The Reluctant Queen

Chapter 16

Louis' POV: 

The young wizard sat with his back against the brick wall of the cell. It had been days since he had seen Adrian, or at least he though it had been. With no sunlight or any real way to mark time, his perception felt off. Not to mention he had little to no interaction with anyone besides the guards that rotated shifts outside the main door. He wasn't sure what was going on. He was given food everyday, always the same tasteless slop, but it came every evening without fail. But other than that, no horrible treatment, no torment. For the most part he was ignored, but it did nothing to ease his worry.

All he could think about was Sophia. He knew very well she wasn't forgotten as he was. 

The wooden door screeched open, taking him out of his thoughts. One of the guards he had become familiar with was holding a tray of food. Right on time. 

The guard practically threw the tray on the ground. "Dinner." 

Louis sighed as he got on his knees. Of course the tray was just out of reach on the other side of the bars. After a moment he was able to pull the food of porridge forward to himself. 

"Wow, great, Keith." Louis wiped the food off his hand onto his pants. "My favorite, rice porridge. Be sure to give the chief my thanks." 

The guard rolled his eyes, already turned for the door. "Be a smart ass all you want. This is better than you deserve if you ask me." 

Better than he deserved? Sure, maybe the dungeon was a five star hotel compared to the state prison. Well, in the sense that he wasn't being tortured on a daily basis. But Louis wasn't sure how much longer he had to live. This situation was a temporary one. Adrian wouldn't be able to keep Sophia's memory buried forever. And when the king saw the ideal opportunity, Louis would be disposed of. 

He sighed and sat down, tray in lap. He was careful to keep his arm out of the way. He had wrapped Sophia's ribbon around his wrist. 

It was a reminder to him. When Sophia was taken from him, he thought for sure their bond was bound to break, one way or another. But now he knew it was strong, stronger than even Adrian had anticipated. It hadn't broken when Adrian performed the memory spell and hit hadn't broken now that Louis had Sophia's ribbon back. 

The two were still very much connected. 

Which is why while Louis was eating his dinner and without notice felt an indescribable fear, he  knew it was her. 

He dropped the wooden spoon from his hand, porridge spilling on his already filthy clothes. He didn't care. He had never felt so afraid. Fear flooded his veins, his vision. Sophia was so scared that she didn't know what to do. She was so scared that he was able to feel her, something he didn't know was possible. He scrambled to get up, his hands fisting the hay that covered the ground. He wasn't sure what he would do, but he had to do something. 

He rushed to the end of the cell, his hands gripped the steal bars. Just as he was about to shout for the guard outside the wooden door, the tug that was pulling at his heart stopped. 

What was once an aimless panic was now complete silence, as though Sophia had felt nothing from the beginning. It only scared him more.

What the fuck happened?! 

Louis found himself pacing the small cell, his hands in his hair. He had to resist the urge to pull every strand out of his head from sheer frustration. That bastard of a king, he knew it was his fault. What did he do to her to get that kind of reaction out of her? And Louis could do nothing, not a damn thing to help her. If Adrian was here he would kill the snake, at any cost.