A King's Guardian

>14<

The sound of a voice stirred me from a slumber I hadn't realized I had fallen into. I jolted upright in the bed, startled. A woman stood beside my bed in a maid's uniform. Growing impatient with my slowness, she repeated herself again. There was no telling how many times she had spoken before it woke me.

"Guardian Apphia," she said, "the King is demanding your presence in the courtyard."

Sitting up and wiping my eyes, I nodded. "King in the courtyard. Thank you, Miss."

She didn't yet move. "It is urgent, Guardian, so do not delay."

Urgent for my execution, most likely. I nodded again and moved my legs to the edge of the bed. She finally backed away and headed towards the door. A tingle in my stomach had me wondering why she had entered my room and then come so close to my bed while I slept. Well, urgent demands required urgent decisions. There was no privacy as an employee of the royal castle.

After hastily pulling on my second uniform, which was currently more fresh than my other, I laced up my boots and left the room. I wondered as I walked if he would let me bid farewell to my fellow Guardians, my brothers. Most especially to Isaac and Seth. If I was banished, I would miss them terribly. At least in execution I would have the good fortune of escaping their absence.

The halls of the castle comforted me, leading the way to my fate. The reds and blacks and stunning paintings, sculptures, and head busts greeted me as they had every time before. Only now this time may be my last. When I reached the doors to the courtyard, one was already open. I stepped through it and entered the small garden bordering the lawn of the castle. Judging by the pinkish-yellows tipping the bottom of the east horizon, dawn was approaching.

Zacharias was not, however, in sight. My gaze floated across the lawn, the enormous iron fence that surrounded the castle, and then slowly ventured to the colossal stone edifice itself. As terrifyingly cold as the castle appeared, I felt warmth at its sight. Its walls were what had protected me, fed me, and gave my life purpose over these last years. This was the closest place I had to a home.

Just when I was beginning to wonder where King Zacharias was if he had so urgently demanded my presence, a voice boomed from behind me. I flinched before turning to acknowledge it.

"What are you doing out here?" demanded Samson.

Our eyes met as I watched him step through the open door I had only moments prior. His inky dark skin glistened under the dim rays of the morning, dewy with sweat. My mouth fell silent while I attempted to discern the look of anger on his face.

"Apphia," he said more sternly, "the castle is on lockdown. What are you doing outside?"

"Lockdown?" I choked, eyes widening. "But the maid—"

"Get inside right now." He reached to grab my arm, but I was two steps ahead of him already. "What were you thinking?"

For whatever reason, those words made me come to my senses. He wasn't furious that I was outside, or, at least, that wasn't the main reason. This was about what I had done. This was about how I had endangered all of us. Now that we were inside and he had jerked the door shut and latched it closed with an iron bar, I turned to face him. Our eyes locked and I felt my hands clam up. Even after all this time, he could still silence me with one withering look.

"What is this about?" he demanded.

Words failed to come together in my mind. I had no justification for myself, except for what I had already told Zacharias. And assuming he had explained this all to Samson and given him the reason to be angry, he should have already been told my defense.

"The maid told me the king wanted to have a word with me," I said, even while knowing this wasn't the response he wanted.

"You know that isn't what I'm referring to."

"Sir...I did what I thought was best in my judgment. I see now that protecting the king's reputation weakened us and could have resulted much worse. I'm aware of the risk I caused, and that it deserves punishment." Gulping, my eyes turned to my feet. "Has the king decided on a punishment?"

"Our Highness hasn't had a moment to consider your punishment," he said. "While you rested, he has been ensuring the safety of this castle as well as the health of his men. Now he is attempting to communicate with Prince Philip, though it seems the Estate has been rejecting the messages."

Rejecting? How could they reject the messages? I could only imagine how furious Zacharias would be about all of this. No one should disrespect the King so publicly; to have his own outpost defy him so openly summoned his wrath. I shuddered at the thought of his sweet cousin being punished for the sheer lunacy of her husband. She had been so kind to me. A thought came to mind that made me shudder: had she known what he would do to me, to my king, all along?

"If the castle is under lockdown," I asked, "shouldn't all the remaining Guardians be with the king? Are the castle guards enough?"

"He wants you all to rest in case we are required to leave the castle..." Samson pinched his lips, eyes going distant. "It seems likely there will be a coup led by Prince Philip. There may be riots. If the castle is threatened, we will be the last line of defense."

My heart skipped. Riots. A coup. These had never happened before. Not in the last few hundred years, at least. I suddenly felt my hatred for Philip return in full force. My entire being grew hot and my chest burned. He would pay for doing this to us. This was a peaceful nation, and he was trying to ruin it.

"Apphia?" another deep voice called from the end of the hall. "What are you doing outside your room?"

I sighed. Here we go.