“Kalen,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. I didn’t know what I found more shocking: him sitting in the cell that was soon to be mine, or the cocky smile on his face. I had to admit, amongst all the drama that happened with Andreas, and then with John, I hardly had any time to think about him. But now he was maybe a foot away from me and my mind didn’t know what to make of the situation.
He patted the space on the bench next to him. “Join me, my lady. We have a lot to talk about.”
I walked over to him numbly, still not sure what was happening. I sat down, my body tense and alert.
“When I heard they were bringing you here, I requested your parents to have me interrogate you first, before you are taken to the king, just to see how difficult this situation would be,” he commented louder than needed. And then he turned to me again, his expression suddenly very serious. He threw his arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer to him. “We have about five minutes before they will expect another reply, so just play along. If I do not convince your parents and the royal guards that I’m a trusted witch interrogator, I will end up in one of these cells too. How did they capture you? I thought you were with Andreas?” he hissed, his voice angry, but something sounded off. “What happened, Lana? And do you know how hard it’s going to be to get you out of here? My magic is useless, I have tried!”
I stared at him, frozen for a minute and then realized what my role in this should be. “If your job is to interrogate me, then why have you yet to ask a question?” I asked out loud, very convincingly I might add, before replying to him. “Andreas and I had a disagreement… he was distracted, got stabbed by someone named Raphael, and then we had a heart to heart. I needed to get out for some air and I remembered to late that I had seen John outside earlier and he captured me. Raphael then actually turned out to be a better man than I expected when he tried to help me, and John made sure our engagement was announced and my parents were invited to the party and decided I was better off dead,” I explained in short.
“All in due time,” he replied for the benefit of any eavesdroppers, but he didn’t sell it. “You know John?” he asked. It was only then that I remembered I had refrained from telling Kalen about the relationship I had with John. How could it have slipped my mind? Kalen shook his head, realizing he needed to go on with the charade. “When was the last time you used magic?” he demanded, his anger over the revelation evident.
“Before John found me,” I stated, my voice shaky. “I’m sorry, I forgot I hadn’t told you…” I relayed the entire story for him. Starting with the night before we were going to visit the Argeno household for the engagement announcement. I spared no detail about that vile relationship. Kalen’s eyes widened, and the fury beneath them grew red-hot.
“Why didn’t you use magic to escape when you had the chance?” although the question was aimed as a distraction, I found myself wondering that very thing. Why hadn’t I used magic to try to escape before? “You should have told me!” Kalen hissed again.
“I…I… don’t know… I didn’t know how… or even what would work to help me escape. I had never been trained,” I replied hotly. It almost felt like a slap in the face. Had I really been so distracted by seeing John again that I completely forgot that I could escape if I just tried a little harder? No, I hadn’t been that distracted. There was no spell that I knew that would’ve worked. I still didn’t know enough. The little magic Andreas and Kalen had taught me wasn’t enough to keep me safe. “I’m sorry, I know I should’ve told you… but I didn’t want to make you upset!” I whispered back to him.
“Then you are a poor witch, but a witch nonetheless, the king will see you tomorrow.” Kalen leaned in closer one last time, “I was completely honest with you, Lana, you owed me at least that much. We need to talk more. I’ll come back once I’m sure no one else can hear and then we are going to talk about this,” Kalen whispered into my ear and then got up to leave. He turned to look back at me and mouthed the words “I will try to get you out of here.” But I knew it was easier said than done. If he tried to help me, he would be implicated as well. He was as much a prisoner as I was, helpless to do anything. It made me wonder just how powerful the wards on the palace was to render Kalen’s magic utterly useless. Had the wards not been up when Andreas visited the palace four years ago then?
When Kalen was out of sight, Eiet came back in. He locked the door to my cell and shot me a pained look. “You won’t be in here for long, my lady. They will hurry things along. I really am sorry and I do wish you can forgive me before you no longer have the chance.”
“How can I, Eiet? You betrayed me and you don’t believe me. What do I have to do to prove to you that I was rescued?” I asked, tears biting at my eyes. I forced them back. I would not cry. I was no longer that weak.
“If Andreas saved you, and he truly cared about you as you insinuate, why hasn’t he come to your aid yet? Where is he with all his power?” Eiet demanded, his voice harsh… almost jealous? My eyebrows furrowed at his tone, but I let it go without more thought.
“It’s complicated! You have no idea what happened before I just ‘disappeared’! He might think that I ran away!”
“And what reason would he have to think that?”
“Because he doesn’t think anyone can care about him! He probably doesn’t even know I’m in danger!”
Eiet grabbed one of the bars and leaned his head against it. “I want to believe you, Lana. I want to trust that you’re still sane. But after all that has happened, I don’t think I can. You are spewing fantasies! Andreas hasn’t been heard of in years! After his attack on the princess, he disappeared! He is believed dead by most of the kingdom. Not a single attack has been done in his name. You have to understand how this looks. And why would he show his face now, all of a sudden? Forgive my bluntness, but why would he come out of hiding for you? He doesn’t even know you.”
“You’re right. You think I haven’t asked myself those very questions a million times? You think that I just accepted that he saved me without thinking about it? You think that I don’t wonder every time I look at him if he still has ulterior motives, that he saved me for some twisted scheme? I’m not stupid, Eiet, and I’m certainly not crazy! I may be a witch, but that does not mean I have lost my sanity!” I yelled. I couldn’t accept being condescended on any longer. They were all treating me like a child, like I couldn’t think or act for myself. I was helpless in their eyes, just another damsel in distress. They kept uttering words like ‘I will try and help you’, ‘I won’t let them hurt you’ and I had had enough. I was tired of always being in need of a hero.
“You need help,” Eiet replied gently.
“No, I need to get out of here! And if you aren’t going to help me, then I don’t know what you are still doing here! If you aren’t going to believe me, then just go. If you truly had been my friend, you wouldn’t need so much convincing.” A single tear rolled down my cheek, escaping my careful walls.
I thought I had lost Eiet that moment in the woods when I realized what he was doing, but I hadn’t. I lost him now as he was standing in front of me, pity in his eyes for the girl he once knew but no longer recognized. I would never be her again. No matter what they did. The change in me was something no one I once knew wanted to acknowledge. I was either possessed or crazy, one of the two, and only because I had finally escaped the mold they held me in for such a long time. I had been sad to say goodbye to them before, but now, it was no longer a problem.
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A Necessary Evil (Book 1)
Fantasy**One can be evil, and still have a good heart, just as one can be good but still have a heart tainted by evil.** "There was an undeniable comfort and stability in a stable future, at having every detail of your life meticulously planned out. But ev...
