by Lisa Daniels
“How can I not worry about you? Everyone knows you aren’t about to take a mate, so what could you possibly plan by protecting a woman in such a perilous predicament?”
“If you will forgive my saying so, but the woman I am protecting is in far less peril than your princess.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Falmen hasn’t told you?”
Two pairs of gorgeous eyes turned to look at me. “I am having a hard time following what you two are saying.”
Braxton smiled while the prisoner looked annoyed. Holding up his hand toward the prisoner, Braxton said, “Leland, it isn’t Falmen’s fault. I suppose it is good that I arrived when I did because this conversation would have turned out very differently if I hadn’t. Princess Jada has been locked in her room. Your time is running out.”
“Right now, you are my biggest worry. I will visit her later to discuss our plans.”
“So it was you,” my voice cut into their conversation now that they were talking about something that I could understand.
Leland looked at me, “It was me what?”
“The princess had hidden daggers in her dress this morning and I saw her sneaking around. I figured she was planning on leaving. I had no idea she was planning on leaving with a prisoner.”
“And why wouldn’t she?” Braxton asked.
“Before today, I would have said that her life was too easy to give up.”
“And now?” Braxton pressed me for more information.
“After her actions in the courtyard, I am starting to think that there is more to her than I had thought. She may not be quite the pampered brat I have thought her for years.”
Leland smiled, “That was my first impression of her, too. But I realized a lot quicker that there was a lot more to her. When she stole up here to visit me, I offered to help her escape a future that no one should have to endure.”
“And why would you do that for her?” I asked.
They shared a look, then Leland smiled while Braxton said, “Because it is the right thing to do. I realize that you have low expectations for what men want with women, but as I said earlier, we are taught to have a very different opinion. Contrary to what you believe, we do not abduct them. They always come willingly, with no strings attached.”
“I don’t understand,” I frowned.
“That’s because you have become so cold and callused that you can’t believe anyone would do the right thing simply because it is the right thing.”
Leland groaned, “You really should not be telling Falmen all of this.”
I held up a hand toward him as I pressed Braxton for more information, “Are you telling me that the women who leave with shifters are not turned into slaves or sacrificed or something?”
Braxton’s gorgeous faced cracked into a half smile. “Never. We set them free. And if we decide that they are right—”
“Don’t say another word, Braxton,” there was a low growl in Leland’s voice.
Braxton’s eyes went toward Leland’s, then he looked back at me. “I think that we have all had the same thought about Falmen.”
“You haven’t,” Leland said, almost in a pout.
Braxton laughed, “Even I did. For a moment.”
“Liar,” Leland said as he leaned against the bars.
I bit my lip for a second, then looked at Leland. “If you are really going to get the princess out of here, then I will do what I can to help.”
“You will have to forgive me if I am skeptical of what your help means.”
I gave a shrug as Braxton said, “She still has the daggers that she took this morning. Falmen didn’t take them despite having found them. Everyone is capable of a change of heart.”
“You have to have a heart for it to change,” Leland half muttered.
Deciding that there was nothing else I could do, I turned to Braxton. “If you will get her out of the dungeon, I will let you roam free.”
His smile was beautiful. “Thank you, Falmen. You must forgive Leland for his stubbornness. That is the nature of his beast.”
“Then you must be something very nurturing and kind.”
He gave me a shrug as Leland chuckled, “Look at you two complimenting each other and being so wrong in your assessment of each other.”
“You sound jealous, Leland.” It was my final farewell to him. “Braxton, if you would please accompany me for a few minutes, I have a couple of concerns about the woman in the dungeon.”
“Her name is Arabella.”
We turned and left Leland to his own musings. He muttered something but I chose to ignore him and focused on Braxton. “The woman you plan to save?”
“Yes. I do not know who the other woman is, but I trust Bryce will take care of her.”
“You are certain she will not come to harm?”
“She may end up broken-hearted when he isn’t interested in her, but other than that, I’m sure she will be fine.”
“You think he won’t be interested in her?”
“It is more likely that he will eventually take a mate than that I will take another, but I do not give that event good odds.”
“Why?”
“I would rather not discuss Bryce, if you don’t mind.”
Braxton looked unhappy about the topic, and I didn’t want to press him. “Is there anything you need from me to get… what was her name?”
“Thank you, but no. I can take care of her myself. Actually,” he stopped for a moment. “If you could keep your men from going down there as much as possible, that would be very helpful. I do not want to have to kill anyone to protect her, if possible. That will attract attention and remind people that she is there.”
“I think I can largely manage that. There will almost certainly be men who go to see her, I can’t entirely stop them, but I can minimize how many go down.”
“Thank you, Falmen. And my offer to help you is sincere. If there is anything I can do to help, I will.”
“It seems strange, but I actually believe you.”
He reached out and patted my shoulder. “You have spent too much time hardening yourself against the world. Not everyone is your enemy.”
“That has not been my experience.”
He took a deep breath and the sad look in his eyes wasn’t quite pity. “I can fully understand your approach to life. But you will need help because there are rumors spreading about you. It is only a matter of time.”
I bit my lip and looked away. “I know. Leland and the other shifter haven’t exactly helped.”
Braxton gave me a sympathetic look. “I know. I’ve felt that way for far longer.”
For the first time in a long time, I laughed. Braxton smiled at me before patting the top of my head. “I have to go now. Take care.”
Allowing him to slip out, I waited for a few minutes before leaving the dungeon. Leland may not have wanted my help, but with some idea of what was going on with the princess (and a bit of guilt at how I might have been wrong about her), I was going to make things easier for her.
Before opening the door, I shouted out to Leland, “I ask only that you don’t kill my men.” There was no response, so I shouted, “If any guards die, they may take it out on the princess.”
There was a begrudging “I already know that” in response.
With that, I headed back to my desk to process the strange events of the day.
Chapter 3
An Eventful Week and the Punishment for Mistakes and Lies
The week was a blur of activity, but I made sure that I had time to complete the tasks that I was convinced were necessary to correct my failings that one morning.
The morning following the event, I headed to the kitchen to speak to Mrs. Teasdon. There was no doubt that she had already heard rumors of what had happened, and I was going to make sure she heard my side. It was as close to the truth as I could offer.
As soon as she saw me at the bottom of the stairs, the cook bustled over. Crossing her hands ov
er her chest, she glared at me. “This should be a fine explanation.” Her voice wasn’t exactly cold, but it was the same voice she used with her staff when they had upset her.
I bowed low, “My abilities in fulfilling your request are unforgivably lacking. The poor woman had no place with me, and now she is locked in a prison.”
Mrs. Teasdon glowered at me, “Just what happened?”
“As I tried to warn you, a woman like that had nothing to do that could help. Trying to keep her by my side to protect her caused her to try to find some way to be helpful. When she witnessed a woman nearly get crushed while we captured a shifter, she wanted to save that woman. Arabella did not have a clue what would happen when she pronounced the woman to still be alive, so—”
“Did she tell you her name?”
“What?” I looked up, confused.
“I never mentioned her name, and I know how terrible you are with names. How did you learn her name in less than 24 hours?”
“Having made such a mistake, learning her name was one of the ways to start to make up for it.”
She let out a humph, but didn’t say anything else.
“The woman that was harmed is now the possession of the shifter who saved her. Had Arabella taken my cue to keep her mouth shut, it would not have happened. Whatever problem you were dealing with here, her problems were compounded by those few minutes of ignorance about the city.”
Mrs. Teasdon pursed her lips. “Another one, huh? Another woman will be stolen from her life, and we are complicit. You should have stopped her.”
“And how would I have done that? We were in the courtyard with a large audience watching the spectacle.”
“You shouldn’t have taken her with you.”
“Are you suggesting it would have been better to leave her without any explanation so close to the guards’ quarters?”
“Why can’t you control your men better? Isn’t that your job?” Her accusation was unfair, and she knew it.
I realized that she was having trouble blaming Arabella for what had happened, but there was no denying that Arabella’s actions had condemned a woman. Or so I had believed earlier. Now I was not so sure, but I could not say anything without compromising Braxton and the princess. Keeping silent about that, I addressed the accusation, “I am trying, but there is only so much I can do. I am one person and cannot be everywhere all at once.”
“I find this unacceptable, Falmen. Absolutely unacceptable.”
I bowed again, and kept my eyes on the floor. “I understand, and you have my sincerest apologies. I will try to set it right. One of my guards is taking care of her as we speak—”
“And how do you know you can trust him?”
My eyes shifted to look at her. “He has not said anything of my secret. I trust him.”
Mrs. Teasdon gasped, then pursed her lips. “It seems incredibly risky.” Her posture shifted a bit.
“I am certain he will find a way to get her out once everything dies down. My apologies that you have lost—”
She vehemently waved a hand at me, “I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about someone else knowing about you. How in the world did you let anyone know? After all this time?”
“There have always been rumors. A few of my men are actually perceptive. They are also not the kind to talk.”
“Do you mean that more than one of them knows?” Her voice was bordering on hysterical.
“Not at all, my dear Mrs. Teasdon. Just the one. The others aren’t quite so… advantaged. He’s different, and that is why I trust him. She will be fine, but I am sorry that you have lost such a good worker.”
Mrs. Teasdon popped her neck. “Just yesterday I was grousing about the work here. Now it looks like things are even worse.”
I gave her a quick smile. “Maybe it is time to leave.”
“What would happen to everyone else?”
I grinned, “Screw ‘em. You don’t owe them, and how many people here do you actually like?”
For the first time since she had seen me, the cook smiled. “Are you trying to distract me from what you did?”
“Maybe a little.”
She wiped her hands on her apron and turned around. “I think you might be right. Without Arabella, I don’t think I am willing to go back to the workload I used to manage. Maybe I should leave. I could do less work for my family and spend more time with my grandbabies. Now if you will excuse me, I need to get to work.”
“Take care of yourself. And if you decide to leave, I wish you the best.”
“Oh, you make it sound like we won’t talk again,” she looked over at me.
“With as busy as we are going to be, I doubt either of us is going to have time to talk. In case I don’t see you before you retire, remember, they are just kids. Don’t treat them like your underlings.”
She wrinkled her nose at me, “Oh, go on, you old softie.”
“If I’m old…”
A small bit of dough flew at me, and I just barely ducked so that it missed. I stood up and smiled at her. “I wish you the best.”
“I’m sure we will see each other again.”
“Perhaps, but I’ve learned to say goodbye when things start to head down a certain path.”
“You are sounding a little too pessimistic, even for you,” she chided me.
“Take care, Mrs. Teasdon. And thank you for everything.”
She moved away from her work and again wiped her hands on her apron as she walked toward me. Pulling me into a hug, the cook said nothing. After giving me a squeeze, she turned and returned to work without looking at me.
I knew that was her way of saying farewell.
One important task completed, three to go.
Toward the end of the week, I saved one of my sandwiches from dinner and placed it in a wrapper. I jotted a single message on a piece of paper:
Leave tonight.
It had been nearly a week since I had last spoken with Leland and Braxton, so I had no idea what they were doing. What I did know was that the king had been starving the princess, and that the next day she would be under constant watch. If she didn’t leave now, she would be trapped. I added a set of apprentice clothing to the small package and wrapped it up. If she wasn’t too proud to dress as a boy, then the princess stood a great chance of getting out. No one would expect someone with her pride to stoop to looking like a boy.
All that was left was to get the little package to her without anyone noticing. Including the princess. If she knew that it came from me, she would never use it. Not that I entirely blamed her. We had never liked each other, but even I felt that she deserved better than her future. A part of me felt that she was perfect for Leland. He was just as frustrating, condescending, and difficult to deal with.
With any luck, she would think it was from him, and would act. There wasn’t much else I could do because I was holding a mandatory session with the guards. That would give her the perfect opportunity to leave because there would not be anyone outside her door. After the men had been attacked in front of her door earlier in the week (the work, I expect, of Leland), I was able to justify holding a special training session for important guests.
The move was risky for many reasons. As I reached the door, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and sent out a short prayer to the only person whom I had ever loved. I hoped that he would hear me as I opened the door and shoved the package into the room. Making sure I was loud enough to get her attention, but quick enough not to be noticed, I left the rest up to the princess.
Hurrying down to the guards in training, I began. We were interrupted at one point with screams from the other guards.
Apparently, the princess was gone. Keeping my face completely blank, I began ordering my men to look all over the palace. The princess knew about the secret passageways, but my men did not. As long as she used those, everything would be fine. As the guards were rushing around following my orders, I slipped into a passageway. I worked my way toward the closest do
or to the princess’s room, and the scene that I witnessed was one that I knew I shouldn’t see.
Leland was cradling the princess, who was crying in a way I had never seen. In all my time in the palace, I had never seen her cry. Pulling myself into the shadows, I tried to work my way out, but did not want to make noise that would attract the shifter’s attention. Pressing against the wall, I waited for them to leave, which took a surprisingly long time. The princess literally cried herself to sleep. Once she was out, Leland shifted. To my shock, his form was much bigger than I had expected. It was not the first time a bear had been in the palace, but I believed it was probably the first time one had been in the passages. Fortunately, I was able to hide in a small alcove, and he was so intent on the princess that nothing around him registered. I watched in awe as the massive bear carefully walked down the passage with the sleeping princess on his back.
The sound of his feet on the cobbles was fading when I finally stepped out. Feeling like I had been wrong on so many accounts, I wondered if Mrs. Teasdon had been right. I had misjudged both the princess and Leland, at least in many of the ways that mattered. I covered my mouth as I thought about what had led to that moment.
But there was no time for that. Shaking my head, I moved to a door and slipped out of the passages. No one noticed my sudden appearance in the hallway. I reached my desk not too long after that.
As I sat, a figure emerged from the shadows. “And where have you been?”
I knew the voice, and I knew that the net around me was about to close. Speaking as I usually did, I responded to the king, “Trying to direct my men to find your daughter.”
“Are you sure that was what you were doing? You weren’t helping her to escape?”
I looked up at him. “Why would I help that spoiled brat? What could I possibly gain by the weeks of misery trying to find and recover her?”
“First you do not rise in my presence, then you dare to be condescending toward me. I believe that you have overestimated your importance, Falmen.”
I slowly pushed my seat back and rose. “It is my honor that you are here alone because you trust me so much.”
