Page 19 of Ruined Kingdom

The soldiers turned and stood up as soon as they saw me. “Your Majesty,” they said in unison, bowing their heads.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that.” I waved my hand for them to stop. Even though I was Kaine’s second mate, I was still only a peasant.

“We apologize. We didn't hear you coming, Your Majesty.” They completely disregarded what I said and stood at attention.

I sighed in defeat. “Kaine asked me to wait here for him… Though I’m not sure why.”

“It’s just for your protection,” one of the soldiers in the back spoke up as he stoked the fireplace. “The Alpha King is running out of safe spaces for you.”

The wood crackled as he moved the logs around. The soldier’s face was turned away from me, so I couldn’t see who he was.

“Did Kai—the King tell you this himself?” I approached him slowly, passing the other soldiers as they moved aside to let me by them.

Finally, the fire-stoking soldier turned around, revealing a rugged and scarred but gentle face. “He doesn’t have to. It was clear upon our recent return that you are very important to him, and what’s important to my King is important to me.”

“I don't just want to be protected. I want to prove myself useful to him—to all of the forest.” I pressed my right foot firmly into the ground as I said this. I wanted them to take me seriously, but there was an air of silence that hung over the barracks that told me they thought otherwise.

The scarred soldier looked around before meeting my eyes again. “I can teach you … to be useful. That is if you think you can keep up.”

I pursed my lips at his unserious tone. I resented the idea that I was some weak thing that needed to be saved all the time. If I’d had proper training, then maybe I could have stopped Kaine from being stabbed. I could help him fight rather than be a burden to him.

“Don’t you worry about me,” I said in a low, almost threatening tone. “I’m tougher than I look.”

He simply harrumphed in response, as if to say, we’ll see, and held out his hand for me to shake. “Name’s Adam.”

“Sophia.”

For better or worse, this is my best option…

5

KAINE

The soft gauze material felt like barbed wire against the recently stitched wound afflicting my arm.

That’d been no regular crossbow bolt. And I knew the truth of my suspicion when Nikolai had whispered in my ear that the Fae King had sent him right after stabbing me with it.

I hardly wanted to raise any alarms just yet, but I couldn't keep this lie going forever. Eventually, everyone was going to find out that the Fae King was still alive.

All I want is peace for a while longer. Is that really so much to ask?

As my eyes lifted from the path I was trudging, I could see Sophia standing out in an open field with some of the soldiers up ahead.

She was clutching a dagger in her hand while looking over her shoulder at Adam, meeting his eyes before nodding her head obediently.

My gut was hit with a mixture of fear and jealousy, which I thought was a surprising reaction.

My pace quickened, as did my pulse. “What is this?”

Adam stood at attention immediately.

Sophia turned to me, hunching her shoulders over as if she was ashamed. “Adam is—is teaching me … how to fight,” she said, stumbling over her words a little.

My eyes slowly moved over to Adam, staring him down with fierce authority. “Why exactly is he doing that?”

“Because I asked him to.” Sophia stepped closer to me to draw my attention away from my soldier.

“Do you think I can’t protect you?” My sights fell on her then.

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