Angelica's chest felt heavy and breathing became difficult. She wasn't stupid. Lord Rayven knew about her father's plans, but he was using other words to warn her. Knowing something like that and not telling the King would otherwise be seen as betrayal. Why was he doing it then? Why was he warning her and not telling the King?She took a deep breath. "I will. Thank you," she said and tried to walk past him before she could see her reaction, but he blocked her way. His gaze hardened. "Lady Davis, you might charm the King but you won't fool me. I don't know why you have taken an interest in him, but I would be careful if I were you. Don't try anything stupid." What? Angelica became confused. Did he suspect her also? He went from helping her to protecting the King."I don't want any harm to come to His Majesty," she assured him. "I hope not." They looked at each other for a short moment before Angelica felt uncomfortable and pushed past him, rushing to find her brother. She didn't k
Eva combed Angelica's hair while she thought about her dream. A red-haired woman? Why? There weren't many people who had the same hair color as her. The woman also predicted that Skender would be King which made her think that this was something that had happened in the past. Something that was more than a dream. It felt like a memory as strange as that sounded.The way they were dressed was different from how people dressed today, which also indicated that this was in the past. Angelica shook her head, thinking of how crazy she was for actually believing that this could be a memory of the past. Skender would look different today if it was a memory and she would have been the woman, or at least someone she knew. But the woman was unfamiliar to her. Skender. He looked so beautiful in her dream with his clear blue eyes and vibrant smile. It was unlike the way he smiled today. In her dreams, he seemed genuinely happy until the woman rejected him. In reality, there was always a hint of
Angelica was surprised to find him in a bookstore. He stared at her hand on top of his and Angelica quickly removed her hand away. He picked up the book from the shelf before looking at her. "I'll take it," he said. Well, it is not like she could fight him to get it. She nodded. "Do you like reading?" Angelica smiled, realizing that he was being sarcastic. He always seemed annoyed. Eva watched them from a distance, looking worried. "Then maybe you can lend it to me. I'll read it fast and give it back to you so you can put it on your shelf." He narrowed his eyes. "Do you like to read about monsters?" She nodded, "Yes. It seems like we have the same taste." Angelica wondered why he picked this particular book. She could hear him say the title 'the monster is me' in his dark husky voice. She would have believed him had he said so. Lord Rayven ignored her and went to pay for the book. The seller's eyes widened and his hands trembled slightly as he received his money. A sigh lef
Heartless? If she only knew? He watched her get dragged away by her maid, who had been panicking the whole time. Foolishly brave, he thought to himself before going back to the castle. Skender was busy dealing with humans when he went to see him. Rayven couldn't understand how he could be so patient with the old men talking about making their kingdom better when the only thing they cared about was their own personal benefits. But who was he to judge? He was just like them. Selfish. When the meeting ended, the courtiers and Lords left the meeting room avoiding him on their way out and only the seven of them remained. "You missed the meeting, Rayven." Skender spoke displeased as he sat down. "I have nothing to add," Rayven said, pulling out a chair to sit down as well. He put his book beside him. Lazarus leaned over his shoulder, taking a look at the book he bought. "The monster is me." He read the title and nodded thoughtfully. "Are you sure?" He asked him. Lazarus loved to b
Who am I, you might wonderMy face is only a cover For the monster inside I try to hideBut if you look closer into my eyes You might discover my disguiseFor I am no man, and I have no soulNo heart, and a beast I can't control Alone, I suffer at nightAnd when the sun rises again, I pretend to be alrightMy only wish is to be released from the chainsAnd the hatred that runs through my veins But I know that the end is nearI shall dig my own grave And rest in it with no fearBecause death is all I craveRayven closed the book. Whoever wrote it had described his suffering so well. Death was indeed all he craved. He looked over at the boys' training and his gaze fell on William. The boy was working hard and getting better each day. He caught up to the older boys that had longer training than him. His hair got in his eyes as he fought, distracting him and giving his opponent a chance to knock the wooden sword out of his hand. The boy then proceeded to hit William with the wooden
"My Lady, someone is asking for you?" Eva informed. "It is a man. He is waiting outside." Angelica frowned. A man? It couldn't be Sir Shaw because Eva knew him. "Did he not tell you who he is?" She looked confused. "I… I didn't ask." "It is alright. I will go see him." Who could it be, she wondered. When she went outside, she found a man on his horse. He wore a black cloak that covered his face. When Angelica neared, he removed the cap, surprising her. "Your Majesty?" He smiled. "Angelica." She looked around, but he was all alone. What was happening?"Are you busy?" He asked. "No, Your Majesty." "Would you mind spending some time with me?" The question surprised her. She hadn't seen him for a month and thought that he was angry with her the last time they spoke. She didn't understand why he kept showing interest in her. The last thing she needed was to like someone and become disappointed. He was easy to like and feel safe with. Angelica thought of denying his request befor
Skender arrived in time and joined them in the backyard together with Blayze, Mazzon and Vitale before the Arch arrived. Rayven could feel the tension in the air when everyone gathered. No one was pleased that the Arch would come and they wouldn't have visited if Skender had done his job. Blayze was already showing his bitterness toward Skender. Mazzon kept to himself, and Acheron and Lazarus stayed quiet. Vitale sat on the floor, looking exhausted. He didn't know if it was the thought of the Arch coming alone that exhausted him or if there was something else. "Well, well, you have already gathered, my Lords." Lucrezia appeared from thin air with her two wingmen on each side, startling a few of them. Her aura sucked all the existing air whenever she arrived. Today she wore a long-sleeved green dress that complimented her green eyes and a crown of black thorns sat on top of her head. Her dark hair cascaded down to her waist in elegant waves and her sun kissed skin glowed in the eveni
Oh pain, what have I doneTo make you my companion Having you around is no funI want you goneRayven opened his eyes slowly, the lights greeting him with their warmth. But right now, all he wanted was to feel cold. To feel numb. Why did he wake up? He wished he had never opened his eyes again. Skender sat next to the bed in a chair and Acheron on a coach in the corner. He was falling asleep when he saw that Rayven had woken up. Skender loomed over him with a worried expression. "Rayven, you worried me." He said, breathing out in relief.Acheron came to his side as well. "What did she do to you?" Rayven saw anger in Acheron's eyes. The man never showed anger unless he was hungry. Opening his mouth, Rayven tried to speak despite his extremely dry mouth and throat. The words cut through him, causing him to grimace in pain, but he could barely be heard. Acheron hurried away to bring him water. Pushing himself up with his arms, Rayven tried to sit, but almost cursed when his healing
Undress?Angelica's mind wandered away, going anywhere but this place she was in. She thought of her mother and the life she had wished for her. She thought of her greedy father. Even he wouldn't want her to be in this situation and lastly, she thought of her brother. What would he think of this? What would he think of what she had become? She had fought hard for him and herself. But this wasn't the kind of fighting she wanted to do. She didn't want to endure this every day, selfish as it might sound. She knew leaving this place could be more dangerous and possibly lead to her death, leaving her brother completely alone. But she couldn't stop herself from being selfish. She couldn't stop herself from wanting something more and not surrendering to this. Turning her gaze she looked at the man in front of her who seemed to be losing his patience when she did nothing. "It will be easier for you if we get along, Angel." He said. Angel? She became nauseous at the way it sounded coming
After breathing in some fresh air, Angelica went back inside. She followed the sound of the women chattering and came to a room where a few women sat at a table, eating food. Her eyes searched for Valeria but she wasn't there. The only other person she recognized was Mina. "Angelica," she smiled and waved when she saw her. "Come in." All the other women looked her way as she hesitantly stepped into the room. The smell of food made her stomach growl. "This is Angelica ladies," Mina told the other women and then patted on the seat next to her. Angelica went to sit down while feeling everyone's eyes on her. It was very quiet as she sat down but soon the chattering started again. Some of the women sitting closer to the table introduced themselves and then they were curious about her and began to ask a lot of questions. Questions like how she got here, how she kept her hair and skin looking beautiful, how life was as a noble lady, and much more. Angelica patiently answered all of thei
After crying the rest of the evening and then pitying herself the first half of the night, Angelica began to do some thinking on the second half. At first, she kept thinking and imagining what would happen from here on. She became more and more scared the more she thought about it. Then she began to think about what she could do to get through this. But how would she know if she didn't exactly know what she would have to get through? And lastly, she thought of good reasons to accept her fate, when she was tired of looking for other solutions that didn't exist, worrying, and being scared.Here she would have shelter and food, be able to pay her father's debt off quicker, and maybe even save some money for William. But how would her reputation now affect him? It was enough that he was a traitor's son, now he was a ….She couldn't bring herself to say the word. She ruined things for him. All this time she tried to protect him but she ended up here instead. Removing the sheets away from
"Where are you taking me?" Angelica asked. "I am sure you know since you tried to run away." Said the man sitting to her left and holding the dagger. "I don't want to." She said. The man nodded. "I can see that. It is hard to accept but you will get used to it." Used to it? The man sitting across from her studied her face and let his gaze rake her body. "You would make a lot of money." He said as if that should be some kind of consolation. "A lot." The other one emphasized. The one with the dagger nodded again. "You will do well, Angelica. You won't even have to try. In no time you will be able to pay back Lord Green." He told her. These men...she couldn't believe it. They were talking so casually about it as if she was just going to do any other kind of work. Perhaps it was any other kind of work for them. Angelica shook her head, feeling the tears burn her eyes. She was not going to cry in front of these men. No! But the tears fought against her and one fell slowly down he
A week passed since Angelica came to Lord Greens' house. The chores became easier the more she learned, and she became close with the other maids. She was surprised by how much she could learn in such a short amount of time and she somehow enjoyed doing work. It didn't feel like she was wasting her day trying to figure out what to do or how to spend the rest of her day. The only thing she missed was her books and the thing she would probably never miss was her fancy dresses that crushed her ribs. And of course, she missed her brother the most. She wondered how he was doing? Angelica thought of trying to find a way to send him a letter and let him know she was alright. She wanted to know how he was doing. Was he eating well? Sleeping well? Were people being very harsh to him? The coffee almost boiled over while she was lost in thought. She quickly removed it from the fire and poured it in a cup to take it to Lord Green. He always liked to have a cup of coffee every afternoon. Lord G
Angelica sat near the window and stared at the horizon watching the sunset. The women dying in her town seemed to stop for some time and then start again. She didn't only have the townspeople to worry about now, but also a killer roaming free and killing women of her age. She wasn't safe anywhere. Hopefully, soon she would be married and move to the other side of the town, where Lord Scott lived. Natasha would let him know she agreed to the marriage. The door to the room was opened after a knock and Natasha stepped inside. She had a frown on her face. "Sir Shaw is here looking for you," she said. Sir Shaw? Why could he be looking for her? Did he perhaps change his mind? Angelica left her window to go see why he was here. When she arrived at the parlor she saw that he wasn't alone. He came with another man. Angelica had seen the man somewhere but she couldn't recall exactly where. Perhaps she had seen him with her father? The man introduced himself as Lord Green. He was a busin
Natasha showed Angelica to a nicely decorated room where she could stay until she met her suitor, which she had arranged. Only now did she realize how terrified she was of meeting the man that could be her future husband if things went as planned. "Don't worry about your brother. Both our fathers have been to military camps. It has its benefits," Natasha told her. Angelica knew that already. She knew the other boys would give her brother a hard time but at least there he would have food and shelter and he would be alive. Her heart broke thinking she had to choose between those things for her brother. "I know. Thank you." Angelica smiled. "Alright. I will let you rest so you can impress Lord Scott tomorrow." She gave her a smile before closing the door to the room behind her. Once Natasha was out of sight, Angelica could finally breathe. She went to sit on the well-made bed and tried to calm down. Suddenly, her stomach was filled with dozens of butterflies that stabbed her like be
"What are you doing?!" Rayven asked Skender. Why did he take the boy away from his sister? "I couldn't just do nothing," Skender said. "And you thought of going there personally to bring him? Don't you know that the shades are out there? You could have put them in danger." Skender's eyes widened at his sudden anger and Rayven realized he was worked up again because of the boy and his sister. He took a deep breath. He wouldn't have been so agitated had he not known William's secret. The shades were looking for him. Any wrong move and the boy would be in danger. But why was he caring again? He swore not to. "What is your problem, Rayven? When I don't act you get angry and now when I am doing something you get angry too." Rayven could see Lazarus standing at the entrance with a knowing smirk on his face. "William will be safe in the military camp and I made it seem like a punishment and not that I was doing them any favor," Skender explained then picked up his glass to drink his
As promised, Natasha kept sending her butler or her maid to deliver food to her home. Angelica was grateful as things got even more difficult in the past week. Letters written by her father were found that proved his treason. He was trying to reach the king of their neighboring kingdom, exposing their own kingdoms strategies and weaknesses. Her father wanted the king of Crezia to take over their kingdom, Kraghorn. Now people despised him not understanding how he could betray not only his King, but his own people and Kingdom as well. Angelica wasn't surprised anymore. Her father probably made a deal with the king of Crezia to get something in return for giving him the secrets to their kingdom. He had a plan for everything except he failed at the end. Thomas and Eva got attacked several times when they went outside, all because they worked for her. Angelica cried when Eva came covered in dirt one day because a few stupid people had pushed her into mud and threw things at her. And the