It's been four weeks, exactly a month, since Scarlett Solaris took to the throne and has been leading her nation, Goldaria. She and her friends still hurt from the traumatic mental wounds inflicted on them during their captivity weeks prior, but the...
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✰✦✰ Chapter Fifteen ✰✦✰ " Sarinne "
I WAS PACING outside of the conference room where they were discussing their next steps. Scarlett and Darius had arrived just half an hour ago from wherever they'd run off to and now Scarlett was behind the doors I was panicking in front of, trying to come to a conclusion on what to do with Jacks.
Each Head of Isle sat inside of that room and we only had Scarlett to defend our side of things. I nearly scoffed at my choice of words. Our side. I certainly didn't agree with whatever Scarlett had planned and her nasty habit of defending Jacks. The only guilt that plagued me was that of having made her cry just that morning, but that hadn't changed things for me. Jacks was still an unforgivable viper. Yet, simultaneously, I didn't know how else to react. The girl had the ability to read me like a book, which was why it shocked me that she didn't know my number one rule—if one stabbed me or anyone I loved in the back and they'd be shunned from my life for eternity. I just didn't find it fair that a person could rip out your heart so easily and expect you to piece it back together on your own and be the one to apologise for it.
"They're not finished yet?"
My body spun around and practically deflated when I saw him. Jacks. For once, he didn't have that troubling glint in his eyes. "What are you doing here?" I questioned.
"Walking around," he replied like it was nothing.
"And where are your Guards?" Impatience dripped like acid from my lips.
He took a moment, scanning me up and down subtly as if it would somehow aid his answer. He was eating up the space between us when he told me, "Scarlett released them from their duty to follow me around like lost dogs."
Like a child I wanted to stomp my feet and scream that this wasn't fair. Because it wasn't. "You're joking." Even I wasn't unbeknownst to the petulance laced to my tone.
His lips twitched. "I thought you'd know by now that my jokes are far funnier than that."
I ignored him. "So you're just walking around the palace with no one supervising? No one making sure that—that you—"
"That I don't blow up the place?" Jacks raised an eyebrow. "Or that I don't try to escape and create some army only to come back and kill you all?"
"Considering how creative your response just was," I spat aggressively, "I wouldn't veto that."
"Well, I would." Something flashed in his eyes. "That isn't my plan. I made a promise to Scarlett, Red. And to you. I'm not what you think I am."
"And whilst I usually believe the words of quislings, I apologise for not feeling up to trusting someone like you."
Silence. He didn't say anything and neither did I. The reason I didn't was pretty obvious—I hated the guy and wasn't exactly up for chatting with him or making small talk regarding anything. Not even the weather. I turned again and rested my back against the cool marble wall. The last few days had been more than stressful and I wasn't ready to talk about it with anyone yet.
