The Guardian

Chapter Seven

I sat at my vanity, gritting my teeth and clenching my fists as Phillipa dug the glass out of my shoulders and neck with a thin needle. We'd clipped up my blood-matted hair so she could clear the wounds. She was discarding all the bloody shards in a shallow glass bowl she found on my dresser. I winced as she dug the deeper ones out, she'd left them until last.

"All done," she walked into my line of vision and gave me a small smile. "Why don't you climb out of that dress while I run you a bath?"

"Alright, thank you," I give her a smile as I walk to my closet and Phillipa walks to the bathroom.

Once I'm on my own, I pull the tie at the waist of my dress and it loosens instantly. It falls to the ground and I quickly step out of it. I unclip my corset and undergarments and a wince of pain shoots through my shoulders. I pull them off and then slide a satin robe on over my bare skin. I walked into the bathroom, where steam was rising off the hot water. I pull the robe off and hang it on the hook on the back of the door before stepping into the water.

I sit down and let the water ripple out around me. Phillipa pulls up a stool and grabs a small cloth that she dips in the water before starting to wash out the incisions on my shoulders and neck. I let out a tiny whimper. Gosh it stung. I closed my eyes until it stopped hurting and she started to wash the knots and dried blood from my curls.

I close my eyes while this happens and exhaustion starts to drag me under. But before I know it, Phillipa is helping me out and I step onto a mat, then wipe myself with a towel while Phillipa disappears to the closet to grab me a nightgown. I slide back into the satin robe and walk out of my bathroom, finding Damian standing by the fireplace.

"Damian?" My voice is hushed and as he turns around and his eyes widen a little I realise how scandalously short my robe is.

"Oh, um, sorry," he quickly looks down at the carpet.

"It's alright, but what are you doing here?" I cross my arms and start to make my way to the closet, then lean against the doorframe.

"Isodore wants to question the man you caught tonight and he wants the both of us there as soon as possible," he speaks quietly and I simply nod before walking into my closet, and Phillipa hands me a nightgown.

"Turns out I'm not done for the night, I need a tunic and pants please Phillipa," I give her an apologetic smile and pull on my own undergarments, but I refuse to put a corset on now. She sits me down for a moment and rubs a herbal salve over my shoulders and then straps bandages over them.

"But it's the middle of the night?" Regardless, she hands me a black tunic and white pants, and I step into them quickly.

"Isosdore's orders," I restrain myself from rolling my eyes and Phillipa lets out a small laugh as she ties up my shoes and I tie my hair in a loose ponytail high up on my head. "Thank you."

"I'll wait for your return," she smiles kindly. Gosh, I don't know what I'd do without this woman.

"Don't Phillipa, I'll be fine," I give her a small smile and a nod as I walk out to my room, where Damian stands by the door.

"Thank you, I'll just clean up in here and then I'll go," I nod and Damian and I walk out of the room as soon as she finishes speaking.

Damian leads me to the closest stairwell and we start to go down, down and down. I move a little slower than usual, simply because of my shoulders.

"Isodore's interrogation techniques are a little, vicious, to say the least," Damian speaks quietly as a warm orange light appears below.

"Thanks for the warning, but I'm an assassin, I was trained to be vicious and cruel," I mumble a little but continue walking.

Damian doesn't reply, and a moment later we arrive in the 'dungeon'. The room has a heavy wooden door, which we push through, and then there are two chains with handcuffs attached to the ends locked into the floor. Those handcuffs were currently around the wrists of the filth I caught earlier. The room is circular and stone, with a hallway opposite the door we walked in. I can see caged cells lining the walls of the hallway. I turn my attention back to the pathetic filth kneeling on the ground, who smirks at me.

I roll my eyes and take a few steps to the left, looking down at him.

"I would antagonise her, she's probably rather angry you broke that window on top of her," I hear his voice from behind me and have to restrain from rolling my eyes again. I turn around and watch him strut into the room, a small, thin blade in his hand.

"Well, no one told us there was going to be an assassin," a flash of recognition crosses his face when he sees Isodore and then his voice is angry when he speaks. Now that he knows he's going to die, he's much more confident and a little less pathetic. But still pathetic. And a little suspicious. 

"But you still managed to irritate the assassin very much, so I suggest you tell us exactly what we ask, or I will make you regret the day that you were born," I smile falsely and pace along a small section of the wall, my eyes narrowed and my wet hair swinging behind me as I speak. The worm flinches slightly.

Damian stays by the door, hand on the hilt of his sword.

"Now, answer the questions, and I'll be merciful," Isodore speaks and the prisoner looks at him. "Why did you break my window?"

"I was told to, as an attempt to hurt you," the man looks at the floor, his filthy hair falling around his filthy face.

"I see," Isodore glares at the man, twirling the knife in his hand. He suddenly strikes out and slices along the edge of the man's shoulder blade. Effective and painful. The man cries out in agony and falls forward onto his hands. "Now, who told you to?"

"You three wouldn't believe me if I told you," Isodore grabs the man's hair and pulls him back up into a kneeling position.

"Try us," Isodore's voice is threatening, venom coating every syllable. He makes a small incision under the man's arm and he shrieks again. 

"Well, it was a high-standing Lord," the prisoner begins the drawl on and I roll my eyes.

"I've had just about enough of you and if you don't give us an answer, I'm going to kill you, understand?" I stand in front of him and glare down at his puny form as I speak. He nods rapidly and I take a few steps back, not wanting to breath the same air as the street scum.

"He was in the room attacked tonight, has blonde hair and he is -" Isodore snaps the man's neck halfway through his sentence and I stumble back and Damian calls out.

"What on earth was that for? He was about to tell us!" I'm yelling, looking at the slumped body on the floor.

"He was clearly messing with us, he's a waste of space rotting down here," Isodore stands with his hands on his hips. "And you're an assassin, Adelaide, you of all people should understand."

"I don't understand unjustified killing," I shake my head and walk to stand next to Damian, who remains silent. "And a heads up, you should probably get rid of the body."

"Can't you help me get rid of it, surely you know how," he raises an eyebrow at me and I give a small laugh.

"Not my kill, not my body, not my problem," I turn and open the the huge door, stepping outside a little. "Sort it out yourself, Isodore."

I storm out and I hear him call after me, everything from Adelaide to Violette to girl. I keep walking and don't look back. 

The man had been about to say something invaluable and I had my own suspicions about the name about to pass his lips.