I leaned back in my chair, rubbed my tired eyes, and looked at the newly revised budget sheets.
True to my word, I had forced the council to rewrite every single line.
Seventy percent of the nobles’ pay had officially been cut.
The stolen gold was frozen.
A quiet knock shattered the silence of the room.
“Come in,” I called out.
The door opened, and Kaelen stepped inside.
His golden eyes swept the room instantly, checking the corners and the windows before he finally looked at me.
The deep tension from our afternoon encounter in the hallway still lingered in the air, but he had his calm guard mask back on.
“Your Majesty,” Kaelen said, his deep voice smooth and steady.
“The nightly palace sweep is complete.
The guard patrols have been doubled around your wing.”
“Good.
Sit down, Kaelen,” I said, pointing to the empty chair across from my desk.
He hesitated, his body going stiff.
“It is against protocol for a guard to sit in the presence of the sovereign, Evangeline.”
“We are alone, Kaelen.
And I am rewriting a lot of protocols today,” I replied, offering him a small smile.
“Consider it an order.”
Slowly, his massive frame moved forward, and he sat down.
Even without his heavy armor, he looked like a force of nature.
His golden eyes locked onto the messy papers spread across my desk.
“You look exhausted,” he murmured, his tone dropping its formal stiffness.
For a brief second, a flash of pure worry crossed his face.
“You have been staring at those numbers since the council meeting ended.
You need to rest.”
“A Queen doesn’t get to rest when she just started a war with her own court,” I sighed, leaning my head against my hand.
“Malakai is a cornered rat.
He isn’t going to just sit back and let me take his wealth.
He is going to strike.”
Kaelen’s jaw clenched tightly.
He reached out, his large, gloved hand resting firmly on the edge of my desk.
I told you before, and I will say it every single day if I have to: I will protect you with my life.
No one will cross that threshold to hurt you while I draw breath.”
The absolute devotion in his voice made my chest tighten with a strange, warm feeling.
In a palace full of snakes and liars, Kaelen was the only person who felt entirely real.
He didn’t want my crown, and he didn’t want my money.
He just wanted to keep me alive.
“Thank you, Kaelen,” I whispered, looking straight into his glowing golden eyes.
“I don’t know what I would do here without you.”
He opened his mouth to reply, but before a single word could leave his lips, a sharp, crashing sound echoed from the outer courtyard below my balcony.
CRASH!
Kaelen was on his feet before the sound even finished.
In a fraction of a second, his sword was drawn, the cold steel gleaming in the candlelight.
He stepped directly in front of my desk, shielding me completely with his massive body.
“Stay behind me,” he ordered, his voice turning into a lethal, commanding growl.
The heavy wooden doors of my study burst open.
Two palace guards rushed inside, their faces pale and covered in sweat.
They didn’t look like they were attacking; they looked terrified.
“Your Majesty!
Sir Kaelen!” one of the guards shouted, catching his breath.
“We have an emergency in the eastern wing!
A fire has broken out in the royal archives, and several armed men in cloaks were spotted climbing the walls!”
My mind immediately snapped into high gear.
The royal archives held all the historical records, tax receipts, and the original evidence of Malakai’s stealing.
“An assassination attempt?” I whispered, standing up.
“No,” Kaelen countered, his golden eyes narrowing as he analyzed the situation instantly.
“It’s a distraction.
Malakai doesn’t just want you dead; he wants the evidence destroyed so he can claim your accusations were fake.
He caused the fire to draw the guards away from this tower.”
Kaelen turned to the two frantic guards.
“Take the remaining sector units and secure the archive perimeters.
Put out the fire.
I will handle the Queen’s safety personally.”
“Yes, sir!” The guards saluted and rushed back out into the chaotic hallway.
The distant sound of shouting and ringing alarm bells began to echo through the stone palace. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
The air outside the window grew bright with an orange, fiery glow.
Kaelen turned back to me, shearing his sword with a sharp click.
Without warning, he grabbed my arm gently but firmly.
“We cannot stay here.
If the main guard detail leaves to fight the fire, this tower becomes an easy target.
I am moving you to the hidden vault beneath the old chapel.”
“Is it safe?” I asked, my heart hammering against my ribs as I followed his quick, powerful strides out of the room.
“It is the most secure room in the entire estate,” Kaelen replied, his grip on my hand tightening protectively as we sprinted down the dark, twisting servant staircases.
“Only the royal family and the captain of the guard know the pathway.
No one can reach you there.”
We moved through the shadows of the castle like two ghosts, bypassing the main halls where panic was taking over.
Kaelen was hyper-focused, his golden eyes scanning every dark corner, his ears listening to every distant footstep.
He was a perfect shield, guiding me effortlessly through the dark.
Finally, we reached a heavy stone door hidden behind a faded tapestry in the lower chapel.
Kaelen pressed a hidden brick in the wall, and the heavy door groaned open, revealing a small, torch-lit room made of solid rock.
He pushed me gently inside, stepping in right behind me as the stone door slid shut, blocking out all the chaotic noise of the palace.
The room was small and cold, containing nothing but a wooden bench and a single torch on the wall.
The silence was heavy.
I slumped against the stone wall, trying to catch my breath.
The adrenaline was fading, leaving my body trembling.
“We made it.”
Kaelen didn’t relax.
He stood by the closed door, his hand still resting on the hilt of his sword.
He looked down at me, his golden eyes burning with a wild, intense emotion.
Slowly, he walked over and knelt down in front of me, looking up into my face.
“You are safe now, Evangeline,” he whispered, his voice rough and uneven.
He reached out, his large hand hovering over my cheek for a second before he let it drop, as if he was afraid to touch something so fragile.
“I promise you, as long as I am standing, the snakes of this court will never touch you.”
I looked at him, completely oblivious to the fact that while Kaelen was fiercely protecting me from Malakai tonight, his own hidden past was a much bigger secret.
To me, he was my absolute anchor in this dangerous world.
“I trust you, Kaelen,” I said softly, reaching out to touch his arm.
A deep, painful look flashed through his golden eyes at my words, but he quickly hid it, nodding stiffly as he stood back up to watch the door.
Outside, the palace was burning, but inside the dark vault, the real game was just beginning.