The Guardian

Chapter Fifteen

The moon was spilling through the window opposite the door the the King and Queen's bedroom early in the morning. Evangeline had given me a soft, flexible suit made from leather-like material. It was black as night with a matching pair of boots, quiet and supple. The entire suit was skin-tight and the sleeves stretched all the way down to my hands and wrapped around my thumb. There were knives strapped on the insides of my wrists, that I could access at a moment's notice. And a knife was hidden in each boot. The neckline was high, half way up my neck, stopping just below my chin.

I sat on a wooden table against the wall, the huge window on my left and the bedroom doors on my right. One leg was folded up under me and the other hung off the edge, not reaching the floor. A black cloak was pinned around me, the hood hanging back behind me. My hair is braided down my back as I watch the doors leading into the foyer opposite me. The only doorway into the King and Queen's chambers is through that door. And through me.

After I'd agreed,  Evangeline and I had left straight away to get this suit fitted to every curve of my skin, the material was shiny and a little slippery, but that was useful. I could move like water through the darkness, my pale skin the only issue. 

Once the suit had been fitted, her and I had put a small pair of charms on each window in her chambers, and the slightest pressure or movement would force them to chime. No one was getting in without my knowledge. Except the King wasn't allowed to know I was guarding them.

The moon starts to sink lower until the sky begins to turn golden and I hear the Queen knock lightly on the inside of her door. I quietly walk over tap back, before walking out, pulling my hood up and keeping my head down.

No one stops me or says anything as I stalk outside. I climb onto my new caramel-coloured horse. Her name is Huntress. She was another gift from Evangeline yesterday. I quickly gallop towards the castle gates and the guards open it without question, so I continue on back to Hamlin House.

After a few minutes I ride in through the side gate after flashing my face and out into the stables, where I climb off and lead her into a stall, pulling her gear off. I talk quietly to her as I work, before grabbing her some feed and then closing the door to her stall and stroking her mane as she eats.

"Well I didn't know you got a horse," Damian's voice shocks me out of a trance and I turn to face him, my cloak open. "Or a new suit."

I can see him struggling to keep his eyes on my face and I almost smile, but I don't.

"Well, now you know," I continue to stroke Huntress' mane and turn my body away from him and he walks over and stands next to me.

"She's gorgeous," he smiles widely and then I do as well. "What's her name?"

"Huntress," I say her name with a smile.

"Just like her rider?" He raises and eyebrow and I let out a small laugh.

"The Queen named her after me apparently," I smile widely and look over at him. He looks wide awake in the sunrise, I probably look like death walking.

"Well I like her name," he gives a small smile, apparently ignoring how dead I look. "Were you up all night?"

"Yes, it's a new job. I have a special job all night and then I have Isodore duty in the afternoons and sleep in the mornings," I speak quickly, my tiredness catching up to me.

"Go to sleep, Ad-Violette," he corrects himself as a stable-hand walk past. "I'll make sure she gets everything she needs, and I'll look after Isodore."

"Okay, I'll see you after lunch then," without another word I walk quickly out of the stables and up the path towards the house, my cloak flying behind me and the whole suit on display.

Just inside the door I run into Sophia. 

"Goodness, watch where you're going!" She shrieks and I contain my laughter. "Wait Violette? What are you wearing?" She raises an eyebrow and her eyes widen in shock, and then I laugh.

"It's a gift from the Queen. A new assassin's suit," I give a small smile and shrug.

"Oh, alright then," she smiles and smooths her dress. "You look like hell."

"I know, I'm on the way to bed," I give a small nod.

"Wait why?" She raises and eyebrow.

"Ask Damian, he's in the stables," my answer is quiet as a wave of fatigue hits me. "I've got to go."

I leave her staring after me before she heads for the stables as I trudge back to my room. My footsteps are still quiet on the stairs that I hurry up. I'm walking down the corridor towards my room when I see Isodore stopped at the end of the hall, watching me.

I hold my head high and swing my hips a little more as I pull off the cloak to leave me in my incredibly tight suit as I strut into my room. But I quickly lock the door and smirk to myself before pulling off my shoes and dumping them, the suit and the cloak on the couch by the fire. Then I quickly undo my hair and find an old shirt of Aedrioch's that I took from home and pull it on, before climbing into bed and passing out almost immediately.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Adelaide, it's almost 5pm," I wake up to the sound of Phillipa's soft voice, and her hand on my shoulder. All I smell is cinnamon and I open my eyes and sit up. "I brought you cinnamon rolls, fresh out of the oven."

She hands me a plate of them and I smile before grabbing one and shoving it in my mouth. It's still hot and I let out a small moan, not realising how hungry I was. Phillipa laughs as she walks towards the bathroom and I hear the water start to run. I quickly devour the cinnamon rolls before walking into my bathroom just as the water stops and I strip off and climb in.

Phillipa quickly washes my hair before disappearing and I soak for a moment, then climb out and wrap a towel around myself before walking around into my wardrobe. 

I quickly step into my undergarments and Phillipa does up my corset before I step into a plain blue tunic, white pants and a pair of black heeled boots. I tie my own half-dry hair back in a tight knot at the base of my skull.

I thank Phillipa for the cinnamon rolls and hurry down to dinner. By the time I burst through the doors, Sophia, Damian and Isodore are already there. The only seat left is between Isodore and Sophia, and opposite Damian. I sit down and immediately serve myself some vegetable pie and start to eat immediately.

"Someone's hungry," Isodore's snarkiness cause me to pause for a moment.

"Well, Isodore, when you stay up all night doing something instead of girls, it's quite tiring," I reply with the same amount of snarkiness and Sophia snorts as Damian chokes on his food.

"Well, if that's what you think, I can't change it, can I?" He speaks loudly as Sophia and Damian compose themselves and I don't reply. "Maybe if you put your actions where your words are, you would have caught my would-be murderer by now."

He hasn't finished the last word before the dagger from my sleeve embeds itself a millimetre from the side of his neck and I hear everyone hold their breath.

"Well, maybe if you stopped holding events where everyone was invited and they're all corrupted socialites who hate you then it would be easier, wouldn't it?" I use the same patronising tone he used with me and I hear Sophia chuckling into her hand and Damian is struggling to keep the smirk off his face.

He smirks at me before standing and setting his cutlery on his half-eaten dinner. "Well, as fun as this has been, I have somewhere to be, so goodnight everyone." He leaves without another word and a moment after the door closes behind him, we all burst into laughter.

I pull my dagger out of the back of his chair and slide it back into my sleeve before the other two have stopped laughing.