Fatal Fascinations

Chapter 18: Morning Lights

Caspian's POV:

Annalina's screams still haunted me an hour after she had fallen back asleep.

Her snores now echoed beside me as she slumbered. She's so tiny I thought absentmindedly. That means she's gonna need twice the amount of protection when she's Queen. I signed inwardly.

Then after her, it'll be me.

The thought alone sent a swirl of regret and pain through my body and I rolled closer to Annalina, tugging her body close.

I felt sorry for her. The little girl had no idea what kind of world she was getting into. She had no idea what happened to her parents. Blissful ignorance I thought ruefully, must be nice.

Her inexperienced body fit nicely against mine. For now, I held my future queen close and prayed, to whoever was listening, that she would be a hell of a lot better as Queen than I would ever be as King.

Annalina's POV:

I woke to the sound of knocking on my bedroom door.

Groaning, I sat up, Caspian's arm falling off me. He slept soundly beside me, oblivious to the sounds.

"Yes?" I called, rubbing sleep from my eyes.

"It's me," Roland responded through the door.

Fuck.

Scrambling out of bed, I ran quickly over to the door and slid out into the hallway. The cold nipped at my bare legs as I looked up shyly at Roland.

His light brown hair was mussed as usual, his golden eyes sparkling as he took me in.

"Goodmorning," he said quietly.

"Goodmorning," I whispered back.

"How'd you sleep?"

I supressed a small smile.

"Good. Where's Declin?" I asked, peeking around him in search of the small boy.

"With his mom..." Roland said slowly, pausing to gauge my reaction.

I opened my mouth to respond but Rose's loud voice echoing down the hallway caused me to stop.

"Kat-uh uhm, Annalina!" She called, strutting down the hallway already dressed in a black leather skirt and faded gray T-shirt.

"We have some talking to do, gorgeous," she informed me, swishing her thick hair to one side of her head.

"I have some new place to show you," she also told me slyly, coasting casually in between Roland and I so that our bodies touched. Her back to me, she gave Roland a knowing look, the corner's of her mouth turned up.

"I claimed a spot for us."

Roland's eyes flashed a bright gold and his mouth turned down. He raised an eyebrow at Rose.

"Meet me in twenty in the gardens," Rose commanded me, laughing at a private joke only she seemed to understand.

With that, she spun out from in between Roland and I and walked gracefully down the hallway, swinging her arms back and forth.

Before I could say anything to Roland, Alex came running the opposite way, her lion's man of curls flailing widly behind her. It seemed she too had been up already, as a fresh layer of sweat coated her pale face from her most recent run.

Her old sneakers squeaked loudly across the floor as she slowed her pace to a walk. Her green eyes assessed Roland, narrowing slightly.

"Hey," she said casually.