Chapter 30 #2
My brother’s blazing eyes meet mine with something I can only interpret as complete and utter hatred.
I want to ask him what the fuck his problem is, but the doors burst open.
Two ladies with kind faces, golden skin, and matching simple brown dresses almost skip through the doors and curtsey to the room.
I don’t know how he knows I lived in squalor, but I didn’t always.
I don’t really remember them all properly, but my parents had staff.
Gardeners, a nanny, cleaners. I guess my dad was a spoilt brat of a royal growing up, and that’s what he was trying to replicate at home.
I have so many questions. I open my mouth to ask the first one, but he says, “Let us meet together for breakfast. Nykholas, Lili, please do join us. Aiden, of course, will be there.” No mention of the Captain.
The disappointment catches me off guard.
But I can’t help being curious about this guy my uncle seems to think the world of.
Why isn’t he here? Is he hurt… or just avoiding me because of how I reacted?
What is Kaed really like? Because all I’ve seen is the monster.
“Leander and Lili will now escort you to your room. Should you need anything, Thea and Fawn will assist you.”
I swear flames are burning in Aiden’s eyes, even though his face stays eerily cool. He’d be brilliant at poker. Something about him seems dangerous, maybe even more so than Theron. It’s kind of pissing me off, actually.
“Get some rest and feel free to explore wherever you wish. Perhaps your brother can keep you company.”
Aiden jolts and flexes his jaw when the King slaps his back playfully.
I look into my uncle’s eyes one more time and give him a small smile. I throw a dirty look at Aiden, who throws it right back, and follow the party out.
*
Thea and Fawn burst into the room at the crack of dawn.
I jump upright when the door slams against the wall.
I’d fallen asleep in the desk chair and hadn’t so much as glanced at the bed or, to the horror of the kind ladies, the bathroom.
Somehow, I’d managed to convince them I’d shower and change once they left.
With no intention of following through. The night had been unbearable.
So fucking hot. I felt like I was suffocating at one point.
Strange voices just outside the door woke me up constantly.
I kept thinking it was Vale or Theron, but it must have been the guards that are stuck to the doorway.
They whispered comments about me that they thought I couldn’t hear, until a sharp, deep voice sounded, maybe signaling a shift swap.
I drifted back into my dreams, reveling in the comfort the silence brought and the cold breeze that came with it.
Thea, the younger of the two, rips open the curtains, light spilling over the room and Fawn potters around the bathroom.
My boots squelch with God knows what fluids when I shuffle towards the window, recognising the view immediately.
The battlefield where I was strapped to Kaed.
The day he brought me here. I’m immediately drawn to something like an ancient bird bath at the centre of an arena.
To the right is a military base with rows of bungalows and a big training ring where soldiers are sparring.
Shouts, jeers, and red blades, jets of flame, ash, and steam shoot through the air.
The sky, or sea, ripples in a way that changes everything I thought I knew about gravity.
I crane my neck to get a better look, and my forehead knocks softly against the glass with a gentle thud.
Thea giggles from the corner, where she is preparing the vanity table.
“How does it stay up? The sea—sky thing.” I ask no one in particular.
“How does yours stay down?” Fawn counters, a towel draped over her arm.
“Hmm.” I blink a few times, trying to figure it out. There’s probably a scientific answer somewhere, but I sure as hell don’t know it.
“You look so much like your brother.”
“Um, thanks?”
“Well, he is very handsome. And charming.” Thea giggles, tucking her mousy hair behind her ears. “So, it’s a compliment.”
Fawn looks at her like she’s crazy and joins me at the window. I try to get a better look at the different uniforms the soldiers are wearing.
“The King mentioned territories last night, which one are we in?”
“We’re in The Capital. It’s neutral. There are some books on the shelf and a map on the wall by your bed, dear.
They’ll tell you everything you need to know about the land, our people, and The Creed, too.
” She throws me a look I can’t decipher.
I don’t give a toss about their maps or books.
Or their fucking Creed. What’s the point of studying a world that wants me dead?
If it wasn’t for this damned destiny I’m supposed to fulfil, I would have jumped at the chance to learn about my family, my history.
How can something I’ve longed for my whole life turn into something that repulses me?
I press my forehead to the glass and sigh, the mist from the fog blurring my view.
“Where do I go for breakfast?”
Thea fiddles with the combs, brushes, and clips on the vanity. “The dining hall is at the centre of the palace. All meals are held there. Once we’ve gotten you ready, we’ll escort you down. I hope the meal will be to your liking, Princess Agni.”
I need my questions answered, not food. Cook came to my room last night with a bright smile and a plate of meat and salad.
He went on to tell me about some of the animals they raise here and how best to cook them, but when I mentioned I was a vegetarian, he looked like I’d just slapped him.
After refusing all his alternatives, he took the plate with him, sporting a wounded little wince.
And a promise to make me the best meatless meals I’ve ever seen, which made me grin a little, even if my stomach protested at the thought of eating.
“Please, just call me Ashley.”
“Princess Ashley,” Thea repeats with a polite nod. “My deepest apologies, Highness.”
Before I can respond to those absurd titles, Fawn calls Thea into the bathroom.
I seize my chance and slip out of the room.
The smell of sweet dough and cinnamon guides me through hallways painted with the most beautiful artwork I’ve ever seen.
Warriors, winged horses, and something that looks like stars colliding over a handsome king and a breathtaking woman in a red cloak.
The murmuring stops as soon as I enter. I double take at the warm smile I miss every day.
My uncle sits at the head of the table, joined by Nyk and Lili.
Even seated, it’s clear how imposing Nyk is, but when he stands to bow, it’s like he triples in size.
Ruggedly handsome with loose, bright white waves pulled into a rough bun, a few strands fall across his warm, tawny face.
Some uniform scars run through his eyebrows, eye, and across his lips. Like a shark has bitten him.
“So nice of you to join us, Ashley.” He’s obviously aware of my irritation with the other titles I’ve been burdened with. Lili gives me a curt bow before the King gestures toward one of the empty seats between him and Aiden.
“Please, eat with us.”