The Imperial Kings Book 3: Imprisoned By The King

LORELLE

The last command I would refuse to obey? No. I could not let that happen. I would not allow myself to be taken by him.

No, I did not want Lord Eldon to kill me. I had to do something to get away from him because I knew he was going to kill me.

“M-my l-lord…” I couldn’t even finish the sentence.

My mind was thinking of ways to flee without him catching me. How could I escape?

I could not let him take me away. I knew no one was going to help me because we all feared the king who was standing before us.

If anybody dared to go against him, then Lord Eldon would not spare him or her.

“There is much to be done,” he said.

Was he addressing me or speaking to himself? I was not certain.

I just knew that I had to escape before he killed me. But where would I go?

This village was the only home I knew. My family had been living here for years, and even if I did escape, how would I earn a living?

Over here, I could continue my family work and make bread for the villagers, but what would I do if I fled?

Lord Eldon turned around, and the sudden movement made my heart stop.

“We shall come again on the morrow and take Lady Lorelle with us.” He addressed his soldiers before running those frosty eyes over everybody else present.

“Until then, I command all of you to keep Lorelle safe and make sure no harm comes to her. If you fail to abide by my command, then I shall have every single one of you executed.”

The people bowed deeply in return, accepting his command, making my escape all the more difficult.

I needed to flee.

There was no way I could willingly go with Lord Eldon and die at his hands.

Somehow, he had recognized my voice, and I knew that he was going to have me executed for daring to come in his path while he was out in the woods.

“I shall come and take you away on the morrow. Be prepared, my lovely Lorelle,” Lord Eldon said with a smile that promised my death before he marched toward his horse and mounted it.

With a forceful tug at the reins, he turned his horse around and galloped away, but not before leaving me with one last cold stare.

Once the sound of horses’ hooves died away, the villagers stood up from their kneeling positions.

And all they could do was stare at me as they whispered amongst themselves.

I knew they were wondering what I had done to warrant such attention from the king and how I had been the one lurking in the forest after dusk.

My secret, which I had been trying so hard to keep, was now in the open all because of Lord Eldon.

And I was certain that if he did not have me executed, then the harsh treatment of the villagers would surely lead to my demise.

“Oh no, Lorelle! What have you done? How could you be wandering in the woods so late?” Golda exclaimed, fear and disbelief written in her eyes.

How could I get myself out of this situation?

The villagers would consider me a woman of loose character if I did not give an appropriate reasoning for my actions.

“I went to…I went to find wood so I could bake bread. That is all I went to do,” I explained, but I did not think the villagers believed me if their skeptical expressions were anything to go by.

“How did Lord Eldon find you? Oh my, what is going to happen to you now? Will Lord Eldon have you executed?” she asked, thinking up all sorts of scenarios.

I watched as some of the villagers turned around and walked away.

Soon more of them followed until Golda and I were the only ones left.

Something told me that no one would be buying bread from me anymore.

The only option which I was left with was to flee before rumors started spreading, tarnishing my family name.

“Golda, you must help me. Please, I beg of you. I am in desperate need of your help,” I said, grabbing her hands.

“What is it, Lorelle? Tell me, how can I be of help?” she asked.

“I must flee. You must help me flee before Lord Eldon comes by the morrow,” I pleaded, praying that she would not refuse me.

Her eyes widened, and I knew what I was asking was not something she could easily do.

“But Lorelle, you heard what King Eldon said. We are to protect you and keep you safe until he comes for you on the morrow.

If you flee, then the entire village will be executed. You know King Eldon’s wrath. Must you really bring it upon yourself and all the others?”

Pain lanced at my heart in the form of guilt as I thought about the people who had been with me since I was a babe.

After my family’s demise, the villagers were the ones who took care of me and gave me food and shelter until I was a maiden who could make bread and earn a living.

And now I was about to betray those same people for my own selfish reasons.

Forgive me. Please forgive me. I do not deserve your love.

“Golda, you heard the king. He is going to take me away and have me executed. I cannot die yet, Golda. I do not wish to die by his hands. I beg of you, Golda. Please help me,” I begged.

“I promise you, I will go far away and live my life. I will never come here again. You do not have to worry about me coming back, please help me.”

She sighed audibly.

“What have you done, Lorelle?” Another sigh left her.

“All right, I suppose I can help you. But you must flee as far away from here as possible. You must never come back. I do not know what Lord Eldon will do to us once he finds out that you fled, but you must not fret over it. You go and live your life. I will find a way to save the villagers from his wrath.”

“Thank you, Golda. You have no idea how much this means to me. I shall never forget what you did for me, and I will pray that Lord Eldon spares all of you,” I said, as tears spilled from my eyes.

“Go home now. I will make preparations for your escape. I shall come to you at nightfall. But we must exercise extreme caution, because if anybody finds out you are trying to flee, you know what will happen,” she said.

I nodded and wiped my tears.

“Yes, I will be careful. Do not worry, I will stay inside and wait for you to come.

Please do come, Golda, I really need to get away before Lord Eldon comes. I cannot bear the pain and torture he is going to subject me to.”

“Do not fret, for I will come and help you escape. Just wait for me, I will come for you at nightfall.”

With those words and a comforting hug, Golda went back to her house, leaving me to wait and worry about what would happen next.

I did not wish to go with Lord Eldon. I had to leave the village no matter what.

***

My heart began racing after hearing his words.

No escape? Was it not enough for him that he owned my body, now he wished to take my soul captive as well?

How could he do this? What demon possessed him to take such a decision?

Was there nothing I could do to dissuade him?

“But, my lord, you have me, completely. My body, heart, mind, and soul all belong to you. Why must you enlist the help of a sorcerer who might just be filling his coffer with your wealth? He could be uttering falsehoods, we have no way of knowing,” I said, ignoring the voice that was telling me to be silent because trying to dissuade Lord Eldon was impossible.

“I do not doubt his credibility as I have enlisted his services before. He is a true sorcerer as I have witnessed his magic with my own eyes. So do not worry about him uttering falsehoods.

And as for me owning you completely, that I am aware of, my lovely Lorelle. However, I wish to know your thoughts and feel all that you feel. I wish to know you inside and out.

I wish to be the only man who knows you better than you know yourself,” he replied.

Was that what he intended to do? To take over me so completely that I could not even think without fearing him?

My thoughts were the only thing that were truly my own, how could he take those from me as well?

“You already know what I think and how I feel, my lord.”

I was grasping at straws, I was aware of that, yet I could not allow myself to give up.

I could not let Lord Eldon own my heart and mind. I promised myself that I would never let him have my heart and mind.

“Yes, but I wish to know more.”

He smiled before kissing my forehead. “Do not fret, my love, for it’ll be over soon, and I will make sure no harm comes to you.

I know you are scared but I assure you there is nothing to fear. Seven years we have been together; I believe it is my right as your husband to know as much as I can about you.

I know due to my trips and journeys I am not able to give you time, but with this ritual, I will know everything about you.”

As he continued speaking, it became all the more difficult for me to breathe.

How could I live like this? I could barely do anything in his presence, and if he got to know what I thought and how I felt then I would die.

The suffocation would kill me.

“Wh-when have you ordered the s-sorcerer to come, my lord?” I asked, wanting to know how much time I had before my freedom was no longer my own.

“The sorcerer informed me that the ritual must be performed under a full moon, so after a month, on the night of the full moon will he come and do it,” he answered.

One month. I had one month to try and dissuade him from doing this.

For some it might seem plenty, but I knew a month was too little. Once Lord Eldon decided something it was impossible to dissuade him.

However, I had to try. I could not lose myself like this.

“And what do you intend to do during this time?”

I realized I had spoken too much when his eyes flashed dangerously, telling me that I better stay silent or else he would not have mercy on me.

“Forgive me, my lord. I said too much.”

“For now, I wish to spend time with my queen to learn all that she likes and dislikes. I do not wish to receive any surprises once the ritual is done and we are bonded for eternity,” he remarked.

“What kind of surprises do you mean, my lord?”

I was almost too afraid to ask, but the thought of my soul being at stake forced me to utter the words.

“Anything that I am not privy to. Anything you dare to hide from me. I wish to know it all during this time we have.”

He smiled and I knew he would get what he wanted from me with or without my consent.

“There is nothing that I hide from you, my lord. So you have nothing to worry about.”

The lie left my mouth easily, not caring about the possible consequences that I would have to endure later.

“I am glad to hear it, my love, because I can handle everything in this world; what I cannot and will not tolerate is you hiding from me,” he stated before lowering his head as his mouth latched on to my neck, sucking and biting as if he intended to feed.

My back arched as his hand traveled down as two fingers pushed inside me.

My body did not even try to protest, having become used to his touch over the past seven years. Maybe Lord Eldon would consider it a welcome, but I knew how I longed to stay away from him.

“I do not wish to leave our chambers today. I am tempted to stay here and love you all day and all night,” he said as I cried out, having his fingers manipulate me into heavenly pleasure.

“I am sure you have more important matters to attend to, my lord,” I said, hoping he would not take offense to that.

“I am sure the people can wait while I spend time with my queen. I have missed the touch of your body under mine,” he said before kissing me.

The kiss lasted to the point where I felt faint, and Lord Eldon would have continued to kiss me had the knock on the door not come.

And to say Lord Eldon was displeased was taking it lightly.

“Who dares to disturb me?” Lord Eldon growled as he broke the kiss.

“Forgive me, my lord, but an urgent matter has risen and requires your immediate attention,” came the reply.

“What could be so important that you dared to disturb me in my chambers?”

His voice was so loud that I trembled underneath him.

“Princess Nesta is here, my lord, and begs for your audience,” the servant replied.

“Nesta is here? Escort her in,” he commanded.

Nesta? Who was Princess Nesta and what was she doing here?

With the way Lord Eldon got up and went to bathe, it seemed she was someone of importance. But did I dare to ask who she was?

He emerged after a while, fully dressed and ready to present himself to the kingdom.

He stopped when his gaze landed on me.

“Get ready, you will be meeting Princess Nesta as well. I expect to see you in thirty minutes,” he commanded before exiting his chambers, leaving me puzzled.

Seven years have passed since I had been with Lord Eldon, and this was the first time I was hearing Princess Nesta’s name.

Who was she?