Chapter Nine
Adoor shuts as I come out of sleep.
I crack one eye open, then another, sitting up suddenly. Looking around, I feel disoriented and confused until I realize that I am in my own room, in my own bed.
“Good afternoon, Solene. How are you feeling?” Ivorie asks, as she walks out of my bathroom.
“I feel good, um… I think,” I say half asleep as I rub my eyes.
“That’s great to hear.”
I look up at her, watching as she starts hanging up my clean clothes back into my wardrobe.
I nod my head. “Yes, it is great, question for you. Do you know what time, or even maybe how, I got back to my room last night?” I ask with a smile that feels more like a grimace.
Ivorie pauses, tilting her head at me. “You do not know how you got back to your chambers?”
I need to redirect this conversation immediately.
I laugh casually. “Oh no I do, I am sorry. I am still half asleep and do not know what I am saying. I remember how I got here. I just do not remember the time I got back. It seems I may have slept too long.”
She laughs. “That is okay, I actually just got back this morning. Sorry I have been gone so long. I had a few things I needed to take care of in town.”
“It is okay. I am glad you got some time off.”
She smiles in response then walks back into the bathroom, carrying towels with her as she goes. I flop back onto the bed and sigh.
The logical explanation for how I woke up in my bedroom this morning after shutting my eyes and accidently falling asleep in the prince’s study, is simple. The prince brought me back to my room.
He brought me back as I was sleeping and slipped me into bed. Practically tucked me in after he carried me like a child across the castle. I look down at what I am wearing and see the same dress I had on from yesterday.
I let out a breath of relief.
I glance up at the clock remembering that Ivorie greeted me by saying good afternoon. That is because it is almost noon.
Immediately I jump out of bed and run to the bathroom. I am supposed to meet Draven at noon, and I have slept the entire morning away.
Not that I necessarily had anything to do this morning, but still.
After I brush my teeth and hair, Ivorie braids it from my scalp and down my back into twin braids. I pull on my training leathers, actually excited for the lesson today. I run over to the coffee table and grab the glass of blood and a tonic from Draven, gulping it down.
“Bye, I will see you later for dinner,” I shout. Not bothering to wait for an answer, I shut the bedroom door and step out into the hallway.
As I quickly make my way down the hall, I am half tempted to start running when I almost run smack into Ludwig as I round the corner. He avoids the collision, causing his short body to topple over and lean against the wall.
“My lady, I was coming to fetch you. The prince was concerned you had fallen into a coma,” he says as he steadies himself.
“Ha ha, Ludwig, that is very funny. I knew you had some humor in you somewhere,” I say as I pass him.
He turns around and starts following me. “But it was not me who said that, my lady.”
I ignore him and start to walk even faster, not wanting to walk with him. He is boring.
When I reach the doors for the training arena, I quickly open them and step inside.
By himself in the middle of the mat, is Draven. He is picking up weights and throwing them across the room onto the grassy area.
When I say weights, I mean throwing two-hundred-pound weights, one handedly, across the room.
I clear my throat. “Hi.”
“Oh, good morning, little sun.” He looks down at his watch. “Or should I say afternoon?” he says with a smirk.
His demeanor is completely different from yesterday. The tension in my shoulders eases. I walk toward him as he throws another weight, watching his muscles ripple from the movement.
“You are quite the jokester. Ludwig informed me that you were concerned I had fallen into a coma. That is very endearing, thank you.”
Draven tips his head back and laughs. “I was worried even last night because when I brought you back to your room, you did not even stir.”
I suddenly feel shy thinking about being held in his arms.
“Yeah, I think I was just exhausted from yesterday. Thank you for doing that.”
“Of course. The position you were in looked like it would have hurt your neck if you stayed there all night. You also were drooling all over my table and casework.”
I look at him with mortification, feeling my cheeks getting even more red. “You’re lying.”
“No, unfortunately for my papers and table, I am not. But I do love it when you blush. It looks good on you.”
I roll my eyes at him and start to stretch my muscles. “What is on the agenda today?”
“Today, we are going to work on strength. I know I said it would come with time, but I decided that I would like to gauge your strength levels.”
“I assure you, there is not much to gauge. I still feel the same.”
“That is okay, we will work with it. Have you eaten today?”
“I sure have,” I say confidently.
“Good job. Come closer.” He beckons me over and I comply.
“Try to lift this. When you go to lift it up, bend with your legs.”
He points to a twenty-pound weight on the floor. I walk over and bend down to grab it. When I go to lift back up, I brace my legs, making sure to use the right muscles. The weight lifts easily.
“Okay, easy,” I say a little too confidently.
“Okay then, come lift this one.”
This time, he points to a fifty-pound weight. I walk over and do the same, it lifts easily again. I do not feel as weak today and there is a small surge of an electricity-like feeling under my skin.
Draven crosses his arms over his chest. “Now throw it.”
I go to throw the weight and it just topples in front of me. I groan.
“Very good. We can work with this. Eventually you will be picking these up and throwing them further than I can,” he says as he points at the bigger weights.
I scoff. “No way.”
“Yes way. Once your magic settles, you will be the strongest you will ever be in your lifetime. You will be way stronger than me. Maybe even permanently stronger.”
He says this almost like he would be excited if that were to happen.
We begin to run through our balance poses and sparing foot work together, the motions coming easier to me today. When we are finished with that, we lift weights until my arms feel like limp noodles.
I catch myself watching the veins that bulge along Draven’s arms each time he lifts a weight.
I drop the weight I am holding when I fail to lift it again and sit down on the mat with a groan.
“This is why I am going into comas at night.”
Before he responds, I hear the doors open. I glance over at them and see five men walk into the room wearing royal guard uniforms.
As I watch them, my heart starts to feel like it is beating out of my chest. My breath hitches in my throat as a chill spreads throughout my body.
Draven glances over at me and then back to the guards.
“They are scaring you,” he says.
I nod my head.
Draven stands up. “All of you, out. You may come back when we are gone.”
The guards immediately stop their conversation, bow at the waist, and then quickly leave.
I shut my eyes to avoid eye contact with Draven as I start to breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth. I do this over and over until I feel my heart start to settle.
When I open my eyes, I glance over at Draven who is looking at me with what looks like concern.
“Why do they scare you?” he asks.
I pause, debating on my response.
“I think you know why.”
Draven nods and turns to face me fully. “I did not realize it would cause you distress to see them or else I would have been more cautious. I am sorry.”
“I did not realize it would either. I think I am more worried about seeing a familiar face within the guards.”
Draven is silent for a moment then he turns, looking straight ahead. “You will not see their face here, or anywhere else.”
I turn and look at him. “What do you mean?”
Several seconds pass as silence sits between us.
“I needed some assistance down in the Swamplands a while back. Father reassigned the two guards to serve under me, so I decided to use their services that day.”
I look at him still confused as to where this is going.
“You see, I struck a bargain with the Slaugh of the Swamplands long ago,” he says.
“What is the Slaugh?” I ask quietly.
“A nightmare of the dark. A ruler of the swamp in its own,” he says simply. “He handles certain matters for me when needed, and I feed him in return.”
A shiver runs down my spine.
“During the trip, the two guards got too close to the edge of the swamp.”
I lift my chin up in question. Draven turns to me, his golden-honey irises are now bright red.
“Unfortunately, they slipped and fell in. I did not get to them in time it seems.”
He turns back to looking straight ahead again. “Males like that are not welcome in this kingdom and they never will be.”
I stare at him in disbelief, uncertain what to say.
I open my mouth to speak and the door opens, yet again. I turn and watch a small messenger troll quickly walk toward us.
She stops, bows at the waist, and stands up straight again. “Apologies, sire, King Vesper requests your presence at dinner tonight.” She quickly glances at me. “Both of your presences.”
Draven stands up. “Very well, thank you.”
The troll bows again then quickly walks away.
Draven leans down, offering me a hand to stand up. I take his hand, watching as it engulfs my entire hand easily. I stand up directly in front of him, lifting my chin so I can look up at him.
His eyes are golden again.
“Thank you,” I say.
Draven stares back down at me. “For what?”
“For doing that.”
I swallow.
“For getting rid of them,” I say.
After the words come out of my mouth, I realize how horrible it sounds. What’s even more horrible is the fact that I do not feel a bit of remorse.
I spent many nights wishing death upon those two men. It only took one good man to make it happen. A bit savagely nonetheless, but appreciated all the same.