VII

Lieutenant Gelding bowed as he addressed Gloria. "Good morning, Your Highness. I have brought you the earrings."

"Good," Gloria said blithely. She held out her hand. "Give them to me."

Gelding carefully placed a navy blue handkerchief in her hand. He straightened as she gently unwound it to see the earrings.

Gloria blinked very slowly as she took in the physical appearance of the earrings. She wasn't horrified, but it was a little surprising. She looked up to address Gelding. "Lieutenant."

"Yes, Milady?"

"You are aware that these earrings are $3,000 at market-value, correct?"

Gelding flushed at her statement and fidgeted. "F…Forgive me, Milady—"

"It's no problem, really," Gloria interrupted, smiling coldly. "I should've been clearer in my instructions. I told you to take out the earrings, but I didn't clarify what condition they should be in."

"Removing them was difficult," Gelding said tensely. "That whore wouldn't stay still, no matter what. It took us almost an hour to remove both."

Gloria shrugged, and nodded to him. "That will be all, Lieutenant. And remember my order; tell nobody that he's been captured."

"As you wish, Milady." Gelding saluted and left Gloria alone in her sitting room.

Gloria stared down at the earrings once more. She tapped her fingers against her chin thoughtfully. "Now…what should I do with you?"

"Milady." Vann came through the door and came to her side. "The Prince has sent you a private mes—"

"Throw it out," she interrupted coldly. "It's nothing but fake formalities. Besides, he is returning tomorrow and so these fake formalities between us are unnecessary."

"I see. Then…" he trailed off slowly as he looked at Gloria's lap. "Might I ask what you have there?"

"Oh, these?" Gloria held up the handkerchief in her palm. "These were the earrings the Prince got for that prostitute."

Vann looked at the earrings. The color drained from his face and he looked ill. "M-Milady, they look terrible! What happened to them?"

"The Lieutenant got carried away when I told him to take out the earrings," Gloria said. She rewrapped them in the handkerchief. "Based upon their condition, he may or may not have used pliers to remove them."

"That sounds a little excessive," Vann muttered, but he shook his head. "I would advise you not to touch them with your bare hands, Milady. We don't know the type of diseases the whore—"

"He is clean," Gloria said. "My husband has bedded him many times, and I have bedded my husband as well. If he had a disease, then I would've caught it long before now."

"I see…" Vann coughed very discreetly. "Then, may I ask what you shall do with them? His Majesty will be home tomorrow."

"His Majesty doesn't yet know that his little whore is gone from his haven," Gloria said. "I'm going to deliver this…gift to my husband in due time, but I believe I'll make him squirm in the meantime."

"Milady, it's not wise to play games with your husband, and someone who is the Crown Prince," Vann warned her.

"Who said I'm playing? I've been humiliated by Rhys long enough. It's high time that he suffer just a little bit of the embarrassment he's caused me." Gloria smiled coldly. "It will be amusing to see the sort of face he makes when he cannot find this whore he loves."

"And you have found nothing?" Atros demanded sharply.

The agent across from him shrugged. "I went to each of the businesses surrounding Kitty Row. Not one of them saw Axis yesterday. And nobody in the houses on that street saw anything, either."

"All right, thank you." Atros dismissed him with the wave of his hand. Once the agent was gone, he scoffed in disgust. "Nobody has seen him?"

"I have checked police reports," Argent said, flipping through some paperwork. "There haven't been any reports of dead bodies matching Axis's description. And the only report I found that was filed with the police yesterday was a complaint by a woman who was nearly run over by a speeding prison carriage."

"That still leaves us no closer to any clues!" Atros fumed. He punched the surface of his desk in frustration. "I knew he was going to give me trouble the minute I bought him!"

"I shall have more men investigate this matter," Argent said, setting the paperwork on Atros's desk.

"Thank you, Argent." Atros shook his head, craving a cup of coffee. Even though it was late morning, it was still early. If Axis was here he would still be in bed. The only courtesan servicing a client at the moment was Rory, though Atros had needed to turn away female clients of Axis's last night because he wasn't there.

"This is too much trouble," Atros grumbled to the empty room. Yesterday's mail was stacked up neatly on the corner of the desk, which he hadn't opened at all because of all the confusion yesterday. Looking for something productive to do, Atros shifted through the mail. Most of it was just junk mail. Some of it was love letters addressed to the courtesans.

Then…something caught his eye. It was a letter addressed to Atros, and it smelled faintly of perfume. This combined with the shaky cursive indicated to Atros that a woman wrote the letter.

"Now, what is this?" he muttered to himself, tearing the letter open.

"Lift your knees."

Rory gasped very quietly, but complied. Reed watched those slim, pale limbs rise very slightly into the air, shaking as Rory spread his legs. His face was flushed, no doubt from embarrassment and arousal. His hand held his erection as he slowly masturbated. "Mmm…" his head rolled back and he closed his eyes.

Reed frowned, and folded his arms over his broad chest. This was taking too long. He'd taken considerate care in his training of Rory, teaching him when he could reach his release and how to the gain the maximum amount of pleasure from it. Rory in time had grown to hold out for an extended period of time, even as his body shook and clenched with need.

But that wasn't happening now. Rory was aroused, but he wasn't at all close to his release. Reed knew it was because his mind was not focused.

He is distracted.

"Stop," Reed commanded sharply.

Rory gasped loudly, and lowered his legs. He stared up at Reed through half-lidded eyes. "W-What's wrong, Lord Reed?"

"You've been touching yourself for the past fifteen minutes and have gotten nowhere," Reed pointed out coldly. "It's getting monotonous watching you."

Rory's face turned darker red and he ducked his head. "I-I'm sorry, Lord Reed—"

"What is bothering you?"

Rory's head snapped up. "Eh?"

"You're distracted, and can't even focus on making yourself orgasm." Reed shook his head and took a seat in a nearby chair. "Something has your attention elsewhere."

Rory shook his head and hugged his arms self-consciously. "I-It's really nothing—"

"You can't focus on your own pleasure," Reed said coldly. "So it is obviously not nothing. So go ahead and tell me."

"Uh—ah…" Rory fidgeted slightly and shivered. "I'm…concerned."

"About what?" Reed saw a fresh stack of blankets on the couch nearby. He grabbed one blanket and handed it to Rory.

"…Stuff," Rory said vaguely. He wrapped the blanket around himself. "All right. It's about Axis."

Reed said nothing as he retook his seat. Rory swallowed before he continued. "H-He went missing yesterday," he explained. "A-And everyone said that he would be right back. But now it's a new day and he hasn't come back. Claret hasn't stopped crying since she woke up this morning and…" he shrugged stiffly. "I'm concerned for him."

Reed idly drank some tea from a cup on the table. He picked up one of the cupcakes Rory baked and held it for a moment before setting it back down. "I've seen how this person speaks to you and treats you. He is obnoxious, insulting, and borderline abusive."

"R-Right," Rory stammered.

"So why does it matter to you if he goes missing?"

Rory blinked. "Why?"

Reed shrugged. "Would he care if the situation was reversed? Would he show any concern for you if it was you who went missing?"

Rory looked at the floor. He could almost hear Axis's reaction if the situation was reversed.

"The little faggot is missing? HAHAHAHAHA! Good riddance to that whiny little bitch! Now I can have my room back!"

"M-Maybe you're right," Rory conceded. "He wouldn't care if it was me who was missing. But I'm the same person as him and I am concerned. I don't want anything to happen to him."

Reed abruptly stood up. Rory quickly jumped up as well. "I'm sorry!" he blurted out. "I'm sorry for bothering you with something personal like this! W-When you pay to see me, you deserve—"

Reed cupped his chin and tilted his head back, enveloping him in a deeply intense kiss. Rory's knees went weak and he grabbed at the front of Reed's shirt. Groaning softly, he stretched out onto his tiptoes, digging his fingers in as Reed ravaged his mouth.

It was Reed who broke the kiss, leaving Rory panting audibly for air. "So…you just needed a more proper distraction." He traced Rory's cheekbones with his long fingers and stared into his flushed face with cold eyes. "Open your senses to nothing else but me."

As Rory's mouth was taken again, he spared one single thought not pertaining to what Reed was doing to him.

Axis…please be all right.

"Ow, ow, ow—my fucking ear—ow, ow, ow!"

Axis gritted his teeth as his left ear radiated pain like a pulse. He was curled up on his side in his dinky little cell, his hands still tied behind his back. His fingers ached with pinpricks as they kept falling asleep from lack of blood circulation. He honestly didn't know why they kept him tied up while he was locked up. Where the fuck was he going to GO? Besides, they ended up untying him anyways when he needed to take a piss.

He tried to keep his breathing even as his eyes remained shut. His throat felt a little raw from yesterday. Even though Axis hadn't wanted to give Gelding and those other bastards the satisfaction of hurting, he hadn't been able to stop himself from screaming in pain when Gelding used those pliers to remove his earrings. They'd laughed at him and taunted him, and it took such a horriby long time for the earrings to finally come out.

It wasn't the first time he'd ever been arrested, but he knew he was involved in some deep trouble. After all, he was kidnapped in broad daylight, questioned by the wife of the Crowned Prince, and then had his earrings forcibly removed from his ear by a Lieutenant in the Royal Guard. He never expected himself to be in this type of situation.

"…I found it amusing that my husband fell in love with a whore."

Axis sighed sharply, and squeezed his eyes shut. This had to be some sort of colossal misunderstanding. There was no way in hell that Rhys was in love with him. Gloria acted like Axis was the only person Rhys was screwing around with behind her back, but Axis knew otherwise. Besides Rhys treated him like shit, talked down to him, and humiliated him whenever he could. On top of everything else, Axis was a guy. If Rhys did love anyone, it wasn't him!

Maybe she IS mistaken? Maybe Rhys is in love with some prostitute—like Claret, or someone—and she just thinks it's me?

…But then how did she know my name?

Axis shook his head, but immediately regretted it when pain vibrated through his head once more. "Fucking hell!" He didn't understand anything. And he didn't understand why he was even in this place to begin with!

Axis's cell door suddenly squeaked open. "So that's him?"

"Yeah. He screamed like a little bitch when I took his earrings out."

Axis didn't acknowledge the small group of Guardsmen who came into his cell. He wanted to correct Gelding in that he only screamed because the bastard had used pliers, and had practically ripped the earrings out of his ear, but he knew he would only be wasting his breath.

But these assholes pissed him off regardless.

"Holy shit!" Axis winced when a booted toe jabbed the bottom of one foot hard. "Look at all the brands on his feet! There's like four of them!"

"So he's been owned by four different whorehouses?"

"That's disgusting! Don't touch him with your bare hands! Who knows what he's carrying!"

Nothing, you asshole! Axis thought irritably. So what if he'd been part of a few brothels? What was the crime in that? He took care of his body and had never caught any diseases! Atros sure as hell would've never bought him if he had something!

A gloved hand grabbed a fistful of his bangs and jerked him up. Axis hissed in pain as he struggled into a kneeling position as fast as possible, so that his hair didn't get ripped out. He opened his eyes and glared up at the person who held him. It was Gelding, and Axis felt intense hatred grow inside of him.

"Well, well, well," Gelding said mockingly, smirking at him. "Cat got your tongue? You were quite vocal the other day."

From his new position, Axis took the opportunity to survey the cell. Seven other guards were standing in there with him. Eight guys against one. He was painfully outnumbered, and he didn't like what that foretold.

"You certainly have a good grasp of swear words, you dirty whore," Gelding continued, his dark eyes showing maliciousness and disgust. "But look at what you do for a living? You sell your body. I bet you get quite an array of crotchety, desperate withered old hags who have no means of having a man except to pay for one to fuck them!"

The other Royal Guardsmen howled with laughter. Instead of getting angry, Axis forced a sadistic grin up at Gelding and spoke for the first time since he came in. "Yeah. Like your mom."

It was worth it to see the smile leave Gelding's face, to be replaced by shock and rage. "What?"

Axis looked him right in the eyes and put emphasis on his words. "LIKE—YOUR—MOM."

Gelding let Axis go and swung his fist back. "You bastard!" he punched Axis violently in the face, sending him sprawling back across the floor. "You piece of shit!" Gelding kicked Axis as hard as he could in the ribs.

One of the other guards laughed. "He's just being a smart-ass!"

"Stay out of this, Torres!" Gelding snapped, jabbing a finger at the guard. On the floor, Axis spat out some blood from the punch and coughed from the kick.

"But we've seen him run his mouth before," Torres said. "This isn't anything unexpected."

Axis peered at him as he brought himself back up. He recognized this man as one of the men who'd held him down when Gelding ripped out his earrings. "Y-You said your name is Torres? What a coincidence! I just had your wife last week!"

Torres face turned purple and he gaped at Axis. "W-WHAT?"

"I don't usually remember my clients by name, but hers left the best impression!" Axis laughed sharply. "She actually thanked me because she'd never had an orgasm before!"

Torres screamed in rage and punched Axis full in the face. "You motherfucker!"

"Franferd, get him back up," Gelding ordered another soldier.

"Franferd?" Axis sputtered as the soldier in question sat him back up. This man was the third soldier in the room the other day. "Oh yeah, you! Did you know your wife is into anal?"

Franferd kicked Axis right in the chest, knocking him flat on his back.

It was all a defense mechanism for Axis. He knew these guys intended to fuck him up anyways. Why else would they keep him here after ripping out his earrings? But…he was also nervous, especially when they started mocking him for being a prostitute. He didn't know what these guys had up their sleeves, or if they intended to humiliate him in some sexual manner.

So Axis kept them busy…but fucking with their heads much as possible.

"Did you know how flexible your wife is? Yeah, she was able to wrap both of her legs around my neck while I was inside of her!"

Punch to the face.

"I'm a pretty big guy, but she swallowed me whole! She didn't even gag!"

Punch and kick to the gut.

"I spelled my name across her back with HICKEYS!"

Punch to the face.

"She told me everything about you! Is it true your dick is shorter than my pinkie?"

Kick to the ribs.

"Sorry, sorry, my mistake! She said your dick is shorter than my pinkie-TOE!"

That earned him a kick to the back of his head. Axis's vision swam and he closed his eyes. Somebody kicked him in the ribs again, but he felt no pain. He was probably losing consciousness. This was good, because the guards continued to beat his body.

So long as they beat me they won't do anything else.

Another guard kicked Axis in the stomach, and he wheezed. He curled up in a ball to try and defend himself, but they were relentless. He wasn't sure if this was ever going to end.

All because of that stupid bitch! He clenched his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut. Dammit, Rhys! Where the hell are you?

The next morning…

"The baby was so adorable!" Evelyn gushed for the umpteenth time as their carriage pulled into the castle courtyard. "I can't wait until you have a child, Rhys!"

Rhys laughed. "Don't you mean you can't wait until you have children, Evie?"

Evelyn huffed very slightly. "You're going to have a child before I do, Rhys. At least you should, considering you're married!"

"Now you're sounding like the nobles," Rhys sighed, rubbing a hand over his face.

"I'm sorry," Evelyn said quickly, grabbing Rhys's hands. "I don't mean to bother you, Rhys. I was just caught up in the moment, is all."

Rhys smiled at her. "Being around that baby was awakened your motherly instincts, Evie. But don't you worry about me. Gloria will become pregnant in due time."

"Before I forget," Evelyn said quickly, seeing them pull up to the main doors. "My birthday is next month—"

"Ah, yes," Rhys said. He looked at Zephyr. "What do you want for your birthday?"

Zephyr flushed and fidgeted. "Ah—"

"Rhys, we're talking about my birthday!" Evelyn insisted.

Rhys shrugged. "Well it was by a wonderful twist of fate you both were born on the same day, albeit not the same year. And I already know what you want, Evie."

"…Really?" Evelyn asked.

"You want jewelry from Bella Bee, like you always do," Rhys sighed, feigning irritation. "You've already told me you put a necklace on hold there, Evie. Don't worry; I will get it for you."

"Thank you," Evelyn said sincerely.

Rhys looked at Zephyr. "Well? What is it that you want?"

"…I need nothing," Zephyr said quietly.

Rhys rolled his eyes. "So says the man who refused to bed a perfectly good brunette at Lord Griffin's estate! Did you see the size of her—"

"Rhys!" Evelyn cried out, aghast.

"Oops," Rhys said, smiling apologetically.

The coachman opened their carriage. For security purposes Zephyr got out first, then Evelyn, and then Rhys. As Rhys stepped out he saw Gloria waiting for him. He snapped a smile on his face as he approached her. "I missed you, dearest." He hugged her, taking a momentary pleasure of feeling her breasts pressed against him, and kissed her cheek.

"I see you had a safe journey," Gloria said, smiling coldly at him.

"Of course," Rhys responded. Her smile put him off slightly. Sure she would smile at him for appearance sake, but there was something…different in the way she looked at him.

Maybe a good lay put her in a good mood, he decided.

He escorted his wife back into the castle. They both refrained from speaking until they were walking in the direction of the private quarters. Evelyn excused herself, stating she wanted to take a nap after the long carriage ride, leaving Rhys alone with Gloria, Vann, and Zephyr.

"You're in good spirits," Gloria stated. She looked at him coldly. "Perhaps you kept decent company with Lord Griffin's hospitality?"

Expecting these comments, Rhys held onto his smile. "For your information, my love, I took no lady to my bed during my visit."

"…Really?" Gloria didn't bother to hide the skepticism from her voice.

"Yes," Rhys told her. "For what have I needed of a simple maid when I have you to come home to?"

Gloria pulled her arm free of his. "Don't condescend to me, Your Majesty," she said sharply.

"I am telling the truth," Rhys said calmly. "All I did at Lord Griffin's house was partake heavily in his wine, and hold his son." He shrugged. "The baby puked on me once, if that's any consolation."

And he was speaking the truth. Rhys had expected to take a few willing ladies to bed during the three days he was at Lord Griffin's estate. But the mood never arose, or when he wanted it to he wasn't satisfied. The closest he came was with a pretty redhead with brown eyes and an impressive rack. He almost went all the way with her, but during foreplay he became so distracted by his thoughts that he couldn't stay aroused. It'd been embarrassing, but thankfully the maid said not a word to anyone.

After trying a few times, Rhys realized he found absolutely no satisfaction with these ladies and it was frustrating. He liked having sex, no matter the gender, and now he hadn't had sex in three days. It was a new record for him.

It's so strange.

"Of course," he added, grinning at Gloria. "If you were really concerned about my sleeping habits, all you needed to do was come with me and you would've shared my bed every night."

Gloria snorted and brushed aside her hair. "I had a pleasant three days. Thank you for not asking, by the way."

"Yes, I see that you seem to be in higher spirits," Rhys pointed out. "Did something extraordinary happen with you, Gloria?"

To his surprise, Gloria didn't snap at him again. She smiled instead. "Indeed, Milord. Something most pleasant happened while you were gone."

Rhys blinked. What the hell did that even mean? But he shook his head and recovered his wit. "So I should assume you had yourself decent company while I was gone?"

He almost laughed at the scandalized anger in Gloria's face. "How dare you say something like that to me?"

Rhys shrugged. "I'm just echoing your question, my love."

Gloria turned her back on him. "I bid you good day, Milord."

"Of course," Rhys said, waving to her retreating back. He watched Vann trail after his mistress briefly before turning to Zephyr. "I'm exhausted from the carriage ride, but I believe I will go out tonight."

"All right—" Zephyr began.

"You Majesty."

"Hmm?" Rhys saw a maidservant hurrying over to them. He watched the young woman curtsy before speaking. "How might I help you?"

"Your Majesty," the servant said. "Lord Reed has sent you notice."

"Ah, I see. Thank you." Rhys accepted the envelope, but Zephyr took it from him. "It's his handwriting," he pointed out as the servant hurried off.

"Just to be safe," Zephyr said. "Anyone could've intercepted this." he ripped open the envelope and shook it out. A single piece of paper fluttered out. "It looks clean."

"Of course it does." Rhys sighed heavily as he bent down and picked up the letter. "He's probably asking if I'm going out tonight. Which I am…"

Rhys unfolded the letter. He was surprised that there was only a single sentence on the paper, and that one sentence made his brow furrow in confusion. "What the—"

"It is of the utmost importance that I speak with you immediately."

- Reed

TBC