by Lexi Ostrow
“It was my fault. Someone followed us out of the tavern after my shouting. They alerted the guards immediately. This is all my fault.” She backed away from the bars and put her heads in her hands. Her sobs tore at him. All he wanted to do was hold her. “Please do not try and say it is not either. We both know the truth. I ran away from you because I was scared and pretended it was loyalty. Well now Father has my loyalty and I’m still scared. I don’t know how to save you from this.” Tears poured down her cheeks in rivulets and he grabbed her hand through the bars.
“Milady. It’s time to leave. Your father has been notified of your presence and you are to come with me. I’ll escort you to your chambers.”
Serena looked at him one last time before leaving with the guard who had just walked around the corner. “I love you.”
He whispered the words back to her, but she was already turning away.
* * *
She heard the door to her chamber close behind her. Tears were still flowing freely down her face and she grabbed a cloth off her vanity to wipe them away. She had messed up so incredibly. From the start. Had she never left Julian they would not have been caught. Had she not spoken up for him, he wouldn’t be being executed. It was her plea to save him that had been his undoing. Had she never professed her love, her desire to marry him, then her father wouldn’t have been so cruel.
His words would forever echo in her head. “No daughter of mine will marry a peasant and certainly none shall profess to love one on top of the insult. He will be put to death for his crimes and you will be hidden away to deter any rumors your maidenhead is not intact.” She had no clue how he would pull off a lie like that. She even prayed for pregnancy now, but they had used his strange protection in his time and he had pulled out earlier. All they had to hope for was to be rescued from the strange deity who was in charge.
Serena sat on her bed, not caring how her dress would wrinkle and she looked at the two serving girls. “Please leave. See if my mother is in need of your services for the evening. I am banished to chambers there is nothing I will need you for.”
One looked as if she would protest, but they both left her in the quiet of her chambers.
“If you are listening, I beg of you to save him. Forgive me for my sins. Should I be allowed, I would be honored to live as his partner, in this or any world. But do not condemn him to die because I ran away.” She felt foolish praying to a deity whose name she did not even know. There was no guilt in praying to him though as everything she knew was fake or a lie, and at this point she had no idea how she even had a life outside of her stories and figured it had something to do with Julian’s presence. She only wished she knew how her story went, how her life had been created to be. Talk about predestination. Did she really wish to know what would have been if Julian had never come back with her? Would she have even remembered him and his world or would it all have vanished the moment she’d been home alone? “Please.”
Nothing happened. There was no shimmering doorway that opened. No one cleared their throat or appeared out of thin air. If he was able to reach them, he had abandoned them. Her heart sank and a bit of unease settled in her stomach again. All would be lost if she could not convince her father not to execute Julian. She bit her cheek to stop the tears from flowing again. Should they remain here safely, she would be queen one day and if she was to cry at every event her people would not respect her. She forced herself to take deep breaths until her heart no longer felt like it was going to jump out of her chest.
A knock on the door made her twitch, but she fixed her dress on the bed and sat up straight. “You may enter.” The door pushed open and her mother stepped inside. She was regal as ever. Her blonde hair hung in a plait down her back and the splendid gold crown sat atop her head, she had just come from a counseling session if the crown was on— most likely discussing Julian’s fate. She did not rise when her mother entered, but she did not object as her mother sat at the end of the bed with her.
“My darling, I fear you have gotten yourself into a scrap that there is no way out of.”
She frowned at her mother and pulled back when her mother tried to hold her hand.
“Serena, that is no way to behave. I have come to speak with you about what has transpired.”
She didn’t want to believe that her mother could be persuaded to her side, but her mother was a romantic; she had even fallen in love with her father after their union.
“What do you wish to know? I spoke the truth when I met with you and father.” Which was a bold faced lie. She had said nothing of another world, of their world being nothing more than a creation, or electricity or of the camera that most likely lay crushed in the stables now.
“I do not doubt that, child.”
A stab of guilt went through her, but she refused to speak of things that would have her thrown in the dungeon or drugged up with procurements from the alchemists. She was not ill.
“Let’s talk of this Julian. Did he force himself on you?”
She felt her cheeks burning as anger rose up. “No, Mother. As I said a hundred times earlier this day. It was mutual. It was not the first time and I would like it to not be the last.” A hand struck across her face and she gasped and pulled away.
“You were barely gone an hour when they found you. Do not start spinning lies now or any hope you have of maintaining the crown is lost.”
She had wondered how long they thought her missing. Apparently time restarted when they arrived back, so for her parents it has been no more than a few hours whereas she was coming upon a week with Julian. A week that changed her world, her life, completely.
“Well he is a man of stamina,” she retorted and smirked when her mother gasped. “Let me spell this out for you, Mother. Julian Michelson is a noble man. He is a man of honor and integrity. He is sexy, and passionate and I will find a way to be with him no matter what you and Father think. I will run from his power’s reach and Julian and I will be free to be together, peasants or not. He is all I need, but I would like the support of my family. I endangered his life returning to the castle and I wish I had not done so.”
Her mother did not respond in anger. In fact she sighed and shook her head. “I do not know how long you have been seeing this man. I know he took your virtue and he must pay for that. Death is the only punishment. For your sake I hope you do not carry his babe or your father will surely send you to a convent and barter with your sisters’ husbands to control this land. It is no hardship for one of them to assume the role of king, I assure you.”
“Do as you see fit, Mother. I had the chance to be with Julian. To never return home and I chose home, chose the people of this country. In doing so I condemned the man I love to death. Should I find a way to free him, I will leave and never look back. It is time the country came second to you and Father and for your children’s happiness to come first.” She knew she spoke of blaspheme.
She and Julian had compared her world to the Great Britain of his time and much was the same. Royals were not to have feelings, only power.
“Serena. I did not come to fight. I merely wanted to know what you thought of this man. How he managed to draw you into such a scenario. He came of his own will to the castle and has not fought with anyone, I will give him that much. But his crime is grand and his punishment cannot be revoked by any threat you will make. Your father has decided his execution will be private and after a member of the Vatican has arrived and can perform rites to deem you virtuous in God and the Church’s eyes. For now you will remain in your chambers. Food and drink will be brought to you and people will be told you are ill. Do not try to see that man, the guards are under orders now.” The look her mother gave her let Serena know that her parents knew that she had been to the dungeon already.
Her mother rose and placed a kiss on her forehead and it took every ounce of strength not to wipe the gesture away. The last thing she wanted right now was any sort of love from her parents. Not while she was trying so hard to hate
them.
Defiantly, she turned her back on her mother and did not turn around until she heard her chamber doors close.
Chapter Fifteen
Six days had passed since the mistake with Julian and Serena. He was barely able to crack his eyes open. They were bruised and swollen, as was every other inch of him. His brother had been right. Huracan might not have punished him prior for his transgressions, but he had gotten a hold of him mere moments after Julian and Serena had been trapped in her world. There had been no end to the punishment and Huracan had dragged him through various method of torture to ensure he fully understood what breaking the rules meant.
What was worse, he’d opened the viewing window to all his Word Speakers. So in the few interim moments when he’d been able to see anything, it had been of his people in trouble. Slowly, the doorways had closed leaving only Serena and Julian’s accidental connection open. Nothing had gone right for them. Had he just closed the door, or been paying attention to something other than his warriors falling in love, they might both be much happier now.
He’d pleaded with Huracan to cease, to let him rescue Julian. But the God had been unwilling to hear anything save for his grunts and cries of pain. Being a God of Creation did not mean Huracan was one to lay down and take disobedience. He had not seen the man while he took the majority of his punishment. It was crazy just how much strength the wind could muster. But he had felt his hand in every gale of wind that had blown over him, had heard his voice boom with every crack of thunder.
Now Huracan was gone, had dropped him in his bed with nothing more than a sneer and left him. He groaned as he pushed himself off the bed. The God had said he would not heal him, but that he could heal himself. Forcing the stab of pain away as he sat, he focused on the healing power within him and sighed as the cool sensation overtook his body and a few seconds later he was fine. No more eyes swollen shut, no more broken kneecaps and such. No more pain.
He didn’t have any time to waste though. If he had been there six days there was no telling what damage Julian could have caused in Serena’s world. The man had the moral compass of a saint on his good days, but there was no telling what he would do if Serena continued to deny him or if the king found out where he was from, when he was from and what Julian actually was.
The shimmering doorway to Serena’s world opened. He wanted to see what he had missed while Huracan had punished him. His hand flicked from right to left, fast forwarding in a sense on his own personal DVR. He skimmed through scenes of the village, of the stable and brought himself up to the present. Serena sat on her bed with her servant behind her brushing out her hair. Julian was in the dungeons. His body was hunched over and essentially naked.
“Damn it.” He slammed his hand down on his coffee table and the thing splintered as if it were made of ice. His Word Speaker had been suffering and because of him. Rules be damned, he was getting his team home, whether it be one of them or both.
Without a moment of hesitation, he opened the doorway into the dungeon. In a split second all were frozen in time, except for he and Julian. Julian hadn’t even reacted to the surge of power his presence would have added to the cell.
“Julian, wake up if you are sleeping.”
Julian’s head slowly raised. His eyes focused and for a second he expected his Word Speaker to attack him, verbally and physically, for his neglect.
“Why are you here now? Did you think I needed to learn humility or something and waited till the night before my death to save me? Well fuck off.” His voice was scratchy and lacked any sort of fire. He hadn’t known anything about the execution and his guilt deepened. He could only see images of things that occurred with a Word Speaker present and Serena wasn’t his Guardian anymore anyway.
“Julian get up. Forgive me for my absence, but there are certain things even I must answer to a higher power for and I have been detained. Get up now or all may be lost. Time is frozen and can remain that way as long as you wish, but I have other matters to attend and when I leave, the world comes back to life.”
Julian rose to his feet slowly. His body looked smaller, only a few days of malnutrition had hurt him. His eyes narrowed as he rose, but lacked any sense of rage, as if he couldn’t summon the energy. He raised his hand and ran it over Julian, letting the healing affects take place. It wouldn’t restore his body mass, but it could fix the hunger and thirst that rode him.
“I don’t want to say thank you for that, but I feel so much fucking better I guess I have too. Any shot you can make clothes appear from thin air?”
His lips lifted slightly into a smile, so the man had retained his sense of humor. He supposed that was good. “No I am not in the habit of being able to make things appear, myself not included.”
Julian’s lips twitched and he laughed, a bark of a laugh but a laugh nonetheless.
“Well damn. I guess I’m going to steal myself a princess in the nude. I am allowed to go and get her right? She said she would come now.”
“Yes, but do not force her, because this time it will be permanent. She will not be a Guardian anymore, she gave up that right when she asked to return.”
“And me?” The pleading tone cut through him and he hated his response.
“Your powers will remain should she return with you. By being with her, your connection has not been cut and your powers, albeit weaker will remain. You may never pull another Guardian or you may suddenly pull a hundred with her love helping you, should she stay.”
Julian nodded tersely. “Ok then. Let’s go get my princess.”
“I cannot go with you. I am not allowed to interfere in matters such as this and I have transgressed more than once on this recently.” He passed over a simple gold watch to Julian. “When you have found her and you are ready to leave simply set the watch to twelve o’clock. The doorway will open one final time and be it by yourself or with her, you will return. Oh and I recommend grabbing a sword before I unfreeze the guards, I’ll wait until you are out of the dungeons, but after that, well run.”
Julian nodded and took off.
He prayed the human was smart enough to grab the guard’s clothing and not just a weapon. He heard the slide of metal from a sheath as Julian grabbed a sword. His footsteps echoed in the hall and when he couldn’t hear them anymore he stepped through the doorway back to his own home and the world regained its life.
* * *
Serena sighed as she pulled the covers up. So many days had passed and she had not been released from her own prison cell. Her mother had made certain to stop by each day and ask if she felt less inclined to save the life of the prisoner who had ruined her life. Each day she had told her mother no. She’d begged and pleaded to learn the day of his execution to no avail. She had even attempted to bribe her serving ladies with days off and fine chocolates for information, but they feared being labeled a traitor too much to bring her information.
“Look what you have caused. There you were with the man you loved and free. Here you and he are both locked away and the weight of his execution lies upon your shoulders.” She squeezed her eyes shut to try and stop the tears from sliding down her cheeks, they were raw, from rubbing away the tears from days past already.
Rolling over she took the blanket in her hand and tugged it further up her shoulder. With her eyes still closed, she could almost pretend that Julian was behind her; that his warm body filled the empty space in the large bed.
A thump coming from her bathing area startled her and she jumped up, tugging the blanket up to her chin. Tentatively she stepped out of the covers and crept up the doorway that connected both rooms. She held her breath as she peeked around the stone wall. Her scream for the guards was silenced as a glass pitcher slammed down onto her head. She did not descend into darkness, but pain blurred her vision. A handkerchief was slammed over her mouth and hands wrapped around her head.
The smell was intoxicating and her eyes burned from it. She choked and sputtered, but couldn’t drag in fresh air as the clot
h covered her nose and mouth. Slowly she felt her mind slip away as she saw flames burst to life on the floor around her. She felt herself picked up and felt the heat of the flames leap at her, but none singed her and Serena slipped into oblivion still being carried brutally from her room.
* * *
Julian had made it out of the dungeon when he heard the first scream. The sound of steel clanged to the left of him as he emerged not where he expected, a courtyard and not the palace interior. Hmm, clever. Much smarter than letting your convicts potentially have a route inside since I sure as hell didn’t pick the right exit and I wasn’t blindfolded when I went down.
A shout sounded across the giant courtyard for men to arm themselves. In front of him he saw nothing, just the palace doors. To the left he saw knights of Serena’s castle engaged in conflict. No more than eight of them stood against numbers that tripled their own.
His heart stopped as he fought with himself over what to do. He was not a knight. Sure he wanted to be that for Serena, but he was a firefighter, he fought fires. Not men with maces and swords. Cries were beginning to pierce the night as he suspected more men invaded the castle walls.
“Son of a bitch!” Julian cursed and let out a long breath of air before awkwardly raising his sword and charging into the thick of the battle. He grunted as a sword sliced through his arm. A dungeon guard’s uniform was not enough protection for this fight. His sword raised overhead just in time to block and parry the blow from the intruding knight. Someone behind him shouted for him to move left and he dodged the blow from another sword. His head turned quickly sideways and he saw John Marc nod at him before sinking his sword into an enemy knight.
Swing as he might, his sword missed time after time. One landed a little to the left, the next swung wide enough to take down one of the palace guards. But still he fought. Even if they would execute him in the morning, he wouldn’t leave when so many could die. Sweat dripped into his eyes and he blinked rapidly trying to clear it. His arm was growing weak from the blood loss from the cut and he marveled that he had only taken one blow. It felt as if he had been fighting for hours. His whole body ached, but he refused to give up the fight.