The King's Prey (Unedited Edition)

Chapter 31 : The Ride

Abditory • [ab-di-tore-e]
A place into which you can disappear; a hiding place.

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We've been driving for ten minutes already—all in utter silence. I can't seem to fathom what just happened and Sterling doesn't know how to react to my silent sobs either. I've never seen that side of Samuel—never seen him get so protective over me. Maybe he wasn't thinking straight after everything that happened at the border. But what hurts even more is how disappointed he seemed when Sterling told him that I knew about it.

"Do you think what we did was irrational?" I finally break the silence with my wavering voice, unable to keep my thoughts to myself any longer.

"In a sense, yes—especially after today's events. But for the sake of you and Samuel not creating extra havoc, absolutely not," Sterling answers.

I absorb her words as we both stare out at the road before us. "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to put you on the line back there. I didn't know what to do anymore. All that was running through my mind was how much I wanted to claw his eyes out but also how badly I needed to distance myself from him."

"I've sacrificed myself more than once for people who have suffered before," she exhales as though it's a minor thing. "Trust me, this couldn't compare to the other times. Besides, Samuel will be over this in a week. We all will. His controlling personality is one of the rare sides of him."

I stay silent as my eyes focus and unfocus on the scenery we drive past beyond my window. Phantomridge is big enough as is so we're just endlessly cruising down winding roads, listening to quiet music from the car's speakers. Soon, we merge with a more populated shopping area. My stomach grumbles when the smells of delicious foods slip through the car as we pass carry-out places and restaurants. Sterling glances at me once before putting her eyes back on the road. "Are you hungry?" she asks softly.

I wipe away the stray tears that I don't realize are there, sitting up a bit straighter as I quietly say, "A little bit. I haven't eaten anything today yet."

"I'm gonna stop and get us food then," she says, turning down a different street. I don't complain, keeping my mouth shut as she pulls into a parking spot outside of a coffee shop, She turns off the car before running inside, locking me in the vehicle by myself. I slouch further into my seat as I hug my knees to my chest, waiting patiently with my thoughts.

It takes only five or so minutes until she's back, bringing two coffee cups and a bag of other foods with her. Once inside the Jeep again, she hands me my things—a BLT chicken sandwich and a bagel along with the warm latte. "I hope you're ok with coffee," she says with a slight smile.

"I'm ok with anything," I say, setting my other foods down for a moment so I can wrap my hands around the cup to feel its warmth as I take a slow sip of the drink.

She seems satisfied with my response, starting the car back up as she pulls us out of the lot. We're back on the winding roads in only a few minutes, that's when I finish my coffee and start on my sandwich and bagel.

"I didn't expect him to react like that, Anastasia," Sterling says suddenly, breaking the silence as she drinks more of her latte.

"Neither did I," I admit. It's only been thirty minutes since we left, but I've been dreading talking about what happened back there the entire time. I rub my forehead in frustration as the tears form again in my eyes. "I don't know what I'm going to do..."

"You don't need to do anything, I'll take care of him when we get back," she says.

"It's not your mess though. He's just been so vague—about me, about why I'm here, about what he's been doing." I spill my emotions out since the wall that's been holding me together has already cracked and crumbled at this point. "He won't ever tell me anything."