The Tyrant King's Queen

Chapter 18

       " Are you okay now?" He asked, startling her. She nodded hurriedly, playing with her fingers. " Would you like to eat now?"
   
        Maya nodded again, lost for words. Dexter ran the bell, calling the maids. Before long, one of the maids arrived at the room, keeping her head bowed.

      " Bring lunch for the Queen." He ordered, not looking at them.
  
      " Yes, Your Majesty." She replied before rushing out of the chambers. The silence made her nervous and she bit her lips.

      " What time is it?" Maya asked. Dexter glanced at the windows.

       " Probably early evening. You've been out for quite a while." He replied.

        " Oh...." Maya trailed off, looking down at her clothes. She'd been changed.

        The meal was brought in and Maya began eating. As mouthwatering as the food was, Maya could only take a few spoonfuls before announcing she was full. Dexter who had been observing her silently, raised a brow.

      " You've barely touched your food. Try to eat a little more." Maya did as she was told. Four more spoonfuls and she gave up this time.
 
        " I really am full this time." She hurriedly said when she saw Dexter was about to force her to eat more. He let out a sigh before calling on the maids to clear out the plates. They arrived immediately, taking away plates of half-finished meals away from the room.

      Now alone again, Maya began to grow nervous. She inadvertently remembered her outburst as the courtroom earlier. She snapped her head up to look at him, alarmed.

      " Your council! They must hate me now! I didn't mean to do that, I was just so tired of their complaining!..." She rambled on but he shook his head, cutting her short.

     " I do not care about them." He said instead. Shrugging, he added, " Honestly, I was rather impressed. You did handle the antagonism well."

      Maya felt a glow of pride at his words. " Thanks, I wasn't expecting that." She muttered, her cheeks growing hot.

     Dexter's lips twitched but didn't quite form a smile as he stared at her, his eyes warm.

     " That aside..." He began, inching closer. " I wanted to ask you some questions and I need you to answer me honestly." His gaze had turned serious.

      " What is it?"  She asked, her voice soft. An indescribable look crossed his face as he stood to his feet, pulling the sheets over her legs. Wearing only a chemise, her scarred legs where there for him to see. Maya resisted the urge to pull the legs to herself, hiding it from view. He sat on the edge of the bed, placing her legs over his thighs. When he glanced at her, his eyes had grown dark. Maya's heart began pounding.

      " What is this?" He asked. His voice had dropped, an emotion she hadn't felt in a while running underneath. Concern. She smiled bitterly even as eyes watered, her heart aching.

     " What do you think it is?" She whispered back. He ran his fingers down her legs, tensing all over.

    " They did this to you?" He gritted out, anger dripping into his words. A vein had begun popping out from his neck.

      " My half-sister did. She hated my guts a lot. So she made it a point of duty to always punish me even when I did nothing wrong." She chuckled. It wasn't funny. " She couldn't beat me anywhere visible so she focused on my legs."

       " And nobody tried to stop her?"

       " Her mother supported her most of the time and my father didn't care so she got away with it."