Chapter 8

Treade stepped out into the sunlight.

Despite it being such a hot day, the kitchen had been much warmer.

He realized how difficult it must be for them once cooking began.

There was probably better ventilation upstairs where the main kitchen had been.

Treade wiped at the sweat on his forehead in annoyance. He had to get back to finish some practice.

Thr tournament would be here soon and he wanted to be ready.

Cayle and a few others were his main rivals.

He smiled.

It was nice to have a competent friend in the sea of fools he'd grown accustomed to seeing in the army and the ranks of the knights.

A flicker of activity caught his eye at the very corner of his view.

The tan redhead turned to find someone just passing through the bushes and stepping onto a long trail.

She turned around and Treade blinked.

It was the damsel from before.

The small pretty one who'd stood in the kitchen was terrified when Treade and his mates had collapsed into the kitchen.

Without a second's thought, Treade grinned at her, hoping he looked alright in the blistering heat.

She flinched.

Ouch.

Did he look that bad?

She nodded very quickly, eyes wide with surprise or fear, he did not know, before she took off running down the path, skirts held high up in her hands.

Treade bit back a smile.

Why did she behave so adorably?

He sobered.

He did not want friends or a lover.

His job was a simple one.

He wanted, no needed, to climb up the ranks.

Treade hadn't joined the knights long enough to procure a promotion just yet but he was determined to get one.

He wanted to be all the way at the top, where he could see ervyone and everything; where he would have a position of authority; where he could change things.

That's what he really wanted and he knew, making friends and courting women would not get him there.

He could forsee a wife some time into the future but the time was definitely not now.

A lingering feeling entered his chest that he pushed away.

The damsel was beautiful, sweet even, but he knew he trusted very few women from what he'd seen growing up.

Treade had already made up his mind to completely and thoroughly examine whoever it was that he would marry.

He had seen too many marriages crumble and did not savour suffering the same.

Treade was clear in his thoughts.

If he were to court a lady or marry her, he would not want her to have any secrets.

He wanted an honest woman to wife; none of the lying, deceitful women he'd seen over the years would do.

--

Briar laughed and giggled till the men left the door.

The straw-haired man had drolled all over her.

Briar smiled.

She didn't need his attention.

She had the attentions of none other than the crown prince of all of Hayelot.

Her heart soared before it dropped.

But Briar was no fool.

She had a large family and most of them worked at the castle.

Many of her cousins and aunts had served here and they had also gone through things that Briar had been horrified to hear of.

The blond took a deep breath before sitting down on the long, wooden bench.

Royalty had rules to abide by. They rarely did follow the rules but were determined to keep up a façade to the contrary.

The men in the castle could ot be trusted with anything.

They had no honour, no one to keep them accountable, and worse of all, every way at their disposal to escape condemnation.

The person left at the wreckage suffered it all.

Briar burned with rage thinking of her pregnant grandmother who had had to kill herself after discovering she was pregnant with the child of the king of that time.

Royalty had not come to her aid but finished her life secretly.

Briar's grandfather had been heartbroken, both by the loss of his wife and by her adultery.

The blond took another long, calming breath.

It was not easy, being at the mercy of people who did not care about you and that was why Briar was not naïve.

She seemed sweet and bubbly but inside, she knew exactly how to survive and how to ensure she was not cast away.

Briar had the crown prince in the palm of her hand at the moment, but she could not trust him.

The man was probably engaged to some other unsuspecting princess and would discard Briar at any moment.

She clenched her fist thinking of the time he spent with her; the things he had said; the many words of promise he'd given her.

He was a mortal after all.

A mortal of no good character at that.

Briar got up to get herself some water to drink.

There was no way she could refuse the prince of course.

Any insult you may levy at him would cause grave things to occur to her family.

Briar would keep her options open, she decided.

The straw-haired man whose name was Damien definitely seemed pleasing.

He was obsessed with her at least and Briar nodded to herself.

It was hard to find a good man where she worked and she knew she had to take what she could get.

Briar would spend time with the prince and take whatever gifts he threw at her.

But the moment the prince refused her, she would step quickly and quietly into the shadows with a new man and marry him.

Those were her options and Briar was determined to make it work.

The blond who'd stepped in with Damien had been stunning.

The way he had laughed, he had kept a respectable distance from her and the way he'd spoken with seeming sincerity in her voice; Briar had never met a man like that before.

Gorgeous, sweet, strong, encouraging…

Those were the kind of men that Briar rarely trusted.