"Why did you get blisters?" The question was asked so casually that Emira, as she opened her eyes, could not help but blink in confusion. Was she mishearing something due to the pain and burning sensation she was still feeling.
She forced herself to look at Prince Zen and then stared at him. No. He seemed genuinely curious...
She let out a choked sound. Didn’t he know how she got the blisters. She gulped and asked in a hoarse voice," Why do you think? I had a boiling pot of soup thrown on me. Unless you were sleeping at that point of time and missed the event, I’d say that’s a good enough reason for blisters. I could draw you a picture of the even, if you’d like...your highness."
He laughed at that. Not just the usual grin. He laughed loudly. Was Prince Zen a sadist. He always did seem to enjoy her torment...But then, he said, "I carried you here. Of course, I know you were burnt. That’s not what I asked."
Emira blinked. Oh. She had no idea who’d carried her here. Just that, she had been extremely grateful that the person had hurriedly brought her out and jumped into the cold water, before bringing her here, to the doctor’s clinic. How had she not realized it was Prince Zen?
His gaze shifted down to her leg, where angry welts had already risen against reddened skin. "The moment the liquid touched you, your skin should have already started to heal. Pain, yes. Redness, maybe. But not this. Not blisters."
Her lips parted, then closed again, the sharpness in her retort dying on her tongue. She stared down at the burns and mumbled in a low voice..."My healing has always been slow like other Omegas."
Zen’s eyes narrowed, and he looked down at her legs, his fingers tracing along the edge of her skin, not touching, as he said in a voice full of doubt, "Slow. That’s not the same as this. I’ve seen omegas take blows, cuts, and burns. Yes, they recover slower than the Alphas and the gammas, but they are not as slow. Even when you’d hurt yourself while fleeing the pack, I remember you injuries had lingered longer than they should have. Now this."
His gaze burned into her, unrelenting. "You cannot shift. Your healing is delayed. What else, Emira? What else makes you different from the others?"
Emira felt her breath catch and almost paled. She’d never thought anyone would ask her this. No one had ever known. Not even anyone from the Moonville Pack. It had been a carefully guarded by Alpha Soier, though she never knew why. Even she had not known until she’d overheard it once...
She felt herself pale and she looked away, trying to keep away her panic," Why are you looking at me like that?"
He didn’t answer for a few moments and Emira carefully cast him a look, before quickly looking away... And then, in a slow voice, he said, "Little fire... I think I should name you little liar. You’re hiding something from me. Aren’t you?"
Emira tore her gaze away from him as she felt her stomach plummet. For a moment, she thought of lying. She thought of spinning some excuse or pretending ignorance. But as she looked at his steely golden gaze, she knew it would be of no use. He’d already come to a conclusion and would find out anything else...
Her lips moved before she could stop herself. "I’m a half-breed," she mumbled, so quietly she almost hoped he wouldn’t hear. It was a silly hope. After all, he was an alpha with acute hearing.
Zen’s brow arched, though he didn’t look shocked, "A half-breed?"
She nodded, still refusing to meet his eyes. "My mother... she was an omega. When she was sold to the Moonville Pack, she was already pregnant with me."
"Her mate... he sold her off. To them. No one knows what he was-wolf, or human or something else. And my mother’s own origins..." She shook her head weakly. "No one knows that too. So, she could have been a half breed too..."
Silence stretched between them.
Zen leaned closer, his shadow falling across her face, his expression unreadable. "So that’s why. That’s why your healing is slow. Why your body doesn’t behave like the others. Did the Moonville Pack know of this?"
Her eyes shot up to his in alarm. "Not everyone knew. Alpha Soier was the one who was smitten with my mother. He brought her back. And he told everyone that she was pregnant with one of the other dead pack mate’s child. No one else knew... If they had known, I wouldn’t even be alive right now. They would’ve killed me long ago."
She looked up at him, and wondered what he was thinking. While it was not a crime to be a half breed, it was quite common, actually, but there was still a lot of bias against them. Added to that... she thought that it might be a crime... Being a half breed Omega might actually be considered a crime...
"Are you going to tell this to everyone? Will it affect my acceptance into the pack?" Emira asked in a low voice. She had hoped to never reveal this secret or at least hold it off until she had mixed up with the pack.
Zen leaned back slightly, and cocked his head as he said quietly, "Remember this, little fire, secrets have weight. And sooner or later, they crush the ones who carry them. As for the revelation, it is not a big deal here in Stormhold, so you need not worry about any of this."
Emira nodded at that, feeling grateful. She knew what he was telling her. He would not reveal her secret but also that there was no need to treat this as a secret. But she knew better. There was more that she had not told him. More that she did not dare reveal.