The Dragon's Call

Chapter 5

-Laelia-

“Congratulations princess,” some lady I had forgotten the name of, told me as she joined the other ladies that were surrounding me, and trying to make small conversation with me.

I had never before been so popular as I was now, and I hated every moment of it. My father was joking with some lords, one of them being my husband’s father. They laughed loudly, and it was the first time I actually felt real hatred towards my father, because while he laughed and drank and celebrated, I was shaking like an abused dog, and I felt like I could faint at any moment.

“My apology ladies, but my sister promised me a dance,” Henry, the third eldest of my brothers, said.

He quickly hooked my arm under his, while smiling his charming smile at the ladies, who all started to giggle and blush under his warm brown eyes. He gave them a small bow, before leading me to the dance floor in the middle of the big room. There were stone columns around us tied together by golden and white ribbons, and a big chandelier above us. There weren’t a lot of people dancing, yet I felt caged in. It was a good thing Henry held me close because I could barely stand on my own.

“Thank you for rescuing me,” I whispered.

“Of course. You looked close to fainting.”

“Well, what did you expect?!”

“Easy now, Laelia. Lord... Prince Aaron is not the worst match. He will ensure security for you and your children.”

I couldn’t believe his words!

“When did you become the rational one? Have you turned into James the future king?” I asked mockingly.

It was always James who was the serious one. The one who listened to reason before the heart. He didn’t joke a lot and when my brothers and I would argue, he was always the peacemaker. I had no idea how he did it, or how he stayed sane and calm with five brothers and a sister, but somehow, he did. He was the future king, of course. He couldn’t let his heart speak for him.

“I’m just saying. It could have been worse.”

“Worse? Worse!”

I pushed myself away from Henry, almost stumbling into another lady, but I didn’t care. I couldn’t be there anymore. It was too much. I couldn’t breathe! I stormed out of the big ballroom, and outside into the quieter and darker hallway. I ripped the veil from my hair, grabbing it tightly, dreaming about ribbing it to pieces.

“Laelia!”

I stopped and turned around, as I heard Henry call out to me. He was followed by Samuel, who looked as worried as him.

“Listen I’m sorry. I was just-“

“Do you know what my husband’s answer to my question, what do you enjoy doing?” I asked them, none of them saying anything.

“Prostitution! Those were my husband’s words! Prostitution, and when I, shocked, asked if he meant it, he explained it to me, as if I was a child, before telling me about my “wifely” duties. This is what I am stuck with until the end of my days. So, when you say Henry, I could have done worse, then I tell you, I couldn’t… He is the worst, and I am stuck with him for the rest of my life!”

They glanced at each other, not really knowing what to say, and could I blame them? I’m not even sure I wanted an answer. I had kept my feelings so tightly bottled up, that they now came pouring out and I threw them in the face of the closest person, which happened to be my brothers.

“And none of you had my back! None of you.”

“Laelia, we were-“

“It doesn’t matter now, Samuel. It’s too late anyway.”

“We will always be there for you. We promise you. We will make sure he doesn’t hurt you,” Henry reassured me, but he hadn’t heard Aaron’s speech. I was his now. To do with as he pleased. My brothers couldn’t help me anymore. I was on my own.

“You-“

“Laelia!”

Liam came down to our little group. He had his usually cheeky smile on his lips. He was the second youngest of my brothers and the most cheerful one. Though while he seemed to be in a perfect mood, as if everything was just great, I could see in his eyes, that it wasn’t. He acted this way, probably because I looked like a scared deer, ready to flee. I was ready. I was more than ready, but I needed a place to go, and I didn’t have one.

“It’s time,” Liam said, his smile slowly dying.

“Time?”

I knew what he meant, but I felt like I had to hear him say the words. Unfortunately, he didn’t get to. A stiff woman got there first. I had no idea where she had come from, but my governess would certainly have made an excellent assassin. You never heard her coming…

“Let’s go your highness. It is time for the marriage to be consummated.”

If I had had the appetite to eat anything the whole day, it would surely have come out at that moment, but my stomach was empty, and all I could do was swallow hard and nod before I was led away by Elizabeth. I glanced at my brothers over my shoulder. They all shared a grim look, but what could they do? I was Aaron’s now. I was just a pretty little thing for him to play with.

“Here we are,” my governess said, as she led me into a strange chamber.

It was smaller than my usual one, and it had a wooden bed with white curtains in the middle of the room. It was quite dark. Only a few candles were lightening up the room. It gave the room a nice glow, but I didn’t have time to appreciate it, as my governess walked over to the door.

“You remember everything I taught you?”

I nodded, unable to speak. The woman had barely taught me anything. Just the fact that a man liked to find pleasure in the place between a woman’s legs, and it was thanks to his seed, that she would be with child. I had learned more from hearing my brothers talk with each other than I had from this woman. She smiled a false smile, before closing the door.

“F*ck,” I whispered, as I turned and looked at the bed.

I felt so very sick, but there was no time to throw up. The door sprung open again, and in came my husband. Clearly drunk, the way he stumbled around. He had already opened a few buttons on his golden white shirt, but he did not seem eager to start the consummation. He looked rather bored, and barely even looked at me, as he continued with the shirt.

“On the bed. Skirt lifted,” he commanded, before leaving the shirt alone, clearly not able to get the rest of the buttons free.

His hands went to the belt in his pants. I turned away. I couldn’t look anymore. I didn’t want to. With shaking hands, a pounding heart, and difficulty breathing, I went to the bed and laid down, while trying to search for a good place in my head I could hide in. I lifted my skirt a little, but not a lot. It felt like the only barrier between us, and I simply couldn’t remove it. It was my last ‘safe’ place. Unfortunately, it did not protect me for long. Soon I found Aaron climbing on top of me. His pants were half off, and the hardness I felt against my thigh, I knew could only be an erection. I closed my eyes, as I felt him lift my dress even higher and higher while changing position slightly. I took a deep breath, just trying to get myself ready for the pain that was to come… Just get it over with, I begged inside of me. I heard him grunt slightly, as he changed position again, clearly struggling with my big dress, but then I felt his cold hands on my inner thighs, pushing them further apart. I felt myself fighting back a little, a reaction I couldn’t help. I didn’t want him on top of me or inside me, but he did not let me stop him. With forceful hands, he opened my legs and…

The door to our chamber sprung open. We both turned our heads, as a man covered in a golden armor came charging into the room. He went straight for us. His sword was raised high before he swung it directly into Aaron. I screamed loudly, as his blood poured onto me, covering my face and the top of my dress. The man withdrew his sword, and Aaron fell to the other side of the bed, half naked and dead. His eyes opened in shock and disbelief. I turned away, looking at the scary armor who had come inside and "interrupted" my wedding night. He had golden hair and brown eyes. His sharp face was bloodstained and so was his armor. Was he going to kill me? I shook badly and flinched as he lifted his arm, but it was his left hand that grabbed me, not his sword hand.

“Come on,” he growled, as he pulled me away from my dead husband.

“Who are you?” I asked with a trembling voice. “Where are you taking me?”

He didn’t answer any of my questions. Instead, he just led me down dark hallways at a quick tempo, before we finally arrived in my father’s throne room, but it wasn’t my father who sat on the throne. It was a stranger. A young man, in his early twenties, I guessed. He had short ash-like hair, grey and black mixed into each other. He had yellow piercing eyes, a sharp jaw and nose. At first, all I could think was that he was handsome, but then as he rose from the throne, his piercing eyes locked on me, I came back to reality. He was tall. I reached to his shoulders. He wore a golden armor, with a dragon on his chest. He had a sword by his side, his hand resting lightly on the handle. Was he the one who was going to kill me?

“Who are you?” I asked, my voice a bit stronger.

“My apologize princess for interrupting your wedding night.”

The people around him, who were casually roaming through my father’s things, all chuckled at his "apology".

“Your husband is…”

He turned to look at the man beside me.

“Dead.”

“Oh, so perhaps I shouldn’t congratulate you but give you my condolences.”

“As if you didn’t know he was dead. You probably ordered it!” I sneered.

The man looked surprised for a second, as if he hadn’t expected me to talk back to him, but I was not some simple little girl. I was a princess! A princess of the North.

“Who are you?” I repeated as the man took another step closer to me.

“I’m Ashes, son of Acheron. King of the dragons.”

Dragons!