The Princess and the Guard (Book 1)

One

Juliette's heart thudded against her ribs, so hard it was difficult to breathe. She fought against the urge to sprint, knowing that would only amplify whatever noise she made. The wooden steps beneath her creaked, but she kept moving up, up, up. At the top of the stairs, two short hallways spilled out in front of her, and at the end of one was a small door concealed in the wood.

A closet.

Her refuge.

She darted inside, carefully closing the door after her, and then inching as far back as she could. Around her, the scent of wood was strong. There had always been something oddly comforting about that smell. It smelled calm, serene. Peaceful.

It smelled like freedom.

A whole ten seconds ticked by. Juliette's chest ached with every inhale. She tilted her chin to the ceiling. The footsteps grew louder. She thought for a second she'd been discovered.

But they passed, and silence rang.

With a relieved sigh, Juliette pushed the closet door open and stepped back into the hallway. She took off back up the narrow stairs, pushed at a spot in the wall that, on the outside, was a painting. Part of the wall opened, and she peered outside, seeing if anyone was there before crossing to another opening that led her to a narrow, twisting stairwell that went so far in both directions she couldn't see the top or bottom. She bunched her dress in her fists, afraid of tripping or getting it caught.

By the time she reached the top, her heart was racing again, but it was worth it. A small room stretched out before her, big enough to move around in, but too small to have been an actual room. She wasn't sure what this little place had originally been intended for, but it made a fantastic hiding place. There was a tiny circular window with a wide ledge that looked out over the gardens surrounding the palace.

Juliette climbed onto the windowsill, propping her chin on her knees and breathing a sigh of relief.

Below her, the wooden steps creaked.

Juliette's head snapped to the side, her heart leaping to her throat. She stood, mindful to be quiet as she moved behind a panel in the wall that had fallen. Or rotted off.

The groaning wood grew louder and louder, until it cut off with a single, deep creek.

"Where are you? It's just me."

Juliette's shoulders dropped and she stepped out, relaxing into a grin. Noah was standing in the doorway. Or, rather, standing one step below the doorway since he was too tall to fit in the doorway.

"Is this your newest hiding place?" he asked, casting a glance around.

Juliette almost shrugged. "She keeps finding my other ones."

Noah looked like he might have laughed if Juliette wasn't serious. If she didn't have to hide all the time. If she could have roamed the palace in peace instead of fear.

Juliette leaned back against the window, wishing there wasn't so much space between them. She couldn't put her finger on it, but she'd felt different around him lately. A way that made her heart lurch in her chest and heart fill with warmth. A way that made her feel like she was made entirely of wax and would melt completely.

It was not an unpleasant feeling.

Juliette licked her lips, then got to her feet. "She's not due back for another hour and a half, are you hungry?"

"No, I ate. I could really use a nice, week-long vacation, though."

Juliette pressed her lips together. She hated how hard he worked, but he didn't have a choice. Guards weren't given the luxury of taking time off whenever they wanted.

As if realizing he'd spoken a thought aloud, Noah cleared his throat and called up a smile. "Come on."

Juliette reluctantly followed him back down the stairs. When they neared the bottom, Noah stopped short.

"Guards," he said.

"You're a guard," Juliette reminded him.

"Yes, but I'm one of the good ones. And I'm not one of hers."

Juliette could have kicked herself. "I thought her shuttle wasn't supposed to arrive back until two." She glanced at the digital watch strapped around her wrist, the light almost blinding in the darkness. It was just now twelve-thirty.

Noah grimaced. "So did I. Come on, let's take a shortcut around back to your room." He glanced down at his white t-shirt. "I should have grabbed my jacket."

"If she catches us, we'll just tell her I got lost and wandered down to the guard's area and you walked me back," Juliette said with more confidence than she felt.

"Out of uniform?"

Juliette shifted her lips, jogging to keep up with Noah as they cut through the library toward Juliette's room. "Noah, just go back down, I can make it from here."

"It's fine, she'll probably be coming in from the front." Still holding her hand, Noah pulled her through one of the servants' passages, effectively shaving a good three minutes off their trip.

Noah stopped again. Voices filled the air, and he waited until they passed.

Juliette held her breath. "That was close."

"Too close." Noah started forward again, pausing at the door that opened into the main corridor.

"If she's going straight to her room we may as well walk in the regular hallway so we aren't so cramped," Juliette muttered.

"Yeah, I suppose," Noah replied carefully, inching the door open and checking the corridor.

Juliette followed him, stifling a sigh. She just thought to suggest they see if they could raid the kitchen when the ground lurched beneath her. Juliette let out a yelp of surprise, falling. She fell to the ground, her knees slamming into the thick carpet. She tried to stand up, twice, only to be knocked down again by the force of the trembling.

The quakes that had been plaguing the small kingdom of Demetria for her whole life were growing closer and closer together. It might have been her imagination, but it felt like their intensity was worsening every time.

"They always come at the worst times," Noah said, getting to his feet and then helping her up.

Juliette shook her dark hair out of her face. "Yeah." She started to say something else, but as she and Noah rounded a corner she ran right into her sister, Queen Odette.