Glass Dominion

Chapter Twenty-Six

 My novelty had finally begun to wear off in the palace, the deeper into the chilled autumn months we got. I was learning my place amongst the other warriors, learning who to steer clear of, and who the halfway decent people were.
I had settled into my routine, and made sure that I didn't find myself in the training room at five in the morning. I avoided confrontation at all costs. And it seemed that confrontation had been avoiding me as well.
It'd been a long week with long stretching days. I'd kind of thrown myself into training, hating that I'd hardly been able to hold my own during training. And my training lately had been with other opponents. Not him.
I was beginning to enjoy seeing the improvement, the toned muscles I'd begun to obtain. Though, the strength and agility was to benefit the emperor and the commander and not for myself, and I hated that.
Since being in the palace, I'd seen most warriors come and go, getting deployed on missions and assignments overseas. I couldn't help but wonder what it might have been like going on a mission. I dreamed of seeing the world, and that had never been a possibility before.
Then again, I wasn't sure if I wanted to know what the rest of the world was like. My parents had immigrated to Glass Dominion from Wrejah, the only thing I didn't know was the reason why.
The day had started out leaden and gloomy, and it did its best to drag me along with it. I was out on a run with a group of warriors in the palaces trails through the forest. There was a consistent sharp pain in my side, and the freezing rain I ran against felt like shards of glass hitting my skin.
I trailed a good bit behind the rest of the warriors, for they were in much better shape than I was. And they weren't completely exhausted due to lack of sleep either. I'd like to have thought that if I'd been able to rest, I would have been able to keep up with them.
Once we neared the palace and the end of our run, I picked up my pace, with my motivation in sight. I couldn't wait to throw myself onto my bed and lay there until it was dinner time.
Judging from the outside of the palace, I never would have guessed what was on the inside. It stood tall, like some fairytale that's walls gleamed and glistened with the kind of appeal that only shone when standing from a far. Its insides were rotten, vain, but hauntingly beautiful at the same time.
I knew that the palace instilled a deep fear in the people of Glass Dominion, for we all knew that whoever sat behind those walls had to have held power, privilege, and significance in their laps.
As we made our way back into the palace, I rejoined the group I had fallen behind. We went through a side entrance, and made our way up a large encased stairway I hadn't seen before.
Back on the fourth floor now, one of the small skinny boys, Adrian, that I had no clue how he got recruited in the first place, trailed along beside me. He pestered me with questions, and he'd done it once before.
Though he asked many questions, he seemed to do most of the talking. I answered as simply and vague as I could, knowing I'd be free of him as soon as we reached the conjoining corridor at the end of the one we meandered down.
Our small group passed another, then trailing behind that group were a couple of the higher ups in the palace, lords and ladies and—the commander.
He conversed with a man dressed in the finest-looking robe that was lined with gold, someone that was very important. I watched closely, the way the commander existed so handsomely, so flawless in the title he held. His blond hair was combed back, his shirt clung to him desperately, and all I could think of was the male towering over me. When his mouth had touched my skin, when those blue eyes begged for me.
A man whose tongue was laden with stern orders, whose simple lifted hand could quiet a room, who led armies, constructed missions, and demanded respect as Glass Dominion's second in command—he'd said those words to me.
Wanting to beg for you the same. I couldn't escape the rasp of his voice, his words lingering in the back of my mind. And passing him in the corridor, I was reminded of it all once again.
The young warrior still went on about something that I hadn't paid attention to as I felt daring enough to look directly at the man as we passed.
Our arms nearly brushed, as we were both forced to walk closer to the middle of the corridor. I kept my eyes on him, wishing that he'd just look my way once. I wondered if he'd seen me, if I was that noticeable in a crowd, even if it were a small one, even if we were passing right by one another.
Christian Quinn walked past me and never once looked back. I felt a sudden coldness, maybe something that'd been there all along and I hadn't noticed it yet. I hated him for it. Hated him.
I was thankful to have made it back to my room. I fell flat on my bed and closed my eyes that were drowsy and felt like sand. It seemed as soon as I rested my eyes, my mind started running, allowing no way for me to drift off.
My head felt clouded, and distant, even after being out in the forest, which I thought would have been like medicine for my weariness. It hurt more than anything, being taken back to that feeling of home, that feeling of simplicity without being able to hold onto it.
I wondered how my friends were fairing. I hoped that the Irja I'd left them was enough, and I hoped that they weren't as worried about me as I was them. We were all terribly co-dependent, that was a trait we must have adopted in our years of leaning and relying on each other in Grassheen.
After lying there for over an hour, I decided to get in the shower and wash the weight of the day off of my shoulders before dinner time.
Dinners were always a bit of an occasion in the palace. And especially for all of the warriors that, after a long day of training, ate like pigs.
When I got out of the hot shower I dried off, brushed my hair, and slipped into a small dress made of silk. The palace had provided me with clothes, considering I hadn't been able to bring any of my own things. The dress was comfortable and rather flattering, it made me feel like I fit in even if it were in the slightest way.
Part of me wondered if this would ever end. If there would be another day in my life where I wouldn't slip a dress over my head and eat with an army of people who had the most senseless of conversations. If there would be a day where I would see my friends again, and make it out of this place. A place you weren't meant to make it out of. Would I become just as lost in the lifestyle, down the corridors as the rest of the palace had? It scared me, because I saw how easily that could happen. But the thought of it always being this way scared me even more.
The room was faintly lit at dinner, and the sound of a piano dressed the air. Whoever coordinated the dinners always made sure every single candle in the room was lit and that the piano matched the meal that'd been prepared. I wasn't sure how that was an actual thing.
Sitting before me was a bowl of soup when I took my designated seat. I was thankful that it was soup, that was one of the only meals I'd enjoyed since being in the palace. And strangely, grapes. The soup was fitting for the chilling evening, and after the afternoon spent out in the cold rain, the warmth of the soup was soothing.
The table was filled with lively conversation, and everyone looked their best. The men in their finest overcoats and polished shoes, some women wore dresses, others decided to go more casual or masculine. It was always such an ordeal, I would much rather have eaten my dinner alone, and somewhere quiet, maybe even my bedroom.
I was surprised when the black-haired girl sitting next to me told me she liked my dress. I took great pride in it, and returned the compliment with a small smile on my lips. I'd never done that before, not where it wasn't on purpose, having to force myself to do it. It was like an instinct now, a trait I'd learned while being there.
The soup, as I expected, was warm and comforting which put me at ease. It melted the ache of my muscles, the clouded haze that had settled over my mind, even the sleepiness in my eyes.
Behind me, it was almost as if I knew it were coming, as if I could feel his approach. A shadow fell over me, and the scent of smoke masked with vanilla. My heart stopped, my blood with it, and I couldn't move a muscle.
His hand with rings and ink rested on the edge of the table, the other was on the back of my chair. He leaned down over me, dangerously close.
I was completely frozen, yet melting at the same time. I looked around at the table. Some had noticed the unexpected presence of the commander, but most were too caught up in their own conversations.
After a steady inhale, then exhale across my skin, sending chill bumps chasing after it, he finally whispered. "You dare dress like that, knowing what you do to me." His voice was low, and in the depths of his chest.
I couldn't move. If anything, I wanted to lean into him more. My cheeks flushed the deepest shade of crimson, I could feel the heat flowing beneath my skin.
Then, a calloused hand slipped around my elbow. "Come sit with me." It was an order, the tone in his voice, the stern way he pulled me to my feet told me so.
I stood, shot him a glare that made him smirk, but I didn't resist. The last thing I wanted to do was make a scene, to give way for rumors, which seemed to be exactly what he was doing. Freely giving the people something to talk about, and I didn't like it in the least bit. I didn't like being the girl that others envied, that got glares and hushed whispers due to the attention she was receiving from Glass Dominion's most well known, most desired male.
Christian pushed my chair under the table, carried my bowl of soup, and guided me with his hand on the small of my back. I was tempted to shove the soup right into his chest, that way it'd spill all over his white button-up that hugged his impeccable upper body.
He guided me to the head of the table where he sat my bowl. Once I sat, he situated my chair, then lazily placed himself to the right of me at the head of the table—the place meant for the commander that'd sat empty every evening before now.
The long table now before me continued to gossip, glanced our way, but didn't dare chance meeting my gaze. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't flattered. Hesitantly flattered. I hadn't wished to feel that way.
A butler came by the table immediately to assist the commander. He poured some wine, a shade of deep maroon into a glass, and left the bottle on the table.
The male beside me took a long sip of it, then handed it off to me without a second thought. Warriors weren't permitted to have alcohol. I took my lips to the glass anyway.
Christian ate his soup and conversed with a couple of the higher ranking warriors in the palace, they were more seasoned, and had been there the longest.
I watched him closely as he was a part of the most casual of conversations, and it was so strange to see him so normal, and so masterful at it. It was a side of him I hadn't seen yet, and part of me had to wonder if it was genuine, or just another guise.
"Ambrose," said Christian. The sound of his voice grabbed my attention immediately. "Let me introduce you—this is Daniel Taylor, Nina Navarro, and Tobias Modise."
I sat up straight and plastered on a smile. "I'm Amelie. It's lovely to meet you all." I could have cringed at the sound of my tone, Christian seemed to have caught it too. It was an unfamiliar tone, one he hadn't heard before.
Pushing my bowl away, I leaned forward with one arm on the table before me. Christian sat back in his chair, so flawlessly draped over it. My eyes trailed over to him, to his wide spread legs, how small I must've looked beside him.
My breath caught in my lungs, and it took everything in my power to remain unphased as his hand crept over my thigh underneath the table. My skin erupted with chills. I jerked my leg away from him, and without even glancing my way he pulled my leg back to where it was and tightened the grip he had.
Nina adjusted in her seat, she and everyone else were completely unaware of what had just happened. "You as well, we've heard lots about you." She smiled and sipped her water after just having finished her food. She was gorgeous, with deep tan skin, dark red lips, and soft eyes. Her hair was long and dark, and her bangs framed her round face perfectly.
"Oh no," I laughed lightly, forcing my mind back to the present. "All good things, I hope."
"Trust me, coming from the commander, they are all good things," Daniel reassured me. He was beastly, with skin of alabaster. He was very muscular and had a very square face. The two didn't coincide to his benefit.
Christian's fingers continued to caress my skin, snaking toward my inner thigh, that forbidden feeling rising in me. I wanted to tell him to stop, and I hated that at the same time I didn't.
I cleared my throat. "So how long have you guys been in the palace?" I decided to ask, anything in attempts to keep color from rushing to my cheeks, to suppress that feeling in the pit of my stomach.
"Seven years," Nina exaggerated her tone. I was expecting longer, but I marveled at her answer anyway.
"Now, it doesn't seem that long, but working for this guy," Tobias gestured to the commander, "let's just say it's been a long seven years." He laughed, and everyone else followed. Tobias was tall and very lean, with dark skin and a salt-and-peppered beard. He looked the oldest, it seemed it'd been a long seven years indeed.
With a glance at me, Christian said lightly, "Don't believe him, he's exaggerating." His fingers trailed on my thigh to the sound of his voice, inching upward between my dress. My stomach burned, and my knees felt weak.
"Maybe I am," Tobias admitted airily. "He's strictly hardcore though, there's no denying that."
"But that's what makes him a damn good commander," Nina added, nudging Christian's arm.
"The fucking best," the commander agreed, arrogance coated his tone.
Everyone else laughed, but I did not. I even caught myself glaring at Nina before I realized it and had to force my attention elsewhere.
"How long have you been in the palace, Amelie?" Daniel leaned forward and decided to return the inquiration.
I swallowed hard, that hand on my leg now teasing me, wanting to creep higher. I ached inside, chills crawling over my skin, craving him. I was tempted to scoot forward, then I feared I would have to forever live in a hole in the dirt if I did that.
"I've been here for—" My voice hit a wall when that hand dipped between my thighs, between my dress, caressing and creeping toward that forbidden feeling. I couldn't believe that he was doing this and that I was letting him.
Clearing my throat, I tried again. "I've been here for—" He touched me. Touched me. And I watched to chase that burning, aching feeling so badly but knew that I couldn't.
Cursing under my breath, I laughed lightly and looked away, feeling completely flustered. My body yearned for his touch when I knew I shouldn't have been.
"Ambrose, are you alright?" asked Christian, his tone struck with masked humor, knowing good and well that I wasn't alright and that he was the reason for it.
Then, just like that, his touch left me. He reached for the glass of wine on the table. "Here, have some more wine." I took the glass from him and sipped it eagerly.
Christian watched me closely, and I shot a sharp glare at him. With a smirk, he ran his hand over his mouth, something daring in his eyes. That same hand.
I had to force my eyes away from the intensity of his gaze and set the wine glass back on the table. "I've been here for almost three months, I believe," I told the warriors, finally able to speak clearly.
A watchman approached the head of the table, seeking the attention of the commander. Lazily, and quite bothered, Christian turned to him.
In need of his presence during a meeting of sorts, I watched as the commander who'd just had his hand up my dress walk away with the watchman without looking back, without even a simple goodbye.
The conversation between the four of us left on that end of the table continued for another half hour or so. I spent the entirety of it wishing that it would come to an end.
They were kind people, who had interesting stories and wanted to know about mine. Mine was a lot less interesting. And quite sad, actually. It wasn't something I liked telling people, and kept it as vague as I possibly could.
When dinner and that dreaded conversation that I hadn't even asked to be a part of was finally over, I rushed for the exit as quickly as I could.
I spent that evening on my own. I'd gone to the library after dinner and spent over an hour scouring through the thousands and thousands of books to finally settle on one to take back to my room.
Through the large window in my room, I watched the sunset behind the trees of the forest. That reminded me of the summer evenings when our cottage would travel east where rolling hills and endless meadows coated the earth.
The sunset was most beautiful there, for you could never see it fully through the trees in Grassheen. The stars, however, were best viewed from the edge of our cottage's porch. From that angle, the trees made a perfect hole that the sky could be seen through. Few people knew that little secret.
You didn't get those kinds of views here, everything beautiful I'd seen in the palace so far was from my bedroom window. From the inside looking out.
After the sun had set, I got nestled under my blanket in bed and started reading the book that I'd chosen. Somehow, I drifted off to sleep.