A Bastard's Allure-Chapter 33: Punishment

"What are you doing here?" Thoron asked, catching Jessica’s attention. She held the leaflets in her hand, an inquisitive look on her face.

"What are you doing with these?"

Thoron’s eyes softened when he noticed what she was holding. With two swift steps, he took the pages from her. "I was interested in something," he replied, trying to avoid the topic all together.

"And you didn’t carry the whole book but opted to pluck out these pages with a history long forgotten?"

"I had a reason for what I did. You should be thanking me you’re still breathing instead of asking mindless questions. If you have nothing else," he said, giving her that ’leave now’ look.

Frustrated, she walked out and made sure to slam the door behind her. Thoron heaved a sigh of relief, one he didn’t notice he’d been holding all the while. His eyes settled on the pages before switching to the candle placed on the desk.

It was all but a matter of lighting the pages, and with it the secret would be buried forever, never to be uncovered. But on a second thought, he put the pages back in the drawer and locked it this time.

He slid the keys in his pocket and took another bunch from the other drawer. No one was in the room when he stepped out, and he was glad of it.

He walked out of his chambers and headed towards the direction of the darker hallway. His hands rested on the keys in his pocket as if they’d disappear anytime soon.

His footsteps echoed in the silence, and when he saw the door slightly ajar, he felt a purge of pain rush through his heart! He halted in front of the door, his unbelieving eyes on the broken shackles. And as if that was not proof enough to attest his fear, he walked into the room, his boot leaving an imprint on Elena’s clotting blood.

The inside was dark as well but he didn’t fail to recognize the empty shackles. "This can’t be!" He said, shaking his head. "It can’t be!" His voice was now high.

*****

Gabriel walked into his room and found Elena seated on the bed. Their eyes met and just one look, he could tell she was not happy. And she had every reason to be.

"You stole a horse to impress me!" She said without beating around the bush.

Gabriel closed the door behind him. He had to admit he’d never seen her so mad! God’s! She looked like one to raise chills. And though she was human, the aura emanating from her right now brought chills to him.

"It wasn’t my doing," he said, sounding apologetic. Hell, even his own voice was betraying him. What did she do to him, this human princess?

Her eyes settled on his and he instinctively swallowed the lump in his throat. It was like he was being judged, yet the judge was an annoyingly cute angel in the devil’s disguise.

"I didn’t ask for it." She stated. "Really, I never asked for any of this. It was your suggestion purely. Truly I was happy. But to steal a horse?"

"It was Darion’s doing," Gabriel said, trying to salve himself out of the situation. Damn it! Her emotions were unreadable right now and he hated it!

"Darion is a knight in your kingsguard. He’d never do anything you’ve not instructed." Her hands were clutching the edge of the bed, he noticed.

"Truly I wanted a horse. But I had no control or knowledge over the manner in which it was acquired." Her eyes were trained on him all the while, not a hint of emotion on his face. Did she believe what he was saying?

Instead, she shifted her gaze everywhere else but him. Lord! Why was she making this difficult than it already was? When a fleeting couple of seconds passed without her saying anything, he walked closer and sat on the bed.

"Elena?" He called, holding her hands in his. They were soft, just like her heart. A heart that was quick to harden when he did anything trivial to upset her. He tried finding her eyes but she didn’t give in.

"I thought horse riding would make you happy, because I wanted to see you happy. Truly you were, but I admit I made a mistake."

She looked at him now, earning his attention. Still, her eyes were emotionless. "I’ll see to it that Darion is brought to justice if you wish."

"Darion is the only knight in your kingsguard. It’ll be foolish to have him die. Not now at least."

"What do you suggest?" He asked. The fact that she was finally talking to him gladdened his heart.

Elena stared at him, thousands of schemes to revenge on Gabriel running through her mind. Surely, he deserved a punishment for all the humiliation he’d brought to himself and their family. And what painful way to hurt Gabriel Sinclair than deny him the very thing he craved for?

"You’ll not kiss me until I consent to it!"

Gabriel " ". His eyes settled on her lips and back to her face. He could see the malice in her eyes. Truly, she knew how to make him suffer.

"As hard as it is to admit, it’s a gross punishment, truly." He pressed his lips to a thin line, the very thought of seeing her and not having to kiss those tempting lips taking court in his mind. "But I have to abide, My Lady." Was that hurt in his voice?

"And about Darion. Tell him to avoid the castle for the time being. Brandon will not like it seeing him around. He might end up like all the other previous knights in your kingsguard, as I have heard."

"Darion can pretty well take care of himself, if you’ve heard. I have to keep a safe distance from you before I fall into the temptation of kissing you." His eyes settled on her lips again before he stood up.