Shadow wolves: The Prince's Servant (Book 4) - Complete

Chapter 3 - He wants to talk?

Emily

“I don’t think you are going to be that lucky, girlie. He is hell-bent on getting to know everything about you. I would lie low for a while if I were you.” Cook laughed.

“What?” My eyes snapped in her direction. “How much lower can I be!?”

“I don’t know, stay at home for a couple of days. He can’t stop blabbing about you. I have never seen him this obsessed before.” Cook laughed … Imagine that, I had never heard her laugh.

“Cook, you know I can’t stay at home. My father will starve. Don’t you have a pig to fry?” I snapped at her a bit rudely, feeling completely flushed, and she turned around, still laughing at me. Now what? If he even had Cook under this spell of his, there would be no escaping. No, I would never be that lucky. I was just an ordinary girl. Tying my apron again, I dried the pot and started cutting the potatoes for the day. A young boy walked in through the back door. A single daisy in his hand, making Cook laugh even harder.

“I told ye!” She squealed. I rolled my eyes. How was I going to say no to this little face?

“The prince sends this for you, miss.” He smiled. This little boy was in heaven, he had just met the prince and ‘Became one of his special knights.’ I waited until he was out of sight and dumped the flower in the fire of the big oven.

“Why did you do that?” Cook looked a little angry at me.

“Because his betrothed is on her way to the King’s funeral, and he is sending me flowers.” I said angrily.

“Commoners like us don’t get the fairy tales.” I felt the darkness creeping into my heart. Cook was right about that. No girl I knew of, that was a commoner, had ever become a Queen.

“She is no longer his betrothed. He sent a message for them to turn back. He is not going to honour the alliance his father agreed to.” Cook looked very seriously at the dough she was mixing, not moving her eyes in my direction.

“But their marriage would have saved us from having to deal with these horrible merchants! How could he do that? He has damned us all!” I cried out angrily on the verge of tears, looking at Cook.

“Nope, he hasn’t, that the King was not going to honour the agreement either. He was going to overthrow our kingdom, seeing us as weak, killing all our people and taking the land as his own.” She sighed. “Prince Julius sent some of his guards disguised as her guards. They were supposed to make sure that she arrived here safely without an assassin in her party. Things didn’t work out that way. They overheard a conversation between her and her handmaiden. She couldn’t wait to be a widow and marry the King she was in love with.” I stood there with my gaping like a fish, my hands on my hips. “Close your mouth girlie, this is a kitchen, we don’t want to invite flies.” Cook looked disgusted. My brain suddenly felt as if it was burning to a crisp and my legs gave way under me. The room started spinning faster and faster and my head hit the side of the counter and then the ground with a big thump, everything went dark.

I opened my eyes to the smell of a strong scent of mint and looked into those blue pools.

“Hello, Emily. You took quite a fall there. You gave all of us a scare! Don’t do that again.” The prince frowned. I looked around me, realizing I was not in the kitchen any longer. The bedding was lush and beautiful.

“She must drink this tonic tonight before she sleeps.” An old man was hovering behind the prince.

“Thank you.” The prince replied, taking the bottle and returned his gaze to me the moment the old man left. “Why did you faint, Emily? When last did you eat?” His voice was thick with concern. “I know you struggle, but surely you can find something to eat in the kitchen?” He continued, and I just lay there watching him, not sure which part of the castle I was in and which way would be out. “Did you lose your voice in the fall?” He frowned, when I just stared at him. “Emily, please talk to me. I need to know you are okay, please.” He sounded as if he was begging, when the door opened abruptly.

“What is going on here? I was informed by the healer that you brought the kitchen girl to your chambers?” The Queen looked utterly disgusted at me and then at her son, as if he had committed the ultimate sin. “Have you fallen and hit your head son?” She frowned at him, blinking her eyes like they had dried out completely. She looked at me again. “Oh, I recognize you girl. You saved me from eating dog food. It still doesn’t matter, Julius! I have told you time and time again. We are better than help. We are the Royals. Our blood is pure and will stay that way! And what is this business? I hear that you sent your betrothed back to her father?” She shrieked, making my head ache all over again, and I pulled a face in pain.

“MOTHER! Stop your tantrum immediately.” He growled at her. “You are causing poor Emily more pain than she is already in. My betrothed and her father planned on killing us after the wedding and taking our lands as their own. That is why I sent her back. We were never pure-blooded. You are the perfect example, even if you try so hard to deny it.” His words made her turn red, turn around and slam the door on her way out. Whatever he meant by that, it completely shut her up, as he returned his attention to me.

“Friedrich, please ask Cook to bring Emily a proper meal.” He didn’t break eye contact with me.

“Yes, your highness.” Friedrich bowed his head, silently leaving the room, through one of the secret servant doors.

“That is not necessary, your highness, I am better. I can go back to work now.” I tried to get up, but just dropped back down on the bed, overtaken by the darkness again.

I woke up later, and it was dark outside. Julius was standing by the window, looking out. I took this as my chance to sneak out, but the second I tried to sit up I moaned, feeling the intense pain in my skull.

“Emily! You are awake. I was so worried.” He rushed to my side, taking my hand in both his. I looked at my surroundings, feeling very confused. The room was lit with candles and the fireplace had been lit to warm up the cold walls. I realized that I had slept for hours and not just fainted.

“I am so sorry for overstaying my welcome, your highness. I must be on my way. My father will be so worried.” I tried to get up again, but he simply helped me lie back down.

“You will do no such thing. I sent Cook with food to your father’s house early this afternoon, and she came back saying he was very grateful for the food and glad that you were safe.” He smiled.

“Yeah, right! He was probably just happy that he was getting food from the castle because I got hurt.” I scoffed.

“You, my lovely, will stay here until you are properly healed and that’s that.” He gave me a nod and that was that.

“What about the Queen? She is not happy about me being here, your highness? It is best if I leave. I will stay in the servant's quarters downstairs. My clothes are very dirty and have already damaged your expensive sheets.” I tried again.

“I said, don’t you mind her, you are staying right here. I want to get to know you better.” He smiled sincerely. I had never been alone with a man, in a man’s chambers, which made me jerk my hand away from his, pulling the bedding as far up to my chin as possible and probably looking as if I was about to have a fit or something. All I could think of were the images of how my mother had been used, abused and finally kicked like a dog until she was dead. What, if getting to know me meant he wanted … I couldn’t. I wasn’t like my mother. He had already sent my father's food. No, now he expected that in return. Cook warned me and I didn’t listen! I pulled my shoulders and hands closer to my neck, closing my eyes.

“I will do what you want, please just don’t kick me until I die.” A single tear rolled down my cheek. I felt him standing up from the bed and open my eyes.

“First, the towns people think we are going to chop their heads off, now you think I am going to … Deflower you and kick you until you die if you don’t?” He looked horrified.

“Well, aren’t you? That is what gentlemen do, isn’t it? That is what they did to my mother, so I just thought that it is the way it worked.” I pulled the bedding completely over my head crying, shaking with fear … Big juicy sobs. I felt him sit down again, pulling me close to him, bedding over my head and all.

“I will never … I can’t even think … I can’t think that you had to endure such pain as a child, the pain of losing your mother that way. I am so sorry.” His voice filled with emotion, and I pulled the cover away from my face a little, to look at him. He was being sincere in his apology. How did he know?

“Wasn’t you that did it? You don’t have to be sorry.” I swallowed hard on my tears.

“I know, it just saddens me that that is what you think of me. Of the nobles.” He wiped a tear off my cheek. “I simply meant to talk to you and get to know you where you grew up, your parents, your childhood, but after what I just heard from you, I think it best we do not upset you any further. We will find something else to talk about. First, you rest and heal.” He held me tight.

“No. If talking is what you want, then I would like that.” I nodded. Nobody had ever wanted to hear what I had to say. Maybe I should tell him what was going on in the kingdom.

I woke in the early hours of the morning to a sleeping prince holding me, frightening me. What happened? Did he … While I was asleep? No, couldn’t be, he still had the same clothes on as last night, except for the jacket. He took off his jacket. I stopped panicking a little, looking around as much as possible without moving too much. He was fast asleep on top of the covers, while I was underneath them, still in my dirty rags, my head pounding.

“Are you going to stop moving around and say good morning?” He gave me the fright of my life, nearly making my heart stop! I smacked him on his shoulder by instinct, and immediately regretted what I did.

“Oh, I’m so sorry your highness! I shouldn’t have! I just got a fright. Please forgive me.” I gasped.

“And a good morning to you too, Emily, and please call me Julius. All this your highness stuff is making me feel fifty years old.” He grinned at me.

“Good morning you … Julius.” I smiled slightly, blushing when he lifted himself to look at me.

“Did you sleep well?” He smiled.

“Yes, thank you.” I nodded. “I do need to get back to work. It is late and Cook is going to be very angry with me.” I started.

“No, she will not, she has already brought you some breakfast and tonic for your head.” He nodded over to a table by the window. I was wondering what smelled so good.

“I can’t, your highness.” I looked shocked.

“What did I say about what to call me, huh?” He asked.