suspicious brow at her reaction.
"Since you're here, I'll be excusing myself then." Miranda said as she steadily rose from where she sat.
My eyes followed her suspiciously. Miranda was an ally of the crown, but she also offered her services to Conrad as well. She was impartial when it came to helping others, and that had been the only reason I had allowed her and her coven members back into the safety of the kingdom. Witches were being hunted everywhere, and they possessed valuable knowledge. It was a known fact that most of them were evil, but Miranda was different, and I had been able to tolerate her. However, since Conrad's return, working with her had become rather difficult.
"There's no need to leave, you can stay if you want, I'm sure Hayley wants you to stay." I argued, and her once bright expression dulled a bit. "I'm sorry, but there are things I have to attend to, I promise to pay Hayley a visit every once in a while."
"It's fine Damian, it's not right for us to stop her from doing her work." Hayley stopped me before I had the opportunity to argue with Miranda any further.
With a smile and a light bow, Miranda excused herself and I followed her out.
"You're not going out to meet with Conrad, are you?" I questioned her the second we were out of the room.
She smiled lightly before turning around to meet my inquisitive eyes. "You shouldn't be chasing after me this way, you're going to make your new wife jealous."
"Don't try to escape the question, are you or are you not meeting with Conrad?" I repeated this time in a more serious tone.
"I am," Miranda answered curtly. "You haven't forgotten our pact, have you? We're free to offer our services to anyone in the Kingdom without exception!" She reminded me.
She was right, and it was for good reasons. The witches weren't liked very much, and picking sides would only make things worse for them. Should they decide to ally themselves with me, Conrad's supporters would immediately consider them a threat, and vice versa. To keep neutral grounds and prevent their extinction, we had allowed them to help both sides.
"Tell me his location." I requested, and Miranda's eyes widened in shock. "Tell me where he is so I can talk to him. I promise I won't do anything more than just talking."
"I'm sorry, but I can't do that." Her reply came with a tone of finality, she wasn't going to say anything to me, and she had made that very obvious from the look in her eyes alone.
"Why? Why won't you help me?!" I thundered, my emotions rising steadily.
Miranda took a step backwards, just out of arm's length. "You know very well that I cannot do that. I'm not doing it because I want to help Conrad, I'm doing it because I care for you, because I love yo—"
"Don't do that, Miranda, not now." I interjected before she had the chance to finish her sentence. The last thing I wanted was for the guards around to pick up on her words and say something to Hayley. Miranda and I were old news, and I wanted it to remain that way.
"Fine, let's forget my feelings for a second, I won't tell you because I care for Hayley and your people. I know you just want to talk, but it's not the same for Conrad. The moment you step into his fortress, he's going to kill you. You can't go there alone, and going there with your guards would only serve as a declaration of war." She paused to catch her breath, before continuing. "I don't want to get caught up in this war, and I don't want my sisters getting dragged into it as well. It's best to sit this one out, besides talking to Conrad won't help you. He wants war, and he's simply waiting for you to make a move."
I was lost for words. Miranda was right, and the realization of that made my blood boil in rage. If I could reason with Conrad in some manner, then I might be able to stop all of this nonsense.
"You're wise Miranda, what do you suggest that I do?" I asked in a more subtle voice. Ethan had suggested war while we still had more resources, but I didn't want that. I wanted to settle this conflict some other way.
"There aren't really many options, Damian. If you really want to save your people, then the only thing you can do is go to war and win, or resign and surrender the crown to Conrad without conflict."