Never Yours ✔️

Ch. 17

 Arysa awoke the next morning to a knock on her door. She groaned and pulled the covers up over her head. The knock came again and she sat up.

"What?" She snapped.

The door opened and Regana stepped inside.

"We need to talk."

Arysa slumped back down in her bed. "Why?"

Regana scoffed. "You know why. The kingdom is under attack. The King's Advisor is stalking you. And then you go off and freaking disappear for a week. What the hell, Arysa?"

Arysa dragged herself to her feet.

"I didn't disappear. Ash kidnapped me to keep me away from Lord Dreadroot."

"What?!" Regana ran a hand through her long black hair. "This is insanity, Arysa!"

"Yeah, yeah it is." She took out a dress from her wardrobe and moved behind the changing screen.

Regana paced her room agitatedly. "I've been negotiating with the Vella." She said.

"I heard." Arysa replied. "I stayed with them a few days." She explained at Regana's confused glance.

She moved to her window seat and sat down, gesturing for Regana to the armchair beside her. Regana shook her head.

"I can't sit. There's too much to do and not enough time."

"I know what you mean." Arysa sighed. "I visited Reldik. It's bad down there, Regana, really bad. Lord and Lady Moonwick are both dead."

Regana sucked in a breath. "What? How?"

"Starvation. They didn't have enough food to feed the city."

"Why didn't they ask for help?"

"They tried." Arysa ran her fingers along the patterns on the blanket beside her. "Someone's been interrupting our messengers."

"That's not good, not good at all. Thank goodness you got back here safely. Did you already organize for food to be sent to them?"

Arysa nodded. "One of the first things I did when I got back."

"Have you had time to check on our own fields? And the townsfolk--"

"Doing that today."

"Well, what are we going to do about Ashlyn? Do you think he'll try something again?" She rubbed her temples.

Arysa stared down at the floor. "Yes." She said. "I don't know what he'll do, but he's not going to do nothing. Although its not like I can lock him up again."

Regana gave a dry laugh. "Yeah, that didn't work too well for you last time." She started pacing again, the click of her heels across the wooden floors soothingly rhythmic. "As much as I'd hate to do so, we could send him back to the battle. We're not doing so well up there and we need more Generals anyway. It's not like he's much use here."

Arysa nodded. "I'm just not sure he'll go."

"Then we get Demian on board. Executive order. He can't argue with the prince."

"Oh, he can." Arysa replied.

Regana brushed her thick black hair over her shoulder. "Well, he can't refuse him. It's the only way, Arysa. He's not needed here anymore. He's needed in the war. We all know it. We've just been scared after what happened with Demian."

"I don't want him to get hurt."

"None of us do. But if he stays here, he'll do something that will put him directly in the line of fire. If he tries to take you away again or if, god forbid, he tries to hurt Lord Dreadroot, he could be accused of treason. It was a miracle Dreadroot released Demian. I doubt he'd do the same for Ashlyn after all he's done."