Grateful after the handmaids had told her where Given was, Evelyn rushed to the man. She hadn't failed to notice how the maids blushed when she mentioned Given's name, but then—that's a story for another day.
As she neared the private kitchen, Evelyn heard her sister's annoyingly high-pitched voice, followed by another unfamiliar cheery tone before Given's disciplined voice came through, offhandedly disciplining Lyric.
"Can't you give the man a break?" Evelyn spoke as she entered the room with a smile. "Good evening."
"Good evening, Princess," Given bowed while Lyric rolled her eyes. As Given bowed, he noticed his friend, Leroy, beside him not bowing. Lifting his fingers secretly, Given attempted to hit Leroy lightly, but the latter only shifted his head to the side, pretending he didn't hear him address Evelyn as 'Princess.' Given pinched Leroy, who let out an exasperated "ow" in a low voice before he reluctantly bowed, muttering, "Greetings, Princess Evelyn of Lunareth."
Leroy hid his irritation too well, and that amused Given, who failed to hide his smirk.
Evelyn, who had stood a bit farther from them, simply greeted the man who seemed to be too close to Given, ignoring Leroy's sassy comment. "Given, can I have a word with you?"
"Can't you see we're in the middle of a serious conversation, sister?" Lyric turned her head toward Evelyn with a creepy, stretched smile—an expression that always appeared when she was annoyed and in urgency to finish what she needed to get done.
"Yes, my apologies, but what I need to discuss with Given is far more important," Evelyn said, her gaze unwavering as she stared at Given while Lyric, as expected, did what Given and Evelyn predicted she would.
"Giivveeeeee??!" Lyric said, pressing her hands together cutely, standing on her tiptoes, head tilted to the side, her smile stretched, and eyes turned into a puppy-dog look as she stared at Given. Too cute—but too annoying.
Given restrained from rolling his eyes and said, "I promise I'll make time to tell you when I'm done hearing Evelyn out."
Lyric pouted, and Leroy clamped his mouth shut, restricting himself from commenting on the current situation.
""You know , if ever I were a narrator of a book , I'd nail the role . I mean , look at this . Pure theatre, and with my glorious , smart-ass creative and hard working mind , I'd be prefect for the role. Life isn't too far , huh ?"" Leroy thought, lost in his own world.
As Leroy came back to the present moment, the two sisters and Given came to an agreement: Evelyn would stay and speak with Given, and once done, Given would meet with Lyric. Leroy couldn't help but think, If only I were in his shoes... But maybe with better people? Not these two sisters? That stole their Kingdom ?
"Catch you in the sky," Leroy said to Given as he left with Lyric.
Given nodded and stared at the duo as they left. After a few seconds, Evelyn and Given heard Lyric ask Leroy a question about Queen Elara, to which Leroy responded, "Kindly so. Please don't start with me, Princess. I don't work here, and I'm pretty fast." Given smiled, thinking that Leroy, at least, wasn't caught up in Lyric's beauty. He shared the same disdain for those who ambushed their Queen and their home.
"Given," Evelyn called softly yet urgently as she approached him. Her footsteps were quiet, but her presence was unmistakable. "So Morgana and Harrison told me about the fight, and I wanted to ask about your thoughts on it."
"My thoughts?" Given turned toward her, brow furrowing in confusion. "Yes, your thoughts," Evelyn replied, a smile playing on her lips—an unsettling one that barely concealed her underlying tension and curiosity.
"What do you care about my thoughts, Princess? We both know that isn't your style. Now, tell me what's wrong," Given says.
Evelyn hesitated for a moment before giving in. "I wanted to ask you about something," she began, her voice softening. "You are the only person I can trust in this castle now. And you seem to care about Queen Elara more than anyone on this castle grounds ." She paused, searching his face for any reaction before she told him of her encounter with the Lycan before asking at the end ,"How do you think the Alpha Lycan healed himself?"
Given stared at her, momentarily speechless, his mind struggling to catch up with her sudden shift in tone. His confusion was evident, but before he could process a response, Evelyn pressed on. "With blood, right?" she asked, her voice firm, pulling him out of his thoughts. "Given, focus."
She slapped his muscle lightly, a deliberate action that made his muscles tense under her touch. Given flinched but immediately tried to regain composure.
'Again ? ' Evelyn thought to herself. 'Physical Contact. Focus , Evelyn .'
Clearing her throat, Evelyn met his eyes once more.
"Yes, with blood. I saw that," Given replied, his mind still racing to catch up with the gravity of the situation. "But what does this have to do with you being here and Queen Elara? Get to the point, Princess."
For a moment, Evelyn's face dropped, the enthusiasm slipping away as a dark thought seemed to cross her mind. The shift was brief, but it was enough for Given to notice. 'He really cares for the Queen ,,' she thought to herself. He must...
"What if I told you that the blood that healed the Lycan was the Queen's blood?" Evelyn finally said, her voice low, heavy with the weight of her revelation.
"What ?"
"Yes ..."