Chapter 56-Her place

Chapter 56: 56-Her place

"Newbie trash nobody wants! Unwanted bore!" Addessa’s words haunted her.

"Stay within your limits, redblood!" Varitreya’s words lived rent-free in her head, constantly on loop.

The words did not merely hurt. They settled inside Maisa like heavy stones. For several seconds, she remained perfectly still in the back of the bus, her hands resting limply against her thighs while the faint hum of the enchanted engine filled the unbearable silence.

Her heart seemed to have forgotten its rhythm before suddenly pounding hard enough to hurt.

She could hear every tiny sound around her; the tires rolling over the ancient road, the rustle of Lumi’s book as her fingers tightened around its pages, Sapphire’s shallow breathing, even the faint movement of Zolani shifting in her seat.

And beneath all of it, she could hear the terrible echo of her own heartbeat.

"An outcast lecturing us? How bold!" They resonated once again.

Maisa swallowed. She had known they would hate her. She had known redbloods were despised. She had known she had no place among vampires like Varitreya and Addessa. But somehow, hearing the words from Addessa hurt differently.

Because Addessa wasn’t simply another vampire looking down on her, she was her mate, and the realization made the wound in her heart deeper.

Maisa lowered her gaze, forcing herself not to cry. She wouldn’t give them that. She had spent too much of her life learning how to swallow pain without allowing it to show to fall weak now.

Her father had always told her that showing fear gave an enemy power. Her mother had taught her that tears belonged behind closed doors and shouldn’t be displayed before others.

But neither of them had prepared her for being wounded by someone her own heart was inexplicably reaching toward. They didn’t teach her what she was supposed to do when her heart felt like it’s been crushed beyond repair.

Across from her, Zolani looked devastated. She opened her mouth, clearly wanting to say something, but the atmosphere inside the bus had changed so dramatically that even she hesitated.

Varitreya’s authority filled the vehicle like an invisible weight. Addessa’s words had been cruel, but Varitreya’s warning had been worse because the princess had delivered it with absolute finality.

Lumi stared at Maisa in silence for several seconds. Her blue eyes filled with something dangerously close to guilt.

Just that day, she had taken the initiative to get close to her, spoke of trust between them, and now Maisa was feeling down. It felt like it was her responsibility to cheer her up.

She had watched Maisa speak and get crushed, so she turned to say something to lift her mood. The moment she shifted, her face locked on tight with ger twin brother.

"What do you think you want to do?"

"Mai..."

"Isn’t worth offending the princess. Don’t even think about it," Luan was firm. "Turn around and finish your book."

Lumi objected to that plan. She was her own vampire, and she refused to let him dictate how she lives her life. "I..."

"If my opinion isn’t important to you, then think about Mother. She already has so much on her plate to add to her problems.

Lumi sat back down. Though unhappy, there was nothing more she could do. She couldn’t let her mother worry. "For her, I’ll back off...for now," she whispered.

"Well, don’t look so miserable doing it," he forced a smile and leaned back, relieved that Lumi dropped the idea of comforting Maisa.

At the back, Sapphire looked ready to explode. The redblood’s hands curled into fists on her lap. She knew better than to challenge a princess, but every instinct in her screamed that what had just happened was unfair.

Maisa had only been trying to speak for vampires who had no voice. She had only been trying to help, and they had made her regret opening her mouth.

"..."

Despite feeling the injustice, she couldn’t do anything to help or stop it. She could only sit back and watch as once more powerful bloods step all over redbloods.

Zolani finally reached across the small space between them and gently placed her hand over Maisa’s.

Maisa looked at her, blinking to stop tears from falling. Zolani didn’t say anything. She felt it wasn’tthe right time to use words to console her. Her fingers tightened around Maisa’s.

"I’m here," she breathed.

That silent reassurance nearly broke Maisa completely. She looked away before Zolani could see the tears gathering in her eyes.

At the front of the bus, Varitreya remained rigid in her seat. Her expression was unreadable and cold. Unable to shake off the annoying ache in her chest that she was sure without a doubt was related to Maisa.

Kayden sat beside her, watching the princess carefully. He had expected her to shut Maisa down. In fact, he had expected something much harsher.

Yet now that the moment had passed, something about Varitreya’s silence bothered him. One look at her, and it was evident that he wasn’t satisfied.

Kayden leaned slightly toward her. "You seem distracted, blood heir."

Varitreya’s eyes remained fixed on the road ahead. "I’m thinking..."

"About her?"

Her jaw tightened, her nails dug into the armrest. She tried hard to appear nonchalant, and that extra effort is precisely why she looked anything but indifferent.

Kayden noticed the struggle, and that alone told him enough. He lowered his voice. "You know you didn’t have to be that harsh."

Varitreya finally turned her head. Her white eyes flashed. She felt annoyed by Kayden. He was the one who provoked her to silence Maisa, and now he was standing there preaching to her about how she didn’t need to be harsh.

However, as she looked inside his eyes, she understood that he was giving her a way out without asking why she was bothered about putting down a redblood.

"I know," he whispered and averted her gaze.

Kayden studied her. "Then why were you?" He had a feeling that there was more to the connection between them than met the eyes.

For a moment, she didn’t answer because she couldn’t explain the truth to him. She couldn’t tell him that the moment Maisa had spoken, something inside her had screamed at her to listen, and she couldn’t tell him that every word directed at Maisa had pulled painfully against the bond.

Or say that when Addessa attacked her, Varitreya had felt an inexplicable urge to defend the redblood. Most importantly, she couldn’t explain why she’d deliberately chosen cruelty instead of kindness.

Because deep down, she was afraid; afraid of the bond, of what it meant, and that if she allowed herself to acknowledge Maisa too openly, the palace would see exactly how deeply the bond had already rooted itself inside her and they would tear action against her and Maisa.

So she’d done the opposite and pushed Maisa away. Hard. "Because she needs to understand her position," Varitreya finally answered, pretending that class was the reason she had been harsh to Maisa.

Kayden raised an eyebrow. "Does she?"