Chapter 172 - Sleep, Just Sleep

AYLETH

The messenger bowed before them both, but his eyes were on Falek. 

"Sir, the King has asked that you inspect the guard this morning in preparation for the festivities tonight. He will have them display for the royals prior to the meal."

Falek swore under his breath and Ayleth fought a small smile. She'd known her father would likely choose every pomp for the feast that evening—a symbol of the newfound unity between the Kingdoms, the royals would promenade through the city prior to dinner. Ayleth had hoped for something like this to take Falek away from her today, but her parents had been so busy preparing for the signing, they'd obviously left some details for today.

"I will inspect them in an hour, tell the King that—"

"My apologies, Sir, but the King has asked you to come right away. The guard are to carry gifts to the poor this afternoon, and will need to feed themselves and prepare—"

"They can wait half an hour!" Falek growled.

Ayleth gave him a flat look. "Don't be stupid, Falek," she said dryly. "You can send guards with me. I'm doing nothing but returning to my bed to sleep until it's time to prepare for the promenade. I'm ready for this day to be over already." She let her tiredness and grief show then, in a flash, but zipped it up tightly a moment later when it threatened to overwhelm her.

Falek eyed her sharply, but she only stared back at him, defying him to see any lie in her eyes.

She was exhausted, heart-broken, and she had no time for anyone. She wished to be alone. Utterly alone. 

He stared at her a beat too long, but the messenger was clearly agitated and impatient. Falek's mouth thinned as he turned back to the man.

"I will accompany the Princess to her chambers, then I will attend the Guard. Put them to attention in training yard and tell them not to move until I give the order."

The messenger thanked him and darted off to give the orders to the Lieutenants.

Alyeth kept her face expressionless as they began to walk again. She didn't hurry. She had no reason to, after all. She was only returning to her chambers to sleep.

Two guards followed them, but kept distant enough that Falek felt he could murmur to her without begin overheard. 

"Ayleth, I know this is painful—"

Ayleth hissed. "Frankly, Falek, you have no clue. Until you have lost your soulmate, please do not try to divert me with your warrior's wisdom."

Her man grunted in a way that, had she had any energy left, she would have stopped to explore and question him. As if there was a part of his story that she did not know, and she had inadvertently slipped a knife between his ribs. 

But she was exhausted and heartbroken and… she had to keep herself aloof. Indifferent. She had to appear to be wounded and overwhelmed. And so she filed the thought away for consideration later as they walked on. 

"I do not want to leave you alone," Falek said three corridors later. "You have suffered a blow—"

"Come now, Falek," she said bitterly. "Let us call it what it is: I have been fooled and abandoned. I am… not enough to have tempted my love to set aside his prejudices. It is my own fault. I knew what was walking into. And so here we are."

"That isn't… I don't think—"

Ayleth couldn't hear him try to reassure her when they both knew that she had been discarded. She stopped walking and turned to face him, shooting a glare at the guards behind them to keep their distance. 

"Please, Falek. I am grateful for your care, but this is… this is something we cannot fix with words or even… there is nothing we can do. The truth must be borne. You were the one who taught me that true strength comes in admitting first to ourselves when we are wrong, and then to others. If we are willing to do that, we will not be fooled twice—and never become a victim to our own pride. Well, here we are," she said dryly. "It is time to stop making excuses or holding onto false hope. I have been cuckolded, and I am not… what I thought I was. Therefore, I wish to sleep as I have not rested yet since the events of yesterday. So, please… you do not need to comfort me. Only get me safely to my chambers, and do your job. The rest…. The rest we will figure out later."

Falek's forehead pinched into lines, but he nodded once. "Very well," he said quietly. "But I will not be gone long, Ayleth. And should you need anything—"

"I pray I will be sleeping, Falek, and need nothing from you or any other man," she spat bitterly and turned on her heel to begin walking again.

Falek swung into step with her, but to her relief he didn't try to speak again. Only ushered her to her chamber, ensured the maid helped her dress for sleep, and the guards were in place, then made his apologies.

Ayleth waved him off as if she couldn't care less, her curtains already pulled so the room was dark as night. 

He cut her a glance before he left the room, closing the door behind him. But Ayleth ignored him. 

She couldn't give him any reason to question or doubt, otherwise he wouldn't leave her side, she knew. 

It was a relief when the maid finally finished fussing and left the room, leaving Ayleth alone. 

Her eyelids dragged down, her body aching for sleep. But her heart… her heart throbbed and pounded and wouldn't let her rest.

As soon as the maid was gone and the guards had taken their positions outside the door, Ayleth threw back the covers, snuck to the door and quietly, so quietly, slid the bolt across. It wouldn't stop them for long, but any seconds she might gain could be the difference between success and failure.

Then she flew into action, hurriedly dressing in her fighting leathers, rolling a second set together with another cloak and the emergency flight bag that they always kept in her chambers in the event of another attack on her. 

Falek would want to murder her for taking that, but… it was an emergency after all.

She had never scaled the trellis outside her balcony in broad daylight and couldn't be sure if the guards would be attentive. But she had no choice.

So she didn't hesitate, slipping out of the balcony doors, closing them quietly behind her so no air would flutter the curtains or notify anyone on the other side that she had fled.

With the bundle tied to her back, she threw a leg over the balcony wall, keeping herself low, and crawling down the trellis only far enough to jump safely, then letting herself fall to a crouch on the flowerbed below, squatting behind one of the manicured bushes and peering around it to see if any guards were rushing towards her.

But no one had called an alarm, and she couldn't see the guards that were patrolling from here. 

With a pounding heart she smiled and turned to cross under the balcony and into the trees—only to find herself nose-to-stomach with a huge, masculine form.

Her heart dropped as her eyes climbed to find Falek's face, grim and determined, his fists on his hips.

"Only want to sleep, you said?" he whispered.