Chapter 189 TEIGEN XIII
RYKER
"My Lord Duke" Commander Tanner bows and I follow in his gesture, after being thoroughly satisfied with my ogling the Duke.
"Ah, Commander"he acknowledges Commander Tanner, his gaze shifting to me. "Is this the young promising soldier you told me about?"
Promising?
"Yes My Lord Duke"
The Duke took a long hard look at me and I could tell that the screws in his head were turning, he was analysing me if I would be good for the job.
"I trust your judgement Commander. Are you ready to serve boy?"
I swallow the lump in my throat, "Y-yes my Lord Duke"
He hums in thought before opening his hand to one of the guards who pulled out a scroll and a feathered pen with ink, handing over to the Duke.
"I believe you have gone through the terms and benefits of this job arrangement?"
I nod, "yes my Lord"
"Good, sign here and I will show you my daughter. You are to protect her at all times and at all costs, should you fail you agree that any punishment I deem fit will be meted out to you" he spoke with all seriousness, his hard gaze on me.
I inhaled a deep breath, taking hold of the open scroll and the feather. I sign my name and immediately the scroll is taken away.
"Good. Now no one is supposed to know the terms of this agreement, you are to be my daughter's personal guards. You are not to leave her side, anywhere she goes, you follow"
As if on cue the wooden doors open again and the guard announces, "The lady of the manor, lady of Nordhaven is here"
I turn to the door as everyone else and watch her walk in and the moment I catch sight of her my eyes widen in shock. She keeps her eyes casted low as she walks in, two women who I assumed were her ladies in waiting following beside her, the stop at a point not going any further.
She stops beside her dad, still not seeing me. I keep my eyes trained on her, even though I was yet to see her face fully I could recognize those beautiful curls anywhere. What was the veiled dancer doing here, at the Duke's manor? And with ladies in waiting?
She had a veil covering her head, falling gracefully down to her feet. A small tiara like headpiece accompanied it. Her dress was no mere feet either, she was adorned like a true princess from a noble family and when her father finally spoke, realisation struck me hard.
"This is my daughter, Elara of Nordhaven" her gaze flickered up to meet mine and they went wide with panic.
I was taken aback, their electric hue tightening with fear and recognition. So this was her, Elara, the veiled dancer.
"My dear, this is Ryker your new personal guard. I promised to get you and I did, I hope you are pleased my flower"
She couldn't rip her eyes from me.
"Y-yes father, I am very pleased" she responds without looking away. Her father came into her face, pressing a kiss on her forehead before sending her away. As she left, she casted me one last frightful glance before exiting the room and somehow I could tell there was something really wrong here.
I could feel there was something wrong going on here. Did the Duke know that his daughter was the infamous veiled dancer?
The way her metallic blue eyes dimmed, her gaze casted low with timidity while she seemed to shrink beside her father. She looked like such a different person than she was when she was so elegantly dancing, she was beautiful, breathtaking, fiery, her passion for the art seeping through every pore and enchanting every person.
Her presence cast a spell, leaving everybody gaping. But just now she was quiet, smaller, the burning inferno that seemed to be part of her eyes had vanished. I kept my lips closed, watching as an older noble man walks in, his attire strikingly similar to the Duke's but significantly less adorned to show his lower rank.
His eyes met mine, his cold stare laced with malice. I was taken aback, wondering what it was about me he already didn't like. He walks to the Duke's side, "My Lord Duke" he greets, standing right next to him.
Then I was dismissed, taken by Commander Tanner to the Servant's Quarters where I would meet the tailor who would give me my guard's attire. All through my journey my eyes searched every hallway, every door for Elara but there was no sign of her anywhere.
"Is that the new guard for Lady Elara?" Fowler questions, already knowing the answer. He had done his investigation, even going as far as to eavesdrop on the conversation between the Duke and Commander Tanner concerning Ryker's qualifications.
All of the guards that currently surrounded the Duke reported back to him on any and every issue so he was more than aware of this recent development, he just needed the Duke to believe he was not more than his trusted advisor.
"Yes, Fowler my friend. He is a skilled young lad, perfect to protect my flower. The risk of the unknown threat still looks over our heads. You tried your best but we still could not find the culprit responsible for my wife's demise, that truth haunts me every night and I would rather die than let the same fate befall my Elara"
The Duke spoke of the measures of pain that his heart dealt with on the dreadful day his wife was murdered, poisoned in the very walls of his manor by someone in their midst. All the maidens in waiting were drilled and killed for their failing to protect the Duchess.
Ever since then the Duke had never been the same, He had made sure his daughter was never without a guard. Paranoia and fear became his closest allies.
"I thought you wanted to marry her off to the young Sawyer. He proved to be a very good match for the Lady Elara. His family is well off and he is said to inherit a large property and fortune once he marries" Fowler recounts, watching Duke closely for his reaction.
The Duke had been delaying their meeting for quite some time, Fowler could recognize his reluctance to marry his daughter off but for Fowler to achieve his goal Elara would have to be out of the manor.
The Grand Duke walks over to his chair with Fowler following steadily behind him. He slumps down, dropping his head in his hand in thought
"I know that Fowler. But I am not ready to let my Elara go yet, she stood a risk of being harmed before but now with this guard she is safe. I do not have to marry her off to protect her, she can stay right here with me"
Fowler hated this. He inhaled a calming breath, trying not to loose his temper.