Blood for her Crown

Chapter Forty

Ciden

"Your pretty little friend is here."

Ciden sat up on the bed, confused, staring at the assassin who had just entered the room.

"Azivélles crown princess herself, can you believe it?" the man sarcastically answered his questioning look.

He really wished Vayne would stop delivering devastating news like that. If Grace truly was in Alvaros, whatever her plan had been, it had failed, and she certainly wouldn't come of her own free will.

"Why?"

"Her father brought her with him. As you may know, your brother and Emeran have recently formed an alliance. They are planning something regarding the upcoming ball in Maldevié."

Ciden had trouble connecting the dots since he hadn't been aware of any of that. As far as he had been informed, Dyon and Emeran were meant to break their alliance when Vayne had failed to deliver Grace to the king.

"What ball? And what does Grace have to do with it? Would you be a little more specific for once in your life?" he asked, annoyed.

He knew Vayne wouldn't be offended by his tone or words, so he didn't bother apologizing for either and waited for an explanation.

"The Darsays have sent invitations for the royal families of all four kingdoms to join them on another ball to maintain peace in Neoma. Dyon and Emeran are clearly not particularly interested in that," Vayne explained. "Scendos seems to be included in whatever schemes they have developed as well. I was kept in the dark about those plans. Apparently, neither Emeran nor Scendos trust me with valuable and, if they were to get into the wrong hands, deeming information. I have officially been excluded from any further meetings until they have succeeded."

That was certainly interesting. And absurd. An alliance between Dyon and Scendos had been in the making for months, but Emeran's involvement appeared unusual. Especially when he brought his daughter with him...

"What about Grace? What is her role in their game?"

Vayne shrugged. "I was to meet them at their arrival and show the king to their rooms. He dismissed me like a servant before I could get anything out of him. Had Dyon not ordered me to let him live before I went down there, I can assure you, I would be a lot smarter about this," he told him, visibly upset over being ordered around by a man he didn't even serve. "All I know for now is that the invitations clearly stated to present the entire family at the palace. I suppose Ayvon Feltain has been considered the only exception given his current state."

If the entire family was to make an appearance, that meant—

"You will be there as well," the assassin concluded his thought. "That was one of the reasons I came; we'll have to postpone the torture for the time being. I've been given clear instructions to leave you looking presentable. I also believe that is why the Emeran princess has seven full plates in front of her door. For the few seconds I have seen her, she was nearly unrecognizable. "Whatever her father is doing to her will eventually kill her," he continued. 

Ciden was about to rush through the door and look for her when two hands pushed him back onto the mattress.

"You can't leave. Don't worry about her. As much as I dislike this girl, I can't say I enjoyed the sight of her stumbling around like a dead body. I'm a man of physical torture. Mental torture is nothing I want to take part in, so I gave her a key that allows her to lock herself in that room. No one can enter unless she wants them to. Except for me, obviously."

Since he would have no reason to lie about Grace, Ciden was both shocked and relieved. He knew how afraid she had been of facing her father again—he had just never found out why. But as long as she was safe, he could relax a little.

"I will pay her a visit tonight."

Those words caused him to stiffen until he could almost hear his nerves straining.

"Don't bother giving me that look, princeling. I merely want to make sure she isn't decomposing in that room. She's been in there for four days now."

If he had given her chance to avoid her father, Ciden guessed he could trust him that far. What else was he supposed to do anyway?

"Fine," he said eventually.

Vayne nodded and was already turning around to leave when Ciden added, "Tell her that I won't die in here. Maybe I can help her when I get out. Ask her what her plan had been before I left."

Vayne raises his eyebrows. "Do you think of me as a messenger? Perhaps I haven't made my status clear yet."

Ciden wasn't in the mood for that conversation. "Just ask her that, will you?"

"I can't speak to her. Even if I wanted to help her, I have a reputation to lose. Don't count on me to be anyone's hero. I destroy people, not save them. The only reason I am not slicing you open is because your brother wants you dead for a crime you never committed. I owe it to your mother to give you the chance to survive. Don't make the mistake of thinking of it as an act of redemption." With that, he left and loudly pulled the door closed behind him.

Suddenly, Ciden regretted every decision he'd made since leaving Grace. He hadn't known her father was that horrible. What could he possibly be doing to her to break her so terribly? Despite everything the assassin had done in the past, he had to trust him enough to help her. Vayne was right; Ciden couldn't leave the chamber, not even at night. What other option did he have than to let him handle this?

Vayne

The hallways were completely abandoned. Even though not a single soul was around, he didn't break the habit of wandering in the shadows like a ghost. It was an effortless way of living after doing it his entire life. That was what he had been hired for, after all.

He couldn't be too careful since he would be imprisoned in the dungeons for what he was doing. If Emeran or Dyon discovered how the princess had managed to lock herself away, or that he helped Ciden, he would have to flee immediately.

Nevertheless, he felt the need to make sure the girl hadn't starved to death in there. Despite what he'd written on the note, he had a second key that allowed him to enter her room and any other in that castle from the outside. The locks were created by a Keni who could form metal to his wishes without much effort. Somehow, all it took to open the doors from the outside was a single key that worked for every door in the building. Since the ones on the inside couldn't be used on any other doors and there was only one other key, he was the only person who could enter. Luckily, Dyon wasn't aware of it.

Vayne looked around one more time to make sure he was alone before pulling out the key and slowly turning the lock of the door to Grace's room. When he heard the quiet click of the bolt, he softly pushed it open and was greeted by complete darkness. Not even the moon spent much light.

After he closed and locked the door behind him again, it took a minute for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. When they finally did, he could barely make out the shivering, bundled-up form on the bed. She must be asleep; otherwise, she'd have him pressed against the wall already, with his own knife to his throat. He stepped closer until he saw tears running down her cheek while she clutched the blanket in her fists. They have known and despised each other for years, and he never would have thought to see her so vulnerable and weak. He hadn't been sure if he would be as determined to help her if he did not hate her father so much, but the sight before him settled his mind—no father should make their daughter suffer like that.

It was almost ironic that he, the man who had taken and destroyed countless lives, would become the one attempting to make someone's easier for the time being. He would not get involved in whatever plan the young prince had mentioned, though. As soon as the Emerans left, he would be done with this. He simply couldn't allow the torture of her father to murder the princess under his watch. Perhaps he would get the chance himself sometime in the future, but not right there and then.

He went back to the hallway to retrieve two plates of now-cold food, which he could hardly identify in the shadows, and placed them on her bedside table. He didn't want to wake her, especially since she shouldn't know who had given her the key, so he left a note next to the food and left. Before returning to his own rooms, he ensured that the door was locked twice in case Emeran would attempt to enter again the next day.