Covered in sweat, armor weak and limp against him, Silas walks through the halls after training and slowly peels off every bit of leather from his body. It had lasted for hours, going through guard after guard, until the prince could barely lift his head any longer. Partly, he wants to distract himself from any further conflicts in this hellacious castle, the other part, he's simply passing time until the right moment.
If his calculations are correct, Binx will walk down these hallways at any moment on his way to his chambers. A room he hardly visits as he's too busy trying to find his way out of the king's ass.
The only way to get him by himself, Silas realizes, is to approach him. Don't wait for Binx to do what needs to happen, the crown prince will have to put everything on the line if things are to change. So he spent hours in the training room, fighting with every weapon on the back wall until he ran out of guards and energy. Slowly, the room cleared out once they realized there was no stopping the rage of his pursuit. As Silas took down another guard, turning to find another, he found no one else around.
That's when he knows the time has come to stop. He's been trying to exhaust his anger on anything other than Hallie or Binx, but with the creeping of depression on his mind, it has been tough. Ever since the lightning slithered through him, tearing and biting, he hasn't felt the same. During the day, his feet drag and he isn't interested in anything, not even sleeping.
Something still isn't right; Silas shoves it away, so he doesn't have to deal with it any longer. It's just one more distraction on a long list of things already plaguing the crown prince. If only there was something Hallie could do about the weakness in his mind; he's built back his strength but can't seem to fit all the puzzle pieces back together. It's not his brother's fault, he supposes, but his own for not being able to crawl out of that hole. Once this is all over, things will change. Then he, along with everyone else, can finally breathe.
Silas slings his chest plate and vambraces over his shoulder as he walks, heading in the direction of Binx's chambers. If he doesn't meet him in the hall, he'll make a last-ditch effort to meet him somewhere else, either in his chambers or right outside. Claiming to come for a visit, to ask about his powers and how to work them. Silas has never had access to the power of illusion, hadn't wanted to. From what everyone has heard, those witches never get a second of reprieve from their power, there's always something nagging at them.
Roux has been suspiciously...absent lately. She hasn't been in the training room as much, hasn't shown her face around the castle, and definitely hasn't been speaking to anyone other than the king. When Silas went searching for her this morning, he found no one but Celestine in their chambers, sitting at her desk and completing the novel she'd been working on. She hadn't even looked up from her journal to acknowledge him, Silas got the hint and left.
There's only one place Roux can be. In the dungeons with the king. They're working on creating new soldiers, precisely why his father has been so calm lately. He's finally getting what he desires and with Roux at his side, helping him through every step of the process like that's her only way of living and breathing. The control sickens Silas to his core.
They're swiftly running out of time. The king is already transforming men into his own—second versions of himself, and if it doesn't stop soon, the advantage will disappear. It's easier to take down Roux and one man rather than an entire army of soldiers with a king's ability to fight. And that's without discussing the matter of a witch's magic.
Silas is forcing himself to keep a close eye on everything from his father's schedule; to Roux's and Binx's. The only way he was able to discover where Binx would be at a time like this was watching with an eagle's eye, down to the very last second of the day. All he had to do was strike up conversations with them and nonchalantly ask others if they'd seen either of them. It has worked, so good that when Silas turns a corner and spots Binx at the other end, he's not surprised.
YOU ARE READING
Aligning the Forgotten ✓
Fantasy[Book 3 of the Grounding the Storm series] Renit's worst nightmare has come true. Roux isn't at his side, and he's banished from his throne and his crown, leaving him nameless and on the run. While trying to escape his father's cruel reign, he has t...
