I do NOT own any of these characters. They belong to the magnificent Maria .

Valek's POV

Chapter One

I was sitting in my office re-reading Yelena's file, reciting my plan in my head. Five seasons had passed since she had arrived, one season shy of a full year. It was finally time to start putting my plans in action. I needed Yelena; she was the key to the puzzle regarding Brazell and his 'orphanage'. The other generals thought he had gone soft in his old age but I saw right through his lies and suspected otherwise. I had been obsessing over Yelena since she had come here.

A knock on the door snapped my mind back to the present.

"Come in," I said forcing a tint of annoyance in my tone.

The guards led Yelena through my crowded office. Books were scattered in messy piles all around the room and chunks of rock I used when carving littered the floor. I analyzed her as she took in her surroundings.

She shuddered causing the chains to clatter.

Yelena looked at me. She had beautiful emerald green eyes which weren't very common in Ixia. She must be from Sitia. I knew from her body language that she was trying to figure out who I was. She gazed at the two red diamonds sewn onto the colours of my uniform.

My eyes widened in mock surprise as I scanned her appearance. I knew my gaze had made her feel self conscious, because she looked away from my eyes and took in her appearance. She wore a tattered, red prison gown and her dirty bare feet were roughened with yellow calluses. The skin that showed through the rips in the fabric was streaked with dirt. Yelena's long black hair hung in greasy clumps and she was covered with sweat. She swayed under the weight of the chains.

"A woman? The next prisoner to be executed is a woman?" Of course I had already known that she was a woman since I had been obsessing over her for five seasons. They did not know this however so I was acting. I had made my voice icy.

Her body trembled when she heard the word executed. This caused an unexpected feeling of pity to course through me before I locked it up. I was being stupid. I would not feel pity for this murderer.

Yelena looked as if she was going to fall to the ground and start sobbing. She didn't though. Some thought probably kept her composed. Impressive. I remembered the guards did not tolerate weakness. Click.

I tugged at my hair something I did when I was nervous. I quickly glanced around the room to see if anyone had noticed my slip up. Thankfully only a few people knew what it meant and Yelena's guards were not part of that group.

She looked terrified of the guards, which was understandable since they were ruthless and would whip the prisoners who showed any sign of weakness. She was a smart girl to keep herself composed.

"I should have taken the time to read your dossier." That was a load of shit because I had practically read it every day and in every spare minute I had to myself, trying to get information about Brazell's orphanage and why she has murdered him.

I shooed the guards away. "You're dismissed." There was a sharp edge in my voice. Strange that it came from the thought of what they had done to her in the dungeon.

Ignoring the thought, I motioned for her to sit down when they had left. She sat in the seat in front of my desk that I had pointed to. Her chains clanged as she perched on the edge.

"Yelena, today may be your lucky day," I said, but in truth that was a load of crap, as it had nothing to do with luck, instead it was due to the five seasons of planning and my scheme to kill Oscove, the last food taster.

It looked as if she was about to say something sarcastic, but instead she just bowed her head, avoiding eye contact as she swallowed her reply. Amazing! A very good and useful skill that so few possessed.

I realised with a start I had been quiet too long. Hastening to cover up my mistake I said "Well-behaved and respectful. You're starting to look like a good candidate."

I noticed she was looking at the two black panthers I had carved, that were on my desk.

"You've been tried and found guilty of murdering General Brazell's only son Reyad." I stroked my temple with my finger again wondering what her motives were. When questioned about why she had murdered him she refused to answer. It must have been important because it caused an innocent girl to commit murder and people don't murder for fun knowing the punishment stated in The Code Of Behaviour was death. I was sure she was aware of this.

Voicing my thoughts I said "That explains why Brazell is here this week, and why he has been unusually interested in the execution schedule." It was common knowledge that she had killed his son.

"I suppose you're going to protest the conviction. Say you were framed or that you killed out of self-defence." They all said the same things. Murder in Ixia was not tolerated. If you are found guilty, you would be executed.

I leaned back in my chair, waiting for her reply.

"No sir," she whispered. "I killed him."

I straightened in my chair shooting her a hard look. The answer she gave was not the one I was expecting. It unnerved me when a prisoner was different. The predictable ones were the easiest to handle.

Unable to control myself any longer, I laughed out loud.

"This may work out better than I'd planned. Yelena, I'm offering you a choice. You can be either executed, or you can become Commander Ambrose's new food taster. His last taster died recently, and we need to fill the position."

She gaped at me. I saw a glimmer of hope in her green eyes, followed by a look of disbelief, then distrust.

"A fool would refuse the job." Her voice rasped louder this time. I couldn't tell if she was taking this seriously.

"Well, it's a lifetime position. The training can be lethal. After all, how can you identify poisons in the Commander's food if you don't know what they taste like?"

I tidied the papers in her folder.

"You'll get a room in the castle to sleep, but most of the day you'll be with the Commander. No days off. No husband or children. Some prisoners have chosen execution instead. At least they know exactly when they are going to die, rather than guessing if it's going to come with the next bite." I clicked my teeth together, feeling a feral grin spreading across my face remembering how Oscove had 'died'.

Her whole body shook as she realised I was being serious. The flicker of hope I had briefly seen before, was back in her eyes.

I could see questions in her eyes and I knew I would've answered most of them before.

Instead of the most obvious question, the one I thought she'd ask, she said, "Who tastes the Commander's food now?"

"I do. So I'm anxious to find a replacement. Also The Code Of Behaviour states that someone whose life is forfeit must be offered the job."

She stood up and paced around the room, dragging her chains with her. She looked again at the books, this time reading the titles. She then proceeded to look at all the candles at their various stages in life.

She looked back at me eying my uniform. I knew in that moment, that she had finally guessed who I was.

"What should I tell the executioner?" I was suddenly nervous. Concerned she would choose the noose instead. Stupid Valek! I lied to myself convincingly, saying that I was only feeling this was because she was the key to too many puzzles and I couldn't afford to lose her.

"I am not a fool." The nerves disappeared. Even though I knew she would stay, I couldn't stop the relief that coursed through my body. !