THE ONLY PRINCE [High Fantasy Quest Adventure w/ Fae Romance]

Chapter Eleven

"...CANNOT HIDE HER forever, Orion."

The sound of their footsteps echoes in the small space of the linen closet, masking the erratic beat of my heart. I press a hand over my mouth to quieten the betraying breaths that threaten to reveal my presence. Through the thin slits between the closet door, I catch glimpses of their shadows flickering on the walls, but the movements appear slower, more sluggish than before.

I blink slowly, and press my knuckles into swirling motions to keep myself alert. A gentle warmth has spread through my limbs, softening the tension in my muscles. My hands find the pelt and grip tightly, clinging to the fur willing myself to focus.

"She is not meant for that world. Kaia deserves a normal life." My father's voice is unwavering.

"Have you no idea what is at stake?" Prince Noadok's voice rises, laced with urgency and frustration. "Shivnook will not stop. The Sun Court has now allied with the Summer Court against the Night Court, YOUR court must I remind you, Prince Orion?"

"I have left all of that behind."

Prince Noadok's eyes narrow, a shard of twilight blue cutting through the dimness of the linen closet. "You may have been lucky enough to severe ties with the Night Court, but I have not been spared. My Court has refused to aid your father in battle against them for the past seventeen years. You should feel indebted to me for that alone, but I can not turn a blind eye to this beast plaguing my people. I had to strike a bargain with King Orpheus."

At this name, I can hear my father's sharp intake of breathe.

"What did you do, Noadok?"

"What I had too." The prince speaks heavy with burden. "It has been nearly two decades of war since you two disappeared. The Summer court has accused you of kidnapping their princess! What do you make of that, Orion? Where is Arabella, truly? Shall I believe this nonsense you've told the villagers of her death? A sickness!"

The prince scoffs at the thought, then continues. "Shivnook is slaughtering villages, and you, oh great hunter of Avalon, had already fled with your forbidden bride! The only seer of the dark courts now resides in the Night Court. I bargained with your father that the Winter Court would join their war efforts, and ally with the Night Court, in exchange for a prophecy on how to defeat Shivnook. Obviously, the prophecy could have only been about you and I... right? The Only Prince and the stolen child. I find you, so you can kill Shivnook just as you had the Daenara. Except when I arrived, it wasn't you on your stead- in your pelt... it was that girl. Arabella's heir... taken from her realm... some might consider that a stolen child. Her presence would be enough to stop the war and satisfy the Summer Court. She can take the throne!"

My mind races as I try to piece together the fragments of conversation I've overheard. My mother was the princess of a Summer Court? But most importantly... she's not dead.

My mother isn't dead.

Orion's jaw sets in defiance, a silent challenge sparking in his eyes as he faces the prince head-on. "So wise beyond your years, and you're caught up in a prophecy? She's never eaten of golden apples. It just can not be! The pelt is mine. I am the stolen child, the tamer of the swift, the eater of golden apples-"

"Prophecies are fickle, Orion. Fate has a funny way of choosing its players," Prince Noadok sighs, a weary sound escaping his lips.

"If you really trusted in such superstitions, I would assume you'd have fully banished that Necromancer of yours. Perhaps that is an unstoppable fate you should be considering." Orion's voice is sharp and cutting, slicing through the tension in the room like a well-honed blade. I can almost taste the bitterness in the air as his words hang heavily between them.