Serpent in Shackles

Chapter Thirty Four

I sighed deeply, chin resting on Caeden's shoulder as we galloped through the unfamiliar meadow. I knew my days there were coming to an end. Soon I'd have to return to my steel cage and forget about this place forever. But I couldn't. I didn't want to.

I had fallen in love with this Kingdom.

With the wind ruffling in my ears, I could barely hear as Mia shouted, "the guard lives near the lake. We have to go the rest of the way on foot."

At the edge of a forest, we brought our horses to a halt and walked the rest of the way.

I shuffled through the grass closely behind Caeden. Unlike the other forests I had seen there, this one was what I would call an Autumn forest. The orange and red leaves danced through the wind, tumbling toward the ground as the fully coated branches twinkled in the sunlight.

My eyes surveyed the area, hands close to the daggers strapped to my thighs. "If you have wings then why do we ride horses everywhere?"

"Only some of us have wings," Caeden said. "And flying is very tiring, it's better for us to reserve our energy to do our job."

"So what kind of monster are you?"

"The bad kind."

I wedged my fingers between his arm and body, resting them gently on his bicep to keep him close to me. "You're always trying to keep me at an arm's length. Everytime I get close to you, it feels like you push me away again."

"You shouldn't get close to me."

I pulled his arm abruptly, forcing him to stop beside me. "Why? There's nothing wrong with you."

"There's a reason they call me a cold-blooded killer," he muttered quietly. "Why are you not afraid of me?"

"Because I don't think you're evil. I think you're scared of people seeing who you truly are. You're hiding behind that disguise of the cold-blooded killer. But you're in there, the real you, the you that sacrificed himself to stop a war and save his family is in there." My brows furrowed, trying desperately to keep from tearing up. "I know he is."

Fingers resting softly against mine, he said, "there's nothing left in me worth saving, Princess. I am a monster."

Leaves crunched beneath me as I shifted back on my feet, releasing my hold on his arm. He watched me step away, and I realized he misunderstood why. "No," I said, following it up with a shake of my head. "I've seen enough monsters in my life. And you're not one."

His gaze softened, sunlight sparkling in his golden eyes. Once again, his eyes changed colour. I made a mental note reminding myself to ask him what the different colours meant, when we were no longer in the way of danger.

A long sigh was the only exchange between us for a moment.

"Look out!" Vincent shouted from behind us.

Burning, my eyes burned from the smoke filling the air around us, tears trying their best to push the smoke away. I could barely hear myself think over the sound of ringing blasting through my ears. My legs gave out and I stumbled back, colliding with the hard ground.

I couldn't move.

My limbs weren't numb or tingly, they were heavy, holding me back against the dirt. A mix of coughing and choking burned through my chest and throat.

And then a sharp pain shot through my arm and the world went dark.

... 

Light leaked into my eyes as they fluttered open to the sight of a familiar face.