The Princess's Servant

16. The Consequence

She exhaled and heard the sound of screeching, followed by the sound of a heavy thud. She opened her eyes in time to watch a shimmer of powder rain down from the sky and for Holden tackle her onto the floor. Sybil twisted as he brought her down and swung her hips onto chest, putting herself on top of the prince. She pulled her mother of pearl leg knife from its sheath and aimed it at her servant's head.

"Wait!" Holden called. With blood dripping down his neck, he pointed to the Draconian prince. The princess followed his finger to watch as he thrashed once, twice, thrice before crumpling into a heap and sprawling on the floor like a crow shot from the sky.

The princess withdrew her blade. "What did you do to him?" She asked.

"That's all you have to say?" He asked. "Not if I'm okay, or if your guard's okay? You're worried about the man who tried to kill me?" He asked.

The princess cut him a sour look. "Did you kill him?" She asked, her tone flat.

"No," Holden said, his tone incredulous. "I hit him with the same sleeping powder he hit everyone else with. The same sleeping powder you would have been hit with had I not moved you out of the way," Holden said. "He's fine. We're all fine." Blood dripped off his neck and onto the marble floor.

The princess sighed and picked herself up off of her servant. She didn't spare Holden another glance as she made her way over to the fallen Marcus.

Marcus propped herself up with one arm as she beheld her princess. "Your Highness," she said, and she bowed her head. "Please forgive me. I have but one duty and I failed you in it..."

The princess knelt to her. "Worry not, kind guard." The princess took her hand in hers. "You served me well, and I am proud of you. After all, what good are you to me dead? Please see yourself to the nurses — Have them heal you."

"Yes, Your Highness. You are too forgiving." Marcus picked herself up and bowed before her princess. Holden let out a puff of air like something was funny.

"And Your Highness?" Marcus asked as the princess turned from her. Sybil met her gaze.

"Yes?" She asked.

The guard looked to the messy pile of human garbage that littered the floor. "What would command us to do with him?"

Sybil smiled at the sleeping figure on the floor. "The box," she said.

Marcus furrowed her brow and thought a moment. She took in breath. "You don't mean—"

"The box," the princess repeated, cheer reentering her voice. Holden didn't know what they were talking about, but he didn't like Marcus's reaction.

"Your Highness, if I may..." her guard attempted.

"You may not," the princess smiled. "The box," she said again and the guard bowed her head.

"Yes, Your Highness." Marcus cleared her throat.

"Oh, and call a servant over," she said. "I'm hungry."

"It shall be done," Marcus trailed off. She dismissed herself through the darkened door.

Holden watched that empty space and wished Marcus would re-emerge. Pressing his non-mangled hand to his bloodied neck, he turned to face his commander. "I hope that wasn't for my benefit," he said. "I don't think I'd want to live if I ever discovered someone had been harmed in my name."

The princess waved a hand and looked out over the fire-lit city. "Oh, don't be so dramatic," she said. A gentle breeze floated the hem of her skirt. "You're not better than me."

Holden decided to let that obvious trap go for the time being and focused on the important. "Can I go now?" He asked. "It's been a long day and I was really hoping to pack in 20 minutes of sleep before the flesh-eating rats wake up."

"You're not dismissed," said the princess. "We still have our date." She moved from the marble wall to her seat. "Sit," she said.