by Zizi Cole
I entered the study to find Declan sitting there, staring into a fire in the fireplace. I joined him on the couch and sat quietly. He glanced at me, then laughed.
“Tobias, she was out here earlier, but she retired with Scarlet. They are getting along with everyone rather well.”
I nodded. “Good. I’m glad they are fitting in. I hope that means I won’t have to worry about them being murdered in their sleep.”
Declan gave me a half shrug. “Hard telling. We are talking about assassins. Now that you have been back to Tiven, what is the plan?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. I didn’t learn as much as I had hoped while I was there. I don’t think this is over yet. As long as she’s alive and so is the backer, there will be attempts on her life. I want her safe.”
“I know you do, but you can’t keep her in a bubble. You will have to make a decision soon.”
“I know. She did tell me something rather fascinating though.”
“Tell me.”
I repeated the story to him about the room and the power. He never looked at me, but I knew that he was interested. Anything with the mention of power and control, he was interested. He hated being an inquisitor. It pained him to hurt people under the order of the king, especially since some people were innocent. People like Scarlet. He had hurt several Scarlet’s over the years and it was a burden he had to bear. Declan had told me stories about some of the things he had done, while I was recovering from my time with him. We had bonded over the healing process.
We were discussing our options, when I came up with a plan that might keep Malina safe, for the moment. I just had to convince Malina that it was a good idea. I wasn’t sure she would be as happy about it.
Malina and I were getting close again. We were spending more time together. I told her my plan and I was correct about her not agreeing to it.
“That is the cowardly way out, Tobias. I am not a coward.”
“Malina, it will keep you safe and give you a chance to have the life you deserve.”
She turned and cupped my face in her hands. Leaning forward, she kissed me lightly on the lips. “I know my love, but things have changed. I will never be able to have the life that you feel like I deserve. I don’t get to have the life that I wanted five years ago. Our fates are in the stars. When I look at the sky at night, I don’t see just stars. I see paths. Maps of our lives and the finish line of the race we call life. Have you ever just looked at the stars like we used to, Tobias? I mean really looked at them.”
“Yeah, I have.”
“Then you know what I’m talking about. The stars tell a story of the past and the future. I know that I was sent to Tiven for a reason. It may not be to live a full life, but to do what needs to be done. I know what I need to do.”
I frowned. “What are you talking about, Malina?”
“I’m going to go back. The people need me. The kingdom will be falling apart without any royalty and with the church in shambles. I have to help them rebuild.”
“Not an option.”
“Not a choice. I have been thinking on it; I know it is what I need to do.”
“You aren’t going.” I stood and turned from her. I felt her, more than heard her, move so that she was standing behind me. “I’m not letting you leave.”
A hand gently touched my shoulder. “I’m not going to fake my death like you wish, Tobias. I have to do this.”
I turned and grabbed her hair. Pulling on it so her head was tipped back, mouth slightly open, I pressed my mouth against hers in a hot kiss. I couldn’t let her leave and I had to convince her to do as I asked.
Her arms slipped around my neck and she relaxed into the kiss. I lifted her and placed her on the bed. Instead of taking the time to undress her, I pulled her skirts up and showed her how much I needed her.
I wasn’t good at using my words to express myself so I did the next best thing. I used my body. I undid my pants and slid myself out of them. I pressed myself between her legs and she arched up toward me. I spent the rest of the night showing her my need for her.
As she straightened her skirts, she turned and looked at me. There was a sadness in her eyes, but I felt confident that I had won. “I’ll stay.”
She left the room quietly. I could hear her knock on the door next to mine to get Scarlet to answer the door. I stood and walked to the door, watching as she slipped into the room and silently shut the door behind her.
I returned to my bed. Before I fell asleep, I felt peace sweep over me at the thought that I had come up with a solution that would keep my love safe. I drifted off to sleep with the thoughts of retiring with her floating through my head.
I couldn’t have been asleep very long before there was a loud knocking on my door. Instantly alert, I opened my door. Scarlet stood there, eyes wide. Her hands were waving around in the air, frantically.
I shook my head. “I’m sorry, Scarlet. What are you saying? I don’t understand your signs.”
She signaled that she wanted me to follow her. I walked out of the room and followed her to her room. The room was empty. No signs of Malina. I looked over at Scarlet. “Where is the queen?”
She shook her head and continued to flail her hands around. I knew she was trying to say something, but I didn’t know what. Based on the condition of the room, I could tell she hadn’t been kidnapped.
I grabbed Scarlet’s arm and drug her from the room. I knew one person that may be able to help me understand her. I pounded on Declan’s door with my fist. He opened the door, wearing only a pair of pants. He glanced between Scarlet and myself. Frowning, he allowed us entry to his room.
I looked at him, feeling helpless. “She is trying to tell me what happened, but I can’t understand her. I haven’t had time to learn her signs. Can you read them?”
He nodded and watched Scarlet as her hands flew in rapid succession. He frowned and nodded. He watched her hands closely while they moved. He took her hands and stopped the movement. Scarlet’s eyes widened. She looked surprised.
“It’s okay, Scarlet. Calm down. We won’t let anything happen to her. I promise. And you will be safe.” Declan turned and looked at me, not releasing her hands. “She said that Malina left on her own. She didn’t want to cower. She wasn’t going to bow to the pressure of the assassins or you. She wanted to do what was right. Scarlet is afraid something bad is going to happen to Malina. She fears Malina is going to let herself die because her royal pride is in the way. She is begging you to do something to keep Malina safe.”
I nodded and turned to leave the room. Declan stopped me at the doorway. “Tobias.”
I turned and looked at him. “What?”
“Take Raynor with you. You may need back up. Do what you need to in order to protect her. We need to end this, once and for all.”
“Okay.” I looked at Scarlet. “I will bring her back, safe. Thank you for looking out for her.”
She nodded and walked over to me, putting her hand on my cheek and smiling. Then she tapped my chest above my heart and walked back to Declan, to stand beside him.
I watched as she seemed to blossom and grow an air of confidence, which wasn’t there before, while she stood with him. I inclined my head at her. I didn’t need to hear words to know what she had been trying to tell me. She was right. I loved Malina and I would do anything to see her safe.
I walked down the hall to Raynor’s room. He was already pulling on his boots when I walked in. He looked up at me. “Tobias, son, get dressed you can’t go after her like that. You need shoes, at least.”
I looked down at my bare chest and feet. Turning, I rushed to my room to get dressed. I threw on a shirt. I was pulling my boots on when Raynor walked to my door. He stood there quietly, and waited, while I finished getting ready. I loaded up with weapons and turned to see him staring at the teddy bear on my dresser. He was frowning at it.
“Where did that come from?”
I shrugged into my coat. “I gave it to Malina. She recently gave
it back to me.”
Before leaving the room, I pulled open a drawer and lifted out a matching silk pouch, like the one I had given to Malina. Slipping the glass bulb out of it, I hung it around my neck. Gently, I tucked it into my shirt so it was out of sight and slightly more protected. I knew it was a figment of my imagination, but the glass felt warm against my chest. I knew there was no way it was actually warm though. It had been in the dresser since I came home. I knew Raynor was watching everything I was doing and eventually I would have to explain, but this was not the time.
I would do things one at a time. Keeping Malina safe was my top priority. Nothing else mattered. I had to make sure she came back, and in one piece. Hopefully we could catch up to her and convince her to turn around, without a fight.
Once I was dressed, we hurried out of the rectory, into the inky night. I wasn’t sure which way she would go since she was blindfolded when we arrived. I stood there, looking around, trying to put myself in her shoes.
That’s when it hit me. She would have recognized this area. We weren’t too far from where we used to have our rendezvous. I turned toward the lake and walked that direction. She would have gone that way since she would be familiar with it, if she realized where we were. I was sure she did though, since she grew up in these woods.
When we reached the spot, I stopped and looked around. I noticed a broken branch and knew that we were on the right track. Her skirt had probably gotten stuck on it. I bent down and touched it.
My eyes travelled to our spot. It was overgrown with weeds. It was obvious no one had been there in a while. I had tried to avoid it for years, because being there was too painful and brought back too many memories.
Part 2: Malina
Chapter 1
I watched as they dragged Tobias away. He watched me as they pulled him along. I could feel the tears pouring down my face, as I knew that it would probably be the last time I saw him alive. After he was out of sight, my father spoke to me.
“You will leave at the break of dawn. I am sending you to Tiven, where you will wed King Luquin immediately. After that, you will no longer be my problem.”
There was talk of King Luquin. He was known to have a short temper and be quite the brute. I didn’t want to deal with it, but I wasn’t seeing any other options. I stood and curtsied. “Father, do I get to take any of my ladies with me?”
“You can take Rosa. The rest will remain here with your sister. Luquin will have ladies for his new queen.”
When he said queen, I had a chill run down my spine and had a premonition that things weren’t going to go well in the end. I escaped to my room, to try to deal with the hand that fate dealt me. I sat on my bed and placed a hand on my burning cheek. I would probably have a bruise, but honestly I wasn’t surprised. It wouldn’t be the first time he bruised me, but from the sound of it, it was going to be the last.
Rosa walked into the room and handed me a cool cloth. Placing the cloth on my face, I watched her ramble around the room. She seemed to be tidying things up, but at the same time, I wasn’t sure if she was actually moving anything.
“Rosa, have you heard the news?” I asked quietly.
She nodded, then turned to look at me. She had tears in her eyes. “Yes, Princess.”
I sighed. “I know I have told you not to call me Princess when it is just the two of us.”
“I know Lina, but I’m going to miss you.”
“Father agreed to let you go with me.”
“Good. I’d hate to see my Lina going off by herself.”
“I’m scared. Do you know if the stories are true?”
She sat on the bed beside me, wrapping her arm around my shoulders. She hugged me for a minute before answering.
“I’m afraid they are. Why else would King Cornelius send you to him? He wouldn’t send you there if he was kind and deserving of your beauty.” She wiped away the tears that I didn’t realize were rolling down my cheeks. “Now I must get us packed. We are to leave first thing in the morning.”
She helped me get ready for bed, and once I was alone in my bed chamber trying to sleep, I held on to the stuffed bear that Tobias had given me. I wasn’t sure where he had gotten it, but it was dear to my heart.
I tried to close my eyes, but the screams from the dungeon were drifting up through my window. I didn’t think I was going to be able to sleep, wondering if that was Tobias screaming in agony. I tried to drown the sound out, but there wasn’t going to be any relief from it tonight. I knew that it was part of my punishment, and my father knew exactly what he was doing.
I opened my eyes as the first rays of light came into my bedroom window. I hadn’t slept, and now the anxiety of what I was about to embark on was making me want to throw up. Of course, I felt that way a lot anyway, but it was worse than normal. I heard the door creak as it opened. I lifted my head to see my sister, Gisette, slip through the door.
She sat on the edge of my bed and gently touched my shoulder. I looked at her, waiting.
“The carriage is being packed. Father is only having a couple of outfits sent with you now, and once you leave, he is having the servants send the rest of your things over. He wants to get all traces of you gone and he wanted as little contact with you as possible. He forbade me to come say goodbye, but I had to. I couldn’t watch my baby sister leave without seeing her off. He is still asleep, so I wanted to come in now. Rosa will be here in a minute. But I have to know. Were you really going to run off with that guard? What were you thinking?”
“I love him, Gisette. Yes, I was going to leave with him. I hoped that Father wouldn’t notice we were gone until I was far enough away, so I could have been safe. I don’t care about being royal, I just wanted to be with the man I love. You will understand when you fall in love, dear sister.”
She hugged me tightly and kissed me on the forehead. Then without another word, she stood up and slipped out of the room like she hadn’t been here in the first place. I climbed out of bed and walked to my closet. Opening it, I stared at my clothes trying to decide what the best outfit to travel in would be.
Trying to decide what to wear to my new home seemed like a massive decision. I felt like the world was on my shoulders and the choice would determine how the rest of my life would go. I didn’t want to decide. I wanted to stay in my nightclothes and hide in my bed until this nightmare was over.
I had never thought that picking out an outfit would have been the most difficult decision that I had ever encountered. I felt as if my head was spinning. I placed my hand on my head and grabbed the door to keep my balance. I closed my eyes for several heartbeats. When I opened my eyes again, the spinning had stopped.
I heard footsteps seconds before I heard Rosa speak. “I’d wear something light weight. It feels like it is going to get hot and I doubt the carriage will be one of the better ones.”
She reached in the closet and pulled out a light blue dress that was lightweight compared to the others. It had less layers than what I was accustomed to. Helping me change, she didn’t say a word. When I was dressed, I slipped on my shoes and headed to the door. Reaching for the doorknob, I stopped and looked back. Sitting on my bed was the teddy bear. Rushing back over, I scooped it up and handed it to Rosa. She slipped it into the bag she was carrying.
“We must be off, Lina. I want us gone before the spectacle that is supposed to happen starts.”
I turned my head and looked at her. “What spectacle?”
She shifted her weight back and forth. I could tell she didn’t want to answer me by her hesitation. We started walking before she answered. When she did, her voice was low, barely above a whisper. “They are going to publicly flog Tobias until the skin peels off of his back. It is your father’s way of humiliating and punishing him until he dies, without giving out a death sentence. It isn’t something you need to see, especially in your condition.”
“My condition?” I felt my heart skip a beat. My skin heated up and nausea flooded me. I was afraid she was goin
g to confirm my suspicions.
She stopped and turned me by the arm. She put her finger to my lips and leaned forward. “We will discuss this later, Lina. It isn’t a good idea to speak of such things where there are ears everywhere.”
Understanding dawned on me and I nodded. We started walking again without speaking. The clicking of our shoes was the only noise in the hallways. We stopped at the door, waiting for the butlers to open it. When they did, we walked out into the courtyard to see the crowd had already gathered. I heard a crack of whip and couldn’t stop the cringe. The sound of it hitting flesh made my stomach curdle.
The doorman met us half way across the veranda. He took the bag from Rosa, then put his other arm through mine and practically dragged me to the gates. When we reached the gates, I stopped and looked back at my darling Tobias. I watched his eyes as the whip cracked and landed on his back. I saw him flinch, but he didn’t cry out. I knew that would make my father mad. I stood staring at him for a long moment before the doorman pulled me through the gates to the carriage. The vision of Tobias being lashed was going to stay with me for the rest of my days.
As the carriage pulled up to the gates of the castle that was now my home, I felt my stomach flip. I was so scared I was trembling, but I couldn’t show any signs of weakness. The castle was a dark stone and reminded me of the castles I had seen in my studies of the Ancient times. As far as I knew, it could have been from the Ancient times, I just hoped that it had indoor bathrooms. We had been lucky enough to have them at home.
There were clouds looming over the stronghold, giving me a sense of foreboding. When the carriage stopped, I swallowed and squared my shoulders. The doorman opened my door and helped me out of the carriage. I stood and waited to be escorted into the castle.
