Her fault
Cedric raised his bloody fist from the ground to rake it through his dark locks. Some drops of his blood fell on Abrielle's lips, which he didn't pay attention to as a maniac laugh let his lips which felt like it came from the pits of hell.
Abrielle's pale cheeks turned rosy, and a weak cough left her lips, which didn't fail to catch Cedric's attention. Immediately, the dark flames around him disappeared, and then his pitch-black eyes turned gold once more.
Abrielle coughed again. This time, it was louder. Cedric held her hand and realized her pulse had gotten stronger, but how? He didn't care what had happened but she had miraculously survived.
He pulled her into a hug as he helped her sit up. Abrielle felt like her entire body was squeezed as her face scrunched up because of pain. Her eyes slowly opened, and she suddenly saw she was being held across Cedric's chest.
He was soaked in water, and they were the only ones here, meaning he saved her, but why should he care if she lived or not? The only value she had to him was that of a political instrument.
"Cedric," she called out his name weakly and Cedric froze. What was wrong with him? Why was he hugging her? He wondered, unable to understand his strange behaviour.
The sounds of approaching horses caught their attention and he broke the hug. Abrielle was still confused about everything but held back her questions..
His head knight, Elias, got out his horse to approach Elias. His eyes sparkled when he saw the princess they were searching for. Both of them were drenched in water. He wondered about what might have happened.
"Sire, we were able to get the mercenaries and as you predicted, there is a branch of the shadow claw guide here in Moonstone Harbour." He judiciously informed Cedric. Abrielle's bright blue eyes glanced between them, Cedric dropped over here to investigate the mercenary guide.
"Burn it to the ground. Don't let a single one survive," Cedric said as he swept Abrielle off the ground, flipping her over his shoulders like a bag of rice.
Elias was stunned by Cedric's treatment of his wife, but he dared not get involved in the affairs of the royal couple. One was unpredictable while the other one was stubborn.
"But we need some of them for the interrogations." Elias tried to reason with Cedric. He placed her on the horse, flipping her over on her stomach which was not a way to handle someone who barely escaped death. He made her sit on the horse.
"There are over 5 of their offices where we can get information, but none of them from Moonstone Harbour should see the light of day. They had the nerves to attempt to sell off my wife." Cedric sneered, then got a horse with his hand circling Abrielle's waist and the other holding the horse's reins.
"You have 2 hours at most to get rid of them," Cedric instructed, then left on the horseback with Abrielle, whose lips were pressed together.
He rode to the port where the ship was docked. The entire ride, she was nervous, and this proximity was not helping things.
His grip on her waist was tight; she was confused while he bothered to save her directly, but she guessed her family's support for him was more important than she imagined.
The horse was strong and didn't seem to have any issues with both of their weights. From a far distance, she could hear the ruckus and screaming. Fire blazed and razed some parts of Moonstone.
It was the rage of Cedric, he was going to destroy everyone related to the sex trafficking network. This was meant to be a good thing despite the fact she wanted to use their services.
They deserved it for trying to sell her into slavery. Her body was cold but the warmth from Cedric kept her warm. The closer they got to the port, the more windy it got; the environment was a bit foggy and very cold.
He arrived on board and the attending maid rushed over to assist Abrielle. They covered her with a thick white fur coat to keep her from freezing. Immediately, her body was separated from Cedric's warmth, and she started to shiver.
On their entire ride here, Cedric didn't say a word but one thing for sure was that he was mad at her. "Get her into dry clothes." He instructed the maids after handing Abrielle over to them.
"What about you? Your clothes are soaked." She hesitantly said. She would be nice to him just tonight. After all, he saved her life.
"I am touched by your concern,but I have something important to take care of first," Cedric said, then got on his horse before riding into the foggy night.
"Please come with us." The maids urge Abrielle to follow them. She was taken to the accommodations area to get changed and served her dinner.
Abrielle was famished because she had missed her lunch earlier. By the time she was done, none of Cedric or his men was back, but she could see the flames that lit over some part of the town.
Was she to be blamed for this destruction? She asked herself as she glanced at the moonless sky. No this was not her fault. All she was trying to do was to survive.
In this world is kill or be killed. The guide failed to get rid of her after taking action and now they had to suffer for it.
"Where is Sarah?" Abrielle asked one of the maids who stood by her side. They must have been instructed never to leave her side.
The maids glanced at each other, hesitant to talk, but there was no way they could ignore their mistress. "We have no idea; all we know is that she was taken into custody by the first prince's men." The maid informed her.
Guilt finally hit Abrielle, Cedric was going to kill Sarah if he hadn't already. She could not leave what happened, nor could she sacrifice someone for her benefit. What was she going to do now? Cedric's hatred for her had probably multiplied.