The Serpent's Chains

Cole

"My apologies, Your Highness." The girl's voice was timid and shocked. She immediately tried to pull away.

Instinctively, my arms tightened around her. Quickly, I moved my hands to her shoulders and scrutinized her closely. I could feel her heart beating rapidly. Was she more afraid of me or Talon?

She kept her head bowed and I couldn't see her face. Her wavy, taupe hair slipped over her shoulders, brushing my knuckles. It was silky and smooth; the bath had done her good. I noticed subtle rusty hues in her hair, a common trait among mages.

"You should not be so disrespectful toward Talon. He ranks higher than everyone outside the royal family."

She kept her head bowed, a light shudder running through her. I could see how warm and flush her skin bronzed skin was, with a sunkissed glow.

I am not disrespected by her shock. Talon entered my mind.

This isn't about you.

"I was startled, Your Majesty. I will not be so again."

"Good. Talon deserves your respect. He's the reason you're here in the palace instead of some mud hovel."

She lifted her head, eyes wide. For the briefest moment, our eyes locked and I saw the stunning green of her irises. There were questions in her eyes, curiosity. It faded quickly. She averted her eyes and bowed her head again.

I scoffed and pulled away from her, shaking my head. What a waste it was. Someone with the gift of magic to have her spirit so broken and beaten out of her. Yes, she was a slave, but Talon wouldn't have shown interest in her if he hadn't found something intriguing about her personality or her abilities.

At every turn, she stifled the reactions that would make her more interesting. Years of conditioning and she was nothing now.

You don't have to push her. Talon argued.

Then tell me why you like her. I need a reason to keep an unwanted slave around. I challenged him.

The dragon growled, shaking the entire bathroom. I like her. You will too.

That's not enough, Talon. I want to know why you disrupted a formal event and why I got stuck with a new personal attendant.

Talon fell silent and pulled his eye from the window. I heard the familiar thumping padding of his heavy feet as he walked away.

Sighing, I took Talon's words to heart. I didn't know why he was being so vague and cryptic but there had to be a reason. I'd known Talon a long time. If he was keeping anything from me, there was a reason for that, too.

I wasn't as patient as Talon was. Whatever his reasons, I didn't want the inconvenience that came with letting him take his time in telling me.

I glanced over my shoulder at her and took her in from head to toe. The dress hung off of her. She was a little bony but even within the oversized garment, I could see that she had feminine curves in all the right places. She just needed a little more meat on her bones.

"You know, underneath all the filth and rags, there's a real woman. You clean up... pretty."

She sucked in a sharp breath and I caught the rosy red that touched her cheeks. Still, she kept her eyes and her head down.

That was disappointing.

I sighed and shook my head again. Her dispassionate response was grating. This was going nowhere.

"When was the last time you ate?" I asked.

She lifted her head but she still didn't meet my eyes. "I had breakfast this morning, Sire."

"It's night."

She nodded.

"Lucky for you, I brought you a warm meal." I motioned to the parlor. "Come with me."

Like a loyal dog, she followed me to the other room. I pointed to a table with a covered tray.

"Sit and eat."

"I..." she clamped her mouth shut quickly.

"You can speak, Sabine."

Her brow creased slightly when I said her name. Slowly, she nodded and looked at the table.

"I am not in need of a large, fancy meal. I can eat with the other attendants and serving women."

I chuckled. "You'll eat this meal. As my personal attendant, you won't be joining the other serving staff."

She noticeably shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

I'd met slaves before who were submissive. She wasn't submissive. I could see that spark in her eyes and submissive slaves weren't resistant to orders like she was.

I smirked and pulled the lid off the tray. A steaming meal of sauteed vegetables, juicy marinated venison, and freshly baked bread covered the plate.

A slight gasp escaped the girl's lips and her eyes roamed greedily over the hot meal. From across the table, I heard her stomach growl.

"I don't know what kind of life you are used to, but in the palace, even slaves eat well. Don't make me repeat myself."

She nodded and slowly took her seat. I sat across from her and waited until she began eating. Her eyes lit up for a moment and I saw delight dance in them. She bit into the fresh bread and a smile spread across her plump lips.

She tried to hide it with her hand but I'd seen enough.

"When was the last time you ate so well?"

She cleared her throat and reached for the warm wine I'd provided.

"I can't remember."

"Tell me, Sabine, why did your former master decide it was time to sell you? He spoke so highly of your talents and skill."

She washed down her mouthful with another swig of wine.

For a woman living as a slave, she did have impeccable table manners. The way she cut her food and ate small, delicate bites, always clearing her mouth before speaking. Her elbows never touched the table.

I wouldn't have expected such manners from anyone less than a noble.

She lowered her hands into her lap and bowed her head. But her shoulders never slouched.

"A potion I made for him didn't have the desired effects." She pursed her lips and reached for her fork again.

"Is that so?"

She chose her words carefully. I noticed how she didn't take any blame but she didn't condemn the man, either.

"Yes. It was the first time I'd done magic like that and it was untested."

"Hmm."

I scratched my eyebrow. She wasn't telling me the truth. So, she did have a little spirit in her after all. It took guts to lie to a prince, especially one with my reputation.

"You're lying."

She set her fork down again and placed her palms on the table. I waited for her to amend her statement but she remained silent.

"What really happened?"

"I will not speak ill of my master."

"Former master," I corrected. "He's a filthy piece of slime. You may speak ill of him all you'd like."

She didn't have to raise her eyes for me to see the wheels turning in her head.

I could only imagine the life she'd lived and what she needed to do to survive.

"He intended to use a love potion on a woman he desired. I was to make it. But I didn't make it correctly and he blamed me."

"You're careful with your words."

She looked up at me for a moment and quickly averted her eyes.

I wished she'd stop doing that. It was hard to get a good read on her when she was always looking away. At first, I thought it was an attempt to show respect and obedience in the presence of royalty. Perhaps she was smarter than I anticipated, shielding her thoughts and emotions by keeping her eyes averted.

"One might assume from your statement that the potion didn't work due to your unfamiliarity with the magic. I think it is more complicated than that."

Her tongue darted out across her lips and she took another sip of wine.

"It was a mistake."

"Not an accident?" I asked. A smile tugged at my lips. I held it back.

She was clever. I found our conversation to be far more scintillating than any other I'd had for quite some time. Was this what Talon liked about her?

I sighed and rubbed my forehead. This girl was a slave. She had no value to me other than Talon's curiosity. I couldn't let myself forget that.

"I want you to tell me the whole truth. Stop choosing your words so carefully."

The girl bit her lower lip and nodded. "I was not born a slave. I remember what it was like to have..." she shook her head. "Despite my former master's wishes, I couldn't use my power to enslave another."

"Couldn't? Don't you mean, wouldn't?" I arched an eyebrow at her.

"What does it matter?"

"Couldn't implies that you were incapable of doing so as a limitation to your abilities. Wouldn't means that you chose not to, a very odd behavior for a slave."

She stayed silent; her head bowed. That must have touched a nerve. Now that her plate was clean and her glass empty, she reverted to her submissive posture. If I didn't know better, I'd think she was the perfect slave.

Smirking, I leaned across the table. "So, with that in mind, how do you plan on being useful to me?"