Gryphon's Glenn

Chapter Sixteen

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

No consequences had come from the events at the marketplace. Helena knew Marcus had told the King about Nat and Bogley escaping, but he wasn't angry at Helena as far as she knew.

She was still a bit nervous when he called her to his ritual room that night. The fact that he looked a bit shaken up distracted her.

"My King... Is everything alright?" She asked.

"Helena, I'm going to ask you something, and I need you to be honest with me. Why did you intervene when Marcus attacked Brittany?" He asked softly.

"I know there is an order to execute the Pirates and their accomplices, but I thought you said you wanted me to lure your niece here alive," Helena replied. "I'm sorry if my actions upset you, my King. Did I misunderstand you?"

He nodded, seeming satisfied. "Not at all, my dear. You couldn't have known Bogley was there to complicate matters, and you're right... That was my original plan," he replied. "I seem to have forgotten my own orders..." He shook his head as if to clear it.

Helena was worried by his apparent confusion, but decided not to address it in that moment as she noticed a small cut on his hand. "You're injured," she said with concern. She automatically began to heal his wound.

"It's nothing, my dear," he said quickly. "I was out by that old tower I warned you about and some of the structure crumbled upon my exit. There was a mild earthquake, and as I told you, the structure is unstable."

"An earthquake?" She asked in surprise. "We felt nothing here."

"It was very localized. I'm sure it's nothing to be concerned about." He pulled her closer to him, his lips moving to her neck immediately.

Helena instantly forgot what they'd been discussing as she got caught up in his touch. "My King..." She moaned softly.

The King's lust was strong after so much time locked in a box. Helena couldn't help but give in to the familiar thrill and comfort of his touch. Her King was back, and that was the only thing that mattered.

+

Marcus was in a horrible mood. First, Princess Taylee had attacked him. He could hardly wrap his mind around that fact. Taylee was a flighty, shallow teenager, not a threat. Yet, somehow, she'd managed to catch on to the fact that the tea was drugged and had tricked him into thinking she'd consumed it. She'd left him with the worst headache he'd ever had, and he'd been completely caught by surprise.

The King had woken him and told him to destroy the amethyst while he locked the Princess away in the location they'd discussed. He'd never been allowed to know about Princess Victoria, but since Flynn had managed to screw that up so spectacularly, Marcus was the one the King had chosen to help keep Taylee locked away.

He'd failed to destroy the stone, and then that unexpectedly powerful sorceress had paralyzed him and stolen his sword. He had an endless supply of others in his massive collection, but it had still hurt his pride. The spell had taken hours to wear off, leaving him with nothing but time to become more enraged.

He found himself outside of the tower now. Several pieces of the structure littered the ground. Concerned, Marcus quickly cast a spell to strengthen the rest of the structure before he dared to enter it.

He found the Princess lying on the floor. She was easy prey, and he wanted to make her pay for daring to humiliate him in front of the King. He knew that if the King ever released her, he'd make her forget what happened in this place, so he didn't hold back as he grabbed her and flung her toward the wall.