Warrior Protect

-9- Cade de Hanivel

"You...do you love her?" The words slipped from my lips before I knew it. The way he glanced at her as he described their training, the way his eyes lit up as if she was the only jewel in the world. I figured it out before, but I wanted to hear it from him. His silence about it, and their close relationship irked me.

"No! Never say that." Karas growled and instantly the whole group stopped. His outburst was not what I expected anger was not what I thought would show. Why was he angry?

Aurora's face held nothing but confusion as she quickly stepped between us. At first, I wasn't sure why, not until her hand moved to Karas's chest which drew my eyes back to him. The man had nothing but rage on his face. I had stepped into an area that even Karas was not allowing himself to enter. It was always strange between them. The way he looked at her. The way he watched her every second they were together. It was obvious. I had initially pushed it away until I watched him pull her into the shadows in the garden and walk out of her room while she was away. I couldn't stop feeling jealous and possessive after those incidents.

It was obvious, though, that she didn't see it, nor did it seem she felt the same way. Obviously, it was a one-sided love. Apparently, Karas knew that as well, because he didn't hesitate to negate my question. Yet, his anger told me all I needed to know. He was angry about losing his cool so close to her. At possibly giving her a hint about how he truly felt. It was written all over his face the moment she touched him.

"I don't know what happened in the few minutes I stopped listening, but back off Karas." Her words held a cold tone. Not a hint of her normal snide undertone was there. That was the side her parents kept telling me about. We had caught a glimpse of it in the garden earlier. The side that was a warrior, not a vain princess.

I had wanted to ask why Queen Dima hushed us earlier in the garden. She had thrown her hand up with a serious look on her face. It had both me and my father dropping the topic. It was the subtle crunch of rocks, that had me amazed. How good was her hearing to notice that while speaking? My hearing was highly acute, yet she had still heard them long before I did. Queen Dima was a bit terrifying. Even that smile held a hint of her lethal training.

A few more minutes passed, and we heard their voices ahead of us. They had stopped just a few feet away in the next row of impenetrable hedges. Queen Dima had only put a finger to her lips and smirked. She knew she had just gotten the upper hand over her daughter. I could only stare at the ground as Aurora had just confirmed the very thing her mother was warning them about. Not even married yet, and she was already considering potential threats.

My father's grunt brought me back to the present. I focused on him. He often pulled me from the mess of thoughts I got lost in. Father was furious, his anger-filled eyes were deliberating on how he would punish the fool who looked at his son with such rage. He was weighing Karas's connection to Aurora and my pride. It was stupid. I could care less how the man glared at me. But, would my father find Aurora's possible renege worth punishing Karas, who only glared angrily at me?

"I am sorry for his outburst. It has been difficult on us since we have not been able to train. Frustrations build up." Aurora stepped between my father and Karas, this time standing her ground. She was telling the king, my father, just what would happen if he dared touch a hair on her friend's head. Karas was the one selfish thing she asked for. He would earn a title and be held as a member of her court after the wedding. It was the one thing she asked for during the talks of our marriage.

That warranted some concern from his parents. Even her parents were unsure of how intimate they were. So, a member of our interrogation squad traveled to Eladere and watched them. Her parents had no qualms with introducing the man as a guest. It only proved that they wanted this marriage as much as my parents did. Who knew what would have happened, if they had told her what was happening in her own home. By how protective she was over him, I doubted anyone dared to tell her. Queen Dima would have hidden the spying to keep her daughter somewhat pleasant about the marriage.