Page 39 of The King's Bodyguard
Just thinking about how powerless I actually was turned my blood cold. Seething, I sat down and tried to focus on a book. When Lord Elthorne finally walked through my door, he had the look of a world-weary traveler. Behind him, Gareth, Hugh, and the Stonewardens stood.
“Your Majesty,” Lord Elthrone said. “You can imagine our shock to find that our king has been placed under house arrest in his own rooms.”
“In all but name, yes,” I said stiffly.
Slowly rising and moving toward him, I kept my voice level. As if I was in control. As if I wasn’t feeling powerless and scared and angry all at the same time.
“My apologies, Your Majesty,” Lord Elthorne said. “I should have sent Gareth or Hugh in my stead and remained here.”
“You had your duties. I was…” I swallowed and rubbed my arm self-consciously. “I was not as careful as I ought to have been.”
“There have been some serious charges laid at Corrin Stonewarden’s door. Treason. Conspiracy… and the seduction of our young monarch.”
I glanced at the Stonewardens who bowed before stepping back behind Hugh and Gareth. I rested my hand casually on the back of the chair by the table and tried to keep up my calm exterior.
“He has done nothing treasonous. As you know, Corrin has shown his loyalty and dedication to the crown.” I raised my chin and met his gaze steadily. “The only crime that could possibly be laid at his door is his devotion to his duty as my guard… and to making me the happiest person in these lands.”
Jan grunted. “The fukken prat,” he shot a glare at Meera.
Meera stared at me thoughtfully.
“He found his way into your bed after all, then.”
Lord Elthorne raised a craggy, grey eyebrow at her words.
“You told him to? Was this planned?”
“No.” She shook her head. “I simply knew that he was excited to meet a childhood friend he had played with in the royal gardens. I warned him. I told him. But our son, well, he has always marched to the beat of his own drum.”
“If they haven’t flayed him alive, I will,” snapped Jan. “May I see him?”
My heart clenched as I realized that Corrin’s parents weren’t too happy about this development either.Is it the fact that Corrin had bedded a Sunna like me? Or was it the difference in position that also scandalized them? Or perhaps they had hoped to bridge the gap between our kinfolk, and Corrin had simply proven to be an obstacle?I could see the latter beingparticularly true. I sympathized with him. All this time, I had been despairing over my own fate, but Corrin would not fare much better. He had his own destiny to contend with.
“I just…” I turned to Lord Elthorne and asked, trying not to demean myself with begging. “Please can you at least ensure he is safe and well? I would not wish him harmed for my sake.”
Lord Elthorne nodded. He glanced at Hugh, who nodded and disappeared in a relieved flurry. Apparently, he had been barred from Corrin’s presence. Now Hugh could ensure that Corrin was safe. After that, our conversation wound to other topics. I was formally introduced to the Stonewardens. Then everyone left except for Gareth.
“The Munni guards will return to give watch through the night,” Gareth told me. “Corrin, however…”
“I know.” I looked away and fought the tears rising to my eyes. “Was he… hurt badly?”
“He’ll survive. His will is strong.” Gareth hesitated and then added, “I have a feeling that once Corrin knows what he wants, he doesn’t give up without fighting. The question is, what will you do?”
The question haunted me for the next few days as I tried to think of a way out. What would I do? What could I do? All I knew was that I wanted Corrin, and there was no chance I could fix this in time. Our destinies had finally caught up with us.
Chapter 18
Corrin
Landis.
That was all that my mind could seize on as I waited alone in the dark cell. When Hugh didn’t return, I knew that my fortune had no doubt taken a turn for the worse. And when three unfamiliar brutes filed into my cell, wrestled me to the ground, and chained my hands above my head, hanging me from the ceiling, I knew exactly what was about to come next.
None of it was pleasant. I’d been beaten before. As a young lad, I had met my fair share of bullies, in the streets of Rimefrost and Kotterburg. In Kotterburg, it had been infinitely worse, for there were not just Sunna targeting but my own kinfolk who wanted to test the strength and courage of Jan and Meera Stonewarden’s son. I had hated them all, withdrawing into the catkin I was today. I preferred my own company, despising my sycophants and enemies alike.
I had become as hard as the stony hillsides of Velamere’s Grey Mountains. I had become as aloof as its wild creatures. Butbeneath, deep within my heart lay a fire long untended. When I had seen that glint of gold in the garden, I felt something spark within me. When Landis raised his blue eyes to meet my own, I felt something. For the first time in a long time, I felt a nameless emotion. Regret. Protectiveness. Care. Longing. And those had transformed over time into something even deeper and steadfast. Something that my tormentor’s fists could not quench.
Images of Landis floated through my mind’s eye. The sight of him sprawled beneath me. His glittering blue gaze warmed with lust. His hands clenched about my arms, clawing my back, as he writhed beneath my touch. His scent flowering between us as he spent his cum on my hand and his belly. The clench of his quivering muscles around me. Landis had felt so good, so right. I could never truly regret the moment we had together. I only regretted that we hadn’t tried it sooner.
