Page 34 of Of Vows and War: Special Edition
I feared for the mortal prince. They had harmed him—tortured him—before. There was nothing stopping them from doing it again. A part of me wanted to welcome him in and not allow him to leave. To protect the boy with adventure in his soul and light in his heart. Another part of me, the more sane part, knew that it likely only put him in more danger to be around me. To be seen as someone I cared about.
“That is it, I am coming in!”
Shit.
For the first time in three days, I moved. Far slower than normal, I pushed myself up and crawled to the bed. Locks jingled on the other side of the doors, freedom closer than it had been in a while. My hands gripped the golden gown I had tossed days ago, pulling the hideous thing onto my body just as Sterling burst through the doors.
He wore golden silk that matched the perfect coils of his hair. His skin was slightly darker than it had been in the dungeons, his pallor no longer sickly. I had no idea how they managed to rid him of the thinness that signaled malnutrition, but there he stood, his body filled out and quite strong.
Despite that, the mortal prince appeared terrified.
“Asher, what happened?” he asked in a panic.
I stared at him, unsure of what to say. Or what to do. He rushed to me, brown eyes wide. Despite the smell, Sterling knelt beside me, his hands coming to either side of my face as he seemed to search for any sign of injury. He would find none that were visible, think me mad, and then leave to tell Xavier or Mia. I was sure of it.
“If you tell me what is wrong, I can help,” he said. Then, far quieter, he whispered, “Please let me help you.”
The ring around his finger on his left hand seemed to sizzle against my skin. Gold crackled and burned where it kissed my cheek, a marriage forced upon me like a curse. Sterling was kind, funny, curious, and handsome. He was more than I could have asked for a year ago. But now, after knowing what it was like to love and be loved by Bellamy? Well, nothing would ever compare. And even if I never saw Bellamy again—if perhaps I died ridding the world of the fae king and queen—I would still never call anyone else my husband.
“Take off the ring,” I ordered brokenly, tugging my face free of his grasp. Sterling’s face fell, sadness seeping in to wash away the terror. With a slight nod, Sterling pulled off his wedding ringand tucked it into his pocket. Freeing me from the sight of a false promise I wanted nothing to do with. “Thank you.”
“Of course.” A beat of silence passed, a moment of tension and unknowing in which we both stared at the other. “How about a bath?”
“It will be poisoned. You do not understand, but the king and queen wish to keep me weak. They are trying to remind me of how small they can make me. I will not let them,” I stated, lifting my chin.
While I expected judgment or condemnation, Sterling just sat back on the heels of his shoes and studied me openly. After a few moments, he simply nodded and held out a hand.
“Okay, my bathing room it is.”
“What?”
“You can come to my chambers and bathe there. I will have them bring up fresh water and I will lend you some of my old clothing.“ With a few words and a simple shrug, Sterling completely shattered my shields of defense. Nodding, I grabbed his hand and let him pull me up.
“Are you only doing this because you think I am your wife? Because you want something from me?” I had to ask. There were so few beings in this world who gave without ulterior motives. Even if Sterling was once the type of man who harbored more kindness in his heart than most, who knew what they had done to him since I saw him last.
“I am doing this because you are a person—sorry, being. You deserve to feel safe. Of course, you are my wife, so I owe more to you than most.” With that, he tugged me forward. “Which means, if you say the king and queen are out to get you, then I believe you.”
I followed silently, knowing I was not meant to leave my chambers but caring little. He seemed perfectly fine, so they likely were not tampering with his water. And they probablywould not have thought to do anything nefarious to his clothes. Maybe this could work.
Or maybe he was in on it and was just trying to get that poison in my system for them.
Honestly, I did not feel much better without it. My head throbbed, my body ached, and my magic felt distant. All of which could have been due to dehydration and starvation, but I feared it was because whatever they did was going to permanently affect me—or maybe they were still poisoning me after all.
We did not go far, passing through my doors and walking to the end of the hallway. Sterling halted at the final door and pushed it open, revealing a golden disaster. Clothes littered the floors, trays from meals sat on the bedside table, and books wereeverywhere.
Mess did not accurately describe Sterling’s chambers.
For some reason, I loved it.
“Do maids not come here?” I asked, letting out a soft and weak chuckle. The first since we had been locked in the dungeons together.
Sterling looked over his shoulder, grinning widely my way. “They try.”
Shaking my head, I let the prince lead me through the mess, hopping to each spot he did. We stumbled our way past his golden bed on the right, his matching dresser on the left, and made it to the bathing chamber in the far right corner.
Sighing dramatically, Sterling straightened and opened the door. His bathing chamber was simple, containing a tub, a vanity, and a chamber pot. Nothing exciting, though the gold made everything gaudy.
“I will have them bring water but will not let them carry it in. When it is ready, I will fill the tub and then leave so you can have space. Let me go grab you some of those clothes really quick.” He left me then, pulling the rope that would alert the servants whowere meant to serve him. I waited, listening to what sounded like him tripping. Curses sounded from the main chambers, putting a smile on my face against my will.
