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“Yes…” I whispered out. “Yes, Your Majesty.”
“You allowed a demon to possess you for power,” he said firmly. “A demon cannot possess without permission. Therefore, I can’t overlook this.”
I lowered my head again. “Yes, Your Majesty. I’ll accept your judgment.”
There was silence for a long moment. I assumed he was contemplating the worst possible punishment. I had no intentions to resist. My own personal judgment had been so poor. Better it was left in his hands than mine.
“You will be tried,” the king said finally. “Should you survive, you will work for me permanently.”
I raised my head. It seemed too gracious a judgment to believe. The king’s gaze met mine, his face both fearless and wise.
“I saved your brother’s life and spared yours,” he said. “In return, you will hand that life over to me.”
I convulsed, my legs buckling under me. The guards held me up, the tears in my eyes falling freely. I looked at my brother nodding.
“Yes, Your Majesty,” I said, still unable to believe my ears. “For my brother’s life, you have my loyalty.”
I could barely take a full breath in as Jacques approached me.
“I would wish you luck,” he said, “but if you survive, then I have to train your ass for the rest of my life.”
The guards escorted me to the door, my knees buckling under me from the flood of emotions. I looked over my shoulder to look at Adrian once more, desperate to see him one last time.
His body was still, at peace. Perhaps he was grown enough now to live without me. Perhaps he was the man I knew he could be.
As we reached the door, I caught Esmeralda’s eyes. She gave me a warm smile through her own tears, and my shame consumed me again.
I could never repay her. I could never even apologize.
So I only whispered to her in my thoughts.
Thank you, Esmeralda. Thank you for looking past my demons.
ENDING
I crumpled the paper again, throwing it to the side of the Judges’ room with the others.
Words weren’t enough. No matter how much I tried to apologize or explain—
“Not skilled in the art of love letters, are you?”
I turned to see Adrian unrolling my crumpled pages, reading them with his nose scrunched in amusement. I stood and snatched the paper from his hands.
“Aren’t you supposed to be resting?” I scolded. “You’re not even healed—”
“I can’t stare at the ceiling forever,” he replied. “Besides, I’m fine. There’s no damage.”
He tapped on his side for emphasis. He then winced in regret, but shook his head as if he was just teasing. I knew he wasn’t.
“How’s training?” he asked, changing subjects.
“Brutal.” I sat back in my chair, leaning my head against it. “But I deserve it.”
He shrugged. “Maybe. But you deserve some credit too. You’d be dead if you were completely evil, right? The paintings on your ribs indicate you’re not a complete loser.”
My lip twitched. “Thanks.”
He paused, tapping his fingers against the desk.
