Chapter 23: Chapter 23 - Betrayal
Cassian lifted Lilith into his arms, his attention fixed solely on her as the terror of losing her again gripped him.
"Send for a doctor!" Cassian’s cry tore through the dining chamber.
He glanced around to see if a maid was running to fetch the doctor, and his gaze landed on the maid who had served Lilith the wine. He wanted her dead, but at this very moment, he couldn’t set Lilith down.
Eric entered the dining chamber in a panic, his boots striking the stone floor hard. "Your Grace."
Cassian walked past Eric, heading for the door. "Gather all the maids who served us tonight and don’t let anyone touch the food."
Eric walked beside Cassian, his eyes going to the unconscious Lilith. "Calm down for a moment and tell me-"
"Calm down?" Cassian repeated, an empty chuckle escaping his lips. His piercing gaze sent a chill straight through Eric. "She has been poisoned."
Eric lowered his head, avoiding Cassian’s gaze. "I didn’t mean it like that. I only wanted you to point out which maid served you. We mustn’t let them slip away."
"The one who looks like she is about to faint," Cassian said, his eyes locking on the culprit across the chamber. "If Lilith dies, they all die. Imprison all the maids and cooks."
Cassian turned away from Eric, unable to spare another second for speaking.
Lilith could die at any moment if she weren’t given proper care.
Cassian ran in search of the castle doctor, the corridors blurring past him.
His arms tightened around her. Her weight against his chest was achingly familiar. The same helpless terror of watching her slip away came flooding back.
"It’s too soon," Cassian thought, refusing to accept that her death could not be avoided.
What was the point of all of this if Lilith was going to die in his arms again?
Cassian soon reached the chamber of one of the castle doctors. He knocked on the door with his fist. "Help the princess!"
The door swung open, revealing the wide-eyed doctor. Not only was the man who had shed blood across the castle standing before him, but the princess lay unconscious in his arms.
"She’s been poisoned. Save her, or it will be your head," Cassian said, his voice low and without doubt.
Jonah Finch, the doctor, gulped. He didn’t want to take on the responsibility, but he had no choice.
Jonah reached for Lilith to take her inside, but Cassian wouldn’t let go. "Your Grace, we are wasting time. I must examine her quickly, or she shall perish. I will not harm her," he promised, because his own life depended on it.
Cassian reluctantly handed Lilith over to Jonah, his hands lingering a moment before releasing her.
"She’s still breathing, so that is good," Jonah said, carrying Lilith carefully into his chamber. "I may need the help of a maid-"
"No. Tell me what you need," Cassian said, unwilling to let anyone else near Lilith until she opened her eyes. "I will assist you."
"Very well. Keep watch over her breathing while I gather my tools. I don’t know what poison she ingested, so my methods may be limited. We’ll be fortunate if she wakes-"
"If she doesn’t wake, you will hang in the morning, and your family shall join you. Your family line will end here," Cassian said, his eyes fixed on the trembling man before him. "Move!"
"O-Of course. I’ve treated her highness once before, so perhaps it is the same poison. I shall get to work," Jonah said, gripping his right hand with his left in an effort to stop the trembling.
Jonah drew a shaky breath and began to move with as much purpose as he could manage, his instruments clinking as he gathered them.
Cassian remained at Lilith’s side, his fingers moving through her hair in slow, careful strokes, his eyes fixed on the steady rise and fall of her chest.
Lilith wasn’t lost.
It wouldn’t be fair for his time reuniting with Lilith to be so short.
Cassian reached for Lilith’s hand and held it firmly. If he needed to, he would follow her into death again.
While Cassian sat at Lilith’s side, his thumb tracing quiet circles across her hand as he prayed for her safety, Thalia sat in the castle dungeon with her knees pulled to her chest.
The dungeon was cold and damp, the stone walls sweating with moisture, and filled with smells Thalia knew she would never be able to forget.
The dungeon guard often mocked her, taunting that she would soon become a spoil of war now that her father and brother had both been beheaded.
Thalia feared the day she would be dragged out of the dungeon and offered to some man like a trophy. She yearned for her mother’s warmth but knew that all that awaited her was a cold, uncertain life.
Thalia raised her head, glancing at the maids huddled together in one corner, their faces pale. They no longer tended to her, thinking only of themselves.
Thalia was no longer a princess but a prisoner, left alone to fend for herself. Her life had crumbled in what felt like no time at all.
"Who are you?" A guard’s voice disturbed her thoughts.
More voices followed, and then the sharp ring of swords clashing and the sound of men taking their last breaths.
Thalia rose to her feet and pressed herself into a corner of the cell, hoping to disappear amongst the maids so she wouldn’t be taken.
Thalia closed her eyes and began to pray, her lips moving silently. Whatever life awaited her, she prayed that her death would be quick and painless. That she would not be sullied.
"Your Highness."
Thalia’s eyes flew open at the address. She stared at the stranger in dark clothing, the sword in his right hand dripping blood against the stone floor.
The stranger reached for the lock and produced the key he had taken from the men he had killed.
The cell door swung open, but Thalia felt no relief since she didn’t recognise the voice. Her back pressed harder against the wall as the figure moved forward.
The stranger reached up and removed his mask.
"You," Thalia’s eyes widened. She balled her hand into a fist, and before the boldness could leave her, she swung it hard across his face. "You have some nerve coming here."
Solomon gripped his sword, his jaw tightening where she had struck him. "I’ve come to save you, Your Highness."
"After I have spent a night in here," Thalia said through gritted teeth. "How am I to trust you? This is a trap, isn’t it?" She questioned, certain Lilith was behind this.
Lilith was the kind to give her false hope before killing her.
"No, Your Highness. You know I have always been loyal to your father. After all, he placed me at Lilith’s side to watch her," Solomon said, revealing a secret not many knew.
