by Arizona Tape
“The official ceremony will commence at dawn, that is a royal order,” Darren sternly added as he puffed up his chest. Even though I could tell there was a playfulness to him, something else became very clear. Deep inside of him, there was a prince waiting to emerge. Even if he didn’t know it himself.
“What are you two waiting for? Go!” he hissed, shooing us away. I shot him a grateful look and pulled my redhead against me. I shoved the stupid scepter into Alvar’s hands, earning myself a confused look.
“I trust you to take care of the preparations,” I grumbled.
Tears sprung to his eyes as he bowed deeply before me. “My Lord, it will be done.”
With Danny against my side and the rest of my friends surround me, we left the hall and the spectators behind us. All I wanted was some peace and quiet with Danny. We rushed through the halls, not really saying a word. It wasn’t necessary.
Aspen slammed the doors of our chambers shut and with a sigh, we all fell down on any flat surface.
“You did it,” Aspen smiled, waving at me from his bench.
“We did,” I corrected him, fully well realising it was a team effort. Without them, this wouldn’t have been possible. But I didn’t have the words to express just how grateful I was to them.
“That’s one House down,” Ashleigh added, waving her fingers in front of my face. “What’s next?”
I grimaced and nodded at Darren. “Our prince.”
He ran a hand through his shaggy hair and kicked a rock on the ground. “Do we have to?”
“Yes, we need to swear fealty to the crown,” Ashleigh muttered. “But not while your father is King.”
“Can’t I be Darren D’Ors too?” he pouted, plucking at the carpet on the wall. Danny pressed a kiss on my cheek before moving over to him. She snuggled into his arm and patted his chest.
“Someday, but now you need to be Prince Darren.”
“King Darren, you mean?” Aspen joked, the mood lifting a little. Darren threw one of his pillows across the room.
“I don’t want to be King.”
Aspen threw the pillow back. “You’ll have to, we need to stop this war.”
“I know,” he muttered, glancing at Danny. “And you’re sure this Chesca is the cause of the war?”
Danny nodded as she twirled a strand of red hair around her finger. I could tell her muscles were still strained, but she was really lucky with her wolf’s abilities. Even if their shift was unstable, her wolf always healed Danny pretty fast. Thank the spirits for that.
“S-So where do we g-go next?”
“The King’s Keep, right?” Ashleigh answered, turning to me. “You know the way?”
I nodded in response and the group perked up a little.
“When do we leave?” Aspen questioned, stretching his legs so he could lie down on the bench.
“S-Soon? R-Rumour of y-your appearance w-will spread, Darren” JP quipped in, as always, the voice of reason.
“He’s right,” I mumbled, guilty that it was in my castle that Darren’s secret was spilt. I would need to have a serious word with Alvar about titles and outing people.
“A messenger will be on its way to your family as we speak,” Ashleigh added, scratching the side of her face. She seemed concerned, but then again, she always was.
“If we leave now, we could still hide?” Danny proposed, worry crossing her face as she stroked Darren’s chest.
“I doubt we’ll fly under the radar for long,” Aspen muttered, pointing at all of us. “We’re not exactly the most... Neutral of company. Your red hair, Regan’s massive chest, Darren’s uncanny resemblance to the king... It’s a surprise nobody caught on sooner.”
“True,” I admitted reluctantly. Even if he was a goofball sometimes, Aspen made a good point. The King would know who to look out for and with Chesca on our tail, we couldn’t afford to be caught between two camps. We needed to figure out what to do and where to go.
“Guess we only have one choice,” Darren sighed, running his hands through his shaggy hair.
“What?” Danny asked, curling up against his arm. The frown on his face lifted as he smiled at the redhead and I wondered why he hadn’t told her he was her second mate. But for whatever reason, I was sure it had to do with the grey-eyed blonde from his memories. But regardless, it wasn’t my secret to spill. If he wasn’t ready to claim his bond with Danny yet, I would let it rest. For now.
“R-Regan?”
My head snapped up as I heard my name. “Yes?”
“H-How f-far is it f-from the castle t-to the King’s K-Keep?”
I quickly recalled the trips I used to make as a boy and traced the shortest road in my mind. “Two weeks at best.”
“But they would’ve left right away?” Ashleigh counted on her fingers. “They left two days ago, so in two small weeks, they’ll be at the Keep.”
“Father will send out his fastest Riders immediately, so in three weeks and a half, they’ll be back,” Darren calculated.
“T-That’s a l-lot of t-time to p-put some good d-distance between us and t-them. We c-could run,” JP suggested, turning towards Danny. She pushed herself up from Darren and paced through the room. Thought flashed through her mind as she planned out the next couple of months in her head.
“I’m sick of running,” she grumbled, kicking one of the silver candle holders. “We did all this to find a safe haven, I don’t want to leave. With Chesca lurking around and then the King’s Riders chasing us, it will be a nightmare to get some peace and quiet.”
“I’m not going to lie, I’m pretty sick and tired of the constant running,” Ashleigh added, looking guiltily at the floor.
“Exhausted,” Aspen weighed in, knocking on the wall of our room. “Hello? Can we get some more beef stew, please?”
“S-So we just s-stay here and w-wait for the R-Riders?” JP gently peeled Danny away from the candles and pulled her down on the bench next to him. Good. We just got the castle back, setting it on fire was probably not the best course of action.
Darren pressed his ear against the wall as well. “Hello? And some tasty cornbread too, thank you very much!” he called, a carefree smile lifting his face.
Aspen’s eyes lit up and he knocked again. “Ooh, and some of those filled mushrooms?”
“Bacon wrapped dates!” Darren added enthusiastically, drumming his fists against the stone wall.
With a sigh and blazing eyes, Ashleigh stopped pacing around and grabbed the two men by their ears. “Hey! We’re discussing important things here. Stop thinking with your stomachs and start using your brains!”
“Sorry,” they both muttered, guiltily scraping their feet over the floor. I shook my head, surprised they got distracted so easily. But on the plus side, it seemed to have defused some of the tension.
“We can’t just leave after taking over the reins, right?” Danny sighed, resting her head on JP’s shoulder.
“We can’t,” I agreed, dread setting in. I was not looking forward to the responsibilities of being a Lord. It would take days or weeks to get the whole castle used to new rules and a different style of reigning. We would need a lot more time to get everyone settled in and to turn this into the place it should’ve been a long time ago.
“You know... Our next stop was the Keep anyway. Why not let the Riders come? It’ll give you time to get everything on track here and they can escort us back. It’ll be safer to travel in a big group and if Chesca shows up, we got more protection?” Darren slowly added, cocking his head to the side as the cogs turned.
“A-Actually, that’s n-not a bad i-idea.”
“If that means we get to stay inside the castle for a little while longer, I’m all for it,” Ashleigh agreed as she fluffed up a pillow to rest on.
“I’m game, I don’t mind the castle.” Aspen grinned, impatiently drumming on the dresser. “I’m also starving.”
“Regan? What do you think?” Danny asked, her eyes sparkling as she looked at me.
“S
ounds good,” I agreed. For now, staying in the castle made sense. And if the Riders came to collect Darren, they’d surely protect him and us on the way back. It would be a less stressful trip and here in the castle, I could make sure to keep my wife safe.
Darren jumped onto the bed and laid his head in Danny’s lap. “Nervous?”
She frowned as she brushed his hair from his face. “For what?”
“Meeting the parents, round two?”
My redhead chuckled out loud. “Will they try to kill me as well?”
Darren scratched his forehead. “Umm, quite possibly, yes?”
“That’s just peachy,” she grumbled as she ran a hand through her red hair.
JP bend forward to kiss her and smiled. “It w-will be fine.”
“It has to be,” Darren muttered.
Danny flashed her stunning smile as she flipped her hair over her shoulder. “Maybe he’ll like me if I bring him an heir though” she grinned, resting her hand on her tummy.
I shot up. “WHAT?!”
— The End. For now. —
Continue the story in
Darren’s Downfall
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About Arizona Tape
Arizona Tape is quite a chaotic, young adult that shares her house with a cactus plant and has sleep dates with her bed. She makes up stories in her head all the time like a crazy person and occasionally writes them down too.
But only if the mood is right.
In her spare time, she enjoys discovering new places with her friends, making all kinds of food as she waltzes through her kitchen like a tornado or likes relaxing on her couch with a movie and a cosy blanket.
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