Chapter Ten: Personal Guard

Emerald POV

The sun rises. I do not.

I have been sitting on the edge of my bed since they dragged me back inside. My knees still ache from hitting the stone floor. My wrists still burn where the guards grabbed me.

But worse than the pain is the shame.

I tried to escape. And I failed.

Now everyone knows. The guards. The servants. Him.

Especially him.

I press the heels of my palms against my eyes. The darkness behind my lids is kinder than the sunlight creeping through the window.

What am I going to do?

The lock clicks.

I look up.

Cassius walks in. No knock. No announcement. Just his boots on my floor and his shadow on my wall.

He is alone.

No guards. No Massimus. Just him.

I stand. My legs are weak. I do not sit back down. I will not look weak in front of him.

"Good morning," he says.

"Is it?"

"I slept well."

"I do not care how you slept."

He walks to the window. Opens the curtains. Sunlight floods the room. I squint. My eyes burn.

"You tried to escape last night," he says.

"You already know that."

"I want to hear you say it."

"Why?"

"Because I want to know if you are ashamed."

I stare at him. "I am not ashamed of wanting to be free."

"Then you should be."

He turns from the window. His face is hard. His eyes are cold.

"You climbed out a third-floor window. You could have died."

"I did not."

"You got lucky."

"I got caught. There is a difference."

His jaw tightens. "Do you think this is funny?"

"No." My voice shakes. I hate that it shakes. "I do not think any of this is funny. I am a prisoner in a castle that is not my home. I am owned by a man who treats me like property. And the one time I try to leave, I get dragged back here like a dog on a leash."

"A dog on a leash is safer than a dog running free."

"I am not a dog."

"No." He steps closer. "You are something else. I just do not know what yet."

"Then let me go. And you will never have to find out."

"I cannot do that."

"You mean you will not."

"I mean I cannot."

We stare at each other.

The silence between us is heavy. Thick. Like fog.

"Why?" I ask finally.

"Why what?"

"Why can't you let me go?"

He does not answer.

I wait.

He still does not answer.

"Because you do not have a reason," I say. "That is why. You keep me here because you can. Because you are the king. Because no one tells you no."

"People tell me no."

"And what happens to them?"

He says nothing.

"That is what I thought."

I walk toward the door. He steps in front of me. Blocks my path.

"Where are you going?"

"To get breakfast."

"The servants will bring breakfast to you."

"I want to eat in the hall."

"No."

"You cannot keep me locked in this room forever."

"I am not locking you in."

"Then let me leave."

"You can leave. With an escort."

"An escort?"

"Yes." He crosses his arms. "From now on, you do not go anywhere alone. Not to the dining hall. Not to the garden. Not to the training grounds. Not to the washroom."

My blood turns hot. "You are assigning me a babysitter."

"I am assigning you a guard."

"That is the same thing."

"No. A babysitter changes diapers. A guard keeps you alive."

"I do not need a guard."

"You tried to escape last night."

"That does not mean I need a guard."

"It means you cannot be trusted to stay where you are safe."

"I am not safe here."

"You are safer here than anywhere else."

I want to scream. I want to hit him. I want to throw something at his stupid handsome face.

Instead, I take a breath.

"Who?" I ask.

"Who what?"

"Who is my guard?"

"You will see."

He walks to the door. Opens it.

"Come in," he says.

A woman walks in.

She is tall. Taller than me. Broad shoulders. Muscular arms. Her hair is cropped short. Her face is hard. Her eyes are darker than midnight.

She wears the uniform of the royal guard. Sword on her hip. Dagger on her thigh. Boots that look like they could kick down a door.

She kneels in front of Cassius.

"My Lord."

"Rise."

She stands. Turns to face me.

Her eyes scan me from head to toe. Assessing. Judging.

I feel like a piece of meat at auction all over again.

"This is Rina," Cassius says. "She is the best soldier in my guard. She has killed seventeen men in hand-to-hand combat. She speaks four languages. And she has never lost a fight."

I look at Rina. She looks at me.

"Congratulations," I say. "You have a very impressive resume."

"Thank you," she says.

Her voice is low. Calm. No emotion.

"Rina will accompany you everywhere," Cassius continues. "If you try to escape, she will stop you. If you try to hurt yourself, she will stop you. If anyone tries to hurt you, she will kill them."

"That is very dramatic."

"I am a dramatic person."

I look at Rina again. "Do you want this assignment?"

"It is not my place to want or not want."

"That is not an answer."

"It is the only answer I have."

Cassius smiles.

Almost.

His lips twitch. Just barely. But I see it.

"You think this is funny," I say.

"I think this is necessary."

"You are enjoying this."

"I am enjoying nothing." He walks to the door. Pauses. "Rina. Report to me every night. Tell me everywhere she goes. Everyone she talks to. Everything she eats."

"Yes, my Lord."

"And if she gives you trouble..."

"She will not."

Cassius looks at me. "She will."

He leaves.

The door clicks shut.

I stare at Rina.

She stares at me.

"So," I say. "This is awkward."

"I do not do awkward."

"Of course you don't."

I walk to the window. Look out at the garden. The bushes where I landed. The path where they caught me.

Now I will never be able to try again. Not with her watching.

"You are angry," Rina says.

"I am not angry."

"You are angry. Your hands are shaking."

I look down. She is right.

"I am not angry," I say again. "I am frustrated. There is a difference."

"No. There is not."

I turn from the window. "Why did you agree to this?"

"I did not agree. I was ordered."

"You could have said no."

"No. I could not."

"Why?"

She tilts her head. Studies me.

"Because I am loyal," she says. "And because the Alpha saved my life once. I owe him a debt. This is how I pay it."

"What did he save you from?"

"Death."

She does not elaborate. I do not ask.

The morning passes slowly.

Rina stands by the door. Does not sit. Does not lean. Does not blink.

I try to read a book. I cannot focus.

I try to eat breakfast. The fruit is good. The meat makes my stomach turn.

Rina watches me push the meat around my plate.

"You do not like pork," she says.

"I like pork."

"Then why are you not eating it?"

"Because I am not hungry."

"You ate all the fruit."

"I like fruit."

"You did not eat fruit yesterday."

I set down my fork. "Are you always this observant?"

"Yes."

"It is annoying."

"I know."

I stand up. Walk to the door.

"Where are you going?" Rina asks.

"The library."

"The Alpha said—"

"The Alpha said I could go anywhere with an escort. You are my escort. So escort me."

She stares at me for a moment.

Then she opens the door.

"After you," she says.

The library is empty.

Books line the walls from floor to ceiling. Dust motes float in the sunlight. The air smells like old paper and forgotten stories.

I walk to the back corner. The section where I found the prophecy book before.

Rina follows.

"You read a lot," she says.

"I did not have much else to do back home."

"Back home?"

"Black Moon. The werewolf territories."

"You are a long way from home."

"Yes."

"Do you miss it?"

I run my fingers along the book spines.

"No," I say. "There is nothing there for me anymore."

Rina says nothing.

I find the book. The one about the Dragon God bloodline. I pull it from the shelf. Open it to the marked page.

The child of dragon and wolf shall unite the races or destroy them forever.

I read the words again.

Unite or destroy.

No pressure.

"What is that book?" Rina asks.

"Nothing."

"It does not look like nothing."

"It is nothing." I close the book. Slide it back onto the shelf. "Just old stories."

"You are a bad liar."

"So I have been told."

We stand in silence.

Rina watches me. I watch the books.

"Why did you try to escape?" she asks.

"Because I do not want to be here."

"Where do you want to be?"

"Anywhere else."

"Anywhere else is worse."

"You do not know that."

"I have been anywhere else." Her voice is quiet. "I have seen what is out there. Slavers. Bandits. Men who would do worse things to you than the Alpha ever would."

"The Alpha bought me."

"He saved you."

"He bought me."

"He saved you from the black market. Do you know what happens to slaves who are not bought?"

I do not answer.

"They die," Rina says. "Slowly. Badly. Alone."

I look away.

"You should be grateful," she continues. "The Alpha is cruel. But he is not evil. There is a difference."

"Everyone keeps saying that."

"Because it is true."

I walk to the window. Stare out at the mountains in the distance.

Freedom is out there. Somewhere. Behind those peaks. Past those forests.

But Rina is right. I do not know what is waiting for me.

And that terrifies me more than Cassius ever could.

That night, I sit on my bed.

Rina stands by the door.

"You do not have to stay in here," I say. "You can wait in the hallway."

"My orders are to stay with you."

"Even while I sleep?"

"Especially while you sleep."

"That is creepy."

"That is my job."

I lie down. Stare at the ceiling.

"Rina?"

"Yes?"

"Have you ever been in love?"

Silence.

"I will take that as a no."

"I did not say no."

"Then what did you say?"

She is quiet for a long moment.

"I said I was thinking," she says finally. "Love is complicated. Like war. Everyone thinks they know how it works until they are in the middle of it."

"That is very philosophical."

"That is very true."

I close my eyes.

"Goodnight, Rina."

"Goodnight, Emerald."

I do not sleep.

I lie awake, thinking about escape. About freedom. About the mountains in the distance.

But also about Cassius.

The way he looked at me when he assigned Rina. Not angry. Not cruel.

Almost... worried.

He is not evil.

Rina's words echo in my head.

I do not want to believe her.

But I am not sure I believe myself anymore either.

Cassius POV

I stand outside her door.

Rina is inside. I can hear her breathing. Steady. Calm. Alert.

She is the best. She will keep Emerald safe.

From everyone.

Even from me.

I press my palm against the wood.

Why do I care so much?

I do not have an answer.

I walk away.