We are all entitled to be beautiful

Chapter Seventeen - A shot in the dark

Eleanor

"What was that?" I spat as soon as we left the court room. My mind was racing with what possible plan Kayden could have to make this situation any more bearable. 

"What was what?" he responded as we turned the corner. His strides were much faster than mine so I had to run to catch up to him. He seemed unusually detached his eyes glossy and unfocused on anything around him.

"I have a plan?" I repeated his words back to him. My eyebrow raised in a questioning stance, "What's the plan?"

He stumbled over his words, "I uh-"

"You don't have a plan do you?" I sighed heavily wanting to bang my head against the nearest wall. This was hopeless. 

He turned towards me swivelling round so fast it almost caught me off guard. Almost. 

"I do, of course I do," he tried to sound convincing but I wasn't having it. 

"So what is it?" I asked as we walked back into Dexter's room.

"We go through with it...the wedding that is," seeing my the look on my face he quickly rushed out, "just for now. And then when we gain the publics support because as you are Rose's friend we can use that power against him,"

"Go on," I said crossing my arms over my chest, slightly understanding the trajectory of his plan.

"All that matters at the moment is the 'Court of Public Opinion', no one can have power without the public behind them. He will be powerless without us providing legitimacy to his claim to the throne. We, I mean more like you, are the missing link in his plan, don't you see you hold all the cards and he doesn't even know it,"

I nodded slowly, "Because he needs me to become king,"

"Exactly."

I mused over his explanation for a few seconds, trying to discern whether it would really work, "It still sounds like a shot in the dark."

"A shot is one more than we have at the moment," he reasoned and I found myself growing on the plan. It was definitely a rocky plan that could backfire in so many ways but what other choice did we have.

"I see what your saying but so far your father has gained a sizeable following," I countered. 

He leaned back against the wall, a look of contemplation on his sharp features, something brewing in those faded green eyes, so much softer than the vibrant green of my own, "True. But a following is not unadulterated support. We can sway people, just like Rose did,"

I felt a slight pang in my heart at the mention of my friend. I could still see the image of her lying lifeless on deaths door in the abandoned hospital. The sullen look on Xavier's face as he clutched her pale hand. 

The look in his eyes as he tried to smile through the pain just for the sake of Kai. His constant assurance that everything would be okay when he didn't believe a word that fell from his mouth. 

I needed to find a way to get a message to him and Kai, one that couldn't be intercepted or traced back to me. I could not have the false king find out about my brother. I had made that mistake once before with the former queen and she had wielded his life over me, to make me do whatever she wanted. I wasn't one to not learn from past mistakes. 

It was then Dexter walked in, his face grimmer than usual no laughter in his eyes, just worry, he pressed his lips together and sighed, "This is bad,"

"What is?" was my immediate response. 

"I'm being reassigned." 

"What why? To where?"

He sat on the couch his hands clasped before him another heavy sigh falling from his lips, "It seems your father has looked into me, saw that I was close to Prince Xavier and that has put my job at risk. I'm not trusted anymore."

"Where are they moving you to?" Kayden's voice floated through the following silence.

"Caldor's Cove," he responded. 

"What?" I blurted out, "But that's, that's on the other side of the country."

"That's so far Dexter." 

"I know," he lowered his gaze training his eyes on the floor, "It's even worse because I won't be able to let you in and out the castle, or gather intel from the other guards. You are really going to be limited in your movements and freedom in the castle."

He rose from his seat and reached into his back pocket, to pull out a loop of keys, "Before I handed in my keys, I made copies of them, this is the best I can do before I leave." he placed the cool metal into my hand and my fingers instinctively curled around them, "I'm not sure if they will change all the locks but it should give you some time and some freedom,"

"Oh Dexter," I whispered pulling him into a warm hug, "I'm going to miss you,"

"I'll miss you too Eleanor, but this is by far not the last you'll see of me."

He glanced over at Kayden, "Look after each other ok."

I laughed, "You know it's going to be me looking after him more than him looking after me."

"I'm counting on it," he quipped. 

And soon, he was packing up all of his stuff, all traces of Dexter had been removed from his room all tucked away in a fraying leather suitcase that looked like termites had dug through the holstering. 

He waved us his final goodbyes and then he was gone. 

Just another person exiting our lives. 

And probably not the last.