A Kingdom of Bloodshed (A Crimson Court Series)

*¬*Chapter Twelve*¬*

          Quiet, icy silence has filled my mind. After dropping Althea at her front doors, I simply vanished back to Scarwood. I didn't stop to say goodbye, did not linger to watch her walk away. I just left.

Coward.

I'm a coward. I should have said something, anything. But I didn't. Instead, I ran back to my home and now I'm standing just within the main gates, Tam peering at me curiously.

"Everything alright, Lord Kazimir?" I've told him many times to call me Kaz, but he refuses. Stubborn male.

"I'm unsure yet, Tam." He quirks his head to the side, his face puzzled. "Anything I can do to help?" I chuckle, dark laughter spilling from my lips as I murmur, "Not unless you're able to find an explanation for why I can't stop thinking about Althea and feeling like I made an error in letting her go."

Tam frowns, his soft eyes hardening for a moment, "You let her go?"

I swallow, "Yes. For her safety and my own peace of mind. I had to."

"But why?" His question makes me pause. There was no real reason as much as I claim there to be. I just had to get her out of here. To keep her safe. The visions, the curse, my brother and Tara... it's all too much.

"I don't know." I whisper before patting his shoulder and striding for the palace. The walk up the drive is long and quiet, the sound of summer seems to have paused, as if it's awaiting for her return.

Shaking off the unsettled notion within me, I make it to the front door and reach for the handle before it's yanked open before me.

Startled, I blink as Tara stands within the doorway, grinning at me.

⤗

           "Oh, Miss Tara, you startled me." I say to her grinning face. She blushes before shrugging her jacket on and stepping out into the mild day. "Sorry Kaz, I was looking for you. It's time for our date, remember?"

How could I possibly forget? "Yes of course." Fixing my hair briefly before crooking my elbow for her to take, I step off the porch and stroll around the grounds. It's awkward. The stroll.

It's quiet and uncomfortable. But I have to give every female here the same attention, so I decide to suggest that perhaps we go visit the people in town but the look Tara gives me is one of displeasure. "I'd much rather not."

Her words make me pause, "Why not?"

"Because I'm not here to waste my time with the people of this court, or any beyond."
Dread pools in my belly, low and deep. "Then what are you here for, Miss Tara?" Her eyes slide to mine, and there's a predatory gleam within them. "You, of course."

"Hmm." I replied.

Aiming for the gates, we stride beyond them, Tam nodding as we pass him. It takes mere minutes for the quiet of the forest beyond my home to turn into bustling streets filled with people.

The city is beautiful, filled with colour and laughter and life. The outside world tends to think of this place as a dark and cruel court but that's because of the facade I've had to play. I've had to continue on the legacy that was created many centuries ago.

The truth is that this city is the opposite. Children run freely in the streets, adults chat and laugh with each other. Store fronts are full with baked goods, reading supplies, art materials, clothes, little nick nacks, and any other necessities needed to live. My city is filled with beautiful people of all shapes and sizes, there's no discrimination here.

To the outside world they view my home as evil, that my people are tortured and harmed.

They're not.