Chapter Five

Thalia's heartbeat raced, nearly exploding.

She held her breath and searched for a good hiding spot as the voice drew closer. She heard another voice. This one was lighter and sounded a bit huskier than the other one.

Two people. Two men.

She knew how terrible it would look if they were to find her. A strange woman in their bedroom. How would she explain herself? She paused her train of thought as she spotted a closet. The closet looked large enough to contain about 20 people; it was practically a room at that point.

She slipped into the closet and closed the door slowly just as the other door opened and she heard footsteps and voices. Thalia held her breath and hugged herself tightly, staying still in a squatting position. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead and trickled down her face.

She tried her best to decipher what they were talking about but she could only hear bit and pieces of their conversation and a few words she heard made her panic more.

Assassination. Anarchists. Infiltrate. Did she land in some kind of weird cult, or mafia, or some weird organization? She shuddered as she imagined a situation where they found her. She continued to listen, and their conversation only made her fear increase.

After a while, she couldn't hear the voices anymore and it was quiet.

She almost screamed when she heard footsteps near the closet. Her immediate instinct was to stand and hold on to the closet door from the inside to prevent the person from opening it.

It didn't make sense, but she was grasping at straws at that moment.

So she did just that, and as she predicted, the person tried to open the door. She tried with all her might, but her knuckles were turning white from holding onto the door so tightly.

She lost the fight.

And as the closet door sprung open, it brought her with it. She ended up sprawled on the floor, looking into forest-green eyes.

Wow.

What a handsome man…

The view she got from the floor probably wasn't the best, but even from there, this man was beautiful. He had black hair, and striking forest green eyes, which she would love to see in a closer range. He had striking features and a nose she could only describe as royal. He was… majestic.

"Who are you?" He asked in a voice that sent shivers down her spine.

Aldric stared at the weirdly dressed woman sprawled out on the floor in bafflement and also wariness.

And maybe… attraction?

She was beautiful.

With lustrous, gold tresses framing her delicate face, she exuded an enchanting allure. Her piercing blue eyes shimmered with a touch of mystery. High cheekbones accentuated her flawless porcelain complexion.

Graceful and elegant, she possessed an innate beauty that seemed to transcend ordinary realms. Her blue eyes were sharp and deep, and they reminded him of the sea. Her golden, luscious hair was spread around her like a blanket. He was lost in her beauty for quite a while before he snapped himself out of it.

What was she doing in his closet?

How did she even get in there?

As far as he knew, security in the palace was very tight and it has always been tight. The strict security system would make it almost impossible for an outsider to sneak in. So how did this weird woman get into the palace, and his quarters and most of all, who was she?

“Who are you?” He finally asked.

She just stared.

Aldric's head started to go places. Was she one of the Anarchists? Is that why she looked and was dressed so weirdly?

His heart dropped to his stomach, and he took a few steps back from her. That was the only explanation.

After a while she finally spoke, "I… I'm Thalia," she said, and even though she stuttered, her voice sounded like honey and sunshine. It was a velvety cascade that flowed like liquid gold.

"What are you doing here?" Aldric asked once again, reinforcing his posture and voice to look more confident. Even if this woman who he was weirdly attracted to was a spy, he couldn't afford to show her how on edge he was and how tired he felt from carrying the weight of the nation.

"Frankly, I don't know why I'm here either." The woman said while trying to stand up from the floor. Even though he wanted to keep listening to her voice, or staring into her stunning blue eyes, he needed to keep his guard up.

"Who are you?" he asked again, taking another cautious step back from her direction.

She stammered, "Th_ Thalia," she swallowed, "I'm Thalia."

"If you don't_" Aldric pauses when the door to his room opens, revealing Darian, who was looking into his book and saying something.

"I forgot to inform you of your meeting with the ministers tomorrow to discuss the pav_" Darian paused both his speech and stride when he noticed Thalia in the room. He immediately frowned and asked, "Who is this?"