The Knight's Mysterious Maid-Chapter 327: Return to Lockwood (2)

"Father, why can’t you just tell me why you are meeting with Rafael? What could you possibly want to talk about and why do I have to wait for him to come here to know? Don’t tell me that you are planning to change your mind about us being together," Annalise said, feeling like this was where this meeting was heading.

Her father woke her up and told her to get dressed for riding out to meet with Rafael. She thought he would have liked to keep her away from Rafael after she spent time with him yesterday, not take her to see him the very next day.

"Just wait, Annalise. He should be here soon and then you will hear what I have to say. You should be glad I didn’t leave without you to speak with him alone. I am not trying to break the two of you up. I know that will have you running away to see him and that will ruin the peace we could have," said Phillip.

He was here to learn if Rafael had gotten the guards to agree to not attack so he could decide if it was time to send Annalise off with the people he picked to protect her. It was best they started to work on the truce now since it would take a long time for both sides to reach an agreement.

Phillip wanted the truce to be done quickly so he could have Annalise back at home and for his people to not worry about their homes being attacked anymore. It still wasn’t easy to let her go again, but he did not want to stop Annalise from this path she was going on.

"Is this about us leaving? Are you finally giving me the order to leave with him?" Annalise asked, excited that the time might finally be here. She liked being at home and seeing everyone she missed, but she yearned to go back out with Rafael. "If that is why you brought us here, why must you be so secretive?" ƒreewebɳovel.com

"Because I don’t want to watch you be so excited to leave. What could they possibly have over there to make you so excited to leave home? You have never liked too many rules and their world is full of rules. Is it because you will get to be with him? I am telling you now that I will have Ezra looking over you," Phillip said, looking to his right to see her reaction.

As he predicted, Annalise looked upset by this but then she smiled. He didn’t get to enjoy her reaction for long.

"It is only fair that with you not around Ezra will look after me. He is like an uncle to me and I am sure he will keep me away from Rafael," Annalise said, forcing a smile. All she had to do was make Ezra distracted by something or someone so she could be left alone with Rafael.

Phillip wasn’t convinced by her smile that she was going to let Ezra watch over her in his place. He would bet his right hand that she was already plotting how she would get rid of Ezra. "Annalise, do not forget that I raised you along with your mother. I know the face you make when you are up to something. I am letting you go because Ezra will be there. Do not do something to him."

Annalise couldn’t promise her father that she wouldn’t because she was going to get rid of Ezra. It wasn’t all her fault if Ezra would get distracted.

"I am also sending Thomas with you. I’ve seen the drawings and the plans he made of the tools he saw during his travels. He thinks he can build them if we can gather everything he needs. I want him to find more things that will be useful for us. I know you are angry with him because of the note, but try not to push him too far away," Philip advised Annalise.

The two of them were friends for too long for it to end over a note. After some space, they could talk and go back to their normal friendship. Phillip also knew that Thomas was trying his best to get used to Annalise being with Rafael.

Unfortunately, as Annalise said Thomas sat back and did not speak of his feelings. If Thomas had told Annalise of his feelings and tried to court her there wasn’t a promised chance the two would have gotten together, but he would have had the answer to if something could have happened between them.

Thomas missed that chance and there was nothing Phillip could do to help him aside from advising him to keep his eyes open for the woman meant for him since she could show up when he least expected her to.

Phillip thought of cheering him up by saying if Annalise’s relationship with Rafael failed, he should swoop in and pick Annalise off her feet, but he didn’t because he knew what would come from Celine or Annalise finding out about it.

"I won’t be mean to him if that is what you are asking. Our friendship isn’t over. I just need some space from Thomas. I trusted that he wasn’t going to tell anyone and he broke that trust. I can see them coming," Annalise said, walking forward to close the distance between them and Rafael.

Thomas was good at recreating things he saw and he didn’t like to admit that he liked seeing the inventions when they travelled so he could attempt making them. It was something his father loved. Annalise couldn’t find it in her to be cruel to tell her father not to let Thomas leave with her. She wasn’t going to be so mean and forge their years of friendship.

Phillip joined Annalise in going toward Rafael. He was only here with Annalise and Rafael was riding to them with only one person by his side. Phillip paid attention to Annalise who was focused on Rafael. He watched how her eyes lit up. She was in so deep with Rafael that he hoped their relationship would go well so she wouldn’t get hurt.

To love someone and then have it all ruined could be more painful than getting stabbed. Phillip didn’t want that for her so that was why he was sending Ezra to be there for the times she would need advice.

Rafael got off his horse and handed the reins to Logan to stop the horse from wandering off.

"If you were busy, I apologise for calling you here on short notice. I was curious if you have convinced the guards to not attack us or try to come on our land without our position," Phillip said, looking down at Rafael from his horse.

"I’ve given the order that anyone looking to fight will be killed. So far, we have killed two who tried something. I will place a new captain I can trust to follow my orders when knights leave and have the king send other knights to watch over the border. We are ready to leave, but we are waiting for you," Rafael answered, hoping to hear the time was now.

"I will take your word that there won’t be any attacks. Just know that if I am told of guards coming to our land, the truce is over. I will have Annalise and a group of my people start packing so you can head out tonight. It is better you start on the truce soon," Phillip said, turning around to go back home now that he let Rafael know they were ready. "Annalise, we must go."

"Already?" Annalise asked, staring at her father as if he had grown another head. They just got here and already they were leaving.

"You have much to pack and I have done you a favour by letting you see him," Phillip replied. "We must go."

Annalise wanted to stay a little longer but since she would get to leave tonight, she slowly walked back to her horse. Her father didn’t do her a favour. This was an awful punishment and she didn’t have a clue what she did to deserve it.