Caged Heart

Chapter 8

The rest of the week flew by in blurs. Serenity could only remember bits and pieces—mostly consisting of her sister's grumblings of strong distaste and of King Emerson's glances and sly remarks at her—and that made her head spin. If only they had let her and Godric marry first, she thought, then things would've been less complicated.

Godric. The thought of him made Serenity's heart sink. Since Emerson's arrival, she had not given the prince a second thought, too focused on keeping the peace between her brother and the king, and also keeping her sister from becoming too overwhelmed with the wedding preparations. She decided that she would go to her betrothed and apologize for her neglect of him, hoping that they could spend the majority of their day alone together.

But, as she rose from her vanity to go in search of her prince, she was stopped by her mother.

"Ah, there you are, my dear," she said, smiling, her hands folded gracefully in front of her, "I am sorry to disturb you, but your sister insists on walking through the palace to make sure everything is perfect with you."

"I have something I need to take care of, mother. Isn't there any way—"

"There is not. Genevieve has made it clear that she will not do this with anyone else. She will only do it with you."

Sighing, Serenity nodded, "All right. Lead me to her." She looked back at the hall that would lead her to the garden, where she would've started her search for Godric, with dejected eyes as her mother led her to where her sister currently resided.

But the man in which she had intended to find was not in the garden nor the throne room—he wasn't even in the library or in the kitchen, chatting with the chefs. Godric was making his way to the stables; he had heard some servants talking about how lovely it was that King Emerson wanted to be the only one that cared for and rode his chief horse, Nightfall, and that's how he knew where he'd find the king.

He came upon the doors of the stable and, as he reached for the door handle, he hesitated. Closing his eyes, he took a moment to gather his courage, and he pulled on the door handle, the door opening with a creak as he did so. He walked inside, his eyes wandering around the place.

It wasn't terribly large, just big enough to house the horses of Dahlia and the nine horses that Emerson traveled with; you could tell them apart with one glance as Dahlia's came in a variety of color and shades, but the Hallow horses were only black. They were arranged in rows, and the wood and hay made for a stark contrast to the regalness of the palace. Still, it was not without beauty—everything, Godric assumed, was done to perfection in the Dahlian kingdom as even the stables looked as fine as the royals themselves. As he let his eyes wander, he noticed that one of the doors inside was open and that the horse that resided there was not in it. Upon this realization, he heard a horse's whinny come from the back of the stable and he steeled his gaze once more.

"Your majesty," Godric said as he appeared a few feet away from the horse Emerson was about to mount, "I need to speak with you."

Emerson stopped mid-mount, looking in the direction he heard the voice. Seeing that it was Godric, he sighed as he brought his leg down, setting both his feet on the ground. "What is it that you need to talk with me about, Prince Godric?"

The prince bit his lip, as if contemplating on his answer, and once he settled on the right words, he cleared his throat, "Serenity," he finally said, "it's about Serenity."

That seemed to confuse the king, who furrowed an eyebrow, "What about her?"

"Your betrothed is Genevieve, and my betrothed is Serenity."

"Of that, I am acutely aware, your highness," Emerson folded his arms over his chest, "but what I am not aware of is why you make that point to me, again, now."