Hunted Queen

Chapter Twelve • Undeniable

-Jade- 

The next few days, Jade kept a low profile and did not bother Loren with any personal questions. She had overstepped when involving Elizabeth in her curiosity. So, to redeem herself - without bringing it up again - she did not start any conversations with her guard when they were in each others' presence. 

On the first day, during their daily walk, Loren seemed to revel the silence. In truth, it seemed as if he enjoyed the peace and quiet. They walked inside the castle walls, not a step outside of them. He would not escort her outside the walls because of the storm he had warned her about when they had been in the city. It had yet to falter. Why Loren considered the weather to be an obstacle for something as simple as a walk, Jade did not understand. At home, she used to play with the small ones during storms, just not for too long or when lightning struck. Then, her mother would call for them to come inside. However, she made no attempt to argue with Loren when he had first stated that they were not going outside the walls. Her obedience and lack of objections seemed to have surprised him. 

The second day of Jade staying silent and compliant, Loren threw glances in her direction every now and then. He never mentioned her lack of desire to converse or playfully throw him a snide remark, but it was easy to detect his concern about her sudden change in behavior. He had grown familiar to their friendly banter and that she now deviated from their usual pattern unsettled him. 

On the third day, they were walking alongside the castle wall on the eastern side of the castle. Even though they were safe and sound on this side of the wall, Jade still shuddered every time the wind tore at her. It felt like it seeped through her thick cloak's smallest holes, and there were none since Elizabeth made sure everything Jade owned had no holes in them. Every warm piece clothing she was wearing struggled immensely with keeping her protected from the relentless gusps of air. Her body was tense all over from the cold. She could not wait to get inside and descend into a hot warm bath. 

"I have never seen a storm like this." Jade said with her teeth chattering. It was the first time she had spoken directly to him since the incident in the kitchen.

"Thank the Gods!" Loren groaned out loud, not seeming to have heard what she actually said. "I was beginning to worry that you had lost your voice." He said dryly. "That would have been very hard to explain to William... Your grace." He added her title in order to tone down his dry and slightly disrespectful, but jokingly, comment. 

Internally, Jade was smiling. It was good to know that her guard was not cross with her any longer. Even though Loren had not held her meddlesome and curious side against her, she still felt  bad - and according to herself, she ought to. 

"Mhm..." She mumbled, turning her eyes up towards the dark clouds above them; they hovered menacingly in the sky and gave no impression of disappearing anytime soon. Jade swept her eyes further away into the distance in search of blue, but the dark clouds did not break off anywhere. Not even the slightest. They just went on for what looked like forever. 

A forceful gust of wind ripped at her hair without any warning. It almost felt as if it slapped her  and she shut her eyes. She clenched her jaws, trying to prevent her teeth from chattering even more. 

"At least there is not rain." She gasped as she had lost her breath due to being struck so swiftly by the wind. It rendered her a bit nauseated but she did not quite understand how the wind could do that to her. She pushed the queeziness away and figured that it was because of the guilt she was experiencing the nausea. Her guilt had in fact abated her appetite, but only partly. 

The guilt was close to excruciating as she thought about how she had gone behind Loren's back and asked his mother about his love life. Tactlessly - but not ill-willingly - she had forced herself into a part of their life, in which she clearly did not belong.  Troublesome as it was, wondering about her guard's personal life was the only thing that stopped her from thinking about William and how she needed to tell him about their child. She did it in an attempt to shut away the fear she was experiencing, caused by knowing that her husband could die before she even got to tell him that he was going to be a father.