Page 13 of Beyond the Darkness

“The dress is as stunning on you as I hoped,” Azazel commented under his breath, sitting back down as his eyes continued to devour her. “So putting me in something to catch everyone’s attention was your doing?” She challenged the king, her eyes narrowing on her. He leaned towards her, getting close enough that she could feel his warm breath on her cheek. “Precisely, doll. I wanted their eyes to be on you,” he kept his voice quiet so that nobody else could hear their conversation. She scoffed in annoyance, rolling her eyes at the man.

Aerilyn felt a hand on her arm, her attention pulling to Everett who sat at her side. The comfort that single touch brought her made her insides warm in ways she couldn’t quite explain. She couldn’t deny the comfort the man was able to evoke in her. “You look absolutely breathtaking, Aeri,” he gave her a little smile, taking her hand within his. Everett looked as exhausted as she did, but he still looked perfect. His messy hair still laid effortlessly and his charming smile was as bright as ever. “The prince can give compliments, what a surprise!” She gasped before letting out a small laugh. His cheeks turned a bit red at the comment, flushing in embarrassment.

The conversations around them started once more, drowning out their words in the mix of voices. Aerilyn couldn’t stop herself from feeling grateful that all of her companions hadsurvived. She had lost track of the number of days that had gone by since they had left Orissia, but she had found a bond with the group that she hadn’t expected. She had never had many friends after her parents died. She could count on one hand how many people she allowed into her life. Never letting herself care for others after losing her parents in fear of feeling the pain of losing anyone else. Most of all, she hadn’t expected the prince of Orissia to look at her the way he did then. He looked at her as if she was something special, not just some thief who had stolen his scraps of food.

A soft chime collected everyone’s attention as the king stood, tapping his dagger blade against his glass. “Thank you all for joining me tonight to celebrate the success of the first game. I wish you all luck in the next round. All the citizens of Korth are rooting for your survival. Now let's enjoy this meal as your reward,” Azazel spoke with a tone that held every gaze in the room. His consuming presence was nearly impossible to look away from. Nobody spoke as the servant began to file into the room and cover the table with a variety of dishes.

Aerilyn was hesitant to eat any of it after her last experience eating the king’s meal. Azazel took notice of her not loading up her plate as everyone else did. “I promise that there’s no poison involved this time. I would never use the same trick twice,” he winked at her before grabbing a slab of meat and placing it on the plate before her. He used his fork to peel off a piece, shoving it into his mouth. “See? It's safe. Now eat up for me, doll,” he pointed at the food with his fork before starting his meal.

She made her best attempt to keep her attention focused away from Azazel. The man pissed her off every time he even looked at her. He seemed to know exactly what he was doing too. She cut into the meat and began to scarf down the food before her desperately. She hadn’t been able to enjoy the meal thatshe’d had with Azazel previously as the poison had disrupted the whole thing. She needed food in her system more than she wanted to admit. She didn’t want to rely on Azazel to provide her with anything, including the meals.

A group of people that sat towards the end of the table were huddled close together speaking in low voices. Their eyes glared in Everett’s direction, taking in the man as if he were abusing a child. Her eyes scanned each of them, her brow raising in a silent challenge. Their hushed tones told her that they were speaking of something that would probably piss her off. Even when meeting her glare, they didn’t stop their taunting gazes.

“Aerilyn?” Everett’s voice pulled her attention back to him. When their eyes met, she let out a small breath that she had been holding. He glanced once to where her gaze had been before, biting down on his lower lip. “They’ve been giving me death glares all night. I’m sure they’re very unhappy about my presence. Word seems to travel fast about their enemy kingdom’s prince being here,” he tried to shrug the words off but she could see the worry in his expression. She clenched her jaw, trying to ignore the gazes that were being shot in their direction. Part of her understood their fear. Their enemy was sitting at their dining table sharing a meal with them. She wouldn’t have been very happy had the roles been reversed.

“Ignore them, little thief,” he cupped a hand over her cheek, forcing her attention back to him completely. His warm chocolate eyes seemed to eat her alive as she gazed into them. Everything about Everett was consuming in the best ways. She’d never let a male touch her the way she allowed Everett to do. His touch felt so natural like their skin was meant to touch. “I’m sorry, I’m just imagining all the ways I could spill their blood on this table for even looking at you like that,” she spoke with a smile pulling at her lips. “Such a devious little thing,” he teased in return, running his thumb over the corner of her mouth.

“And one of them is the prince’s little whore,” one of the voices from the end of the table got loud enough to reach her ears but she didn’t let them continue to speak. She slid one of the daggers free from her thigh and threw it towards the man who had spoken. The dagger embedded itself into the table beside the man’s hand that had stopped reaching for his glass the moment the dagger flew towards him. “I suggest you watch your mouth. You know nothing about any of us. Next time you have something negative to say about us, my dagger won’t miss,” her words were cruel and vile, but she wanted to get her point across. The man’s eyes were wide with fear, no words leaving him. She forced a smile on her face as she stood, pushing her chair back. She made her way around the table, pulling the dagger to its spot near the man’s still unmoving hand. “I am no one’s whore,” she growled before heading to the set of doors she had entered through.

“Play with the viper and you’ll get bitten,” Azazel chuckled from behind her as she exited the dining hall. She didn’t stop as she stormed through the hallway, attempting to remember which direction she had come from. During her walk she had counted the number of turns she and Marianna had taken, making it slightly easier for her to know where she was going. She only got around a few corners before she heard footsteps behind her. She turned quickly, her dagger already perfectly positioned in her palm, ready to fight whoever was following her. Her eyes met the familiar chocolate ones as Everett took a quick step back with his hands up in surrender. “Woah there, darling,” he laughed softly, shaking his head at her. “Damnit Everett, I would’ve stabbed you,” she swore, letting the hand containing the knife fall to her side. “It’s not the first time you’ve pointed a dagger at me and honestly, I find it so sexy,” he teased, finally taking a confident step towards her when he saw her lower the dagger.

“Don’t make me use it on you, princey.”

“I wouldn’t mind that little thief,” he slowly slid a hand over her waist and tugged her towards him. “That scene back there might’ve been a turn-on. To think you were defending me,” he hummed, slowly twirling a strand of her hair around his pointer finger. “Don’t flatter yourself, it wasn’t all for you,” she whispered, struggling to form the right words when he was this close to her. He only smirked at her, his grip on her waist tightening. The presence of Everett had been so consuming ever since they had shared the moment in the lake. He had awoken something inside of her.

“If your heart wasn’t beating so fast, I might believe those words,” he lowered his face to hers, their eyes completely locked. She parted her lips to quip a snarky reply but found no words rolling off her tongue. “That's what I thought,” he winked before releasing her strand of hair from his finger. “Let's get you back to your room before I do something we’ll both regret,” he let out a sigh before squeezing her hip once. His words made a pit form in her stomach, her legs feeling like jello. She only nodded, not trusting herself to speak as she followed him down the dark hallways back to where her quarters were.

They walked in silence, standing less than a foot from each other. Every few steps she felt their hands brush or their shoulders touch one another. His closeness was enough to suffocate her. She wasn’t sure how much more of him she could take. She had to remind herself over and over who he was. Azazel’s words pulled at the back of her mind, reminding her of the biggest question she kept thinking. She hated that she’d let the king get into her head. She didn’t want him to help her with anything, but she felt like she didn’t have much of a choice. He held her life in the palm of his hand and she wasn’t ready to die now.

“Did you know Korth existed?” She blurted out, causing Everett to stop his pace. “I knew as much as you did. I didn’t know anyone had survived beyond the walls of Orissia. If I had known, I wouldn’t have led us in this direction and put all of our lives in this type of danger,” he frowned, unmoving as he attempted to explain himself to her. His expression seemed genuine and he made a good point. Aerilyn didn’t have much trust for anyone, but she truly believed that Everett was just as clueless as the rest of them.

“Do you think your father knew?”

“As much as I hate my father, I don’t think he knows about this place. If he did, he’d be a better liar than anyone I’ve ever met. He’s been desperate to do good for the kingdom as much as I hate to admit it. I truly don’t think he could keep a secret this large,” Everett explained, running a hand over his face. “Why are you suddenly questioning everything? You’re not letting that asshole get in your head, are you?” He slid a hand over her cheek, forcing her to meet his gaze. “No, Ev. I just want to understand what is going on. It’s obvious that this kingdom knows about us, I’m trying to make sense of it all. Someone is lying to us and I want to find out who,” she allowed herself to tilt her face into his palm, enjoying the physical touch. “I promise, Aerilyn, I’m telling you everything I know. If there were more, you’d be the only person I’d trust to tell,” he spoke softly as his thumb began to rub on her cheek. As much as she hated to admit it, she was finding some trust in the man. He hadn’t given her a reason not to trust him. Azazel had only spoken those words to put a wall between her and Everett. He had wanted to isolate her from her companions so that she was easier prey.

Aerilyn couldn’t break her gaze from Everett’s, letting herself get lost in his eyes. “I trust you, Everett. Don’t make me regret it,” she whispered, grabbing a fistful of his button-up in her palm. “I won’t, little thief. Don’t let me regret this either,”he trailed off before she felt his lips close over hers. Aerilyn had only been kissed once when she was much too young. She’d been too curious for her good when she had seen two adults kissing in the town square. One of her only childhood friends had been with her when she saw the kiss, both of them agreeing to test what the motion felt like. Her parents had caught the two of them and she’d been too afraid to show affection to anyone else again.

The feeling of Everett’s lips against her own made her legs threaten to melt beneath her. They were soft and warm, moving against hers with obvious experience. After several seconds, she relaxed and allowed herself to kiss him back. He tasted sweet and salty at the same time, it was a foreign taste that she couldn’t quite explain. She loved every second of it, trying to savor all of him. He pulled away slightly, his wide eyes locked on hers. “I’m sorry, I-” he began but she cut him off by forcing her lips back on his. She grabbed onto his face, not letting him pull away this time. She felt his hand slide to the back of her head, tilting his face slightly to deepen the kiss. His tongue dragged over her lower lip causing her to gasp. He took advantage of her parted lips and slipped his tongue into her mouth. All she could feel or see was Everett as if he corrupted every thought in her mind.

“You two are disgusting,” a voice broke the two of them apart, moving away from each other. Blaise laughed, shaking his head at them as Bastian and Brinley rounded the corner not much further behind him. Aerilyn felt her cheeks get hot at the comment, wiping the back of her hand over her mouth as she looked between Everett and her companions. “Way to ruin the moment,” Everett rolled his eyes, jabbing an elbow into Blaise’s ribs. “I’m sorry, next time you two are tongue fucking I’ll stay quiet and watch,” he shrugged making Brinley burst into a fit of giggles.

Aerilyn couldn’t help but appreciate the small moment that they all shared. They had all faced death and survived. Even with the horrors that were to come, at least they had each other. At the end of the day, they’d have each other’s backs in the foreign kingdom. That thought was the one Aerilyn carried with her as she made her way to the door that led to her bedroom. She glanced back at the others doing the same, smiling to herself as she realized how grateful she was for the small family she’d found with them.

Chapter Twenty One

Aerilyn

The nights in Korth were never as quiet as they had been in Orissia. In Orissia, people followed their curfew and always went home after work. Korth seemed to be more chaotic and had more nightlife than she was used to. She had watched the town from her window in the palace, examining the groups of people walking the paths in small groups. Aerilyn had wished she could be in the place of the laughing group of girls. Each of them seemed to have no fear consuming them. The way they walked with smiles and not looking over their shoulders. She envied it.

A soft knock on the door pulled her away from the window and to the wooden entryway. She cracked it slowly, seeing the red hair through the small gap she had made before she let out a breath of relief. “Brinley?” She questioned as sheopened the door the rest of the way. A bright smile pulled across her features, her eyes lighting up. “Oh my gosh, Aerilyn, he kissed me!” She squealed, pushing past her and entering the room. Aerilyn’s brows knit together in confusion, closing the door as she followed the redhead to her bed. The girl plopped down on the mattress and she followed to sit beside her.

“Who kissed you?”

“Blaise! We were walking around the hallways trying to scope the place out and he was holding my hand and then boom he just did it,” she was giddy with excitement. Even in the worst scenario, she was glad that Brinley still hadn’t lost her smile. Her positivity was the one thing that stood out to Aerilyn from the start. Even if it had annoyed the shit out of her, she couldn’t help taking a liking to Brinley.

“So are you two like… a thing?” Aerilyn wiggled her brows, feeding off of Brinley’s energy. It was impossible to be upset around her. The fiery redhead had a way of lighting up the room. “I have no idea what this means. I think so? I’ve never really dated before and obviously our circumstances aren’t the best. He’s just so perfect, Aeri. I don’t even know how to think straight when I’m around him,” she continued to be a squealing mess, kicking her feet like a child. “We talked about what our future might look like. We both want to return to Orissia after all this is over, no matter what it takes. Both of our families are waiting for us to come home, so we have to. He even mentioned introducing me to his family,” she grinned from ear to ear, her words coming out fast. The thought of going back home was placed in her mind. She felt too different to be able to go back to working in the fields. It made her question what life in Korth could be like.

“Someone has a crush,” she teased, poking her fingers into Brinley’s sides in a playful manner. “I do, I can’t even deny that,” she bit her bottom lip, falling back against the mattress.“What about you and your lover boy?” Brinley returned the teasing. “He’s not my lover, that’s disgusting. We’re just too different. Even if we get back to Orissia, I would be nothing more than a Floral on the fields. Him and I could never work,” she frowned, the information settling over her. In all honesty, she wasn’t used to the level of male attention that Everett was giving her. She’s only been kissed once based off of a dare when she was playing with a group of kids. Everett was her first true kiss and she was still unsure how to feel about it.

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