Chapter 43

Nalani's POV

A week has passed since I was saved from the dungeons by the King. I wondered what would have happened to me if he hadn't saved me that day. I would have died from hunger and exhaustion. Being cornered like that made me think of a bunch of things. Like what exactly happened between my father, the late king, and Sir Carl.

The fact that he left me to rot in the dungeons while he was the one who brought me here, was highly suspicious. I understand he might not want to be involved but washing his hands like that meant one thing, he didn't need me anymore. Well, some things have solved themselves, I guess. I didn't want to help him anyway.

I have been fiddling with the idea of telling the King the truth about how I came to the Castle. Since he has confessed his feelings for me and asked for my hand, I think it would be best to place all our cards on the table. I wanted to give him a chance but I won't until I tell him the truth.

I don't want him to resent me in any way. I'm sure he might be mad at me and he might ignore me for a few days but he will listen to my explanation, right? He won't leave me because I lied. I mean, I didn't have much of a choice at the time. My father's reputation was on the line.  Do you think he will give me a chance to explain everything without being biased?

I was at a crossroads. I could tell him the truth and face his wrath right now before we become further involved or I could keep silent and continue our relationship until the day he eventually finds out. One thing about secrets is, they always find a way to come out. And when they do you might not seem as innocent as you are now.

I thought about it for a while and I decided to tell him the truth. It was safer this way. Before he can make the worst mistake of his life by marrying a traitor's daughter without his knowledge. Judging from his character he will give me a chance to explain and that's all I needed. I needed him to listen. I will reveal the truth myself.

I spent the week in the King's chambers. He refused to let me leave, again. He has been somewhat clingy since he saved my life. More clingy than usual. He comes to eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner with me every day and then goes about his day. His chambers are surrounded by knights whether he is around or not.

I thought it was excessive until I remembered what happened to us in the last two weeks. Even if he made the knights follow us around the castle I wouldn't complain. At least then, I could have an alibi if something occurred. I knew I could protect myself but the King didn't know that and I wanted to keep it that way.

He doesn't need to know, the woman he was in love with, can challenge his knights and win. Where did all the badass women go? I miss you. Somehow the King had tamed me. Or was it working at this war-infested Castle? If I stayed here for too long I would forget how to fight.

I need to start training. It seems the Castle was too dangerous for Kellen and I. Kellen. How was she faring? I wish I could go and see her but the king has limited my movement to his chambers. I was not to leave his chambers under any circumstances. I wanted to propose to the King to have Kellen moved to the other Castle. There she would be safe and away from all the drama and power struggles happening here.

I could sneak a peek at her and then come back. He won't know I left and I won't tell him. I climbed out of bed and changed into the dress placed on the chair next to the bed. The dress was prepared by the King for me when I decided to stay on the balcony. He didn't realize he was giving me clothing to go outside.

After I was dressed I opened his door slowly and cautiously and peeked outside. That's weird. There were no knights outside. Where did they go? There should be at least two knights at all times. I found it strange but I decided to ignore it and take it as a blessing for making things easier for me.

I tiptoed out of his chambers and headed for the servant's quarters. Before I could reach my destination, a knight blocked my path. From his stance, he seemed a bit off. I have been around knights for far too long to not notice his strange stance.

"Who are you ?" I asked without beating around the bush.

He remained silent. But since his cover was blown he released his sword from its sheath. Shit, he was an assassin and not a knight.

" I will kill you where you stand!" he announced.

*************

King Ambrose POV..

I left my office quickly to go and have lunch with Nalani. I made it a habit to eat with her every day. I knew she was bored out of her mind for staying in bed all day but I refused to relent and allow her outside my chambers. I wish she knew I was trying to protect her. The culprit was yet to be found and chances were he or she was looking for an opening to kill Nalani and pin everything on her.

So I did what I had to do and kept her under house arrest. Knights were stationed outside my chambers to keep her in and everyone out. I felt more at ease with her in there so I could continue my investigation.

Ordering the Castle to be on lockdown was my way of keeping the culprit from running away. He or she had nowhere to go. The Castle was a fortress and it was built like that for easier defence. I knew keeping everyone locked in for a long period would make them anxious. And the more anxious they were the more mistakes they make. I was betting on those mistakes.

Everything has been similarly calm for a week so I knew it was about time for the assassin to make his move. I opened my chamber door ready to tell Nalani about my morning but she was nowhere to be found. I searched the bathroom, balcony, and closet but she wasn't around.

"Fuck! Nalani, why do you never listen to me!" I growled

Did she comprehend how much danger she was in walking around the Castle without protection? Does she know how many enemies I have? Did the poison incident teach her nothing?

Where could she be? I thought about all the places she likes to go to. But none seemed like the right answer at the moment. Until it occurred to me she might have gone to see her friend. She kept asking me to see her and I kept rejecting the idea. She disobeyed my orders and went anyway. Classic Nalani.

I rushed out of my chambers and headed towards the servant's quarters. As we were about to take a turn what I saw shocked me to my boots. A scene I never thought I would witness in my entire life.

Nalani was up in the air, where she turned her entire body and landed behind the person who was attacking her. He was dressed like a knight but I could instantly tell he wasn't one of us. As my Knights moved to help her out I stopped them. I needed to be sure that what I was seeing was true.

Sure enough, Nalani fought like a trained warrior. She moved with so much agility than most of my Knights. The way she handled the assassin left me speechless. The person attacking her had a sword and you would think he was at an advantage but it didn't matter. In a split second, his sword was down and Nalani kicked him hard on the head which made him lose his footing and hit the wall behind him.

He fell like a sack of potatoes. Nalani stood easily and arranged her dress before she dusted her hands and left without a care in the world.

" Your Highness" one of my Knights started speaking

" I know" I groaned

I motioned for them to move the assassin to the dungeons and begin the interrogation. We needed to know who was behind everything.

" Who the hell are you Nalani?"