“Whatever this is, it’s important,” Ashley said, wishing for the millionth time that she’d wake up, back in her real bed, in the real world, even if that meant no more mysterious Diamond King or charming Jack. But the longer she looked at that glimmering black fluid she found every single cell in her body longing to touch it. It was like some spirit compelled her to reach her finger out and stick it in the liquid. Her brain screamed at her not to do it, but bravery was doing what terrified you, right?
For better or worse, Ashley drew her hand up to the liquid, her fingers desperate to touch its glistening surface.
The oil sat just centimeters away from her, and she could practically feel the heat coming off it on her fingertips. But before Ashley could actually touch it, before she could figureout exactly what it was and know the warmth of it on her skin, someone caught the back of her collar and yanked her backward.
She knew that she shouldn’t have been surprised when her brother yanked her back, jerking her around so she was forced to look him in the eyes. There was something about the cruelty in his gaze, the way that he looked unflinchingly down at her, not an ounce of regret in him as he took in her features. Every breath came out of her brother in a ragged gasp, and Ashley couldn’t help wondering if there was more going on than she would ever know.
When he spoke, there was a certain edge to his voice that spoke of simmering rage.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Val demanded.
Ashley could only flounder, not really knowing the answer to that question.
But really, what did he expect her to say? She wished for nothing more than to touch the glistening surface of that magical liquid that she had found in a dark room tucked in the belly of the castle. That sounded crazy, even to her. Probably best not to say anything at all, then, she decided.
“I love you dearly, sister,” Val said as he dragged her from the room, though, Ashley was very much beginning to doubt that fact. “But you may be far more trouble than your worth.”
Chapter
Sixteen
The next day, Ashley learned the important distinction between being on her brother’s good side and being on his bad side. Mainly, she learned she should make she was never, ever on his bad side again. Being on his bad side came with a whole slew of consequences. Consequences that included her being locked away in a bedchamber, barely allowed to gaze out at the sunlight, and being told that it was for her own good.
It was, of course, hard to believe that it was for her own good when she just so happened to be bound in what was a fucking stone cage with little to no explanation. Still, Ashley decided to humor her brother, if only because last night, there had been something in his eyes as he looked at her, something that she still wondered about. Something that made her stop in her tracks entirely.
Val made sure she was tucked into her bed the night before, and left with a scowl, but he did look back once. For a moment, just one, she believed that he might be frightened of her, that stunned her.
She wondered now if that was the real reason she was locked up in this room. Her brother was afraid of her and what shemight, or rather could, do. And he needed to protect himself from her.
That opened Ashley up to a whole new world of questions. Questions that she wasn’t exactly sure anyone could answer. She certainly didn’t know who to ask. But if she had to guess who would have the answers to those questions, it would likely be the witch in the woods. The same one that was so bitter about his rejection and who was, undoubtedly, still in love with him. And Ashley had to admit to herself that Val wouldn’t want her to visit Jasmine anyway. And that made her the woman that she wanted to see the most.
But all she had was Emma. Every morning since her appointment as Ashley’s lady-in-waiting, Emma entered Ashley’s bedchamber, helped her change her clothing, brought her breakfast, and gave her a summary of the news cycle for the day. As it turned out, the news cycle was never really interesting when you were in the middle of an apocalypse.
The Dragons sabotaging many forms of communication that humans had so enjoyed led to a lull in the news cycle, and things were slowly going back to the way they had been in the past. Meaning people had to relearn how to write letters to each other. Emma didn’t complain about this, largely because the village she was from didn’t have Internet or anything wireless to begin with, not before the apocalypse and not after it, which irritated Ashley just a bit. What sort of man was her father not letting people have the Internet? Why, the Internet was a great resource for everyone.
But that was beside the point because Ashley was quickly learning that news moved slowly when there was no Internet or electricity to aid it. Interestingly enough, however, that morning brought fresh news.
“The Ruby Kinghas said yes!” Emma shouted, throwing Ashley’s door wide open, running into the room, andcollapsing,stunnedby the news. Most people knew who Jack truly was, so it must have been quite a shock when Val had taken Jack into his household, employing him even though he had abandoned his position as the Ruby King.
“The Ruby King said yes to what, Emma? You can’t just barge in here and expect to be excited over a tidbit of information.” Ashley huffed at the other woman, frowning at her doubtfully. “For all I know, he said yes to grapefruit rather than oranges for breakfast.”
Emma grabbed Ashley’s hands and looked into her eyes with wide pupils, her whole face appearing stunned.
“He’s going to compete for your hand,” Emma said. There was something about the way that she said it that made sense to Ashley. “Oh great, another man that wants me as their bargaining chip. I don’t know even know who the Ruby King is. Nobody’s bothered to give me that information either. “Whatever happened to the Diamond King, anyway? Did Val send him packing after he failed to come to the banquet?”
“Oh, don’t worry about that. Elliot’s instructed me to pull you from this room so that you may talk to Jack,” Emma said, and there was far too much familiarity in her voice as she said that. Almost as much familiarity as there was in her hands as she pulled Ashley up onto her feet, leaving the Princess in something of a daze as Emma moved towards the closet with relentless abandon.
“We have to find you pants and quick,” Emma declared as she filtered through her wardrobe, pulling skirts and dresses off the hooks.
“I haven’t got a pair of pants, and you know that,” Ashley accused, but Emma only shook her head, seeming more determined than she had been in the past as she turned around and charged towards the doorway, yelling at the top of her lungs.
“Pants,” she screamed, her voice echoing off the walls. “The Princess requires a pair of pants.”
Ashley was surprised at the demand in Emma’s voice that made it clear to Ashley and just about everyone else that saying no wasn’t exactly an option. Ashley could only gape.
“What the fuck is going on,” Ashley ask, but the moment that she asked the questions, the shy and timid woman that she had previously known as Emma turned around to her, shoving her finger in front of her mouth and making clear the fact that she wasn’t to ask any questions.
That was annoying, considering that it seemed like just about everyone didn’t want Ashley to ask any questions. She found herself slightly astonished by the action and how her friend had changed. It was clear that something more was afoot, and while she would like to deny Emma, she sat down on her bed again.
