Blessed by the Gods (Gods & Dark Creatures Book 1)

Chapter five

She walked through those beautiful corridors. Walls decorated with mosaics and reliefs. In some places, they were open to gardens and courtyards. She was followed every step of the way by one of the guards guarding her door and her lady-in-waiting, Mareena. They were constantly on her heels.

Amaya turned to them. "Could I be left alone?" she requested, but it was more of an order.

"We have orders to escort you, Your Highness," said the guard.

"Can I have some space or am I a prisoner here?" she told them.

"Of course, miss," said Mareena, pulling the guard away as well, who reluctantly obeyed.

Amaya walked the palace corridors alone. She slid her fingertips along the walls. Explored dozens of rooms. There were more than she could count. Lounges, bedrooms and halls. She found a huge library filled with hundreds if not thousands of books. She liked the familiar smell of old paper. She stroked the backs of individual books with her palm. Described their names with her finger. She carefully pulled out one of them. She blew the dust off it. A veil of dust rose into the air. Dark Regions was written on it in golden letters. She knew the story of the Dark Regions far to the south where the gods dwelt. Even the dark creatures themselves did not know the exact path, they were banished from there a long time ago. Amaya decided to borrow it. She wondered if anyone had found their way there. She always wondered what it looks like in the land of the gods.

As Amaya walked back to her chambers, she got frankly lost. She wandered lost. She refused to ask for help. It was out of her nature, and so she wandered and wandered through the maze of palace corridors... After all she saw Prince Ciaran. She hid behind a corner so he wouldn't see her. She clutched the book to her chest. Ciaran walked past her and didn't even notice her. She secretly followed him. 

She chased him to a small palace that was not connected to the rest of the palace. The prince walked under a pergola tunnel overgrown with wisteria. Amaya walked from the outside, hidden from his sight. Guards stood before the entrance to the small palace. She walked around to find an inconspicuous way in.

She saw the balcony. Wisteria stretched along the columns. It had a trunk strong enough to climb up. She tugged on it to make sure. It held tight. She started climbing. Her foot slipped. She held on firmly. She managed to climb onto the balcony. She looked inside. Looked around to see if she saw anyone. She listened in and heard a distant voice. The air is clean.

She entered carefully. She weighed every step. Tried to tread as quietly as possible. She was sneaking through the shadows. She hesitantly approached the railing in the hallway. It looked like a circle had been cut into the floor, giving her a perfect view of what was going on below. A huge, glass dome arched above her head, letting in trickles of light. Amaya crouched down and watched what was going on there. She saw Prince Ciaran. She saw many girls. More kept coming.

It must have been his harem.

Amaya hated it. Abducting girls from their homes to serve as playthings for rich lords.

"Are you all here yet?" Prince Ciaran spoke.

A few more girls ran up and said, "Yes, Your Highness."

"What I want to tell you is brief," said the prince. "I just wanted to let you know that the harem will be disbanding. You will go home."

The girls started to jump and cheer. They rejoiced at the good news. They embraced the prince. He returned the hug. He was smiling.

"That witch is to blame," said one of the girls suddenly.

"Miss Amaya is no witch," another of the girls defended her. "She was chosen by the gods."

"She's just a witch who fooled everyone very well," replied the first girl.