Chapter 24
The gardens were extravagant to say the least, and she had never seen such a variety of flowers anywhere she had ever been. Vast areas of flower mixtures lined the stone carved structures along the path they now walked down.
They had been out walking for around an hour, a warmer spring day surrounding them with the sun fully out. It was almost summer, the days getting warmer but night still chilly and she was glad she got to actually enjoy the sun instead of sweating in it.
“I will go with you if it is your wish.” Raine voiced after a long silence.
“Is that what you want?”
They stopped by a stone bench and sat for a short rest, her hands sitting in her lap and watching her maiden carefully.
“I’ve been in Elnora my entire life, I have no family and the stone walls of the castle are getting old to look at.” Raine smiled shyly.
“You are more than welcome to come with us,” she said softly. “It could get dangerous though, so I want you to take that into consideration.”
“I’m not afraid.” Raine chuckled. “Plus, with both you and Kaden, it will be the safest spot for me in the kingdom.”
She wasn’t wrong, between her power and Kaden’s skills, it would be hard to feel unprotected.
“I couldn’t agree more.”
Kaden’s voice made both females jump and she turned to see him casually standing behind her a few feet away, his hand resting on his sword. It was the first time she had seen him so relaxed since the attack and she found her heart beating a little faster.
“Kaden.” Raine smiled and stood. “You are ok with me coming as well?”
“Of course.” His eyes went from Raine to her. “I think Alyra has grown quite fond of you and could use another friend to join.”
She stood and gave him a smirk.
“Another friend?” she teased. “I thought you were just my trainer?”
“Who said I meant me?” he teased back, that rare smile forming on his lips for a second.
Raine giggled next to her and grabbed her arm softly.
“I will go get my stuff ready so I can leave with you.” Raine’s eyes moved to Kaden. “Unless you still need me here?”
“No, I can handle her from here.”
“Handle me?” she teased again.
“Well you are kind of a trouble maker.” His smile faded but she knew he was still teasing.
Raine just laughed again and nodded a goodbye before disappearing back towards the castle. This left her and Kaden standing awkwardly in the middle of a blooming garden and she fiddled with her fingers behind her back.
“Here.” He pulled something out of his inner pocket of his vest and she gasped in surprise.
A beautiful uncrushed lilac stem was between his fingers, the vibrant purple color sticking out against his leather gear. She felt the tears fall from the corner of her eye before she could compose herself and delicately reached out for it.
“How?” she breathed, her hand shaking as she grabbed it.
“After the war, the king had a few of the plants brought from Mydalsa to help preserve them, and to pay tribute.” Kaden’s fingers grazed hers softly just before she brought the flower to her chest.
“You brought me one?” her watery eyes met his and he rubbed the back of his neck, breaking the eye contact.
“I figured you could use something to improve your day.”
“Who are you and what have you done with Kaden?” She giggled softly.
He met her eyes and cleared his throat nervously.
“You chose me today and you didn’t have to.” he stuttered. “No one has ever chosen me in that way.”
The ache in her heart hit her heavily and she realized she still didn't know anything about him, his past or what he wanted out of life.
Her breath caught and she looked down at the flower quickly to hide her cheeks getting flooded with color.
“So you brought me a flower of my people as a thank you?” she whispered.
“I figured it was the least I could do.”
She lifted her eyes slowly and saw he was watching her curiously but had a softer expression on his face. She was not sure what to do or what this was between them but the tension was becoming suffocating.
“We should get ready to leave.” She cleared her throat again and looked back down at the flower.
“Thank you.”
He gestured his hand in front of her to get her attention and she found herself looking up at him again, his eyes studying her.
“Everything will be ok Alyra.”
Her heart started to race. Those eyes, everything that happened felt like it was setting her body on fire and she felt her magic flicker. She immediately stepped to the side and started towards the castle, brushing against his shoulder playfully.
“I know.” she smirked and as soon as she heard his steps match hers, an overwhelming shift could be felt between them, she just wasn’t sure what it meant.
- - - - - - - -
“Let me go with you.” Silas pleaded behind her as she packed the last of her cotton bedwear into the leather bag.
“No.” she sighed, annoyed with having to deal with him at this very moment.
He apparently thought he still had the right to stay overnight in her room when she clearly did not want him to. His only argument he could make was ‘the king demands it’ so she proceeded to act like he wasn’t there.
She felt his hand grab her arm while she walked by, his touch making her instantly bristle and he stopped her in her tracks. She glared up at him with warning, her stomach starting to twist.
“I came back for you,” he whispered.
“I didn’t ask you to,” she growled and let her flame burn around his hand, making him pull away quickly.
“After everything we have been through, you are still holding one thing against me?” he yelled.
“One thing!” she turned and could feel her rage start to take over. “You fucking slept with whores while also sharing my bed!”
She felt her flame flicker again, her built in defense aching to engulf her but she kept it at bay, at least for now.
“You know how disgusting that makes me feel?” she spat towards him.
He tried to get closer to her, but as soon as he took his first step she held out her hand in warning. Kaden had left to grab a few items from the armory with hesitation but she told him she could handle herself and he believed her.
“We have been through this,” he tried to argue back. “It was one time and it was a mistake.”
“No Silas,” she sighed. “My mistake was thinking you cared about me, that I was enough for you and clearly I wasn’t.”
“The whores mean nothing to me!”
“They meant everything to me.” She could feel her anger subside and the ache of her heart growing to the point of her almost shedding a tear.
The door opened a second later, her eyes slowly glancing at the entrance and could see Kaden watching her carefully.
He had an arm full of daggers, some arrows, and a bow strapped to his back. He apparently wanted to be fully prepared on their journey.
“Alyra?” Kaden asked calmly, his eyes going back and forth between her and Silas.
“I’m fine.” She cleared her throat, water threatening the edge of her eyes.
“We were just talking.” Silas snapped. “Do you always have to interrupt us?”
Kaden didn’t say anything and walked to the table to set all the weapons down, the metal clattering throughout the room.
“If you would just stop talking to her like she has asked, it wouldn’t be an issue.” He pulled the bow from his back and set it on top of the weapons already on the table and turned to both of them standing near the fire.
“How do you know what she wants?” Silas snarled.
“She has told you herself, you just aren’t listening.” Kaden’s voice was a calm tone, but she could tell it was taking him a lot to stay that way.
She decided to walk away while Silas was slightly distracted and moved towards Kaden, his eyes met hers as soon as she started walking. He knew she was in distress, she could tell by the look in his eyes he was worried, but didn’t let it show on his face.
“You must be worried about our travel?” she said in a lighter tone, trying to distract from the tension around her.
“I want to be prepared for anything.” he muttered, her body stopping just in front of him and looking down at the table.
She could smell the lilac on him again, her breath shuttering as she tried to keep herself together and she watched his arm tense against the table.
The pain from Silas’s betrayal was still fresh, she had just been hiding it since he had left and with him back, it seemed it reopened.
“It would be smarter and safer to have both of us go with you.” Silas started behind her and she glanced hesitantly over her shoulder.
“I don’t trust you Silas, therefore I don’t want you around.”
“But you trust him?” Silas gestured to Kaden.
“I don’t trust anyone.” she scoffed. “So far he hasn’t shown me a reason not to take him with me.”
“You're ignorant if you think you can trust him.” Silas sneered.
She turned fully towards him now, his golden eyes blazing with fury and she knew it was time to force him to leave, whether he liked it or not.
“We are done, Silas. Don’t talk to me unless it's business or an emergency.” She kept her tone even, anxiety riddling through her but she wasn’t going to let him see her break.
“Guards!” she yelled, the door soon opening and two men stepped into the room. “Please remove Silas from my chamber, he is no longer welcome and if the king has a problem with it he can come talk to me himself.”
Silas was now shaking with anger but he knew he couldn’t refuse to leave now, not when the guards were involved. She should have done it sooner, but she didn’t think if she was here long term it would be allowed. It was her last night, so she could piss the king off all she wanted.
“You’re making a mistake.” Silas seethed and stormed past her out the door, the guards nodding and then followed him out.
Once the door shut, she leaned back against the table with her body shaking from exhaustion and let out a long breath. Kaden moved beside her, leaning against the table with her and nudged his shoulder against hers.
“I did say you were trouble,” he whispered.
She coughed out a laugh, her head turning to look up at him and saw a small part of his lip curve up the side of his face.
She smiled back at him with tears starting to run down her cheeks. Sobs erupted from her chest and she felt the weight of everything crash down on her in a single moment.
Her knees hit the floor and she covered her face with her hands, her tears soaking her palms. The overwhelming stress and anger spilled out of her and she could no longer hold it in.
“Can I?” Kaden’s soft voice made her glance through her fingers and saw his arms stretched out to her.
It was a silent invitation, a gesture she never thought he would make but here she was on the floor seeing it. She paused for a second, the way he wordlessly offered comfort while still respecting her boundaries made her realize he really did pay attention to her needs.
She wasn’t sure what she would have done if he had grabbed her like other people would have, but now she knew there was at least a level of trust she couldn’t ignore. Her tear-filled eyes glanced up at him, the maroon color staring back at her dark and she nodded to him.
Warm hands cradled around her slowly and then she was lifted into his arms with one swift movement. Her breath caught for a moment at the anticipation of panic coursing through her, but nothing happened and she couldn’t bring herself to look at him again.
He set her down on the bed and she rolled onto her side facing away from him. She couldn’t speak, couldn’t move other than to grab a pillow and pull it to her chest.
His finger grazed her cheek, wiping some of the water from it and then pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.
She didn’t care if it was odd behavior for him, or that it felt good to be shown some affection, she wasn’t going to let herself read into it.
“Everything will be ok Alyra.” He repeated the same words from earlier and she could only squeeze her pillow tighter.
She couldn’t look at him, couldn’t process what had happened or why their dynamic had changed so much in the recent days.
She still didn’t have all her power, Silas had taken what he wanted and discarded her, and now the king was making her leave to another town to save his people. She understood the king's motives, but everything else was draining her.
She was failing again.