A Veil of Betrayal

Chapter Twelve.

For the next three days, Caspian follows Layle around the Castle like a sad puppy. He continues to offer her the finest goods Lockbroalm can offer. Other than a new cotton dress, Layle turns down his endless displays of extravagance. In fact, she goes out of her way to spend more time by herself, roaming the halls at night and trying to ignore Kian, who's been appointed as her body guard. Their first proper conversation was pretty much him saying repeatedly that the Crown Prince has demanded that she is safe at all times and Layle trying not to hit him. Which she is currently doing. She pauses and exactly one second later the clanking of Kian's armour and sword stop too. She glances back at him, and Kian stares back at her, looking like he would rather be anywhere else. They come to a stop in front of the oil painting of Caspian as a infant and Layle gazes up at it. "He has the same eyes." She hears herself say and Kian makes a sound that could resemble a laugh. "Did you know that when he was a child, Caspian had really wonky teeth?" Layle spins around, her eyebrows raised. "Really?" Kian runs a hand through his dark hair and nods. In every way, him and Caspian really were polar opposites. "They were so bad in fact, it's the reason why he wouldn't smile with his mouth open in the painting. I teased him about them too much as a child, and he became quite insecure." Kian admires the paintings with an almost tender look on his scarred face. "That's why he's the only Crown Prince to look so sad in the official painting. You can't tell- the painter used quite a lot of artistic license. But if you look closely, you can see it in his eyes." He turns and faces Layle again. "I heard he wants to get a new one painted, since it's been over a decade since his last one. He's been insisting that you are to be in it with him."

Layle tosses and turns in her bed that night. Hopefully the potion would wear off soon, and due to her spending so little time with Caspian, when it does, he won't remember how infatuated he's become with her. And then she can go back to living a normal life, maybe leaving the Castle to work with her family again But, another small, selfish part of her hopes that it won't. Already, she is getting used to the privacy of her own quarters, and she's seen Esmu gossiping with the other maids and shooting her dirty looks across the Dining Room while she's trying to eat some cold meats. They probably all think she's the Crown Prince's concubine. She sighs and runs a hand over her face. That does not help her calm her thoughts. Quietly, she slips out of bed and lights a candle before opening the door. It groans but to her relief, the young guard who is meant to be outside is asleep and snoring. She makes a mental note to get Kian to give him a pay rise, just because of that. She walks around the Castle halls, the flickering light casting shadows and creating shapes on the walls and behind the curtains that aren't actually there. The floor begins to get colder as she descends deeper through the web of corridors and stairways until she sees one that she hasn't gone down yet. In the darkness, the winding stone staircase that leads under the Castle is barely visible, and with every step her bare feet hit the icy, smooth surface. Soon, she sees more light ahead and blows out her candle, the smoke filling the air with the smell of melting wax, which becomes visible as she proceeds further down and lit torches on either side of the wall brighten the narrow stairwell. Eventually, Layle reaches a large oak door, with dark symbols carved deep into the wood. She traces a finger over them lightly before pushing the door open. 
 

As she steps inside, a sudden hush descends, leaving Layle feeling uneasy as she scans the room. The room itself is bathed in a dim, ethereal light with the main light source being a  shimmering glow that comes from runes etched into the stone floor, their luminous intricate patterns pulsating with a life of their own. Books bound in leather and dust line towering shelves, their spines decorated with cryptic and ancient glyphs. In one corner, an alchemical laboratory lies in disarray—a maze of bubbling cauldrons and smoking vials, casting foul and sweet, bitter and syrupy smells and smoke of odd colours into the air. Strange artifacts adorn every surface including a large crystal that refracts the light into a kaleidoscope of colours. At the heart of the chamber stands a towering obsidian obelisk, its smooth surface pulsing with an otherworldly energy. Around it, black arcane symbols dance in mid-air, seemingly suspended by nothing. Layle can hear whispering, coaxing her towards them, to reach out and touch them. She moves closer, and reaches out her hand to touch one, some sort of human like figure-

There was a sudden movement behind her, and before Layle could even blink she felt a sharp sword pressed against her jugular, so pointed that if it was any closer to her artery it would slit it. There's a breath against her ear, ever so slightly, and then a cool voice rings out, shattering the silence of the room. "If you don't give me a good reason why you are in here within five seconds I will cut your throat from ear to ear."