Captive

Chapter 9 (Part 1)

"No," I repeated, sounding more sure of the decision I knew I didn't have the power to make.

His brows lowered over his eyes as he crossed his arms and pinned me with them. "That implies that I gave you a choice."

"Everything is a choice. Some are just harder to make than others."

"With consequential consequences."

"I'm sure seeing her wouldn't lack those." In fact, after what Aster shared last night, I was sure this summons was for the intended purpose of adding to the ones Rowan had decided for me yesterday. Was his punishment not enough?

My heart started thrashing in my chest. Panic welled while breathing grew increasingly difficult. Each breath seemed to grow more difficult to draw past my swelling throat.

Rowan crossed his arms, straining the buttons he had just been handling. "Not answering her summons will hold far graver ones. Get changed." He issued the order and then strode from the room in search of something in the other. If it wasn't clear from his tone, his departure made it evident that he wasn't going to discuss this further.

Dragging my feet, I wasn't in a hurry as I moved to do as he wanted, knowing that the choices I was spouting off about to him were only illusions. I knew they weren't practical or plausible. Even if I wanted to hurry, I couldn't, not with how painful it was to brag my body out of the bed or the way my hands were shaking as I took care of business in the bathroom and dressed in the outfit I was growing painfully familiar with. Literally. I had scratched my skin raw where the stitching didn't quite sit right. Which just so happened to be where the mark I shared with Silas marked my skin.

Giving the red skin one last scratch, I lowered the dress over my body and picked up the stocking that went with it, while lacking patience, Rowan couldn't wait for me to finish dressing before he burst back into the room. I had the skirt of my dress hiked up as I struggled my way into the stockings when he made his entrance. Locking eyes with him, I watched as the slight pull of frustration in his features shifted into surprise and then shame that had him looking away as a small scream tore its way out of my throat. I pulled the dress down so hard that I heard the sound of stitching rip.

"I didn't see anything," he said, turning to give me his back.

Meaning he saw enough to know that there was something to see.

I quickly fixed my stocking and put my dress back into place. "Maybe try knocking next time."

"To enter my own room?" At my glare that he couldn't see but must have felt due to the hostility it carried, he shook his head and released a sigh. "Since I'm the one that insisted you sleep where I can keep an eye on you, I will try to be mindful of your presence," he reluctantly conceded.

"I'd prefer if you did a little more than just try." But then again, there was a lot that I would prefer but wasn't going to get.

"If you're done, let's go. We've already kept her waiting too long." He was moving, heading out the door without a glance back before he had even begun to speak.

"What does she want?" I asked, struggling to move fast enough to keep up with him. I was too stiff and sore to properly use my legs. I was thankful that I didn't have to go through the struggle of shoving my swollen feet into shoes.

"Nothing good," he vaguely replied, not giving much away. I could have guessed that.

Feeling a nervous sweat break out on the back of my neck, I followed Rowan to the other end of the long hallway that connected his wing to the Queen's. We were partway across it when he had slowed his pace, noticing the distance between us only kept growing the further we went.

"Is it..." we were nearly at the doors leading to the Queen's wing when I couldn't hold back the question eating me up inside any longer. "Is it going to be like last time, or... the first?" I swallowed hard. As much as I wanted to know, I also didn't if it was the wrong answer.

"Neither."

I waited for him to continue, but he didn't. He kept his stride steady and his eyes pointed forward.

"But it... won't be good." I didn't have to ask, I could see it in the tension Rowan's shoulders held as he walked ahead of me.

His small nod had the churning unease in my stomach turning into a solid weight. It had my steps slowing, trying to delay the inevitable.

Far too soon, we reached the towering double doors that Rowan pushed open without lifting a finger. The doors parted, breaking the soundproof seal containing the light sounds of laughter, conversations, and clinking of dishes inside. It sounded like someone was having a get-together.

Making his way inside, Rowan turned in the direction of the noise, following it to a spacious tea room bustling with activity. Inside there was a long table laden with tea sets and various finger foods. Surrounding it were numerous female fae in long willowy dresses that couldn't be worn in the weather that could be seen outside the rain-splattered windows that made up the back wall. Their necks, ears, and wrists were weighted down by luxurious metals and jewels. More decorated long slender fingers reached for steaming cups of tea and light sandwiches.

A laughter louder than the rest drew my attention to the head of the table. There, the Queen sat, her head thrown back as peals of laughter fell from her lips. The fae surrounding her laughed along with her, but not nearly as freely. There was an underlying tension in the room that they felt but didn't seem to touch her. Maybe because she was the one responsible for it. Recovering from her amusement, she spotted the two of us standing at the door that led into the room. Her amusement grew subdued as she rose to her feet. The scrap of her chair as she pushed it back had silence falling over the room.

"Excuse me, ladies. I have a matter that needs addressing. I'll be returning shortly," she announced to the room before making her way toward us where we patiently waited.

Well, Rowan patiently waited, I couldn't help but shift on my feet, looking anywhere but at the approaching fae. I could feel her gaze prickling as it moved over me.

"I heard there was an incident yesterday morning," she said as she led the way out of the room and down the hallway in a familiar direction.

I felt the weight in my stomach double as acid rose into the back of my mouth.

Captive is complete and available on Patreon. Stolen, book 3 of The Blood Stone Series, is currently being updated. Read more at:

https://www.patreon.com/DRK_Stories