I should have left. Or, at least, I should have wanted to leave. I had been held here against my will and then I had been drugged. It should have driven me to get on Pandora's back and spur her until the palace was nothing more than a distant memory.

I thought about it often. Sometimes, I thought about going home to Sampson and trying to be his sweet little wife again. Then I thought of my little sister and those visions usually ended with me punching Sampson in the face. How dare he even consider courting my sister? He had been promised to me, and even if he hadn't been, she was so young. It made me sick to my stomach. What the hell was a grown man doing with a girl?

Was I any better than my sister? Because I was acting naïvely too.

I tried to stir some rage, think of how Xion had trapped me here, how I spent my first night in a literal cell and how he had smirked down at me when I held a rusty blade to his throat. I wanted to be mad. I really did. But the anger was softened by the sweet way Xion carried me out of the carriage, how his eyes lit up when he showed me around the city, the genuine fear that had been on his features when we had been attacked on the way to meet his mother.

I conjured up an image of my family. I thought of running into my father's arms and sobbing onto my mother's shoulder before giving my sister a bone crushing hug. And then, it played out in a way that had been introducing a proper king to my father. My dad would be mad. Of course he would be. But he would see the careful way Xion treated me, hear how loud I laughed with the vampire, and the rage would dim until it melted into nothing.

Every time I thought about going back, Xion was there.

"Let's get you into something more reasonable," Daisy said, cracking my thoughts and returning me back to my bedroom where I had been staring out a window. Judging by her worried frown, I must have been staring off for far longer than I thought.

I wanted to stay in my comfortable tunic and tights, but knew that if I fought, Daisy would only fight back harder. She pulled out a sky blue dress that would flow in the smallest of winds and was plain enough that it wasn't fussy.

"He's going to coming back soon, you know," Daisy said while she pinned my white hair up, away from my face.

"And how do you know that?" I asked. Everyone else in the palace had been too frightened to say anything, trying their best to give me small smiles, but no real answers. Not about his disappearance, not about the lusting lily.

"Because his mate is still here. He might need some room to breathe, but he would never leave you alone for too long." She spoke so adamantly, like there was no other option.

"It's already been too long, Daisy," I whispered, my voice wavering. I had barely slept last night and I doubted tonight would be any better.

"Then trust that he's doing his best to get back to you," she assured, giving my shoulder a comforting squeeze.

I did feel a little badly for all of Daisy's hard work when I immediately set off to go to the stables. In a matter of minutes, my hair smelled of hay and had been nibbled at and there was a green grass stain on the gown. But being with horses felt like a need right now, helped me think like my father who never yelled, never demanded answers, but somehow knew how the river would twist.

And maybe, there was a part of me that thought that I could get on Pandora's back and get out of here, leave all of this madness behind me. I took the red mare out of her stall and slipped her one of her brand new, beautiful saddles on her back. I could go back to the village. I wouldn't even have to tell anyone. There would be some fanfare for a little while, but it would return back to normal soon enough. And isn't that what I wanted? The quiet cottage life, seeing the same faces everyday, gossiping in homes while stitching with the other wives.

Suddenly, it felt like it wasn't enough. I wondered if it had ever been enough.

I mounted Pandora, sinking into the sidesaddle. I knew that everyone who knew the situation had their head on a swivel and I knew that Devlin would not lie to me. If Xion wanted to stay hidden, he would. But it didn't stop me from straining my neck as I rode through some of the pastures, hoping he had taken a nap under the sun and lost track of time. It was foolish. I knew it. But hope was one strong emotion.

I wouldn't have known anyone else was around me if it weren't for the soft whicker. I spun Pandora around to see Devlin perched bareback on a dappled grey gelding. I think the kind-eyed beast's name was Cosmo.

"Afraid I'm going to run?" I taunted, as if I hadn't just been thinking about it. But Devlin didn't know that, just like he didn't know that I had become tethered to this place at some point. Or, more likely, I was tethered to someone.

"Not afraid, no. Just doing my job," Devlin replied, patting his horse.

"The job of hovering?"

"No. Making sure that, if you want to leave, that you get home safely," he said curtly.

"Please, we both know that you would spend the entire journey trying to convince me to go back to your beloved king."

Devlin gave me a small smile and we set off through the pasture together. "I would personally very much like to do that. However, Xion is my king and his request was that I accompany you back, nothing else. I would follow my orders, even if I didn't want to."

I tried to hide my fruitless searching until I saw him doing the same.

"Are you getting worried yet?" I asked timidly.

There was a pause. I wanted to see his bright smile, see the corners of his eyes crinkle, even if it was just a lie. But his quiet word held the truth. "Yes."

We stayed in the pasture longer than we should have, long enough that my body ached with the awkward position to accommodate the dress Daisy insisted on. I knew many great women rode their horses like this all the time, but I was not one of them and my admiration had exploded after such a short ride.

When we returned to the stables, unease settled in my stomach. Out there, on the horses, it had felt like we were doing something. It had felt like we were making an effort, no matter how small or insignificant it might have been. Going back to the idle waiting seemed like torture.

And it seemed that Devlin was going through his own kind of torture as he helped me untack Pandora.

He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I hope you know that I'm sorry about the whole training thing. I had no idea that you had consumed anything...like that. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable or anything. I just didn't know. I would have never put you in that position if--"

"Devlin, it's okay. I know you wouldn't. You did nothing wrong. You were training me like you always have. And once this whole ordeal passes, we'll go back to training."

"Yeah?"

"Yes, Devlin. It seems that I'm rather fond of my sessions and my new found strength," I said with the biggest smile I could muster.

"Does that mean you're staying?" he asked, almost seeming nervous as he scratched Pandora under the chin. Miraculously, she tolerated his touch.

"It would seem I am," I admitted with a sigh. It felt as if a mighty weight had been heaved off me. "Maybe I'm fond of my training and fond of a certain brooding king."

Devlin did his best to smother his grin, but I saw the glee in his eyes as he dipped his head in dismissal.

That night, sleep was more elusive than usual. I knew staying awake would not do me any favors. I needed my rest so that if anything did happen, if there was any way I could help, I would be ready. Having the logic didn't make sleeping any easier though. I tossed and turned, only getting crumbs of sleep when my mind finally gave in. And my sleep was flooded with dreams of him.

I dreamed of his mouth, hovering over mine, so close I could almost taste him. I thought of his strong hands pressing into the small of my back and the way his laughter would rumble through his chest. My eyes would burst open and the ache in my chest told me something that I had been denying for so long.

I felt like a fool for falling for my kidnapper. But the reality was that he was just a man who made a mistake in a bad situation. I had been raised to fear and flee from his kind. But he had never hurt me, never taken anything from me without asking. He had been patient and calm, even after I delivered barb after barb.

And now, I missed him. I worried about him. I might even have been in love with him.

I must have dozed off again, because when I woke up, there were voices just outside my door.

"Seraphina, no!" Devlin yelled. "You are acting irrationally. You brought him here, you didn't ring the warning bell, and now you want to get Lark involved?"

"Yes!" Seraphina shot back. "Get out of my way!"

"Absolutely not! You are not thinking straight."

I slipped out of bed, brow furrowed. I didn't have to pretend to be quiet. They were both shouting so loudly, I doubted they could hear anything else.

"I am the king's advisor! I order you to step aside," Seraphina bellowed.

"As the king's general, I'm going to have to decline," Devlin snarled back.

"Then as his sister, I am begging you to go get her. Xion needs her."

His name alone was enough to spur me into movement. I jerked the door open, startling both of them. "Where is Xion?" I asked. "Have you found him?"

Seraphina's mouth opened and closed several times while Devlin answered right away. "He's in the holding cells right now."

"The holding cells? Why is he there? Let me get my robe and you can take me to him. I want to see him."

Devlin grabbed my arm before I could spin away. His eyes were stormy unlike I had ever seen before. "Lark, listen to me, you can't go down there."

"She has to go down there! If he does not get blood from his mate he will drain half a dozen humans dry! Lark, he's in bloodlust. And I've never seen a worse casein my life."

~~~Question of the Day~~~

Do you have a nickname?