Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
— DINNER TASTED LIKE ASHES. When she first arrived at the palace, the food they laid out for her every night had tasted like it was prepared by the gods themselves. But now, after all the events that had conspired during the past week she couldn't taste anything. She couldn't taste anything, she couldn't feel anything.
"I could've brought dinner to your room, if you wanted?" Vardin said from his position against the far wall near the door. Azade had been looking down at her food for the past few minutes, staring into nothing.
"Do you have a plan for tonight?" He continued, trying to bring her out of her silence.
'Yes I do.' She thought, 'I'm going to kill the King.' Her hands gripped tighter onto the plate before her. She turned back to Vardin who was still staring at her with a worried glance.
"You've never asked me that before."
"I thought I should. Especially with what happened last night." That was right. Vardin had found her this morning, covered in blood that wasn't her own and surrounded by the bodies of the dead. He hadn't commented about the room she was found in, or even if he hadn't known about it. Perhaps he had known about the terrible room where Rukun kept the severed bodies of his victims. Perhaps he was hiding more horrors of the palace from her.
"I'm fine." She said, turning her head slightly to the guard. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed something. A dagger was strapped to his hip.
'If you're going to try and kill him you'll need a weapon.'
Slowly, Azade pushed her plate away in front of her leaving a significant amount of food still on her plate. "I'm not hungry anymore." She announced; sliding out of her chair.
"Azade—"
She stood in front of him, looking back into his warm eyes. Vardin had so much compassion, so much kindness in him. It almost made her feel sick for what she was about to do.
Azade wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him.
She could feel his warmth pressed against her body, contrasting against the coldness of his armour. Even with it he felt warm. "I'm sorry." He had whispered as he held her tighter to him. Azade was sure he could hear her heart pounding even faster now.
'No.' She thought. 'I'm sorry.'
Sliding out of his arms she gave him a sad smile. "Goodnight Vardin."
"Goodnight, Shah Banu." The Farsi word for Queen flying so softly off his lips. She left him in the dining room, feeling like her lungs would collapse into her chest.
