Delusions of Loyalty (The Braykith Series Book 2)

by Jennifer R. Kenny

  “I am your wife. Not your friend.” She turned to face him, and Glais was shocked to see the stoic look on her face.

  “Evangeline…” Glais reached out, and she did not move as his hand cupped her cheek. His thumb brushed over her face, and she barely seemed to breathe. He studied her, the lifelessness and resolve in her eyes broke his heart. Impulsively he kissed her. Glais pressed his lips to hers, pulling her body in tight against his own and forced a closeness she would never initiate, but he was desperate to have.

  His eyes closed, and a tear slid down his cheek as she gave nothing back. Pushing her away, Glais saw her stumble, but Evangeline caught herself before she fell.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked, and it did all for him not to attack her.

  “I don’t want you like this,” Glais said, and he could not believe he needed to speak such words to Evangeline, and yet it seemed that regardless of his efforts, there would be no breaking her belief that he was some monster who could be satisfied with barely a kind word.

  Evangeline nodded. “I am trying Glais, but it is hard.” She admitted. Her hand went to the side of her neck where he had bitten her. He felt the mix of hatred towards her and himself in that confused moment, Evangeline seeming unable to move on from that mistake.

  He prided himself on being in control, and yet Evangeline forced all of that control out of him before he could hope to claim it. She made him act foolish and forever he would pay for that mistake. “You cannot forgive me?” He asked, and her small shake of her head was more answer than any words she could say. “It was a mistake, Evangeline. An error that I have apologised for time and time again. A mistake I cannot live with when you constantly throw it in my face.” His voice rose, but he did not stop it.

  “I was wrong.” Glais continued. “I did the wrong thing and did not treat you with respect or the care you deserved. I thought I was protecting you, but there is nothing I can say to make you believe that.” To her credit, Evangeline did not cower from his violence even as he advanced towards her. “I have forced this change in you.” His eyes darted back and forth over her own, but Evangeline stood firm, her eyes focused on the bridge of his nose as Glais was desperate to break her shell.

  Finally, their eyes locked but whatever Glais wanted to see there, he could not find. In a rage, he left the room. Evangeline stayed where she was, the door slamming shut behind him. She barely managed to catch her breath before the heavy wooden door was quickly pushed open again with such force that the wood bounced off the wall. In its frame stood Glais and he held Thomas by the upper arm.

  The Prince held Thomas with such strength that his knuckles were white from the effort and Thomas seemed impossibly small and pale in comparison to the overbearing Glais. Evangeline stood still, unsure how best to proceed. Thomas appearing close to shouting out in protest but fear kept him silent as Glais held him. He had no clue as to why Glais had brought him here, and looking at Evangeline, he was equally sure that his life will end this night as a lesson. Thomas did not beg for his life, and when Glais forced him to his knees, Thomas closed his eyes and waited for the chill of the blade to appear at his throat.

  “This is the man you want, isn’t it?” he demanded from Evangeline.

  She jumped at the loudness of his voice, her heart thundering in her chest as old fears and new realisations screamed for her notice. “Glais please…” She wasn’t sure what he meant to do, or how she could hope to stop Glais.

  “He might be the man you want, but I am the one you have.” Glais paused and left the room again with a solid thud of the door that left Evangeline speechless. The flames in the fireplace flickered down but came back to life quickly. Evangeline ignored them as she watched the door and waited for Glais to return. Suddenly inspired to move she came to Thomas, taking his face gently in her hand. “Are you ok?” she asked, her eyes still moving to the door.

  He nodded, but it was a moment longer before Thomas could find his voice. “I thought he meant to kill me.” He confessed quickly, looking over his shoulder but it seemed that Glais had no plans to return.

  “So did I.” Evangeline sighed and sat heavily on the carpets, her dress fanned out around her although she did not mean for it to fall in such a display. The dress was carefully created, and Evangeline hated the perfection of it at this moment. She tugged it out of that perfect circle.

  “He is right Eva,” Thomas murmured. He was afraid to speak louder, the crackling of the fire was louder than his whispers. “He is the man you have, the one with every right in the world to you.”

  Evangeline looked down. “I know that Thomas.” She did know it. “I just cannot move past my memories of him. My friends are dead because of him. He forced himself on me.” She knew that Thomas didn’t need reminding, but she reminded him anyway. “He attacked me. Glais left me to wake up alone and confused.” Evangeline was forced to pause before her emotions got the better of her. “Glais regrets these things now, and I know he wishes to take them back.”

  “Then why can’t you forgive him?” Thomas wondered.

  Evangeline sighed, contemplating if she could put her thoughts into words so that it would make sense to Thomas. “He is not sorry he did it.” Thomas opened his mouth, but she silenced him with a gentle gesture. “He is not sorry that he scared me, that Glais showed me the natural face of the monster he is. Glais has apologised, but he not sorry he did it. He is sorry that I have turned to far against him that there might be nothing between us. Glais is apologetic for killing my friends but never has he taken ownership of it. Never has Glais attempted to show he is truly remorseful. He has not changed. This is proof of that.” She looked at his arm, but Thomas would not show her if there were any damage hidden by his uniforms.

  “You fear him to be a real beast when you are not present?” Thomas asked, and Evangeline nodded. “Eva, The Kingdom is complicated.”

  “I understand this Thomas.” She interrupted him.

  “No, you do not.” She was taken back by his defence. “The man you think Glais to be is not the one to fear. That person does not exist.”

  Evangeline scoffed and collected her skirts as she rose from the floor. “And you are certain of this?” she mocked him.

  “Soldiers talk. We are worse gossips than the kitchens.” He smiled at his light humour and was rewarded with a small smile from Evangeline. “Glais is not always a monster. There is some good in him.”

  “Are you trying to convince me to turn to him instead of you?” Evangeline asked. Her heart dropped as he nodded. “Why?”

  “Glais said it himself. I am the man you want, but he is the one you have.” It was hard to speak, and Thomas distracted himself with rising from the floor and helping Evangeline to her feet. “I want you to be happy, and you need to find peace with Glais.”

  Evangeline sighed. “I tried Thomas, and he would not have me.” Although, if the truth is to be told, Evangeline knew that she did not try hard, and she was barely enticing.

  “He must.” Thomas took her hand and brought her palm to his lips. “For the sake of this Kingdom, you must.” He hated himself for forcing her towards Glais, but his duty would be to his crown and never for his heart.

  “He scares me,” Evangeline said, and Thomas pressed a harder kiss to her palm before following with a kiss to her wrist. She shivered but didn’t ask him to stop. “Just being alone with him makes me freeze.” She admitted as his lips found the sensitive skin again. “What if he leaves me for dead again?”

  Thomas looked up to her face and kissed her mouth. She responded instantly, falling into his chest, eyes closing as the kiss lingered for longer than it should. “He will never hurt you.” He promised.

  “How can you be so sure?” She asked.

  Thomas smiled. “Because I have seen the way he looks at you. He does regret everything that has come to pass between you, and he would move the Earth to change your paths if it was in his power.”

  Evangeline was stunned by the poetic answer Thomas ga
ve. “How can you be so certain?”

  “Because it is the same way I look at you.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Evangeline stayed in her room for as long as she dared. Wick dressed her in a dress the colour of pale gold, saying not a word as she worked, and for this Evangeline was finally grateful. The events of yesterday replayed over in her mind, the details slowly coming into a sharper focus with each pass behind her eyes. The controlled rage of Glais as Thomas knelt at his feet. The words Thomas spoke about Glais, his feelings of regret and wishing to change their path seemed to play in a loop that only she was witness too. Thomas and Glais were opposites, and yet in this one thing, they shared everything. Neither man was happy with his relationship, and Evangeline was not sure where she fit into this.

  Wick laid Evangeline’s hair over her shoulders, running her fingers through it and leaving the strands to fall gently. Wick gave a stoic persona, but she was not immune to emotions around her. She knew that Evangeline had something she wanted to talk, but Wick did not offer her council. Their eyes met for the briefest of moments, but before Evangeline could speak a word, Wick bowed and walked away.

  Evangeline sighed softly. She had once believed that Wick would become a friend now they had common ground, and yet Wick had not changed her stance. The slow torment of their lives had twisted Wick at such an age that she no longer spoke out of fear of death. Evangeline had understood that but had imagined with the changes in their circumstance that Wick would open up to her. Wick knew it was safe to do so. Evangeline wondered if she would reach a similar future where fear kept her completely shut out of the world. She hoped not.

  Slipping from her chair, Evangeline slowly approached the door. She had not heard Glais moving around and considering how he had left things last night, she had no reason to believe that he would be quiet for her benefit. Taking a deep breath, Evangeline opened the door and waited for Glais to address her. Silence greeted Evangeline from the abandoned room.

  No fire dwindled in the fireplace. The room had not been rearranged from Glais’ efforts the night before, although the food and wine had been cleared away by someone. Slowly closing the bedroom door behind her, Evangeline ventured further into the space, and still there was no sign of her husband. She had grown accustomed to the general state of the room, the chairs slept in and the throws hanging down over the backings should someone come inside and not suspect anything less than ordinary.

  Wiping her hand on the skirt of her dress, Evangeline was surprised to find that Glais’ absence moved her. She was concerned about his whereabouts, and she had never supposed that she would ever feel this for the man who repulsed her so completely most of the time. No note was left for her, not a sign of him ever arriving back to their shared chambers. Hugging herself now Evangeline had to wonder what had happened to him. He had left with such anger. There was no telling how far he could have gone before he ran out of steam.

  “Where did he sleep?” she asked out loud. Whispering against the opposing force of the silence that was pressing on her, she backed towards the main doors. Frowning she turned to leave, feeling an ugliness living in the pit of her stomach. She did not have to go far to find Glais. He had replaced the guard outside their room.

  The relief must have been plain on her face because Glais smiled. “I had almost given up on us.” He told her. “But that look tells me that we aren’t over. We can be something.”

  Evangeline frowned, but couldn’t find the right way to argue his statement. “I don’t know what that something is.” She finally confessed.

  Glais nodded. “I know. But I didn’t imagine that you would be worried about me.” Evangeline lifted her head and started walking down the corridor to breakfast. Glais quickly caught up. “Thomas didn’t stay the night.” He was surprised to find Evangeline sleeping alone when he did return to their living space.

  It wasn’t a question, and Evangeline caught the sound of surprise in his voice but knew it was not entirely unexpected given the current circumstances. “I told you Glais, it was one time. I take our vows seriously, even if you do not.”

  “You imagine my life far different to the truth,” Glais told her.

  “You have stopped taking your donations to bed?” she asked and instantly saw Glais shift his eyes to avoiding looking at her. “As I suspected.”

  “It isn’t the same Evangeline.” Glais knew that there was no point trying to make Evangeline see things from his point of view. She would never understand the intensity of feeding, the power, and energy that had to be served in some manner, and the only way he had learned was sexual. Instead of starting a fight he fell into respectful silence at her side, pausing at the doorway so Evangeline could enter first.

  “Eva.” Kyleigh smiled instantly. “I am so glad to see you.” From most people, the compliment would seem distant and cold, but Kyleigh had a gift for making the most mundane of talk seem genuine. At least at first. It took time for one to realise that there was a vacant call to her eyes a childish innocence that was not endearing but rather creepy. Once these things were seen, they could not be hidden. Glais’ mother was sweet enough, and Evangeline was sure to smile as she sat.

  “I could not dare miss another meal with you Kyleigh. Glais would never allow such disrespect.” She smiled at her husband, and just as she had been doing for months, Evangeline fell into this false persona of a young girl infatuated with her endearing husband. She knew the castle gossip and the belief of their bedroom habits. For the hours they spent locked in opposite rooms, many believed they were intimate. Sure the stories of Braykith would not help the family, but Evangeline was doing all she could to live up to that imagination.

  “And have you bled yet?” Quintus asked, his voice suddenly disrupted the flow of the room, Baxter giving a barking laugh at the sudden silence.

  “Father, please….” Glais moved to defend Evangeline but she knew that time was essential. For the curse and the Kingdom, Braykith needed an heir, and she needed to produce one.

  Evangeline met Quintus’ stare with a calm look of her own. This was the first time he had so publicly called her out, and while she understood his concern Evangeline wondered if those rumours Thomas had warned her of were indeed becoming more real in the Kings mind. “I assure you, Quintus, you will be the first to know of any news. After Glais of course.” She chuckled and reached for bread.

  This act alone seemed to dissolve the tension and Evangeline relaxed a little. She did not eat, her stomach too upset from the events of this morning to try even the bread, but no one paid her any mind. The royal family was accustomed to her odd eating habits. It seemed that the meal would find its natural rhythm when a messenger showed at the door.

  “Enter.” Quintus motioned the boy closer.

  “I am sorry to interrupt your grace.” the boy muttered as he handed the note to Quintus. “This just arrived by a raven.” The messenger was nervous and kept speaking although it was clear that Quintus did not care for the excuses or extra information. Evangeline, however, was watching intensely. The seal was in her father’s stamp, the red wax a sign of life beyond Braykith that she had forgotten existed.

  Quintus read the note twice before he finally looked to Evangeline. Glais rose an eyebrow but said nothing. Quintus cleared his throat gently. “Kyleigh, take Adeline out.” He spoke gently, and when Evangeline went to remove herself, the intensity of his gaze kept her rooted to the chair. Her hands frozen over her plate as Glais dropped the uselessly taken bread roll for her and gently placed her hands back on her lap. Evangeline seemed incapable of it herself.

  Kyleigh didn’t question Quintus’ demands, but Adeline was not impressed with being excluded from the conversation. Her mother speaking quickly with the young princess, Quintus waited until the only ones who remained in the room were his sons and Evangeline. “This note is from your father’s advisor, Benedict,” Quintus said.

  No one said a word, and although Evangeline wanted to scream at Quintus to continue, she kept
back from doing it. He was struggling with the words of the note, and she needed to appreciate that whatever was written on the parchment had the ability to bring such a reaction from a King. “Eva, I am afraid Benedict writes to inform us that your mother has taken ill, and they do not expect her to survive.”

  “Are you certain?” Evangeline heard Glais speak, and she did not fight him as he clutched her hand but she was not responsive in return. The men were talking around her. Baxter quiet as Glais laid question after question to his father and receiving no real information in return. The letter was concise in its message.

  Evangeline tried to stand but swooned on her feet. Glais was there to catch her, but Evangeline flattened her hand to the table in order to ground herself. “I am going to Crimah.” She announced.

  “Now Eva, think about that for a moment,” Quintus warned her, but Evangeline did not care to think about it for a moment, or any other amount of time. “Eva, you are due to be our Queen. Should you catch this sickness, you leave Glais without a wife.” Quintus reminded her.

  Evangeline looked back to Glais, but he did not seem concerned about what Quintus had said but watching her carefully. “I will escort you.” He told her, and Evangeline nodded her thanks.

  “You are both speaking madness,” Quintus exclaimed, shaking his head.

  “I will leave with or without your blessing Quintus,” Evangeline warned him, and she felt that definite shift in their positions. She would go, or fight to leave. Never had Evangeline felt such a desire to flee before, and her heart tugged her home even if it was only for a few days.

  Quintus looked from Evangeline to Glais and saw nothing to bargain with. “You go with my blessing.” He mumbled. Evangeline waited for no further instruction. She dashed from the room, a trail of cloth in her wake and Glais barely able to keep up as she fled the sitting area.