Chapter Five.

A middle-aged woman with her two daughters walking passed when the eldest daughter had pointed at me.

Before I could open my mouth, the woman's eyes filled with worry, she seemed to know who I was, her voice laced with concern she said, "Princess Khaalida, where have you been all this time? The royal guards have been searching for you for almost two months everybody thought you had run away." She looked at my shoulders and gasped, placing one hand over her chest, she dropped her handbag into the youngest daughter's arms. Frowning, I tilted my head I spoke," I am no princess, you must have mistaken me for someone else." She turned and looked towards her eldest daughter and told her to carry on walking home. As the two nodded their heads the woman took ahold of my hands, she spoke again saying," You must be her, your parents have spent the past two months looking for you. Come with me, my dear."

Slightly tightening her grip around my hand she pulled me into a dark alleyway. Once she felt we were far enough away from anyone who could hear us she let go of my hand. With my back to the wall I spoke, " Why did you bring me into this alley, miss can you please tell me everything you know about me and where was seen last- " before finishing my sentence she placed her finger to her lips instructing me to stop talking. She walked towards me, her face riddled with worry she quietly said, " we do not have a lot of time, all I can tell you is you are the daughter of the Royal family, your mother's name is Queen Alaric, your father is King Eric, Your the only heir to the throne. Your parents are very worried people are seeking to try and put an end to your family. You are your parents' last hope to save them and their kingdom but also the product of a long-awaited prophecy. You were last seen two months ago, on your way to meet with the leader of the Milibus de tenebris tribus (warriors of darkness tribe- Latin) to try and convince them to stop the war but you never made it there. You are not safe here dear."

Everything she said made little sense, how could all of this be true. As if heading my thoughts she spoke again, " I know a man who you can trust, he goes by the name Dante Sterling, trust nobody else. He owns the bar two houses from here. When you get there just ask the bartender to see Dante and make sure to tell him Miss Mannion sent, he will know what to do." With that, she looks around once more to make we were alone. With a firm hand, she touched my arm, turning her back towards me she left without saying another word.

Watching her walk away disappearing into the night I tried to make sense of everything she had said. Gathering my thoughts I began walking towards the bar, crossing the street I musted all the courage I could find and opened the door.

With the first step, I took into the bar the first thing that you smelt was liquor and sweat, it was so strong that you could taste. Everyone inside was either wasted, knocked out on the floor, or too busy chatting it up with their friends to have noticed I was there. Not wanting to still look around I kept my eyes straight ahead towards the bartender who was cleaning a glass. Making sure not to bump into anyone I walked to an open chair and waved at the bartender. He was a very tall man, he stood with his chest as if he were once a soldier, he looked at me and I noticed how enchanting his eyes were, with a full beard, blonde hair reaching his shoulders and rolled up sleeves he nodded his head.

Taking five steps he leaned against the counter, cracking a smile he looked me in the eyes, " What can I do for you today miss?" Grinning politely I asked," I'm looking for Dante."

Frowning he looked to his right he whistled and raised his hand, looking at me again he leaned forward," he'll be with shortly miss, anything else?" Quickly glancing behind him I replied," I'm alright thank you." With that, he nodded and left.

Turning in my seat I leaned against the counter and took a deep breath. A few moments later I felt a light tap on my shoulder. Turning around locked eyes with the who I believed was Dante, he too was very tall, the only thing that differed between him and the man I'd spoken to earlier was the color of their hair, everything else was the same. Both having worker men's hands, a strong physique, and stern faces.

Making eye contact I spoke, "Miss Mannion sent me, she told me you could help."

He stared into my eyes saying nothing, sitting up straighter unsure of what to do opened my mouth again but before any words passed lips he spoke;" come with me, but make sure to keep your head down." His voice was deeper than a lion's roar, and as firm as pure bread bull. Wasting no time got up from my seat and followed him around the bar to where there was a narrow opening between wooden planks. He lifted the planks and walked towards the stairs at the far end of the bar. With him being so tall, he made it quite hard to keep up with him. Walking up the final two steps leading two the second floor I made sure to keep my face hidden. hadn't noticed how big the place actually was, the deeper you went, the more corridors seemed to appear, taking note of how many turns we took I told myself to make sure I knew how to get out. The outside of the building looked similar to the interior if it wasn't for the long rugs on the floor one could proudly say everything was bland, lacking a feminine touch to it.

Walking past the eighth door, the man in front of me had not said a word, making a sudden left turn he stopped and took out the keys from his pocket.

With one swift motion, he unlocked the door allowing him to enter first. I stood awkwardly in the middle of the room waiting for him to tell me what I should do next. closing the door, the room became completely dark before I heard a switch and the whole room lit. Taking everything in, the room was very spacious, it had one double bed in the far corner of the room, a desk, and a large rug in the center.

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[Chapter quote: All silence is the recognition of a mystery- Vladimir Nabokov.]