Chapter 22

"That was rude!" someone whispered behind her as the doors in front of her slammed close and the only sound was from her crying down into the palm of her hands.

"No not rude" a male voice added behind her, properly the one who responsible for the knights -in-training "that was cruel – pure and simple".

"If not cruel, that was the some of the worst I ever seen in my life and I seen quite a few things as a knight under the crown and during my own trip into the chamber" the woman, she recognized as Alanna, but that didn't alter the fact that now everyone, or those who had been present during the happening now knew that she had given birth to a girl six years ago, and they would soon question her about the whereabouts of that child.

"Well" this was the voice of the King. She could hear the clear hesitation in the words that had recently left his mouth, before he continued. Even though the words that came next was clear with orders "I want guards, two of them, standing day and night in here from now on and Numair?" he was talking directly to the man, she knew would for always regard her as something that wasn't worth taking on as a wife. She had to go – had to leave this kingdom which she had hoped she could, after some time, call her home. That thought was just as painfully as the thought of her dead child.

Behind her, she clearly felt his dark eyes resting on her small shaking frame – oh how he would consider her to be weak, fragile or even worse; childish, but as he replied back to the King, she wondered if only she was capable of transforming into something else then a wolf, only to sneak away from this nightmare she were living in now, she would find a way to be safe again - a way to get away from all the bad things that had happened in her life.

"Yes Jonathan?" Numair spoke calmly, not allowing his own voice to betray his inner conflict – where he to get near her or leave her alone altogether? Never once did he take his eyes away from her, finding that even if he wanted to, he couldn't!

Jonathan grabbed his arm, turning him from the scene in front of him. He almost wanted to shake the hand away, but again his emotions was controlled, never showing what he was actually thinking "Numair, about the ball tonight, I had hoped -".

Now he did shake the hand of his arm and turned to look with a cold and assessing stare into blue eyes "No" he replied, knowing what the King was implying "if you want to continue the plans about that, you will have to do it without her and me".

Jonathan opened his mouth, presumably about to object, but Numair had know this man for a long time and only shook his head "I'm not going expose her for any curious looks or any odd questions and no" Numair pushed more firmness into his voice "you can't command me. You know what trouble I can cause and I'm sure that you will be most certainly happy that you agreed with yourself that you agreed with me on this when you returns to your study, and I know that the hidebound conservatives will eventually also agree that it was a very wise decision".

She still cried heavily down into the palms of her hands, allowing her brown curls to cover her face, as the words was exchanged behind her back and when a loud sigh came, she was sure that the previous owner was the King. After that, only silence came and it was even worse then when the talking had sounded behind her.

Slowly, after what seemed several minutes, there was moving around her, rustling of fabric as they moved away from her and the panic which had bitten her firmly deep down in her core, now rose yet again as a hand touched her shoulder – it must be his hand, but she was so sure that even though she had heard every word he had said behind her, she was certain that he was going to turn his back on her when he had the change – no one would marry a girl, who wasn't even sure herself that she could provide him with a family.

She flinched away sharply under the touch of the hand – if only she could escape, if only she could escape this dreaded place and if only she hadn't been brought here. A hand touched her again, this time a smaller one she noticed.

"Daine?" someone spoke her name as the hand squeezed her shoulder, about to turn her around. She knew that it was the Lioness, but she couldn't – oh she wanted so much to be away from this place, away from the evil room, where the enchanted chamber had showed her the second gravest grief in her life. She knew that a child shouldn't have given birth to a child, but as her stomach swelled, so did her love for the unknown human under her heart. Rosalie had been her rock during the time after, but now – she was so devastated by the remembrance that her body was half in shock.

"Daine?" the person, still the red-haired woman pulled her back as another sob broke through her lips and she only pressed her now overly wet palms further against her eyes, not wanting to be living anymore. And hadn't the replica-girl said that much in her song? 'Hush my girl, don't you cry – if I'm not mistaken you will die' oh she would do so willingly now – right here on the cursed cold floor she was kneeling on, if that only would give her peace.

"Maybe she should be moved to the Healers Wing?" someone offered gently as Daine's was being placed against the cold doors of the Chamber of the Ordeal, helped by Alanna and her back touching the iron. The touch of it only burned through the fabric of her shirt, making the scars on her back ache even more then the first time she received them.

"No" the firm voice came from him, and she flinched once again – if only the door would grant her the wish and burn her alive, she couldn't stand the hurting, the memories that continued to attack her, any more.

"Then what do you suggest then? Certainly you can't have her stay in your rooms – the court" the speaker's voice was silenced by something.

"I don't give a crab of what the court will say, she's my wife and I'm not having her stay somewhere where everyone can come and go as they pleases. Either she's stays with me or we'll leave the palace altogether" the dismissive tone in Numair's voice was strong as was the arms that suddenly lifted her up "and we still have the assassin on our trail – it's the only place I can protect her". His voice became stronger as he came closer to her, near her, but as the door released its crib on her back while she was being lifted up, she couldn't help herself but to scream in agony – if the Goods would grant her one simple wish, she would give anything, her soul, her...

"Is she hurting?" someone asked in a very low voice breaking her line of pleading thoughts, she recognized it as the Prince's, as her strength in her neck gave up and she found her head laying securely on his shoulder, even if she didn't wanted it to.

A hand, cold while buzzing with violet lights, but still warm enough touched her cheek and she instantly fought the wave of sleepiness that came creeping over her. "She's hurt alright" Alanna confirmed near her and as the arms around her became stronger, she fought the spell that was going to send her towards the one place she didn't wanted to go – she wanted to go to the place of rest or silence, not to the world of nightmare, the world of loss ot the world without any light in it.