Word Count: 1622
I stare at the porcelain bath, considering it.
My bedroom door is firmly closed, away from Vaia, Taius and everyone else in this place. Yet the thought of bathing has me shivering, not wanting to feel vulnerable for a single moment in this place. Yet I'm desperate to wash this day off me, and with the chill that has fallen over this place, a bath sounds delectable.
Running the bath, I add some fragrant oils and salts, and begin to undress, looking out at the stars that wink and glimmer tauntingly in the distance. Who knows when I will have any semblance of freedom again.
I sink into the bath, letting the hot, emollient water rise up past my shoulders, the steam wafting up before me, scented with lavender.
A tear escapes my eye. I hadn't even realised I was sad.
Brushing it away, I compose myself. I've never been much of a crier, or someone who panics in difficult situations. As hard as it is to be here, I need to look ahead, to a plan. But as I think about an escape, nothing comes to mind. My best option is to gain the King's trust, then maybe he will pity me, and let me leave alive.
Holding my breath, I glide beneath the surface, letting the silkiness of the water consume me, the vibrating silence calming my nerves. As I emerge, I settle back into myself, a new sense of direction coming over me.
A knock on my bedroom door sounds, making me flinch.
Stumbling from the bath, I reach for a towel, wrapping it around myself. Silently, I pray it's not Taius, here to claim me after everything that happened. But there's no way I'm going to have a chance to put any clothes on before they come in themselves; I would much rather answer the door with a towel wrapped around myself, than naked.
Opening the door, I'm surprised to not see the King, but the dark, looming figure of Marek.
His gaze, scorching hot drops below my face, drinking in the sight of me in only a towel. Vulnerability skates over my skin, the once warm water beaded across my skin turning icy cold. My body is mostly covered, but there is something so intimidating about standing before a dazzlingly attractive man, knowing that one slip of my fingers could leave me utterly bare to him.
He swallows uncomfortably, the faintest hint of an unknown emotional consuming his eyes, before the mask he has so expertly erected resumes.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you," he murmurs, gaze so intensely focused on my eyes, I find myself looking anywhere other than him. The rich colours of the patterned rug in the hallway, to the pale skirting at the foot of the wall; anything other than him.
"No...I just got out of the bath," I admit, brushing my thick, wet strands over my shoulder. Marek follows the movement with his gaze, leaving a trail of heat in it's wake, from my neck, down my collarbones and to where my hand plasters the edges of the towel to my chest.
He clears his throat. "I'll come back later when you're decent."
Despite my increasing embarrassment, I hold my door open. The threat of Tai's warning to keep away from each other still lingers in the air, impossible to avoid. I don't trust Marek completely yet, but he is the closest person to a friend I have here. We are going to have to rely on each other to get out of here, which means having no embarrassment before him.
Even if that seems impossible right now.
"No, it's okay, come in. What brings you here? You know what the King would say if he..." I break off, unsure if I want to utter those words. Marek nods, knowing what I mean, knowing the consequences. Still, he came here, seeking me out.
Wordlessly, he steps into the room.
"Don't give him that title. He's Taius," he comments, a storm roiling beneath his words. "And I wanted to check on you, after everything that happened."
Closing the door tightly behind us, I brush past him, sitting on the end of my bed. He doesn't join me, lingering before me instead, trying to make me feel comfortable. If he had any intention to hurt me, he would have done so already.
"I suppose you were right, there really is no getting out of here," I comment tiredly, running my hands along the satin duvet cover, feeling the plushness of the feathers beneath. I can't help but wonder whether Marek is as frightened as I am. I'm not sure which of us has the better deal with the King.
He sweeps a hand back through his bronze strands. "There will be, I just need time."
"Can't you use your powers? You're a Summoner, just turn into the King and walk us out of here," I wonder, although as the words come from my mouth, I realise how foolish it sounds. Taius has endless men, perhaps endless land. If we left here, we wouldn't know how long it would take to truly escape.
Marek confirms my personal reprimand. "No, he's a King, which means he has some power. It's not worth the risk. We need to be smart about this."
"I agree. I just want out of here," I admit.
The Hunter nods, the shadows of night shifting across his face, the reflection of the stars glittering in his eyes. It's a beautiful sight, his sharp, exotic looks deepened by darkness, as if he belongs to it. I'm so close to asking where he came from, how he ended up in the Blue Glass Inn. He's an enigma, still unexplained.
"He won't touch you. I'll kill him if he even thinks he can force himself upon you," Marek admits, looking out my window and beyond the line of the forest, as if he can see the endless mountains of the Azure Province beyond. Despite being uncomfortable that I'm still in only a towel before him, I can still look out into the velvety darkness, and enjoy the tranquillity.
"He won't," I murmur, recalling Vaia's words from earlier. She spoke with such calm assurance, having no reason to lie to me. "Thank you for caring."
Marek finally relents, coming to sit next to me, his proximity bringing the scent of cinnamon and pine with him. "Of course I care. I put you in this place, I will get you out."
I glance at him, the moonlight hitting his forehead just right to reveal what I hadn't noticed before.
"Your mark...on your forehead. It's back already," I breathe. Automatically, he looks away, like he's embarrassed by it.
The shimmering sliver lustre of the mark is impossible to ignore. A stunning mix of teal and sapphire blue is dusted along the surface of his forehead, around his temples before stopping at his eyebrows, bleeding into the moonlit silver. The urge to touch it plays at my fingertips, which I shove under my thighs.
"It's been a few days since I used my power," he remarks, the tension in his jaw evident as a muscle feathers. I frown, realising he isn't being completely transparent with me. I'm yet to read up on Summoners, but something about that doesn't seem right
"Jessa talked about marks on Summoners after she met you. She mentioned it takes most Summoners years to build up a mark as prominent as your one," I murmur, calling on the memory of when Jessa and I were folding laundry, still reeling from Marek's presence.
Marek shifts uncomfortably. "It gets darker the more stressed I am."
He's lying to me. Only yesterday, Marek mentioned to a guard that he has more power than he could
Imagine, which has bothered me since. He's hiding himself, a part of them that clearly scares him, and that he thinks will scare me.
"Who are you?" I breathe, the silence suddenly thick, burdening itself heavily on my shoulders. Marek looks at me, for a lingering moment, searching my expression with skeptical eyes. He's seeing if he can trust me, if I'm strong enough.
"You should get some sleep. Breaking Taius's rules already won't get us anywhere," he says softly, dismissively, getting to his feet in one swift movement. I follow him to the door, mulling over a variety of different responses.
"Hey, Marek," I cut in, before he can open my door. "We don't have to listen to his rules...at least not the one about not seeing each other."
"I will see you soon, Akara. I promise."
He walks away, leaving a vacant, cold space in his wake. Shivering, I quickly dress, washing away the embarrassment of being in nothing but a towel during our conversation. Thankfully, after a certain point, I forgot how exposed I've been, as Marek respectfully refused to look below my eyeline.
Wandering to the window, I look aimlessly, wondering what is next for me. For Marek and I. That is, until I spot a figure, just as it disappears into the shadows at the treeline at the edge of Tai's property.
Narrowing my eyes, I wipe away my breathe as it mists the window in my face. Was that Tai? Maybe it was just one of his guards, but I have the horrid feeling that there is more going on here than I could ever imagine.
And soon, I may find out.
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