The Majors, Rebuild and Reunite (Book 3)

Chapter 9: Fleeting Love

"Relax." She said, though it was less of a request and more of a command. "You just claimed to be tired, so relax." Her fingers dug the slightest into my shoulder, wrinkling the fabric of my shirt.

"Yeah okay, but what matter—?" I asked, sinking back down into the mattress.

"How angry your father is. He'll have your head, if you're not careful, I'm sure." She said, her hand still remaining on my shoulder, thumb pressing just above my collarbone. "He's not used to being opposed by people he thinks are beneath him."

"I'm not beneath him!" I snapped, speaking without thinking and scrunching my nose. I'd have to be six feet in the ground to be beneath Rohan. Although, technically, I was, wasn't I?

"I never said you were." She replied smoothly. "But he doesn't like this new independence of yours. He'll consider it a rivalry. For the throne."

I scoffed. "I'm not the one who needs a new attitude..." I grumbled, folding my arms across my chest.

I was surprised to hear the slight chuckle escape her lips, her expression brighten for just a split second. "You're very right, Scott. But still. For your safety I'd advise you to keep quiet. For now, at least."

"Maybe he deserves a rival..." I muttered. 

I felt my mother tense from beside me. "What ever do you mean by that?" She asked quickly, an eyebrow raised, eyes filled with a look of apprehension. A glint that silently warned me not to continue. 

"I think we both know that he doesn't deserve that crown." I said, my voice low. I brought my face up to look into hers, watching several different emotions flood into her typical monotone expression, cheeks flushing and ears falling to point towards the ground.

"Scott," She began, her own voice reaching a dangerous level, her clutch on my shoulder becoming tighter. "your father is a very dangerous man, if you're thinking what I think you are—"

"What if someone knocks him down a few pegs?" I continued, ignoring my mother's warnings. "Rivendale would be a much better place with someone else seated on the throne—"

Pandora snatched at my shirt, pulling me in much, much closer. I could feel her breath ripple down my nose, the shake in it. "If he even heard a word of what you're saying right now Scott Gilded Major, he would put you to death for treason." She hissed, her voice hardly audible and below a whisper. I had never seen her wear the look she had now, a mixture of anger in her narrowed, furious eyes and...fear? "I don't care if you think you're safe saying these things by being the prince. No one is."

I froze, almost scared to breathe with the expression she wore and the sharpness in her words. The air was tense, if I had one I could have cut it open with a knife. 

With a shaky exhale, my mother slowly released her grip on my shirt, color beginning to return to her fingers, composing herself after the...outburst. "You have no idea what he's capable of."

I was about to open my mouth, say I had quite a good idea, before she silenced me.

"There's a reason my family is no longer with us." She whispered, clenching one of her hands into a fist in her lap. "And I do not want the same happening to you."

I didn't say another word after that, my heart pounding rapidly against my chest as if it were about to burst. Never had I questioned it before. Never did I wonder. But now fear just like what she wore gripped at my throat, its icy fingers slowly closing around my neck.

After a moment of silence, Pandora let out a short laugh. A small, grief-ridden laugh that sounded restrained. Like it was only the tip of the iceberg, a dam holding back a waterfall. "Curiosity is a horrible, horrible thing."