To Save a Kingdom

Chapter 6

Joseph sat across the table from Saphrine. She poked at her food while wearing a disgruntled expression. Even with the scowl on her face she was still stunning. The silence in the dining room was only interrupted by the occasional groan of the door as servants brought in food. Joseph was still working on learning all of their names.

Every now and then he would feel Saphrine's eyes on him just once he caught her eye and he was surprised to see something other than anger there.

What he saw he liked even less.

He saw pity.

After dinner was over Joseph hurried to catch up to Saphrine. Her heels clicked loudly on the stone floor as she walked swiftly away.

"Saphrine!" Joseph called and her heels clicked faster. "Wait!" He begged and to his surprise she slowed. Her skirts swished around her ankles at her sudden stop.

"What?" She asked with her back towards him. Joseph was so surprised that she stopped that he wasn't sure what to say.

"Can we talk?" He asked simply.

"About what?" She practically hissed as she spun around to finally face him.

"What did I do?" He asked and she looked at him with a confused expression. Joseph cleared his throat loudly before he continued. "What did I do to make you hate me so much?"
Her eyebrows shot up and her brown eyes widened.

"I don't hate you." She said softly looking down at her hands.

"Then why do you treat me this way?" Joseph asked reaching for one of her hands. He held onto her hand for a split second before she pulled away. She leaned in and whispered in his ear.

"I'm trying to keep you safe." Then she whirled around and walked away leaving Joseph completely confused as he watched her retreating figure.

§

Joseph was awake for most of the night thinking about what Saphrine had said. What was she trying to keep him safe from? Why would she try to keep him safe? The questions raced through his mind as he tried to figure out what was going on. Finally in the middle of the night after giving up on trying to sleep Joseph's bare feet hit the cold stone floor. He climbed out of bed and pulled a shirt over his bare torso. Then he slipped into a pair of boots and exited his room.

The castle was completely silent. The occasional torch was placed in the hall to ward off some of the darkness but the halls were mostly dark. Now would be a good time to explore without any interruptions. He decided to go up. He went up a stone staircase that led to a part of the castle that he hadn't been to before.

A small slit of moonlight crept in through a high window shining on one wall. On the wall paintings hung on the walls from floor to ceiling in huge golden frames. But it was too dark to make out the picture on the canvas. Joseph had to drag his hand along the wall because this part of the castle wasn't lit at all. As he walked the only sound he could hear was his own breathing. Soon he heard another sound. It was the sound of footsteps and they were fast approaching.
Joseph panicked unsure of what to do. He flattened himself against a wall and hoped that would keep him safe.

The footsteps got closer and closer. Joseph was afraid his beating heart would give him away. He held his breath as the footsteps got closer and louder. The person walking was obviously a man from the sound of the feet as the crashed down against the stone. The person was also very familiar with the castle because they could walk so swiftly in the darkness. Joseph waited for what seemed like an eternity as the footsteps grew closer. Then before he knew it they passed him.

After Joseph was sure they were down and around the corner he started to breath again. Slowly his heart decreased in rhythm and he continued walking. He walked for awhile until he heard a new sound. It was hard to make out what the sound was. After a few more steps the realization hit him. It was a woman and she was crying. His first thought went to Saphrine and he felt angry for some reason. His pace increased as he went towards the noise.

In the darkness his hand hit a door knob. The door was locked. After feeling around the frame Joseph realized the door was locked from the outside. He fiddled with the bolt and had it unlocked quickly. He eased open the door and the sobs stopped. There was a candle glowing inside the room illuminating a tear stained face.

The girls eyes were puffy it was obvious that she had been crying for awhile. When she saw Joseph standing in the doorway she ducked her face down into her arm. What stood out to Joseph the most was the chain that was around her left wrist. The chain was hooked to the wall by a metal loop sticking out of the wall and the girl was at the end of the chain as far as it would go in the corner. She was crumpled in the corner with her left arm out straight because the chain wouldn't reach as far as she was sitting.

Joseph didn't know what to do. She was chained hook on a wall. He didn't know what to do and he didn't know what to say. There was the sound of footsteps again and Joseph quickly shut the door and shoved the bolt into place. The sobbing started up again as soon as the door was shut. Joseph flattened himself against the wall again in hopes that he wouldn't be discovered.

The footsteps went straight for the door slid the bolt back then slipped into the room. Just as the door slammed shut Joseph saw a tall muscular man with dark hair enter the room.