Justice Eternal

19 Unexpected Visitor

Baulder had managed to convince the guards to let them through, and as soon as they were inside, he pulled them into an empty room. The moment they were through the door, he rounded on Anton, gripping both his forearms.

"Where is the building stone?"

Anton's eyes widened and he shoved the prince back, but he didn't budge.

"What? I don't have it."

"You were there yesterday. You took it."

Justice tried to tear the two apart. "He doesn't have it. I've been with him the whole time. There is no way he could've been the one who took it."

He looked at the pair of them and narrowed his eyes. "I don't trust him."

"It doesn't matter if you do or don't. I can vouch for him. There is no way it was taken by him."

"You don't know that."

"Yes, I do."

"No, you don't."

"Baulder, don't make me say it."

"Say what?"

She glared at him, unable to believe that he was so blind. "I took his clothes off last night! The stones are heavy. If there had been one in his pocket, I would've known about it."

Baulder let go of Anton and his face flushed. He looked away from Justice for a long moment, before he huffed and his eyes flicked back to hers, searching them.

He took both her hands in his and spoke slowly and deliberately. "Are you sure?"

She met him resolutely. "Yes."

Anton's relief, and a surprising swell of pride washed through her. It caused her lips to turn into a smile and she broke away from Baulder's stare to meet Anton's. They shared a wordless conversation made up of gratitude, and the ever-present twinge of embarrassment.

Baulder suddenly dropped her hands and turned his back on her. "Well, when you two are finished talking in feelings, we still have to go and break this bond."

Justice frowned and felt guilty for having been enjoying how this felt when Baulder was standing there unbonded. The prince of Olympus as vulnerable as a human! And she was somehow bonded to a shifter. Was that even supposed to be possible?

Pushing the thoughts from her mind she nodded and the three of them made their way to Council Chambers.

But as they got closer, there were more and more people congregating in the corridors. Nobody seemed to give them a second glance when Baulder strode as purposefully as he did down the middle with Justice and Anton trailing behind him.

Once at the chambers, it was immediately apparent that they wouldn't be going inside anytime soon. All around were angry heads of houses. There was a line to her father's office, and also that of the King's further down. From the snippets of overheard conversation, people were not happy about being forcibly kept within Olympus. Nor were they happy with the lack of explanation why.

Justice squished past and into her father's reception area.

Mr Beattie was looking flustered as he attempted to explain a couple, that Edward Edwards was unavailable. Upon seeing Justice he seemed somewhat relieved.

"Ah, my child. I see you're here, just like everyone else. Wanting to hear the story from the horse's mouth, eh?" He didn't even wait for her to respond. "There isn't much I can tell you. Your father and Thalente went into the chambers to retrieve the Pragma stones for your sister when—"