In Between Consciousness

Author's Note: PG-13 for mild mature scene and violence.

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Gwen devoured books about Galsbourg everyday. She wasn't allowed to leave Rainier's private palace, so there's nothing else she could do. Gone was the Detective Gwen Hamilton, who spent time investigating criminals, doing stakeouts and performing well-calculated ambushes. She had traded her usual black or gray clothes to the dresses given to her, and her weapon and police badge for books.

She was a woman of action. Doing something was better than sitting down at the royal bedroom, thinking about what would happen to her.

A half of her had accepted that she was at a parallel world because, in her own world, Galsbourg was a part of history that was already gone, a part of the history of her country, Kilare. She had read enough to conclude that Galsbourg and Kilare were the same. At a certain point, the history in Rainier's world deviated, and ended up in the Hansen Dynasty flourishing, therefore there's still a king who ruled Galsbourg, while Kilare was a republic, with a president.

A king or not, he had kidnapped her and forced her to marry him. Besides reading about the kingdom dating back to its ancient history, Gwen was also reading the modern history and the newspaper. She got no choice but to read everything in hardcopy since she was not allowed internet access. In short, she read a lot.

After their previous meeting at the library, Rainier was nowhere to be seen, which was a relief for her. She wandered around the first floor of his private palace, opening doors and admiring paintings and other art pieces. No one stopped her walking around, but she was always accompanied by Sally and a huge bodyguard named Jeremy.

As far as she could see, it was a real castle. It's beautiful and seemed to tell a story from each corner. It didn't feel dark and menacing inside, just cold and gloomy. One would have thought, with an insane king like Rainier Hansen, the castle would be terrifying. But it's not. It just felt lonely.

Sometimes she woke up at 3 AM, realized where she was, and cried because she couldn't do anything with her situation. Yet, despite all her frustrations, anger, sadness and, let's admit it, fear, there was very little she could do to change it.

There were guards wherever she looked, and she was sure they were all ordered to keep her inside the palace.

Finally, she did what she could. She forced herself to eat and sleep enough, to maintain her health. She needed her brain to be alert. Getting sick wouldn't help her. Despite being a house prisoner, nothing bad happened to her for the time being.

She stayed at the library almost the whole day and brought books to the bedroom. She practiced yoga, although she got no proper clothes for any exercise, and had to do it wearing her dress. She practiced some taekwondo as well until her dresses were all wet with sweat.

Sally and Jeremy were nice to her, although they would suddenly change to clams when she asked about the king.

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When the two weeks passed, Rainier suddenly visited Gwen every day, appearing wherever she was, at different times.

Either in the morning when she was still bleary-eyed, when she's at the library, or in one of the sitting rooms on the first floor of his palace.

He striked up conversations that ended very quickly. Or Gwen would ask questions, and he would answer when he wanted to or replied with a "don't," when he didn't want to reply.

Most of his random visits would end up with him making out with her. It's nothing romantic. Gwen was aware that she was his prisoner and that he's touching her without her will. Sometimes she fought him, but whatever she did would be useless, since he always managed to overpower her, before he began eating her lips, neck, and shoulders.

Gwen learned a few things.

She quit fighting him. She found out it was useless and only drained her energy further.

She discovered something that made her life easier, though. It's easier to ask things from him after she let him touch her. It was low, even to her own standard, but she got nothing else to bargain with except what she got. He seemed to enjoy taking whatever she's willing to give anyway.

"I want to walk around the palace every day. At the garden. Not just going back and forth to the library every day."

Rainier was lying beside her after attacking her for some time, waiting for his breathing to go back to normal. His life was hectic and exhausting as usual, and the few minutes where he kissed Gwen to oblivion made him feel a lot better, although he knew he was forcing himself on her.

"Why? To memorize escape routes?"

"Maybe. But fresh air is the priority."

"Fine."

She had turned to him then, confused that it was so easy for him to say yes.

He took a deep breath and shut his eyes.

"Don't sleep beside me. I might kill you."

"I'll take that risk."

She just scoffed and went to shower.

When she returned, he was still sprawled on the bed, dozing off, in his black trousers and a white t-shirt.

"Can't you at least let me sleep in peace???"

Her yelling rudely woke him up, yet he didn't address that topic.

She's back wearing the long lingerie and the matching dressing robe. He forbid her from buying decent pajamas, so Gwen had to adapt and wear lingerie to bed, every day.

"Why should I?"

"Seeing you here stresses me out."

Rainier chuckled at the absurdity of it. All the girls he's been with were mindless when they saw him in bed. Only Gwen Hamilton was disgusted. She still refused to touch him when they made out, no matter what. She did it only when she was afraid to fall from somewhere he cornered her. But whenever she could, she'd rather hold on to anything else she could reach, except him.

"Please go back to your room! I don't want to stand the whole night beside you. I wouldn't be able to sleep!"

"This is my bedroom."

"Take it back and let me go home then, so I also could sleep in mine."

"Never."

"Let me sleep in another room, then."

"No. I like you here."

"Then get out! I can't stand being with you the whole night!!!"

He hated how she wouldn't even sit on the bed when he was there.

And just because he was that annoyed, and he wanted to retaliate, he got up and pushed her back to the bed.

Then, sitting on her hips, he pulled her hand upwards, pressing her wrists down the bed.

Gwen thought, if only they'd let her keep something sharp, this position would be the best way to kill him.

She struggled, but he pressed her down

Holding both her wrists hard with his left hand, his other hand slipped over the black silk she's wearing, cupping her breast and squeezing.

"This is for still refusing me," he declared.

His hand then found her other breast and squeezed it.

"This is for kicking me out of my own bedroom. In my own palace, in my own kingdom. How dare you?"

Then his hand glided beneath her, found her butt, then squeezed it.

"And this, Gwen Hamilton, for being hot as hell."

"LET ME GO, I'M GOING TO KILL YOU, YOU LUNATIC!!!"

He let her wrists go, and she lunged to strangle him, but he's faster, catching her hands again.

"If you behave nicely, I'll go now, and disappear for three days."

She immediately let him go.

She might be imagining it, but he thought his face changed to being offended for a split second, but then he returned to looking arrogant and unbearable.

He then got up.

She's still motionless in bed, not moving an inch, hoping that if she behaved, he'd disappear for a full week.

Smiling a little although she didn't see it, he left the room.

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