A choice (I apologize for the delay in updates. Returning to normal updates moving forward<3)
A choice (I apologize for the delay in updates. Returning to normal updates moving forward<3)
Aribella POV
It's been three days since I’ve seen Kaelar. Three days he’s not been posted outside of my bedroom. Three days since our last stolen glance.
When Johnston said he would be needed elsewhere, I never considered that he would be gone long term.
The first day wasn’t terrible. I expected him to come visit some time in the night, but when he didn’t, I woke up feeling a pain in my chest. The second day was worse…. Not being able to even catch his golden eyes on me from a distance.
I didn’t realize until that second day how much I relied on Kaelar’s presence in my life.
He didn’t come the second night either.
I’ve gone about my duties. I’ve attended my dance classes, dancing robotically according to Ms. Milvoch. But after dancing in my room with Kaelar, dancing alone or with Rhory feels wrong.
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner were all quiet and depressing. Rhory and Emrys are still teetering on the edge of collapse. Mael has been noticeably absent, as has Johnston, and I feel like I’m living in an alternate universe… The third one in my lifetime.
“Would you indulge me in a walk?” Rhory held out his elbow, and I considered telling him that I was unwell again, but that excuse was likely getting old. Instead, I looped my arm with his, ignoring the ache in my feet from this morning’s dance, and followed dutifully at his side.
The silence of the Kingdom’s grounds stretched between us, and at first, I wondered if Rhory would say anything at all. The minutes ticked past as the cool, late-morning air chilled my body.
“I think this might be the quietest things have been since your arrival at the castle,” Rhory spoke, but his face was angled towards the sky, and I got the impression he wasn’t just speaking about me.
“I think you might be right.”
“My father wants you gone, Aribella,” Rhory’s warm, hazel eyes turned towards me, and I realized now what this was.
“And you’ve agreed to get rid of me, is that correct?”
Something akin to betrayal took up residence in my chest, almost overtaking the intense sadness I’ve felt over Kaelar’s disappearance.
I’d pledged my loyalty to Rhory and the Kingdom of Sacaris, despite his constant pushing me away. He’d quite literally dropped me back off at home, only for me to come racing back when I realized they were in danger.
My life has been threatened. Hell, I’ve nearly died to ensure that Rhory was safe, and yet here I stand, on the verge of being tossed away yet again.
“No,” he shook his head, shocking me. “We actually got into quite the heated argument,” he huffed, a humorless chuckle falling from his lips. “If you can believe that.”
“I’m sensing a but coming,” I halt my steps just beyond the now refilled koi pond. New fish swim leisurely, unbeknownst to them of the tragedy that took the lives of the previous koi. The blood stains have long been washed away and the water was crystal clear.
“There have been rumors circulating around the castle since Mikko’s visit and Mael’s disappearance,” Rhory sighed, releasing my arm from his. “I normally wouldn’t put any stake in rumors, but these I cannot ignore. Especially with the runaround my father has been giving Kaelar.”
The mention of Kaelar has my curiosity piqued, and I turn towards Rhory, waiting for an explanation.
“My father is planning a draft,” he whispered, clearing his throat. “From what I’ve discovered, those in low poverty areas, specifically men, will be required to come join the royal guard in the fight against Mikko and his clan.”
The gears began turning in my head. Humans against vampires… That was an almost impossible fight. Not only that, but he’s choosing those in lower poverty levels, which feels intentional….
“He’s trying to eliminate the lower class,” my voice was barely above a whisper.
“That was Emrys’s assessment of the situation,” he interlocked his fingers, eyes focused back on the pond.
“If he only drafts the men, that leaves the women vulnerable…”
“Precisely.”
“What are we missing here….” I sifted through every interaction that I had with Johnston. Then Mael, and finally Mikko. Something about this particular situation felt connected. Not to mention the wild card that is Devin/Stephan.
The meeting that seemingly went well, only for Johnston to ask as though it didn’t. Then that bizarre encounter with Mael, only for him to disappear immediately after.
“Wait,” my eyes widened. “You don’t think Mikko and the King are working together, do you?”
“As much as I’d like to vehemently deny that theory,” Rhory’s chest rose and fell with a heavy exhale, “I’m not sure that anything I believed about my father and this Kingdom holds true now.”
He swallows, the sound echoing around me before opening his mouth once again, “My father has given me a choice, Aribella, which I will now give to you, though I'm certain I already know what you will choose to do.”
Here is that but that I ignorantly pushed away only moments before. I could feel it in the air around us. The tension crackled and sparked like a live wire... Even the fish seemed to be aware of the shift in the atmosphere, their bodies frozen in time.
“You can either choose to join the royal guard in their fight against Mikko’s clan or Kaelar will be hanged for breaking the terms of his contract.”