Her Ice

Chapter Eighteen

Aden rode beside the man who came to take them back to Queen Greta. The man introduced himself as Anguo Tsang. He was commander of the Queens personal army.

"So," Aden started slowly. "What do you look like under that helmet?" He smirked at Anguo.

Anguo turned his head to look at him. All Aden could see from underneath the helmet was his eyes. They were a deep brown and had no emotion in them whatsoever. His eyes closed as a soft chuckle came from underneath the helmet.

"Nice try, Aden," Anguo seemed to sneer at him. He turned back to look ahead of him. "Ever since Queen Greta ascended to the throne, she has commanded that each commander cover his face at all times. The only people to be able to see his face are his wife and Queen Greta."

Aden and Anguo continued their ride in a comfortable silence. Once Aden looked back to take a peek at his brother and the Princess, but all he got out of it was a death glare from Metcalf. Aden turned back around and tried to keep his eyes focused on the ground. Thoughts kept creeping in his mind, but before he would start to dissect what he would be thinking, he would push them out of his mind.

Soon night was edging its way across the flat iceland. Anguo stopped the party and ordered the men to fix up camp. He dismounted and took long strides over to where Metcalf was helping Elisheva off the horse.

"Well, well, well, look at you two," Anguo jested. "One was living the luxurious style and one was surviving out here. Now, you both are heading back towards the castle." He looked at Elisheva. "You will finally see your sister again, Princess." He stopped talking when he heard Aden come walking up behind him.

"I would appreciate it if you didn't harass with these two," Aden strongly told Anguo.

Anguo turned to look at Aden. "Why would I listen to what you say? You're nothing but a lowly huntsman. You have nothing. You are nothing."

Aden's eyes turned dangerously dark at Anguo insulting him. He raised his fist back and punched Anguo in the helmet - hard. Aden watched as Anguo fell to the ground. When Anguo looked up at Aden, his eyes were full of resentment. He stood up and simply walked away. Aden followed Anguo with his eyes until he was inside of his tent. Aden was more dangerous than any commander of the Queens army. Everyone knew what he was and what he was capable. He knew that people still underestimated him, but he would show every single one of them wrong.

"He won't bother you again," Aden told Elisheva and Metcalf flatly.

"Why did you stand up for us, Aden?" Metcalf asked him. Aden turned around to see Metcalf standing tall with Elisheva standing behind him clutching his arm. Her eyes were filled with fear. No more was the woman who fought against him to protect his brother. There were too many men hear for her to fight, making her fear the worse. He knew what was going on in her head. He had felt the same way at times.

Aden simply shook his head and looked away from Elisheva. "I don't like the way he talks to other people."

"You barely know him," Metcalf told him.

"I know, but I still don't like it. I know enough about him to know that he's not a good person." He walked closer to them so only they could hear him. "We are going home, brother. The Princess will get her throne back and become Queen."

Elisheva came out from behind Metcalf. "What do you mean, Aden?"

"I'm going to help you get your throne back," he whispered to her. "Ever since you left and your sister took over the throne, the Kingdom has been going downhill. People are starving and riots are popping up everywhere." He looked at Aden. "Mother has been asking for you ever since you left, Aden. I promised her that I will bring you back before she passes, so when I heard that the Queen wanted her sister dead, I took the job. I was hoping that if I found her, I would find you, Metcalf. I'm thankful that I did. Still surprised me that I was able to find you, but I'm glad that I was correct." He gave a deep chuckle that sounded more like hysteria than whatever he found funny. "I'm getting tired of Queen Greta's ruling. Just trust me on this, please."

Metcalf looked at his brother strangely. He looked at Elisheva and squeezed her hand. "Alright, Aden. I believe you, but that still doesn't mean that I'm going to be watching you closely." Aden saw the hesitation still in Metcalf's eyes. He didn't believe him, but Aden knew that they didn't have many choices.

Aden smiled wide and threw up his hands. "That's fair. Thank you, brother." He motioned for them to follow him. "Let me show you where you both are staying tonight."