68
Talia gnawed at a hangnail on her thumb.
Beads of sweat formed on her forehead, trickling slowly down her temples.
Varkas gripped her shoulders and turned her to face him. She felt his long, firm fingers cup her cheek.
Talia could not bring herself to meet his eyes, keeping her gaze fixed on the tip of his chin. Then, Varkas leaned down.
His lips—startlingly warm and soft—brushed the corner of her mouth for a fleeting moment before pulling away.
It was a kiss as light as a breeze. A mere formality, the bare minimum of contact required.
That momentary touch, which hardly deserved to be called a kiss, felt as though it were finely slicing her heart to ribbons.
“I hereby declare that all rites are concluded.”
Following the priest’s flat proclamation, polite applause rippled through the hall.
Talia looked up at him with trembling eyes. His expressionless face, impossible to read, was looking down at her.
What on earth was he searching for?
After lingering over her face, Varkas finally turned toward the guests. Only then did Talia release the breath she had been holding.
With an arm wrapped firmly around her waist, he led her through the gathered crowd.
Ghostly faces blurred past them as they took slow, deliberate steps.
Gareth, his eyes gleaming with chilling venom; the Emperor, looking troubled; and Senevier, wearing a satisfied smile… Countless shadows swept by like water, and soon, the dark, rain-streaked sky opened up before them.
“Bring my coat.”
Pausing at the cathedral entrance, Varkas addressed a knight waiting on standby.
The knight immediately offered the overcoat draped across his arm.
Varkas laid it over her shoulders, then dipped down slightly and scooped her up with one arm as easily as ever.
Talia hurriedly wrapped her arms around his neck to keep from tumbling backward. Her nose brushed against his hair, catching a faint, clean scent of soap.
Supporting her back with one hand, he carried her out into the rain.
Talia watched the fine, silver droplets streak across his face, washing the color from his skin, before she looked toward the gardens where heavy shadows had fallen.
“…Where are we going?”
“I have arranged a temporary residence outside the palace,” he answered, not breaking his stride.
“We will stay there until we leave for the East.”
Talia gave him a baffled look.
Was a wedding supposed to end like this?
Senevier had surely prepared a lavish reception. The palace had been in an uproar for days, adorning the banquet hall and laying out feasts.
There had to be guests who had come specifically to see him. Was it really acceptable to turn his back on everything and walk away?
“We have done what was required. There is no reason to remain as an exhibit.”
The coldness in his voice dragged her back to reality.
He was right.
This marriage was nothing more than fuel for vulgar gossip.
A crippled bastard princess, a substituted bride; an enviable groom turned into a pathetic spectacle overnight…
She did not need to listen to know what they were saying.
There was no reason for Varkas to endure such disgrace. Not even the Emperor could demand that kind of humiliation from the future ruler of the East.
He walked through the churned mud and stopped before a carriage bearing the crest of Grand Duchy Shearkan. The coachman scrambled down from the box to pull the door open.
Varkas stepped inside and set her down gently on the thickly cushioned seat.
Talia stared at him with wide eyes; in that short walk, he had been soaked through.
Taking the seat across from her, Varkas loosened his stifling formal collar and let out a long, weary breath.
Rain dripped from his hair, running down his forehead and pooling at the corners of his eyes. His gaze, devoid of warmth despite the wetness, fixed straight upon her.
“How is your leg?”
Talia’s mouth twitched.
It grated on her that he paid so much attention to it.
Gareth’s sneer—mocking her for taking the seat beside Varkas when she had only one good leg—rang clear in her ears.
She bit down hard on the inside of her cheek.
I know.
I know it full well, so why must you keep reminding me?
“It’s still attached, so mind your own business.”
When she snapped, his eyes narrowed a fraction.
Talia looked toward the window to escape his scrutiny, but his wet fingers caught her chin and turned her back.
“I asked if you were in pain.”
Her shoulders hitched at his hard tone, but she jerked her face away from his hand.
“Does it make you feel better if I say I’m fine?”
· · ·
“Well, too bad. Not a single day has passed since then that it hasn’t hurt.”
She glared into his stone-carved face, her words laced with pure spite.
“So stop grating on my nerves with useless questions. It’s sickening.”
The lips that had touched her so softly earlier were now set in a rigid line.
Even though she was the one who had silenced him with cruelty, the suffocating silence choked her instead. Talia chewed nervously on her dry lips.
Still, cruelty was better than pity. The tepid kindness people had offered ever since she was crippled terrified her far more than hatred.
To cover her trembling nerves, she pushed harder.
“What are you doing? Why aren’t we moving? Are we going to sit here all night?”
Varkas held her gaze for a beat, then turned and rapped his knuckles against the carriage wall.
Moments later, the snap of reins sounded, and the carriage lurched forward.
Talia stared through the misted glass at the rain-drenched grounds. The unfamiliar scenery, which had never once felt like home, slipped swiftly past the blurred pane.
As she stared into the gray, she was lifted without warning, and the plush cushions met her back.
Talia looked up, startled.
Having laid her down along the wide seat, Varkas reached behind the cushion, pulled out a cloak bearing the crest of the Roem Knights, and draped it over her.
“It is a long drive. Sleep while we travel.”
Talia reached up to shove it off, but Varkas was faster.
Catching her wrist, he pinned it to the seat. Looking down into her eyes—still clouded by the lingering effects of the medicinal smoke—he spoke in the low, harsh voice he used to slip into during their youth.
“Stop fighting and go to sleep. Don’t make me nervous looking at me with those vacant eyes.”
Talia flinched at the rough bite in his voice, but she soon drew the cloak up past her nose. Varkas watched her for a moment, let out a quiet sigh, and sat back down across from her.
For some reason, her eyes burned with tears.
Talia buried her face deeper into the heavy cloth that smelled of him, and closed her eyes.
Sleep had taken her before she realized it.
Aware that the carriage was no longer rattling, Talia pressed a hand to her throbbing brow and rubbed her gritty eyelids.
Forcing her eyes open, she saw only an empty carriage. Talia blinked in a daze, then sat bolt upright in panic. Her eyes darted frantically around the compartment searching for Varkas, until a low, gruff voice reached her through the wall.
“What do you plan to do about the First Princess?”
Talia froze, pressing herself close against the glass. Through the rain-streaked window, she saw an evening sky where the downpour had finally ceased. Underneath the bruised red light stood a massive, imposing stone manor and about a dozen men.
Varkas was easy to spot among them. With his back turned to the sunset, his reply came flat and cold.
“With what intent do you ask?”
“Do you really intend to abandon her just like this…?”
“A strange thing to say.”
A brief, mocking scoff cut through the damp air.
“Was that betrothal ever anything more than a way to keep the Empress in check?”
· · ·
“Marriage is not the only way to protect someone.”
“Does that mean…”
Confusion bled into the knight’s voice, but Varkas clearly had no desire to indulge him.
He cut him off as if brushing away a nuisance.
“Since when were you in any position to question me?”
“F-Forgive me. I spoke out of turn.”
The man bowed his head in haste.
Varkas looked down at him with frigid eyes, his tone entirely detached.
“Nothing changes. Keep monitoring the Empress’s moves as you were. And if the Crown Prince does anything reckless, report it to me at once.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Having said all he intended, Varkas turned away.
Talia scrambled back, dropping her head onto the seat. But before she could even pull the cloak over herself to fake sleep, the carriage door swung open, and Varkas appeared.
Talia looked up at him, her gaze frozen.
END