The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 498

Callum’s POV

The arena was in chaos.

I pushed away from the post where I had been leaning, momentarily too stunned to move more than that as I watched Liora being dragged away by a small army of royal guards. Her head was lolling against her chest, blood dripping down her face. I would never forget the sound of that sickening crunch that had echoed across the tournament grounds as Daisy slammed her fist into Liora’s face.

I would also never forget the way that knife caught the light when it plunged into Daisy’s neck.

Bianca was coming down from her dais, flanked by her gaggle of cronies and more guards. She was shouting something that I couldn’t hear through the chaos, but her lips were forming the word: treason.

Indignation surged up in me, giving me the strength to move again. Liora hadn’t committed treason. It was self defense—Daisy was going to kill her if she didn’t do anything!

My wolf snarled as I pushed through the crowd, keeping my eyes on the guards that had Liora. They were dragging her toward the exit, her feet barely even touching the ground. I picked up my pace, not caring that I shoved a few students so hard they were knocked into nearby abandoned food carts.

But just as I was about to reach the exit, a tall, dark figure stepped in my path. A male royal officer with a dark uniform towered over me, upper lip slightly curled back to reveal his fangs. Like I was some kind of threat to be neutralized.

I went to shove past him. “Move,” I hissed. But he held firm, shoving me back with enough force to make me stumble into a girl behind me, who gasped and scurried away in shock.

“What the hell?” I snarled. “Get out of my—”

“Callum. This is unnecessary, don’t you think?”

I turned to see Bianca walking toward me with the long skirts of her gown clutched in her hands. Her face was pale and full of shock, but I knew her well enough to know it was all an act. I knew that look in her eyes. The one that she got whenever she thought she had won.

“Yes,” I said, turning fully to face her while keeping the guard in my periphery. “It is.”

Bianca stopped a couple of feet away from me. She waved her hand at her cronies, who exchanged looks with one another before disappearing into the crowd, although I knew they hadn’t gone far. The guard remained, but I ignored him.

“Why are you arresting Liora?” I asked, dropping my voice. “You know as well as everyone else here that what she did was self defense. Daisy was going to kill her if she didn’t react.”

Bianca released her grip on her skirt, smoothing down the fabric with a heavy sigh. “I know. But she’s not under arrest for what she did to Daisy.” She glanced up at me through her lashes. “Why do you think she had that knife on her to begin with, Callum?”

I shrugged. “She knew she was going to have to fight Daisy. Who, let’s be honest, had some… preternatural abilities that would be a concern for any fighter.”

Bianca’s eyes flickered faintly, but she didn’t confirm nor deny the spell she had on that student.

“One day,” I muttered to myself, “you’ll understand that I never wanted any of what you just promised.”

Once she was gone, I turned slowly, looking around for Liora. I couldn’t see her by now, the guards having long since taken her away. The crowd was thinning as students were ushered away from the scene, and in the sparring arena, Daisy’s body had been covered by the medics.

I moved through the bleachers, my mind racing. This was all my fault—the tournament was my idea, signing Liora up was my idea. And now she was gravely injured and being taken to prison for treason she never intended to commit.

I had to find a way to fix this. And quickly. I decided to look for Zane and Mia next—if they didn’t know what to do, then we would find a way together. Liora was not going to suffer for a crime she hadn’t committed.

But I’d only made it a few steps further toward the exit when I saw movement under the bleachers. I stopped, peering through the slots between the steps. Mrs. Oakes was standing in the shadows, dabbing her nose with a handkerchief that came away red.

Her eyes flicked up, briefly catching the light. One was white and milky, the other her usual color. I stared, and she blinked, and the other eye went back to normal.

Briefly, her gaze caught mine. Her lips parted, starting to form my name.

But then, before she could make a sound, a face came into view behind her. Dark brows above a pair of sunglasses. A gloved hand wrapped around Mrs. Oakes’ neck, pressing over her mouth. A knife flashed, and a split second later, Mrs. Oakes was crumpling to the ground with a river of blood gushing from her neck.