Page 24 of His Dark Delights
“This is not the way to the king’s private study,” he seethed through his teeth. I noted that the top of his balding head matched the angry red shade of his cheeks.
Rhydan glanced at me from the corner of his eyes, then smirked. “Oh, I’m well aware of which way I’m going, Chamberlain.”
The Chamberlain pointed a stubby finger at me, and the many medallions pinned to his vest rattled. “You mean to parade her past the throne room?” he accused.
Rhydan straightened up, increasing the apparent height difference between them. He crossed his arms and arched his brows. “Who’s to say? But the longer you dawdle here, the more His Majesty’s subjects will ramble endlessly in his ear. You should see to that.” Hiseyes darted down the hall and back, a silent instruction for the Chamberlain to turn around and leave him alone.
The Chamberlain huffed, shaking indignantly in his boots. His lips thinned into a line as he dismissively assessed me from my bare, dirty feet to my wind-blown hair. Without another word, he spun on his heel, returning to wherever he’d appeared from.
My escort took us in the same direction a moment later, and soon enough voices echoed off the walls. We turned a few more corners until the palace burst with near blinding golden light. The morning sun speared through the giant crystal windows of the enormous throne room. That light perfectly haloed the dark outline of the mountainous blue stone throne embellished with swirling lines of gold.
The throne cast a long shadow down the stupendously cavernous, deep room and the vast gathering of subjects lined up to make their requests heard. The people didn’t matter, nor did the beautiful crystal lights or the giant columns holding up the immense arched ceilings.
No, I was riveted in place, feet frozen to the glossy marble floor by the vision of the man perched upon that royal seat. A surge of panicked delight rippled through my stomach to my core at the sight of him.
King Soren Carnifex had dressed in dark sapphire robes lined with gold trim. His face was clean shaven, and his hair was brushed away from his handsome features. And his careless sprawl across the throne was both commanding and gratingly annoying.
I couldn’t peel my eyes away. He had no idea of the effect he had on me, the bastard.
Rhydan finally noticed I’d stopped moving. He circled back around and carefully gripped my upper arm. He tugged gently, encouraging me to move my feet, but our presence in the darker corners of the hall didn’t go unnoticed.
Soren lifted his head from a merchant sharing a petition. Time stood to an utter halt as our eyes locked across the expanse of the never-ending room. Every drop of blood in my veins froze into shards of ice as recognition flickered in the king’s eyes. My breath hitched when he shot to his feet.
Hundreds of eyes turned, following the king’s line of sight. The grip on my shoulder tightened, hauling me further and faster away. Whispers rose through the crowd as they saw a dirty peasant girl being dragged through the palace by a knight.
Behind us, one voice rang deep and clear, bleeding through my bones with its dark warmth. “That’ll be all for today,” the king declared.
The Chamberlain’s voice piped up, but Rhydan dragged me away, making me unable to make out words as the citizens vocalized their complaints at being dismissed. After all, the day had only just begun and most of them wouldn’t be heard.
Guilt washed through me for that. Although it wasn’t my fault they brought me here, it was my presence that caused the disturbance.
Rhydan steered me up several flights of grand staircases and eventually deposited me in a large room before leaving me alone. I sucked in needed breaths of air as my eyes darted over the walls of books, exemplary tapestries, and the ornately carved wooden desk near the wall of windows.
My heart threatened to run away from me, so I forced myself to focus on the sapphire blue crushed velvet curtains pulled away from the window and the view of the Elleslan capital below. I needed to stop and think. I needed to organize my thoughts and feelings. If I didn’t get control of myself, I might burst and blow away in the wind like a cloud of dandelion seeds.
The door cracked open before I had the chance to calm myself. Nerves gripped me by the back of my neck, forcing me around to face the man sucking up all the light in the room.
“Lilly.” My name on Soren’s lips made my traitorous heart quiver. I sucked in a breath when he stepped forward. Yet he paused, features twisted viciously as his gaze raked over my face.
Rhydan followed the king back into the study. His eyes were wide, and he seemed to hold his breath as he waited.
His Majesty crossed the room, and my damned knees wobbled as if my body wanted to fall into his orbit. Internally, I leashed myself back when he lifted a hand, otherwise I might have leaned into his palm. His finger curled under my chin, lifting my face into the light.
“Who did this to you?” The question cracked through the room, frightening me enough to set my teeth on edge. His thumb delicately skimmed over my chin, and I involuntarily winced from a mild flash of stinging pain.
Rhydan cleared his throat, breaking the strained tension between me and the king. “It was Gerald, Your Majesty. He hit her in the head when she refused to comply. She fell unconscious and slept the entire wayhere.”
Soren glared over his shoulder, eyes narrowed as a shudder rolled through him. He dropped his hand from my face, and I sucked in a breath I didn’t know I was holding.
“I will have his head for this. Send guards to collect Gerald immediately.” The king angled away from me, giving Rhydan his full, fuming attention. “Have him publicly stripped of his rank and title, then put him in the fucking dungeon,” Soren gnashed through his teeth. A maelstrom of feral dominance radiated off his broad form, leaving no room for questions.
“As you wish.” Rhydan sensed that aura as much as I did and simply bowed his head in subservience. The knight glanced at me with a twinkle of knowing in his eyes before departing the study.
Meanwhile, I inched away, trying to put as much distance as possible between me and the man who devastated my heart and life. He spun around when the back of my legs bumped into the desk, causing something to rattle on the surface.
The concern in his blue eyes, rife and wild as a storm unraveled something bound tight in my chest. It pulled me forward as some part of me yearned to ease the pinch of his brows and strain in his gaze. I shoved that secret voice down, deep down, where I ceased to hear it.
“I’m so sorry one of my men hurt you. They were under orders to bring you here and nothing more. Are you alright?” The king closed the distance in a few quick strides, then he raised a hand as though to touch my face again.
