by H L Muller
"Who are you? Do you know the Princess?" she asks in a rushed whisper.
"I'm Ika. I met her the yesterday and brought her home." I reply equally quiet, “Although, now I wish I hadn’t.”
"Why would you bring her back to such an awful place? She was miserable and hated it here."
"You knew Trudy, when she was here?"
"I was one of her maids. Since she left, I have been looking after that horrendous Evalyn." She shakes her head, her disgust apparent across her features.
"Look, what’s your name?"
"Mabel."
"Okay, Mabel, we were arrested on our way back into the main market; King Harrison is under the delusion that Trudy could be a spy for Charming." She scoffs, "I need to get her out of here before he can do anything stupid. Can you get Stormy from the stables, and meet us in the gardens? She should have my bag with her, load them on her and bring her, okay?" The stable hand should have fixed her shoe by now, and we can both ride her home. If not, we can walk, it won’t be the worst. We have done it before, after all.
"Can you do that for me, Mabel? For Trudy?" I ask again, as Mabel hasn’t replied.
Mabel looks me dead in the eye, and I can tell she is assessing me. She is trying to determine if I am serious about keeping Trudy safe and away from here. Mabel just got better in my opinion, she cared about my Darlin’ and is willing to do what is best for her.
"Okay, you will need time to get out of the cells and a distraction. I will ensure the guards are away from this hallway between 11 and midnight to allow you time to get out. Tell Trudy to go to her favourite spot in the Garden. I will be waiting there."
With that she sets down a tray of food that I hadn't noticed before, turns and rushes from the room.
Twenty-One
PRINCESS GERTRUDE
Waking in a dark cold room huddled on a pile of straw, it takes me a moment to remember that I was imprisoned in the Palace. Surely, the last few days have been a dream. I would wake soon to realise that it was actually my birthday, or the morning of Charming's Birthday Ball.
I groan, rolling over. A nap on straw following a night on the forest floor is not as comfortable as my cushion covered bed.
"Trudy, Darlin', you awake?" Ika softly asks from the wall between our cells.
"Mmm," I reply eloquent as possible after a deep sleep.
"Just wanted to make sure you weren't talking in your sleep again."
"What?" Jolting up, "No! What did I say?"
"Just that you thought I was handsome and moaned my name a few times." He says with a laugh.
"I did not!"
"Yeah, you did Darlin'. It's okay, if I had slept, I am sure I would have dreamed of making you moan, too."
Shockwaves course though me; I hadn't expected him to say that. I have been captivated by him from the moment I first met him on his doorstep; I had not considered he would return the attraction.
"You want to make me moan?" I squeak out.
"Yes, Darlin'. I want to hear you moan my name in ecstasy. To see you writhe beneath me as I make you feel better than you have ever imagined, but this wall is in the way, and a cell is no place for that."
"Uh, I don't know what to say to that, Ika."
"For now, how about we talk about us getting out of here. You should have a tray inside your cell somewhere. Mabel brought you some food."
"Mabel was here?"
“Yes, she was here. She is going to help us to escape.”
"I find it hard to believe that she would want to help me. After Evalyn betrayed my confidence regarding you, I kept everyone at a distance. I didn't want them to be hurt like you and your family, or to be used against me. I pretended I didn’t know any of their names, Mabel and Savannah were my two lady’s maids, but I never showed them that I knew, or that I cared. I couldn't leave myself open to that."
For someone who kept everyone at a distance, it is not lost on me the oddity of suddenly trusting a strange man like Ika with everything. There is something about him that just makes me feel safe, makes me feel like I am finally home. Actually home, not this lonely Palace that has never truly been a home to me.
"Darlin', you don't have to justify to me what you needed to do to survive. I appreciate you telling me what happened, but, don't ever think that I will judge you for anything you tell me. Anyway, Mabel is going to meet us in the gardens at your favourite spot in about an hour, so eat up that food, and we can start to head out."
The tray holds a goblet of water, a roll, and a chunk of cured meats and cheese. Picking up the roll, I start pulling it to pieces, alternating bites of meat and cheese with a chunk of bread.
"How are we to get out of the cell, Ika? You failed to mention how we are actually going to get to the gardens." I ask in between mouthfuls.
"The guards your brother employs are a bit on the dull side, Darlin'. Not only have they not checked on us for hours, they did not check me for my weapons before we were locked up. I have a knife in my boot that we are going to use to get through the door."
"How? Break through many doors before?"
"Only when I have to, like when my Darlin' needs me." I can picture his sensual smile; winking at me as he spoke.
"Do you enjoy making me uncomfortable?"
"Yes, I enjoy your responses I can get out of you."
I roll my eyes. Of course, he does, which only means he will keep going until he got a reaction he likes. Setting the empty goblet down after I finished eating, I hear Ika moving about his cell. Then a squeal of metal on metal, followed closely by another squeal, rings through the room.
"Trudy, can you feel against the wall and find the hole closest to my voice. I want to make sure you are there before I put the knife through."
I run my hands along the cobblestone wall and find a gap.
"I'm here, Ika." He slides the blade through, handle first to ensure that I will not cut myself. "Okay, I have it. Now what do I do with it?"
"I'll talk you through this Trudy. It's not going to be too difficult; you'll just need to use your muscles. Walk over to the door and I need you to locate the hinges. One will be just above your head and the other around your ankles. Start with the one on the bottom, at the top of the hinge you will find the head of a pin, get the blade in between the hinge and the head, and then start pulling it upwards."
It takes me a moment and I have to strain all my muscles, but finally the pin slides up through the hinge, then clatters to the floor.
"Good work, Darlin'. How are you going?"
"I'm okay, Ika. Now what do I do?"
"Repeat the same with the hinge above your head. You may need to angle the blade differently to work with your height."
Finding the hinge, I position the knife, pushing until the pin slides out. Huffing and shaking my arms out, I am alarmed when the door suddenly opens. I tense, not sure what is going to happen if we are caught, but relax the moment, I realise it is Ika.
With his trademark smirk, he walks to me and cups my face with both of his hands. "Look at you, Darlin'. Learning new things and breaking out of a cell like the badass Princess you are."
I smile softly at him, proud of myself that I’d been able to open the door.
"As much as I want to devour you, we need to get out of here now before we get caught."
His words catch me by surprise. He wanted to devour me? Me? My tongue darts out to wet my suddenly dry lips and I know he is going to kiss me. I will have my first kiss with the lumberjack, the green-eyed boy, my Ika the man I have always dreamed of. Ika groans, head hanging back he lets go of my face and grabs my hand, reclaiming the knife and placing it back inside his boot, before pulling me towards the door.
"You lived here for eighteen years; you know how to get to the gardens from here?"
"Yes, that way." I indicate down the corridor, and we set off with quick and silent footsteps.
We don’t see any guards, for which I am grateful. I’m not sure what Ika’s plan is if we do encounter anyone.
We make our way down the hall, along a servant’s passage, and up the stairs to the ground floor. We are close to the kitchens now. I don’t want to risk running into any of the servants, so I turn us away. We sneak past the library and the formal sitting room until finally, we reach the south entrance to the gardens.
"Do you not find it strange, that we have encountered no-one at all?" I ask Ika. "Usually there are guards all along this floor."
"Mabel said she would distract the guards from the hallway in the cell to allow us to get out. She could have ensured that there were none here either."
We walk into the garden and I welcome the familiarity. Glad I get to experience my sanctuary with Ika.
"It hasn't changed," Ika mutters under his breath. I squeeze his hand gently, and lead him towards my favourite spot, where we are to meet Mabel. I'm not sure if she really knew my favourite part of the gardens, but either way we need to keep moving.
We walk in silence, until we reach the old oak tree. It is hard to fathom that for me, it has only been two days since I stood here, but for the tree it has been four years. Mabel sits with Stormy tied up to a nearby tree, grazing.
"Princess Gertrude," Mabel begins, curtsying to me, "I am glad you are okay. I am sorry this has happened to you, and that I could not stop it."
"I understand Mabel, it's okay. There is only so much we can do in any situation; I am glad you are here now to help us. Thank you for bringing Stormy, you know what she means to me."
Mabel stands silent for a moment, watching us. "Anything for you, Your Highness." She curtsies again as we walk to Stormy, untie her and prepare to leave.
"Stay safe, Mabel. Thank you for your help, but don't let on that you helped us, and sound the alarm if you need to. I can't bear the thought of you being hurt because you helped us. Did you want to come with us? That way I can ensure you are safe. Please? Please come with us, Mabel?" I beg, how can I leave her to face Harrison and Evalyn’s wrath alone?
"I cannot, Princess. I am needed here by my family. I will keep an eye on things here and try and stop anything in its tracks if I can. You must go now; you are running out of time before they notice."
Ika breaks into our conversation, "Thank you again, Mabel."
“Yes, Thank you.” I offer.
Ika allows me to mount Stormy first, so I can shuffle forward and give him space to sit behind me. Once Ika is seated, I lean down and spoke with Stormy.
"Stormy, do you want to see how fast you can go? I know it will be a heavy load, but it's only for now, until we get far enough away." I lean back and feel Ika's warm hands wrap around my waist, pulling me back to be flush against his body as we set off at a gallop. Tingles shoot through my body, fizzing along from the edges of our touching bodies, radiating through me and burning me up inside. Being this close to Ika is sweet form of torture.
Twenty-Two
IKA
The length of her body presses against me. My hands can feel every pant, every movement as she shifts about in the saddle. Her perfect round ass is pressed right against my cock, every shift and bump making me grow harder.
It takes everything in me to not cup her breasts or her pussy and feel her grind against me. I know she is innocent, and no matter how badly I crave her body, I want the first time she feels my touch to be special.
We ride Stormy in silence, still on edge from our escape, until we get to the campsite we stayed at on our journey to the Palace. I am surprised we were able to pull it off and get away so easily. Arriving in the clearing, I dismount from Stormy first and quickly adjust myself in my pants. Helping Trudy to get down, I remove Stormy’s saddle and bags. Glad Mabel had been able to get them for us. Our journey home will be quicker now that we can ride, but Stormy still needs breaks, especially with a double load. Right now, I need space to regroup myself and settle my erection.
"I'm gonna go take a minute, Darlin', take Stormy to get a drink and settle her. Can you unload the bedrolls? Might catch a nap here before we travel the rest of the way home."
A small smile breaks out across her face, "Okay Ika."
She is so sweet. I take Stormy down to the creek bed, wash my hands and my face, and start to refill our water skins while she drinks. After they were full, I grasp a nearby stick, and sharpen one side to a spear while waiting for Stormy to drink her fill. I will need to catch some fish, but it is too dark now, with sunrise still being a couple hours out.
I re-enter the clearing to see my Darlin' cross-legged on her bed roll, eyes closed with the most serene and peaceful expression on her face. As quietly as possible, I walk Stormy over to a tree and tie her up, giving her plenty of space to graze freely and went to sit on my own bedroll. Trudy's eyes open, and she meets my gaze, her smile stretching across her face.
"You have the most beautiful smile." I blurt out, unable to hold the compliment in. She blushes and tucks her chin, cutting off our eye contact.
"Thank you."
I was beginning to learn there is a lot of range to my Darlin's emotions. Trudy can be shy and timid, yet also fierce and stubborn. I am enjoying getting to know her better.
"Now, can I know what made you smile like that?"
"I thought it was obvious," she replies, those deep chocolate eyes sweeping over me. Ah, there is that fierceness I had seen earlier.
"Not to me, Darlin'."
She giggles and sighs, "You, Ika, this whole thing. It hit me when you said 'home'. I will have a home now. I have freedom. I have never felt so calm and at peace in my entire life, and it's all because of you. If I hadn't found you, Ika, I don't know what would have become of me. Not only within the Silent Wood, but within my own life and timeline. Do you believe in fate?"
"I do, yes. I believe that everything happens for a reason. That we are not dealt more cards than we know how to handle, and when we are dealt a difficult hand, we receive assistance when called upon."
"I think you are my fate, Ika. These last few days with you have been magical." She looks down to an item in her hands, "I found this in the saddle bag."
"Yeah, uh, last night when you were sleeping, I started carving it. It's not detailed or nothing, just a basic carving."
"So humble Ika. It’s Stormy, isn't it? It's beautiful. I am confused though, you said you didn't carve anymore, and that I couldn't persuade you to carve anything for me."
"I wasn't planning on it, Darlin'. Not until I sat here and watched you sleep so peacefully, that's when I realised, I wanted to have a piece of you to remember our time together. I took a piece of the firewood you had collected and let my hands flow until an image started to form in the wood. When I finished and realised that it was Stormy, I knew it was meant for you, not for me to keep."
"I love it. Thank you."
"You're welcome, Darlin'." I wink and smirk at her. "We can display it in our home."
"You are serious about wanting to live with me?"
"Serious, Darlin', if you want to live with me. If you don’t, I will help you find somewhere safe; but I believe you are my fate too. If it weren’t for you starting a series of events, my family wouldn't have had those last amazing years together. Speaking of, we never really addressed the whole you having a crush on me when we were kid's thing. So, you liked the grounds' boy, did you?"
Her beautiful face tinging a bright pink, she stammers, "I-I did, yes."
"Did? You don't still? After the way, your eyes heated up when you saw me in the creek, I thought you might still want me now." She drops my gaze and looking ashamed. Now I can’t be having that. I stand and walk over to my Darlin', crouch in front of her, hooking my finger under her chin and tilting her face back to meet my gaze.
"There's nothing to be ashamed about, Darlin'. I want you too." Trudy's eyes widen at my declaration, and I can feel her pulse speed up beneath my fingertips as they brush against her throat.
"If you want me, why don't you kiss me? Why didn't you kiss me in the cell? You pulled back, Ika."
"Don't confuse me wanting to do ri
ght by you, and for it to be perfect and special, with me not wanting you. I didn't trust myself to not fall into you, and then we would have still been in the cell and caught in our escape."
"We aren't running anymore," her eyes don’t leave mine as her tongue darts out to lick her bottom lip. Oh, how I want to bite that lip. "Will you teach me, Ika?"
I feel my knees go weak; she really is as innocent as she appeared. I shift, so I am kneeling in front of her, and cup her face with both my hands.
"Stop me if you don't like it, Darlin'. I don't want to do anything you don't want me to." She nods and our noses brush against each other as I lower my face to hers.
Our lips met, and as her soft lips brush against mine, I feel more alive than ever before. Not trusting myself to overwhelm her body with kisses, I keep it short, kissing her fully on the mouth before pulling away. A soft growl escapes Trudy, her hand snaking up into my hair, slamming my face back to hers.
Twenty-Three
PRINCESS GERTRUDE
I slam his mouth to mine. His kiss was soft and sweet, but there wasn't enough of it. I relish in the feel of his beard brushing against my face. I kiss his upper lip, then lower lip, darting my tongue out to lick against his lips. His mouth parts and I snake my tongue inside. I had never kissed anyone before and wasn't sure if I was doing it properly. All I know was I cannot stop; I need to keep kissing him as much as I need to breathe.
Letting my want drive me, I continue kissing Ika. My hands combing through his soft silky hair, I move so I am kneeling with him. Ika's arms wrap around my waist, anchoring our bodies together. His hand slides down until it is squeezing my butt cheek. I can feel his hard length pressed against my stomach, as he uses his grip to grind me lightly against him. Ika is the one to break the kiss, pulling his head back to look me in the eyes.