Chapter 3

Angelica’s POV

                My father of course shut the party down, and locked the estate up like a fortress, not allowing anyone in or out, until every single guest had been interrogated and accounted for. The guests that once had smiles on their faces from all the riches at the party now stood there in a single line, with either a sober or a confused look now on their faces, as they waited to see if they passed the exam that Selena was giving them all, as I sat there watching them from afar.

                My parents had insisted that I head upstairs to my room, but I wasn’t going anywhere if the person truly was inside our home. Since I was the only one that had seen or sensed his presence, my argument to stay won, but of course with stipulations, I was made to agree too.

                As my eyes looked at each guest in the line, not a single one of them stood out at me, and I knew that this was a waste of time, as it was clear that the person that I had seen was gone. My power that had been siphoned was now completely replenished thanks to tonight’s full moon, and I found myself on edge now knowing that someone had the ability to incapacitate me, so easily.

                I had worked with Selena since the day my powers began to show themselves, and I was more than capable of defending myself in combat, but she had never worked with me in a situation like this. Hell, I honestly didn’t even know that it was even possible for a creature of this world to be able to siphon my goddess’ powers like that, without a drop of my blood being involved. But it was now clear that it was possible, and I had to find a way to protect myself from ever allowing this to happen to me again. Vulnerable was never a word in my vocabulary until now, and I hated the way it was making me feel, especially sitting here with my father’s men on guard waiting to protect me.

                My eyes moved to the front of the line, where Joffrey and his parents were now being scanned by Selena, and my heart sank in my chest, as I worried that he might be somehow involved, seeming how kind he was to me. But something inside of me washed that worry away, as if I knew that this wasn’t possible, especially since he was the one that had saved me, by calling out for my father.

                Unfortunately, in the light of what had happened, I didn’t blame him if he never wanted to talk to me again, but to be honest, I felt an emptiness in my heart thinking about it. Joffrey was the first person outside of the walls of this house, that I had actually talked to and made a connection with, and thinking about that connection with him being lost was painful, but I was used to being alone in this world.

                Thankfully, Selena waved him and his parents through, clearing them of any involvement, and I couldn’t help but feel relief knowing that the kindness he showed me tonight was genuine. I watched as his parents and him were ushered out of the room, but unlike his parents who moved swiftly to leave, he began to show resistance, as he turned in my direction.

                “I wish to bid Angelica good night.” He said to my father’s men, as he refused to leave the room, making his parents stop to plea with him, to leave at once, but Joffrey stood his ground against them.

                Standing from my seat, just about to demand they leave him through, my father steps in and says, “Let him pass.” Shocking not only me, but Joffrey too, as both our heads turn to look at my father. “Wish her goodnight, but then you must leave.” He then tells Joffrey, who quickly makes haste, crossing the once dance floor to me.

                My father’s men that were guarding me stepped to the side allowing him passage, and to my surprise when Joffrey reached me, he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into an embrace, as he whispers in my ear, “I am so thankful that you’re okay, but I can’t shake the feeling that this is all my fault.”

                “No.” I said to him, pulling from his embrace, not wanting him to think that he had anything to do with this attack on me, but also wondering why he was blaming himself.  “Why do you say that?” I now ask him, as I stared at him confused, but he just shook his head at me, like he was not at ease to say.

                Unfortunately, I too was not able to tell him the truth, but I was thankful that he wasn’t looking at me with the look of distaste in his eyes, as I was sure after what he had just witnessed, he would run for the hills.

                Finally, he broke his silence, and says to me, “Angelica, I truly enjoyed my evening with you, and I pray to our Moon Goddess to watch over you and to keep you safe. I wish our night hadn’t ended like this.”

                He then leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on my forehead, before he went to turn away from me, but I caught his hand with mine stopping him, as I said, “Wait.” Turning back to me, I asked him, “Can we still be friends?”

                A soft smile formed on Joffrey’s face, as he nodded his head to me, but our time was up, as my father’s men moved towards us, choking out what little space they had given us. Joffrey turned not wanting to cause anymore problems tonight, and made his way back to his parents, before he turned around and waved goodbye to me. Even though it was a small gesture, it meant something so big to me, as it was a sign that the friendship that we had formed tonight remained intact, and that I had a friend outside these walls of what I called my prison.