Triton's Oath - His Hybrid Princess

12 - Where is it!?!

****This chapter contains torture!****

Ava

I don’t know how I feel. I’ve never killed anyone before, and my hands are shaking. No, I don’t feel bad for ending Yolanda’s life. She deserved what she got.

But who am I now?

I’ve never been one to let anyone get away with bullying me, and people did in school. I was too short, too curvy, and nothing like my sisters. People would mock me and tell my sisters they felt sorry for them being stuck with me as a triplet counterpart.

Of course, my beautiful sisters would lose their shi.t and attack anyone who said such things. Alice and Alivia were proud of me, and they wouldn’t stand for anyone bullying me. I didn’t stand for it either; I wasn’t easily pushed around. However, Alice, especially, would be so hurt by what people said that she would attack with no care for the consequences.

Me? I was more the girl who would roll her eyes and use my words as weapons. Michael always said I could cut a bitc.h with my words. I’ve never been a violent person like my sisters. Killing never crossed my mind because I value all life. But what Yolanda did to me destroyed my faith in friendships. She deserved to die, and I will never think otherwise. But I feel numb.

“Ava?” I blink and look up at Triton. “You can do this, my love. You’re halfway there, Ava. Get your answers from Philip and give him what he deserves. Then we can get out of here and retrieve the locket.”

I nod with a blink. “You don’t see me differently after what I just did?”

Triton’s hand cups my cheek, and I lean into his touch. “I will always see you the same way, Ava. My beautiful, strong, take no shi.t from anyone, mate. Your feelings are valid, Ava. What those people did to you deserves your wrath. I am right by your side. When it feels too much, take strength from me, my love.”

I stare at him and smile. “What did I do to deserve you?”

“I’ve been asking that same question for years.”

We both laugh. Goddess, he makes me feel good about myself with his simple words. He’s so handsome! I don’t care about the mate bond; I just feel so lucky to have a mate who clearly thinks the world of me.

That’s enough of that. I have an asshole to finish.

With new resolve and Triton’s support, I make my way to Philip’s cell. He was put at the far end of the room so he and Yolanda couldn’t converse. Thane also told me that Philip had a muzzle on, so he couldn’t speak even if he wanted to. I took that to mean the fool wouldn’t shut his mouth.

The cell Philip is in is beyond small and bare, save for a single chair in the center, to which Philip is bound with chains in silver. He’s obviously been beaten the crap out of, but he deserves nothing less. He looks smaller somehow. He looks pathetic. But then, Philip is pathetic.

I nod at Triton, who snaps his fingers, and the muzzle drops from Philip’s mouth. I could have removed it myself, but I don’t want to get too close to the pig, and I certainly don’t want to touch him.

Upon seeing me, a chuckle escapes his cracked lips. The sight of him—Philip, the monster who had attacked me, fills me with a rage so potent it’s almost physical.

“I wondered when I’d be seeing you. I see you brought the muscle to do your dirty work.”

I roll my eyes. “That’s my mate, you moron!”

Philip laughs. “Your mate? Since when do you have a mate?”

I don’t bother giving the bastard an answer. He has no right to know anything about me and Triton.

“Why?” I demand. “Why did you do that to me?”

Philip’s eyes, cold and calculating, meet mine. He smirks, revealing teeth stained with the same blood that’s now seeping from his nose. They really did a number on him. Not that he didn’t deserve it, but I have no idea how he’s still alive.

“Why not?” He croaks. “You were a prick teasing slu.t.”

Original.

I can feel the anger coming from Triton in waves. I understand why my mate would be angry. Philip is mocking me for what he did to me as if I deserved it. I look at Triton and shake my head. He holds my gaze and nods once.

I look back to Philip. “So, because I refused to date you, that made me a slu.t? Because I refused you, that gave you the right to assault me?”

Philip laughs, which pisses me off even more!

“Why?” My voice echoes through the cold, damp cell.

The man in front of me smirks in the flickering candlelight. “Because I wanted you. You’re beautiful, and I got sick of waiting for you to come to your senses.” Philip replies, his tone mocking and eerily calm. His eyes rove over me, a sick hunger in their depths.

Gods, he’s disgusting!

How did I never realize what a sleaze he was?

My hand tightens around the dagger still in my hand. The blade glints in the dim light, a silent promise of pain. “You enjoyed it, didn’t you? You got off on hurting me?” I spit.

“More than you can imagine,” Philip sneers, making my heart accelerate. “Every scream into the mind link, every time you begged for me to stop, and every second you couldn’t move to stop me. They were like music to my ears, Ava.”

He heard me! He heard me begging him inside the mind link to let me go, yet he still carried on. I feel sick!

How did he hear me when no one else did?

What kind of witchcraft is that!?

Joys of having a Witch for a grandmother, I guess. Philip must have learned a few spells. I wonder if Thane knows about that.

“And your screams of death will bring music to mine.”

He scoffs. “You think a lot of yourself, Ava. You’re nothing special. Too short, too curvy, and a mouth like a sailor at sea for a year. You’re pathetic thinking I will ever be out of your head!”

I stare at him for a moment before I burst out laughing. Philip narrows his eyes and repeatedly asks me what’s so funny. But I can’t stop laughing! He calls me pathetic, yet he was the one who attacked an unarmed and passed-out woman. Hilarious!

“Answer me, you bitc.h!”

Triton’s thunderous growl shakes the room. Philip’s eyes are wide as Triton steps forward.

“I promised my mate I would not interfere, but you’re testing my patience! I won’t ask that you show her respect because you clearly have none. But I will warn you to watch your words. I can make your torture last years with no reprieve. You will beg for death, but it will not come.

“This beautiful woman,” Triton points to me. “Is a Goddess! You should be bowing down and kissing her feet! One more derogatory word from your pathetic mouth, and I’ll take your tongue! Do you understand me?”

With wide eyes, Philip nods erratically, scared out of his mind. Good, he should be scared.

But damn! I can’t take my eyes off Triton, and the sheer power to protect me comes off him in waves.

‘I am so hot for you right now.’ I mumble telepathically, not knowing if he’ll hear me or not. But when he turns to look at me with a smirk, I know he did. ‘I know that’s inappropriate right now, but I don’t give a damn. You’ll soon learn I have no filter and say whatever is on my mind.’

‘I love that about you, Ava. But saying what you did…’ He leaves the end of the sentence hanging between us, and I smirk.

I shake my head because now is not the time to be turned on!

I turn back to Philip. The rage for this man bubbles inside my chest, a fiery storm threatening to break free. I step closer, the tip of the knife grazing his cheek.

“Where is it? The locket you stole from me. Where is it?”

Philip’s smile grows wider. “Ah, the locket,” He muses. “I always knew there was something special about that trinket. Your mother was too adamant that you never take it off or open it. Why? I’m guessing it has something to do with your mate.”

He’s too close to the mark, and that worries me. Philip should not have guessed anything close to the truth. But he has the power to read emotions. Maybe my mother gave a little too much away in the presence of others, but she wouldn’t have meant to. Whatever, it doesn’t matter. This man is going to die!

But not yet. I want my locket, and if Philip doesn’t tell me where it is, I have another way to find it.

“Where is it?” My voice grows louder.

Philip leans back in the chair, the silver chains rattling. “I’ll tell you,” He says, his eyes gleaming with malice. “But first, you have to solve a little riddle for me.”

Oh, for fuck.s sake! I hate games!

My eyes narrow, the blade pressing harder against his skin and drawing blood. “Fine,” I’ll play along. But only because I desperately want that locket back. “Tell me the riddle.”

Philip chuckles darkly, a sound that sends shivers down my spine. He’s loving this! “The treasure lies where the sun never shines, but darkness is not its name. It’s guarded by a creature with a hundred eyes, yet it sees nothing at all. Find it, and you shall claim your prize.”

What a crock of shi.t!

My anger boils over, and there is no turning back. I’ll keep Philip alive long enough to get what I want, but that doesn’t mean I won’t hurt him.

Without another word, I plunge the blade into his right eye, enough to remove it. Philip screams a high-pitched sound that reverberates off the stone walls. I feel a grim satisfaction as I watch the life drain from that one eye, the light extinguished.

“My grandfather… You remember Ricon, right? Prince of Dragons, next in line to be King?” Philip looks at me through his left eye, fear now evident that I am not messing around. Good. “He once told me that the eyes were windows to the soul. Through the eyes, you can see a person’s true self. I’ve always found you a disgusting man, so I never looked close enough. If I had, I would have seen what a monster you really were.

“Ricon also told me there was one way to ensure a monster’s soul never found peace. Do you know how?”

Philip’s eyes widen, and blood and gunk seep out of the hole that was his right eye. What a pitiful piece of garbage he is.

I hold his right eye up so he can see it. “For what you did to me, there will be no peace for you, Philip.” I drop the eye to the floor and stamp on it, crushing it with all my might.

“You sick… bitc.h,” Philip whispers.

I chuckle. “Yes, I’m sick. Sick of you! Let’s see how you feel when you’re the one in the spotlight,”

With a grunt, I push the blade into his left eye, yank it out with force, and stamp on it the way I did the right eye.

Philip’s screams of pain and sorrow have me shaking my head.

What did he expect?

That I would just forgive and forget?

Fat chance!

He doesn’t give a damn about what he did to me. Philip feels sorry for himself! It’s not my fault he was a dumb fuc.k.

Who with a brain would assault a Princess so close to home?

What moron would believe they could leave her in the woods and they’d get away with it?

A brainless fool, that’s who!

“Tell me,” I hiss. “Where is my locket, Philip? And spare me the riddles; they’re pathetic and unbelievable.”

Philip’s breath comes in ragged gasps as he clutches the sides of the chain. He’s in immense pain, but I don’t give a shi.t. He confessed that he didn’t care about mine! But still, he says nothing.

I raise the dagger again, my arm trembling with the need for vengeance. My jaw clicks with effort not to calve him to pieces!

The room grows silent except for the sound of Philip’s whimpers. The candles flicker, casting dancing shadows across the floor. The smell of iron fills the air as blood gushes from Philip’s ruined sockets.

But I can’t stop myself. I have been trained well by my daddy all my life how to torture a bastard without killing them. So, that’s what I do.

With each new arc of pain, I inflict, every stroke of the blade removing skin, I feel no better. I don’t care for Philip’s reason for attacking me, just as I didn’t care about Yolanda’s. There will never be any truth or apology. But I am determined to find the truth of where my locket is. And if that means peeling back the layers of this monster, so be it. I will strip him bare, piece by piece, until I have what I want.

As Philip’s screams grow louder, the candles burn lower, and the shadows grow longer, I know I have only just begun. The game is on, and I will not stop until I have my answers.

Automatically, Triton pushes light into the room so I can better see what I’m doing. I understand why this part of the dungeon is enchanted. Thane didn’t want the prisoners to have any kind of comfort, and that included light. But it sure as shi.t doesn’t help me right now!

With the precision of a butcher, I slice through Philip’s eyelids, stripping them away to expose the gelatinous globes beneath. Well, it’s not like he will need them where he’s going. His shrieks grow more desperate, his body thrashing against the restraints. I feel a twisted satisfaction in his agony, my own pain momentarily forgotten.

The room is now a symphony of horror, the sound of flesh tearing and bone snapping accompanying the metallic tang of blood. The candles cast a sickly glow on Philip’s contorted face, making me smirk at the justice.

‘The riddle is taunting me,’ Amarni’s voice fills my head as I toy with breaking Philip’s right arm. ‘Guarded by a creature with a hundred eyes, yet it sees nothing at all. What could it be? A spider? A fly? Something that watched but didn’t see?’

‘He was making it up, Amarni.’

‘And if he wasn’t?’

‘I don’t have time to think about it right now. I’m a little busy here.’

‘Sorry.’ She replies and I close off our link.

My eyes fall on the table next to me, where a jar filled with various instruments of torture lies. Among them is a pair of pliers gleaming in the candlelight. A wicked smile curls my lips. Perhaps it’s time to make Philip speak without his tongue to hide behind. We still have a mind link; all I have to do is remove the silver binds. It’s not like he’ll be able to run away in this condition.

Gripping the pliers tightly, I approach him, my shadow looming over his trembling form. “You will tell me,” I whisper, my voice low and menacing. “Or I will make sure you never speak another word, let alone beg for death.”

Philip’s breathing grows rapid, his chest heaving. Sweat beads on his forehead, but he remains silent, his jaw clenched tightly.

He’s a stubborn bastard; I’ll give him that. But it won’t save him, nor will it stop me from finding out what I want to know. Philip isn’t going to tell me the truth; I know that. But it won’t stop me from teaching this cun.t a lesson, one he can take to his grave!

What lesson, you ask?

It’s the quiet ones you have to be wary of.

I force his mouth open and clasp his tongue with the pliers. “If you don’t want to talk, I guess you won’t be needing your tongue.”

“Please,” He mumbles around the pliers.

I lean in. “Where. Is. The. Locket?” I enunciated each word with cold clarity. Well, I wouldn’t want him to misunderstand me.

Blood slips down his cheek, and with a crack in his voice, he tells me, “In the... in the... place where the sun’s kiss never reaches.”

Maybe there is something to his riddle, after all. Interesting. I didn’t have Philip down for someone who liked riddles. But then, I should have known it wouldn’t be easy to get my locket back.

What did I think?

That I could come down here, and either Yolanda or Philip would give me what I wanted?

Actually, yes, I did. That makes me as stupid as them!

The sound of Philip’s sobs annoys me as I consider his words.

Could he be talking about a cave?

A well?

Somewhere deep in the earth and hidden?

I’m not going to get anything else out of Philip. So, with a final sigh, my hand moves swiftly, the pliers biting into Philip’s tongue. He screams, his body jolting as I rip it from his mouth. The coppery scent of blood mingles with the stench of fear as I drop the pliers, tongue, and all to the ground.

I step back, my chest heaving with the effort of controlling my emotions. The rage has not subsided, but I know I have to be smart. Torture can only get me so far. I need to outthink Philip and solve the riddle he gave me.

The locket is out there, somewhere in the darkness, waiting for me. And I will not rest until I have it back until I have made Philip pay for every second of pain he caused me. In order to do that, Philip will be kept alive with no eyes or tongue. It looks like we’ll need a healer to help with keeping him alive. He’ll also need a feeding tube. But he’s going nowhere until I get my locket back. Philip doesn’t deserve an easy death, and I’ll ensure he doesn’t get it.

“Death will not come for you this day.” I chuckle. “I have taken your eyes, so you won’t see. I’ve taken your tongue so you cannot speak,” I wish I was nose blind because the stench of his piss is making me feel sick. I’m not surprised he pissed himself, I think anybody would have out of pain alone. “But I have left your ears. You will hear everything with no way of communicating. You will never hear my voice out loud again. You are nothing, and you will die nothing!”

I turn and leave the cell, Triton hot on my heels. I run out of there and stand at the bottom of the stairs, leaning back against the wall. I need a moment to breathe. I’m covered in blood, wet and dry, and my stomach is turning over.

“Remind me never to piss you off.”

I stare at Triton, and I can’t help but burst out laughing. “Yeah, it might be a good idea not to do that.”

“You left him alive.”

I nod. “He was never going to tell me where the locket was, Triton. I won’t let him die until I have it back.”

“You have a plan?”

Again, I nod. “There is one person who can look into Philip’s mind and find what he did with the locket.”

Triton steps closer to me. “I could have done that, Ava.”

“I know. But my dad can also do it. It will make him feel useful. Not that I want him to see too much, but… What am I thinking?”

“Hey, it’s okay, Ava. If you want your dad to look into Philip’s mind, let’s ask him. Whatever you want to do will always be okay with me.”

“Thank you. Let’s go. I need to shower and get out of these vile clothes. I don’t want the stench of their blood on me any longer. I also need to inform the guards to have the healer come down here and make sure Philip stays alive until I decide to kill him.”

“Lead the way, my lady.”

I take Triton’s hand, feeling deflated and sick. I don’t feel any better after what I did in that room. In fact, I feel worse. I feel even angrier than I did before, and I don’t know what to do about it. All I do know is I need my mate’s arms around me because I need to feel something real.