Working Title : Loki & Annie

90 Midnight Confessions

Myrun knew she was sneaking through the halls of the palace at a time when she would have no excuse if she were caught. Yet her fear of being seen was far less than her fear of the Dark Prince. So despite being after the midnight hour she carefully slipped through the dim and dark halls, ducking into black alcoves each time she thought she heard the sounds of patrolling guards. Finally, she found herself outside the Prince's door which was cracked open several inches.

Her heart had begun pounding so loudly that even if someone were standing right next to her she wasn't sure if she would hear them. The sound had gotten louder and louder the closer she came to her destination and now not only was she deafened by it but she could feel the pulse in her neck with each heartbeat. She squinted in the dark as she looked first in one direction then the other before taking a shaking breath and raising her hand to push the door open. She waited for something to occur however all that happened was she was now standing in front of an open door. No sound escaped, all was still and quiet.

Moonlight shone through a break in the drapes allowing a thin sliver of pale light to land on the marble floor. Myrun still waited. Waiting for something to happen though she was unsure what she expected. Looking over her shoulders once more she pried her lips apart long enough to lick her dry lips then swallowed in a gulp before forcing her feet over the threshold and into the room.

Standing there she again waited for some sign that the Prince knew she had arrived, keeping her word despite the danger. Once more nothing did. Her fingers twisted together but did nothing to hide their shaking. She swallowed again spoke in a near soundless whisper, "Your Highness?" Her voice hardly carried enough to even be heard by herself so she tried again, "Your Highness?"

Myrun shuffled forward several steps while her eyes flitted around. Her body shook as she continued forcing her feet to carry her further into the darkness. "Highness?"

In the room, there was no sign of the Prince. There was no shadow that revealed itself, no sound of a soft footstep. Nothing at all gave any proof that there was another soul in the room. Breathing in through her mouth she continued until she came to the door leading into the Prince's bed-chamber where she stopped. 

This door was closed and latched, she would have to do more than simply push on it to gain entry. With false courage she reached out and grasped the latch, pausing only a second before forcing herself to open the door just enough to look through. With a slightly louder voice, she called, "Prince Loki? It's Myrun." She hoped he would reveal himself by simply stepping out from the dark shadows but he did not.

A large black shape came forward from where it had been hidden behind the door. She was spun about while being lifted off her feet as a leather-clad arm wrapped around her throat and yanked her backward into a hard body. 

The scream that would have pierced the night was silenced by a gloved hand slapping over her mouth. Her hands had already been rising to grab at the arm that pressed painfully into her throat and now one continued on to try to pry the hand from her face. Her fingers met the coarse leather of the glove and gained no purchase. Trapped in her lungs was the foul stench of an unwashed body and unspeakable filth.

Her body was violently squeezed as she was carried back into the main room where a half dozen men were moving closer. The flickering light of several torches revealed only impressions of harsh features.

One came forward with a twisted grin while his eyes roamed over the body of the little maid. "Well, well, what pretty little trespasser do we have here?" The men chuckled.

Myrun was given no opportunity to speak, the gloved hand remained clamped over her mouth and most of her nose. She struggled to breathe, tears fell from her eyes from both fear and her body's need for more air. This man she recognized despite her fear, he was the monster the servants were threatened with if they were lazy.

Reapt leaned forward, "A thief?" He grinned at the maid's frantic strain to shake her head to deny his charges. "No?" He enjoyed the knowledge of the fear she would feel at his next words, "Well, your only other choice is that you are a traitor."

Myrun felt as if her heart were going to explode, it beat so painfully. Now she made more of an effort to pry the hand from her mouth by using both hands to grab and pull but she still was held fast. Her eyes were wide, showing the whites as her feet uselessly kicked backward while she hung above the floor.

"Oh yes, little maid." Reapt leaned forward and in the torchlight, his face was all hard lines and changing shadows. "For you see, despite the AllFather's claims, the Serpent Prince was seen in these rooms. And now here you are. Sneaking in these very rooms calling out for him." He reached forward and ran the back of a finger down the side of her face, "Which means that you knew he was here, and yet you kept silent." He stood upright, towering over her. "Confess and I will be merciful." There was mocking in his words.

Myrun's eyes wept tears from fear and nearly being suffocated. Despite this, she gulped in wheezing breaths, her mouth opening and closing. "I, I -" Her words stuttered with her breathing, "I am no, no, no traitor."

Reapt gave a false look of surprise, "Oh no?" His face became hard and cruel, "So a thief. You will lose a hand for thievery."

She shook her head the gloved hand scraping against her skin.

"Not a thief nor a traitor? Very well, what would you call it, girl?" There was a callous sort of false teasing in his tone.

Myrun shook her head, she had no idea how to explain her actions in any way that would not condemn her. She looked around at the other faces that made no effort to conceal they were all enjoying her terror as much as their Captain. Her mouth opened and closed as she fought her fear, searching for something to say but she ran out of time.

A harsh slap burst her lips, "Confess, girl, and perhaps you won't lose your head in the morning." The malicious grin twisted his lips making Reapt's face a monster in the flickering flames. "How did he escape? Who else helped him?"

Myrun's eyes were wide and round in her terror and she tasted the blood that flowed freely from her lips. "I - I did, I did not help the Prince escape." Reapt's eyes narrowed. "I only came here once before and he told me he only wanted to know what was being said about him. That is all, nothing more. He asked for nothing more, I do swear it!"

A scoff of disbelief grunted from his throat before Reapt leaned closer to Myrun, sending his breath into her face. "You expect me to believe that after escaping the little beast wanted nothing more than to know gossip?" He pulled back while making a slashing motion through the air. All his enjoyment at Myrun's fears dropped off Reapt's face to be replaced by a familiar sadistic snarl. "Take her to the dungeons. Let's see how silent she remains once I start with her."

A squeal of fear erupted from the girl as she was carried off, her feet kicking uselessly in the air. Despite her efforts, she was only squeezed tighter until she had no more breath and silence was in the hall.

Half the men followed out the door and while the others remained standing around their Captain, waiting for orders. Despite the anger on his face, it was clear he was thinking, planning. He looked to his most trusted soldier with sharp curiosity, "You said the Prince no longer spoke during any of your dealings with him?"

The man shook his head, "No, only grunts or noises of pain. "

Curiosity etched itself over Reapt's face, "Then how did he come to ask the girl for servant's gossip? And how would she even recognize him? She should have thought he was a feral beast."

One of the men spoke up, "The guards who spied him never stated that they saw a child." The men exchanged glances that for the first time held a hint of unease, "They only said they saw the Prince in the doorway."

Now Reapt wasn't the only one frowning in silence. His eyes roamed about the chamber while his previous feelings of mistrust grew until he murmured, "What riddle is the House of Odin hiding?"