Adonis.
“The slave girl is alive, your Majesty.” Lord Henry, my personal aide announced and I paused in the scroll I was writing, raising my brow as I fixed him a stare. Hermes, who was equally here with me, lounging idly on the couch looked surprised as well. We were in my study room, going through various ledgers and budgets for the realms, kingdoms and our people.
“What?” I muttered, my voice low. He slowly nodded his head, his expression as somber as always.
“I learned it today from the maids. As it turns out, when they went to dispose her body, she moved and opened her eyes. Some maids nursed her back to life. She’s awake now and it seems she’s on the mend.” He explained and I had to drop the quill I was holding, leaning back on my chair, a hint of surprise running through me.
“I thought she died. Wow… She really is strong.” Hermes commented, his voice filled with amusement as usual. He was sprawled on one of the the couches in the study, looking as unperturbed as ever. I merely scoffed, returning my attention back to the scroll I was writing. Is she that eager to stay alive after all that she went through? She must be very stupid.
“Who are you talking about?” A voice interrupted. I looked up to see Caspian strolling in, a brow raised in question. He was in his usual customary long dark robe that was filled with many adornments and embellishments, his long dark hair flowing freely on his shoulders and his grey eyes looking brighter than usual. Out of all of us, he was the only one who acted fairly reasonable. Which was hardly surprising. The Dragon shifters didn’t suffer immensely when the humans attacked. Surprised, Henry tried to announce his presence but Caspian quick raised his hands, thwarting that action.
“You suddenly show up after all this time. Where have you been?” Hermes said anyway, his voice filled with mirth. “I:ve been neither here or there, Hermes.” Caspian responded, glancing at Hermes.
“Doing what exactly? You’ve been gone for weeks. The longest so far.” I pressed. He finally let out a sigh, moving closer jnto the study.
“I’ve been meditating, if you’re that curious. Now, back to what you were discussing. Who were the two of you talking about?” He asked, his gaze pinned on me.
“Oh, it’s just a slave girl Adonis purchased a while back. We had some fun with her and as it turns out, she survived it.” Hermes supplied. Caspian scrunched his brows, his displeasure evident.
“The two of you still do that?” He asked and I rolled my eyes while Hermes scoffed. Here we go again. “You don know it’s wrong to inflict so much pain to innocent individuals.”
“They deserve it.” Was all I said, dismissing Henry with a wave of my hand. He bowed his head and walked out of the room, leaving the three of us alone. When I realized Caspian was staring at me, I added. “It is a small price to pay after all the havoc they have wrecked in our lives.”
Caspian let out a sigh, rubbing his forehead. Glancing at me, he added. “I know you’re trying to heal but you don’t have to lash out like this. It’s not helpful. If anything, it’s going to cause you more harm than good.”
“Don’t lecture us, Caspian.” I suddenly snapped when I found his insistence unbearable. The atmosphere in the room shifted, growing tense. I stood to my feet, slowly making my way out of my table. “Unlike you, we didn’t suffer minimal damage from the humans attack…” I paused, turning to look at him then. “Or loose our direct superior and have our lives get plunged into chaos.”
Caspian opened his mouth as if to say something but snapped it shut, letting out a sigh instead. Hermes didn’t say anything, just kept exchanging glances between the two of us. For a while, the atmosphere remained charged until Caspian relented, shaking his head.
“Every day that passes, the two of you lose more and more of your humanity.” He added quietly, his voice disapproving.
“And we don’t care about it.” I answered, my tone final. Caspian lips pressed into a grim line but he continued anyway.
“But the girl is alive, is she not?” He asked.
“That’s what we heard.” Hermes finally spoke up, his voice filled with amusement as usual. “And honestly, that’s the surprising part.”
“Unfortunately we do not have any use for her anymore. She’s just lucky to have escaped death.” Hermes said as I walked to the window, looking into the gardens and trying to distract myself.
“In that case, I’ll be sure to see her.” Caspian.
“Do what you will.” I muttered, already closing my mind to whatever he had to say. I felt his gaze on me one last time before I heard the door close behind him, indicating he had left the study.
Good riddance.