To Sing the Tortured to Sleep

II. The Calm Before the Storm

Author's Note: This chapter is dedicated to ResterBelle_x for being one of my editors :)

Night was approaching as I finished my bath. Kain had kept me company so that I wouldn’t feel alone. We were separated by no more than a curtain, I could see no more than a faint shadow for his body, though his voice was clear as day.

“Raven offered for you to use some of her clothing,” Kain explained. I noticed his shadow place something down on the bed he was sitting on, “she picked these out for you herself.”

“Will they fit?” I asked, though I didn’t expect an answer. How could Kain be certain?

“Well, you two are more similar than I’d like to admit,” he pointed out, “similar curves, too.”

I tried not to read too far into what he’d said. According to Kain, Raven was a happy go lucky girl that never minded helping her brother out. Kain spoke fond of her, I was sure they were close.

“You seem to like her quite a bit,” I smirked.

“She’s my closest sibling. My only full biological sister,” Kain assured, pointing to a picture that hung on his wall at the far end of the room. It was a rather large portrait or Kain, Raven, and a man who I assumed was his father.

Raven had long jet black hair, much like Kain’s, although she was rather short in comparison. I hadn’t had the chance to meet her yet, but I was more anxious about the plans his family had for me.

I sunk into the warm water, the dirt and blood that covered my body was removed with ease, replaced with the adoring scent of citrus, something the queen was fond of, or so Kain said. During my bath, Kain briefed me on our surroundings.

“Right now, you’re in the kingdom of Pylane,” he explained.

Pylane was on a large stretch of land with a very small population. There were many resources to take advantage of on the land, but too few people to harvest most of them. I imagined farmers working long nights in their fields, still told that they weren’t working hard enough.

“Do you see the mountains outside of the window?” he asked, causing me to turn my head to the window that was close by the bathtub I was bathing in. “Those are the Montash mountains,” he cautioned, “they’re uncrossable. To even attempt would be suicide. The trip around them takes the better part of a month.”

According to Kain, there had been endless stories of hikers journeying to the mountains, only to be found at the bottom of its slopes with either a broken neck or a stab wound. It was worth the month trip around to avoid that.

“Beyond those mountains is Argane, our rival kingdom,” he spat, “we’ve been at war for centuries. The Arganians are far too stubborn.”

Argane was the kingdom’s rival. It was a dense kingdom which thrived off of it’s sheer manpower. It had little resources and had to import it’s goods from other kingdoms. Most of the time Argane had trouble gathering enough food to serve all of it’s citizens, and the poorer families would starve.

The Pylane-Argane war was legendary, as it had been going on since the beginning of time. Rumors said that the two kingdoms had once been one but had been divided when the Montash mountains were formed.

“They want what we have, and we want what they have,” he theorized.

Amidst all of the war talk and history lesson my bath had finished, and I stepped out of the warm water and into the freezing air around me. Shivering, I wrapped myself in the towel Kain had provided before peeking my head out of behind the curtain, not daring to let my body show. Kain gave me a small chuckle before handing me the gown he’d retrieved from Raven, noticing my nervousness.

The gown was a deep red color and stretched past shins, just grazing the floor. It was made of a soft fabric that almost felt velvet, but was much softer. The stitching was gold, and there were intricate flowers stitched along the torso of the dress. Along with the dress, Kain had managed to receive all of the necessary undergarments and i dared not question him on his selection, although the were all a bit lacy.

“You look beautiful,” he complimented once I’d finished getting dressed. I was running a comb through my hair, allowing it laid soft against my chest as I turned to Kain. That was when I noticed for the first time, how large his room was. It was almost as large as the living room had been earlier, and the ceiling was just as high. The walls were decorated with various swords, a collection maybe? I wondered why a man like Kain would need so many swords, but dismissed the thought, hoping not to scare myself into distrust.

Acting on instinct, I ran my fingers along the flat metal of one of the swords, careful not to touch any of the jagged edges. I squinted, leaning closer to the blade. I could make out the faded outline of a crimson stain. I withdrew my hand, turning to Kain for an explanation.

“The stains are from the previous owner,” Kain explained, “I won’t lie and say that my hands are free of blood, but I can safely say that with that sword, the fault lies in someone else.”

I didn’t like the idea of staying with a cold blooded killer, but then again, Kain didn’t seem like the type. There must have been some explanation.

“Who are you?” The questioned seemed odd, since I knew his name and I was in his home.

“Kain Montgomery, eldest son of King Richard III.” His formal response wasn’t something I’d expected.

After a moment, I began processing what he had said. Eldest son of King Richard III.

“You’re a prince?” I asked, but he began speaking before I could get another word in.

“Before you start wrapping your head around this, you must know that being a prince is nothing like it is in the stories. I don’t slay dragons, and I don’t rescue maidens...” he trailed off, his eyes raising to meet mine, “well, I usually don’t.”

“What do you do?” I interjected, finally on a topic of interest.

“Mainly train the military, but I do anything political.” I could tell Kain was trying to stay casual about it. “However, under the unusual circumstances I’ve been given a new assignment.” As if I didn’t understand where he was going, he added “To protect our company.”