Kissed by Chaos

Kissed by Chaos (31) - Battle Plans

As his eyes drifted across the men’s faces it inevitably landed on Sami’s, whose eyes were wide with distress. Raafi recalled the way his friend had smiled ever so gently as he had confessed his feelings for Elisabeth. A pang of anxiousness ran through Raafi’s body. It was no longer just himself and Claire in this deadly game. 

Trying desperately to somehow regain his optimism, Raafi continued addressing the men. “I have come to know that Elisabeth and Amira have been kidnapped by the same… thing, to the same place. And I believe I know where they have been taken.”

There was a stunned silence in the room. Raafi could not hear anything but the thumping of his heart and Claire’s shallow nervous breaths. His father, not unexpectedly, was the first one to speak. “Are you aware of what you are saying, Raafi? This is not a joke.” Zahir’s tone was filled with distate and contempt.

“Father, I know that perhaps you doubt me-” Rafi began, his throat closing up around the words as the familiar storm of anxiety closed in on him.

“Doubt you?” exclaimed the king, staring at his son with furiously wide eyes. “Perhaps you do not realise that lives are at stake here but right now, I cannot spare a moment to listen to your soft-hearted musings!”

There was a collective gasp around the room as the words died into silence. Raafi’s cheeks burned with embarrassment and anger. Fighting to control the urge to begin screaming at his father, Raafi breathed in the calming scent of Claire beside him and began in a low voice, “Your Majesty. I do not think you will disagree with me when I say that you were quite taken aback by the awful thing that occurred in this very room not much more than an hour ago. And I do not think you will disagree with me when I say that the creature who inhabited King Hamza’s body was none other than one of the Jinn.”

Before, there had been a collective gasp of shock; now, nobody in the room dared to breathe. King Zahir’s eyes remained trained on Raafi though instead of anger, it was an uncomfortably uncharacteristic fear that filled those bottomless pits. Raafi watched his father’s face tighten as an unwilling acceptance rushed through his head. The creatures whose existence he had been denying for decades now haunted his beloved palace over again. They had once granted him a favour, but they were not kind enough to forget that the king owed them. They were back for their repayment, he was sure. The king could no longer maintain his mask of hatred that so fragilely covered his fear. It was slipping, as surely as his façade of calmness was slipping. He glanced around him at his advisors and most trusted men standing around him, waiting for him to react. With his head bowed, he announced in a low voice, “Men, would you please allow me a moment with my son?”

Not a murmur of dissent passed through the men as they bowed their heads in respect and shuffled out of the stiflingly large throne room. Sami gently clapped Raafi on the back as he brushed past him toward the door. “Be brave, my friend,” he murmured. Raafi’s mind jolted in fear as he watched Claire take a step behind Sami. There was no way in heaven or earth that he could do this without her.

“Claire,” he began. He gazed pleadingly into her emerald eyes and hoped she understood how desperately he needed her. “Please stay,” was all he managed to say. He glanced at his father briefly, daring him to say otherwise. Thankfully, he remained silent. Raafi turned back to Claire’s doubtful eyes. “Are you sure you don’t want me to leave? Perhaps you need privacy now, to finally get things clear with your father,” she suggested, studying his expression carefully.

Raafi managed to force half a smile across his face. “I am afraid that if you leave my side, I will run straight out that door behind you.” Lowering his voice so that only Claire would be able to hear his next words, he confessed, “You are my strength, Claire.” Her eyes widened at the raw truth in his words. For a terrifying moment, Raafi wondered if he had said too much. He wondered if he had unwittingly announced himself as pathetic and weak. He sighed in relief as Claire’s lips pulled into a smile. “Of course I’ll stay if you need me,” she whispered. She warily eyed the daunting figure of Kng Zahir over Rafi’s shoulder. “Good luck.”