Page 172 of Spring Guardians & Songbirds

After lacing my boots neatly, he stood to his full height, towering over me. “Because I didn’t want to leave just yet.”

“Go, Kilian.”

“Anything else? Hair clips or pins you need me to tie your hair with?”

I rolled my eyes. “Leave.”

He cupped the side of my head and lowered to press a kiss to my cheek. A very long one. “Goodbye, my love,” he murmured to my ear before fading away.

“Goodbye.”

Demir narrowed his angry viridescent gaze on me, his nostrils flaring as if he was sniffing the air. “You have another scent on you.”

I scoffed. “Good morning to you, too, General.”

“Why do you have a male’s scent on you?”

Trying to hide the panic that question rang in me, I donned a grin. “What are you, a dog? And I do have another male’s scent on me. Who I bring to my bed is none of your concern.”

He mounted his flaring brown and black spotted horse with a look of disdain on his usually ever pleased face. He was slowly slipping. “It is a concern. You are my Princess and I serve your father.”

“It is certainly vital for him to know who his daughter brings to her bed, you must rush ahead, Demir, tell him how I was fucked just like all your little expeditions up north,” I retorted, mounting my horse and nudging to trot ahead of the squadron.

Ha;f way to Tenebrose, a soldier rode towards us as Demir’s team and mine made a halt.

“Messenger,” he yelled.

All of the squadron turned to curiously eye one another at the halt. Why was a messenger sent to us? Did father want Demir back on the mountains? Had they noticed something after Kilian and I had gotten the sceptre?

The soldier brought out a piece of paper from his satchel, pointing it to me. “A letter for Her Highness from Captain Elias Venzor,” he said, handing it to me.

What was the fool thinking, making our exchange so public? What could have not waited that he had to send a messenger and in front of Demir at that?

The young general was staring at me with an arrogant smirk. “Seeking more consolation or is it strictly business with the soon to be brother-in-law?” he asked, angrily. His reaction somewhat pleased me, my old flirting skills were not all so rusty after all, he seemed to have truly taken a liking to me. However, father would be aware of my communications with Elias, who was soon to be very hardly punched on his perfect jaw.

I opened the letter. One short sentence was written across and signed by Elias Venzor.

Meet me at the Bear tavern in the north of Tenebrose city, at once.

I studied the piece of paper back and forth as if more writing was to suddenly show up. Pearl paper. Neat writing. Elias. At once?

I handed the piece of ridiculous paper to Demir, who read it before narrowing his eyes at me. “Permission not granted.”

“I outrank you, General. Remember that this pretty face is a Princess.” Bowing my head, I greeted farewell and charged forward to meet the eager fool who had sent the letter.

The city was unusually quiet and so was the tavern who had always boomed with noise and music.

“Hello?” I called as I entered a completely quiet, empty and dark tavern. There was not a soul inside. Sigh. I had just entered a very poorly thought through trap. An amateur had me in his grip, my condolences were soon in order to the poor soul. A presence behind me tickled my senses and I stilled as a cloth covered my mouth and a sack fell over my head.

How many times could one princess be kidnapped?

My head had dropped to the side, I cringed at the pain across my sore neck. I had been tied to a chair so tight that droplets of blood dripped from my wrists, every movement and friction sent a shooting pain up my arms. Barley, wheat and old pine wood had scented the dusty room that was coating my airways, it smelled of a storage room. Before I could let my imagination take course, the sack was pulled back from my head exposing my sore eyes to the bright room. A storage room as I had concluded, empty as blitzes of sunlight flinted onto the large hollow room. The wood floor cracked as a tall lanky figure stepped from behind me into view.

Reuben took a seat in a chair afront me, crossing his arms and legs satisfied at his achievement. Grinning ear to ear, his blue eyes burned with a sickening flame of vileness, eager to take what he wanted from me. Retribution.

This idiot was going to ruin my plan.

I let out a short laugh and his smile finally dropped. “Step one: demand of the kidnaped. I can tell you are new to this, but own to your actions. As painful as the torture of being stared at by you is, it is not entirely deadly.”