The Princess Guard

Chapter Thirty

Family

I paced back and forth on the rooftop with my fists balled.

Salem watched me carefully from the staircase door. He held his silence ever since I yelled at Alyce.

"Lots of sisterly love back there." He spoke quietly and I stopped pacing , spinning around to face him. I threw my hands up in frustration. Should've known his silence wouldn't last long.

"She leaves for TWO YEARS the day mom dies and doesn't reach out ONCE!" I shouted angrily, feeling myself seething.

"Two years! Two years she abandoned us. She left us to deal with it! She left me to try and fix dad! He was devastated! We both were!! But Alyce !? She immediately renounced her DUTY to become queen and just booked it for a vacation!!!" I continued shouting, tears brimming my eyes.

"She leaves me all of her work to deal with and to prepare to be queen someday! She ditched all of her responsibilities! And now she wants to come back and act like everything is peachy! She even had the absolute fucking audacity to request YOU to be her guard when there is an ample amount of them here!" I panted through my yelling, feeling slightly better. Salem stared at me with an interested look.

"She requested that?" He spoke calmly with an eyebrow raised. I nodded, scoffing harshly. My rant was no where near over.

"Yes. She did. She said it was the best idea. You become her guard and I have a stand in until she finds one she 'likes'. Even though SHE SHOULD JUST USE A STAND IN!" I was hollering at the top of my lungs now. Any workers outside were probably startled.

"And you know the thing about Alyce!?" I shouted at him and he tilt his head.

"No but I have a feeling you're about to tell me anyways" the corner of his mouth turned up into sly smile and I stopped abruptly, processing his remark.

I tried to hold back my laugh. I couldn't help it. Suddenly the anger was gone.. looking at him with that small smile and his head tilted made me speechless. He had such a calming effect on me that I couldn't deny. Even if he just sassed me.

I sighed and sat down in one of the chairs I had put up here, resting my head on my hand. Salem walked over slowly, taking a seat next to me he looked up at the sky.

"I don't know how you just did that" I muttered, joining his gaze and looking up.

He shrugged, closing his eyes.

"It was an honest statement. You were on a nice tangent there." He folded his hands behind his head and I scanned the sky, trying to see what he was looking at.

"I'm just looking" he muttered quietly as if he read my mind.

I stayed silent, breathing in the crisp air. The snow would start falling here in the next month.

"I can sympathize with your pain regarding your sister. I'm sure that her leaving when the queen passed forced you to grow up early. It threw a burden on your shoulders you were never meant to carry by yourself."  he spoke sweetly to me now. His tone took me by surprise. He sounded so.. gentle.

My breath caught in my throat with unexpected emotion. Tears began welling up in my eyes. I was stunned at how easily he just made me feel validated. I've kept this pain my sister dealt with me for 2 years. I never spoke to Victoria about it in depth. So long I've reasoned with myself, and he just validated it.

"If I must be her guard, I promise to make it as miserable as possible for her." He spoke seriously now and I giggled, choking up a little. I wiped the corners of my eyes and sighed.