Finding love

Chapter 2

-Just imagine the castle  at night-

-1080 words-

~Ayla's POV~

30 minutes later the sun began to set. My tears have dried a long time ago. The view was beautiful and soothing. The last rays of the sun shone through the trees.

I realized that snow was beginning to fall.

I looked into the dark sky. A snowflake landed on my face. It melted immediately.

The king didn't utter a single word. He seemed quite content. And I was happy about it.

But soon the silence was broken.

"What is your name?" he asked.

"Ayla" I whispered. My voice was hoarse from my silent crying. My injury wasn't hurting anymore. The coldness numbed it.

"You can call me Lavus" he said. Lavus, a strange but beautiful name.

"And my name is Sir Nicolas" blondie said from behind us.

I smiled at that. Nicolas seemed to be the friendly one.

I didn't even try to get away. I was glad that they saved me from the wolf. Even, if I could escape I was far away from my home already.

It was getting dark and my chance of survival without help equals zero.

I couldn't confirm the rumors about the merciless king. He didn't hurt me so far. But what if he wants me to be his slave. Being his could mean anything. What if he kills me?

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"In an hour we will reach the castle" Lavus answered.

Maybe from there I could steal a horse and make my way home. Do I want to go home? Besides my little sister there's only an arranged marriage waiting for me. But that's still better than my unknown destiny with the king.

After another 20 minutes it was completely dark and cold. The snow was still falling down and covered the whole area in a white blanket.

My eyes started to droop. When I couldn't stay awake any longer I leaned back into Lavus and closed my eyes.

~~~~

"Ayla, wake up" Lavus whispered in my ear.

We were still on the horse but the scenery changed. We left the forest behind and were facing a magnificent castle. It was a dream in the dark. The snow was thick and it was extremely cold.

I realized that Lavu's arm secured me around the waist. It gave me a warm feeling. I felt comfortable so I didn't move.

"Ayla" he said louder this time.

When I didn't react, he touched my injured arm. Pain shot through my arm and I hissed loudly. 

"What was that?" Lavus asked.

"Nothing" I answered.

As we reached the castle he loosened his grip and descended from the horse.

He put his hands on my waist to set me down. I steadied myself with my hands on his shoulders. Nicolas took the horses and the bow away. Before I was able to look at the castle he took my arm and inspected it. He rolled up my sleeve.

3 long claw marks were visible. It was smeared in blood. I looked away. 

"What did you do? What happened?" he asked me. I didn't answer and turned to his home.

The castle was huge. Lavus led me through the main door. So he didn't seem to care about my injury. A small stab of pain went through me. What did I expect, that he would care about me? I have to grow up. 

The warmth that radiated from the fireplace was pleasant. Two big staircases lead to corridors upstairs. Between them was another grand door.

Everything was made out of gold, marble and red carpets.

I was speechless.

Soon a butler removed my cloak and took the sword from Lavus.

" Dinner is served, your highness" he told us.

"We will be there in 15 minutes" Lavus answered. The butler nodded and left.

Lavus took my hand and led me to one of the grand staircases. His hand was big and warm and engulfed my cold one completely. It was a pleasant feeling.

We reached the upper floor and entered the first door on the right. Behind a table sat an old man with gray hair and glasses. When we came in he looked up from his book and stood up.

"Your highness, what can I do for you?" he bowed.

"Doctor Luis, I need you to have a look at this young lady" Lavus pushed me forward. The doctor came towards us and inspected my arm.

"What happened, my lady?" he asked with concern. 

"I- A wolf attacked me", I admitted and blushed. This was so embarrassing.

"A wolf??" the Doctor Luis asked taken aback. " You are a brave maiden, it seems"

I smiled at his statement.

"Can you bandage her arm?" Lavus said. He seemed irritated because of something.

"Yes, we will disinfect and bandage it. Then you are good to go"

The antiseptic burned. I hissed and gripped Lavu's arm automatically. When I realized what I did I let go immediately and looked at the floor. 

After doctor Luis was finished, my arm was bandaged and felt better.

"I need to change them in 3 days. In 2-3 weeks it should be fully healed" he said to us.

"Thank you doctor" was the last thing I said before Lavus dragged me downstairs.

"Come" Lavus gestured me to the door in the middle.

We entered a dining room with many seats. It was so beautiful with china plates and classic pieces of furniture. 

There was so much food on the large table, vegetables, fruits, bread and roasted meat.

Lavus sat on the  head on the table. I sat to his right.

We were served the food that smelled divine.

But I couldn't get myself to eat.

 In the past I went to different events like a masked ball and dinner with my father's business partners. But I was never alone. Here, I felt lonely. 

Lavus began to eat but stopped when he saw that I wasn't touching my food.

"Eat" he commanded.

"Why am I here?" I asked instead of obeying.

Lavus sighed and laid his fork down. He looked me deep in the eyes.

"You are going to marry me" 

My nightmare is coming true.

<<<AN>>>

Hi there ^^ Again, feel free to point the mature mistakes out so I can correct them and improve the story! I will update at least once a week. Thank you for reading this chapter and have a good day/ night!

See you <3