Noble Hope| General Kirigan

𝟘𝟚𝟞

{Chapter twenty-six}

DESPITE ALINA'S STRUGGLING, THERE WASN'T A WORD SAID THROUGH THE JOURNEY BACK TOWARDS THE FOLD. It scared Mal. He had never seen Adaline as quiet and numb as she looked when they left, and it terrified him. He figured there was some sort of relationship between her and the Darkling, (the thought almost made him sick, but he wouldn't admit that.) based on the way she reacted to his attack and use of what Mal assumed was the Darkling's first name.

The trip itself didn't seem long to Adaline, and she didn't remember much of it. She had a brief memory of lashing out of Ivan's arms and attempting to run to her sister and Mal when General Kirigan had demanded she ride with him in the carriage.

Now she sat, silent and staring blankly out of the window. Kirigan sat quietly across from her, his hands wrung together. The tension was so thick he could nearly taste it. Desperately, so desperately did he want to reach over and cradle her in his arms as if the world would crumble beneath them. But Kirigan has a pretty good sense he had forever ruined things between them, and the idea of it made his heart clench painfully.

If he hadn't brought Adaline into the fight with the Stag, he would've lost his chance to gain power. He needed to use her to get Alina to comply.

And Saints, did Kirigan want to explain himself, but he knew the smallest sound from him at the moment would most likely trigger Adaline into a frightening state that he did not want to face.

When they finally arrived back at their original base, before all the Grisha nonsense, Ivan appeared at the door and took a firm hold of Adaline's arms that were bound by a thick rope to prevent her from fighting effectively. Kirigan nodded to the Heartrender when Adaline wasn't looking.

The man in red dragged her away, and she watched helplessly as Alina struggled against another Heartrender to reach Mal. The Tracker shouted both their names, and Adaline was relieved for just a moment when Ivan steered her in the direction Mal was headed, but she felt her heart drop when they approached a familiar black tent.

"No," Adaline murmured, shaking her head and beginning to fight against Ivan's hold. "No, I refuse to be in quarters with him! Do you hear me, Ivan? Let me go with my sister and Mal or I swear—" her screech was cut off.

In one swift movement, Ivan had Adaline slung over his shoulder, using his forearm to keep her bottom covered. He ignored the shouts of protest and pounds on his back.

Angry tears began to stream down her face that made Adaline's hair stick to her face. She finally went limp as Ivan set her down and immediately took grasp of her foot to attach a shackle that kept her in the area of the General's tent.

She looked around, not bothering to meet Ivan's almost apologetic gaze as he finally stepped out of the room. The entire tent was black, as expected. She was chained to a latch in the ground that must have been set just for her. He knew things would go his way. Of course, he knew. His cot was in the corner, seemingly much nicer than any others she had seen.

There was an array of furniture in the space, some of which Adaline doubted she could reach. The shackle was close to a thick, grey armchair embedded with jewels. Dramatic as ever.

She took a seat and kicked off her very dirty shoes, taking the responsibility to toss them far enough so they would land on Kirigan's bed. That was some of the most she could do for now with her wrists bound. She threw her legs over the arm of the chair, adjusted her ruffled dress, and closed her eyes for a much-needed nap.