11. Chapter 11
Camille
The next morning, the King summoned us to continue our previous conversation about lending their aid with the Gilarian.
Apparently, my outburst yesterday seemed to have been the perfect attitude adjustment for him.
I walked in like I owned the place and smiled delightfully at the man.
To my utter shock, he smiled wide right back.
“Camille! Welcome back,” The King said enthusiastically.
Everyone looked at each other with wide eyes, but me, I already knew this was coming.
I knew he would be smitten with me, just as Roman had once been, before Amelia had brutally murdered him.
Before I had watched his entrails spill out of his body.
Before my entire world changed and all I had to worry about was an arrogant man that clearly lost sight of what he had originally set out to accomplish.
“Kian,” I said acknowledging his presence.
“Please address Our Majesty with the proper respect,” Ansel urged aggressively.
“Nonsense, Ansel,” King Kian said as he waved his hand dismissively at him. “She is a royal guest in my palace! There is no need for that.”
“What in the god's names is going on?” Veshkru whispered to all of us.
“Just follow her lead,” Jerrod hissed.
I nodded at all of them and decided it was time to work my charm. I hoped that King Kian would be so similar to Roman that this would take very little effort on my part. I just needed to play this right and I was banking on the fact that he would be wrapped around my finger before days end.
“So… I assume you will be working with us going forward, toward a common goal, yes?” I asked, smiling widely.
“Of course! Of course we will!” the King agreed. “I’ve already instructed a team to begin combing the archives for anything on the Gilarian. Our library is quite vast, but I have many at my disposal. If the answers are there, my subjects will find it in a timely fashion.”
“Really?” I asked in surprise. “You wouldn’t happen to have some well trained people in your guard we could train with, would you?”
I looked up at him with expectant and wide eyes.
He smiled back with a goofy smile and outstretched his hands, showing me his palms. Everyone in the room gasped at the gesture.
I quickly recognized it from previous knowledge Jerrod had.
He was surrendering to me and asking for peace.
This gesture was not given lightly and The King never showed his palms, to anyone.
It was a sign of stature and he just admitted he was beneath me.
I quickly smiled at him and nodded. I honestly was a bit surprised that he had gone so far and that he was being so openly submissive.
He bowed and said, “My guard is at your disposal, Goddess.”
Now, I was confused. Why was he calling me that? I wasn’t a Goddess. I was just a fake Queen of a captured planet. While I may have been very good at acting this part, I was scared shitless right now.
“I appreciate your hospitality,” I said, trying to sound confident.
“May Ailahwae bless us in this alliance,” he said, as he bowed again. “Ansel, bring your best men and assist our guests!”
“Your Majesty,” he said in agreement and bowed low. His face portrayed a completely different impression and agreement is definitely not what he was feeling at the moment.
“Camille, may I please accompany you and your entourage? I would very much like to witness this training.”
“Uh… I suppose that would be okay,” I said cautiously.
He clapped spiritedly in delight. “I don’t think I’ve ever been interested in being involved before.”
“You don’t train with your guard?” I questioned, not that I didn't already know the answer.
Ansel stepped in this time,” Absolutely not! Your Majesty should not need to worry about battle.”
“That is absolute bullshit. He should be able to protect himself and his people,” I said harshly.
“Listen woman, you best watch the way you talk to my King,” Ansel spat at me.
“She’s right,” Kian said softly and he looked embarrassed. “I have become bored and complacent. I would like to change that.”
My eyes grew wide. He wanted to do better. Be better. I didn't expect that my standing up to him would accomplish any of this so quickly, but I could honestly say I was glad he wanted to. He might not be helpful now, but he could be the difference in outcome in the future.
Jerrod stepped up into the conversation and looked at Ansel. “I suggest you re-evaluate the way you are speaking to my mate.”
“What exactly are you going to do about it, Council Leader?” Ansel challenged.
Kresh put his hands between Jerrod and Ansel as a barrier, “Can’t we all just get along?”
“I think sparring might be a good way to make that happen… get some aggression out,” Veshkru said with a smirk, intentionally trying to fuel the intensity of the room.
The look on his face was very telling. I rolled my eyes at him. He had always been an instigator and he rarely had any sort of filter to spare feelings. This situation was no different.
“You’re not helping,” Jade said, reprimanding Veshkru. “Maybe we should take a moment to cool off?”
“How about you show me why you’re The King’s Guard,” Jerrod said very seriously.
I sighed. Of course a quick sorry, wouldn’t have solved this.
“I’ll be over there stretching,” I pointed toward the wall. “Maybe… we try not to kill each other?”
Jerrod laughed, “I’ll be on my best behavior.”
He quickly kissed my forehead and threw his shirt over his head. He swiftly tied his silver hair up to keep it out of his face. His lean muscles rippled as he moved toward the middle of the room. I bit my bottom lip as I watched him sizing up Ansel. He truly was magnificent.
“Weapons?” Ansel yelled across the room.
“Your choice,” Jerrod said confidently. “If you think they’ll help you, that is.”
“Fine, no weapons then,” Ansel agreed.
“Fine with me.”
Neither of them said anything else and they both went running straight at each other.
Ansel threw the first punch, but Jerrod always had a grace to his movements.
His fighting style was much like the flow of water, gracefully moving around where he needed to be based on the environment.
Constantly ebbing and flowing with the movement presented around him and changing when it suited him.
He blocked, moving Ansel’s hand out and away from him in a fluid motion.
He quickly threw his other hand underneath into Ansel’s chest. Ansel stumbled back and Jerrod quickly made several steps forward.
His hands shot out one after the other, slamming into Ansel’s arms as he blocked.
It was obvious Ansel was beginning to figure out how Jerrod moved.
The movements were so fast that my eyes struggled to keep up. For every punch or kick Jerrod made, Ansel met him with a swift block. It was quite obvious that both were pretty evenly matched.
Then Jerrod switched it up on him and added more movement, flipping and twisting away when Ansel got too close. I could hear him laughing in pure enjoyment as Ansel got more and more frustrated.
“So, were you planning on hitting me, or were you just planning on staying on defense the entire match?” Jerrod taunted.
Ansel kicked his foot out, ready to strike.
Jerrod threw himself forward into the air again and used Ansel’s leg as a contact for his arm, vaulting straight over him.
He landed gracefully behind him, dropping into a crouch with his right leg outstretched to the side.
He was already flipping around him once more, before Ansel even realized what was happening.
My eyes stayed trained on him as I stretched and I quietly laughed at the light hearted way he was handling the entire sparring match.
I knew he was skilled, but it never failed to surprise me at how quick and nimble he actually was.
The grace of his movements was like watching a light-footed dance. It was captivating and distracting.
So distracting, that during the moment, lost in thought, I just barely noticed the warning signs.
I recognized, a little too late, the feeling of the unusual backward pull again, like something was coaxing my mind somewhere else.
Jerrod’s head whipped over my way and our eyes locked as I felt my mind being ripped away from the moment.
The pain is unbearable and I am disoriented.
I gaze around the space, but it is too dark to see much of anything.
The smell reminds me of earth and mildew.
I can’t make out much more than obscure shapes.
I take in a sharp breath and cough uncomfortably.
My lungs burn and my body aches. My hands are bound behind me.
“She wakes,” a deep voice says from behind me. His voice is alluring and rich. I have never heard such a deep voice.
“Who are you?” I rasp.
“Likely someone you will have nightmares about,” he states. I can feel him behind me, the exhale of words crawl against my neck. He takes in a sharp breath by my ear. “You smell divine.”
“Fucking gross,” I say and make a gagging noise, but in reality, the seductive sound of his voice has me in a chokehold.
He laughs lightly as he trails his tongue up my face. “You taste divine, too.”
I cringe as he grips my hair in his fist, pulling my head to the side and running his mouth down my neck.
I gasped in horror and threw my hands out to stop the assault. A strong grip clutched my hand and I found myself looking straight into Jerrod’s eyes once again. I looked around confused for a moment, realizing what must have just happened. Another vision.
“What did you see?” Jade yelled, as she ran toward us.
Jerrod’s eyes were focused on mine. He waited patiently as I tried to calm myself down. I hadn’t seen anything really. I shivered as I recalled the voice. That deep, intense voice.
“I didn’t see anything,” I finally admitted.
“You… didn’t see anything?” Jade questioned, with a confused look on her face.
“Sorry… I’m still… a little disoriented. I mean… it was dark where I was. I couldn't actually see anything. I heard a man. His voice was very deep. I was in a dark room. It was musty and smelled wet… earthy, I guess?”
“Who was the man?” Jerrod asked in concern. “Did you recognize the voice or know him?”
“No, I didn’t. I’ve never heard a voice like it,” I explained. “I think he was going to hurt me.”
“What do you mean, he was going to hurt you?” Jerrod asked through clenched teeth.
“He had grabbed my hair in his fist and had his mouth on my neck. He definitely was giving me some creepy rapist vibes. Whoever he is, he was waiting for me to wake up,” I said.
“So, some random man kidnapped you and was going to harm you in a dark musty dungeon?” Veshkru asked sardonically.
I looked over at him and sighed. “Yes, Veshkru, that is exactly what happened.”
“Sounds like an interesting fantasy,” Veshkru laughed.
“Seriously? This was far from a fantasy. He licked my face like a dog,” I cringed.
I looked at Jerrod and his face was growing increasingly more intense. If anger was palpable for everyone in the room, they'd all be able to feel it radiating off of him in waves.
“So you didn’t see him or anything around you?” Kresh asked.
“No, I didn’t, so I have no idea where this was or when this was either,” I answered in frustration.
“Camille needs to have someone with her at all times,” Jerrod finally said. “From here on out, and it is non-negotiable.”
“I think that’s a little unreasonable,” I said, giving him a look of disapproval. “This could be so far in the future. I don’t want to make everyone sacrifice their time for me.”
“Don’t be stupid, dammit! No one is sacrificing anything by ensuring your safety,” Jerrod said as he looked at everyone around us.
I could see the dare in his eyes to question him right now.
“You’re going to be captured by someone at some point.
That’s what that fucking vision just showed you.
Which means, we all fail to protect you at some point in the future. ”