5. ANGEL

This was a mistake. I should have thought things through before I made any harsh decisions. The castle had a million rooms. It was like a mansion on earth. There were dining rooms, washrooms, kitchens, a gym (although they called it something completely different) and then there was the library. Which was the room I had been planning on visiting. Only I had never been inside it or even passed it while doing my chores. I thought it would have been easy to find. It wasn’t. Lightning flashed in the sky, and seconds later thunder followed. I hugged my waist tighter as I stumbled through the dark courtyard. The place definitely wasn’t made for humans. With my shitty vision I could barely see my hand in front of me. It reminded me of the portal. But with the help of the lightning flashing every few minutes, I had managed to get as far as the small hedges that surrounded the property. A curse fell from my lips when I stumbled over loose stones. It was too late to steady myself. I went tumbling to the ground. A cry fell from my lips when my knees hit pebbles and dirt. Sitting up, I pulled my knees up to my chest. I carefully touched a burning spot. “Great,” I whispered. With a sigh, I pushed myself up. The burn made me wince, but I quickly shook the pain away; after all, I had been through worse. My only goal tonight was to find out more about the creature and the King himself. I wrapped my arms around my waist again as I started walking again. A sound to my left startled me. I spun around, expecting someone to jump out, but no one did. Instead, something suddenly rushed at me, making me scream. I stumbled backwards and straight into someone. My scream was cut off by a hand slamming down on my mouth. Warm breath fanned my ear. “Don’t move.” Something wet and cold brushed my leg. The low growl that followed was too close for comfort. I heard sniffing before more cold noses brushed against my skin. An arm slowly wrapped around my waist. I blinked at the darkness as more growls and strange sounds filled the air. “I’m going to slowly step back. Follow me and do not make any sudden movements.” I bit my lip as I silently followed his movements. He stopped a second later and slipped the hand that had been covering my mouth down to my hip. Cool lips brushed my ear when he spoke. “I’m going to lift you up. Grab hold of the branch and pull yourself up. Do not make a sound, Angel or they will attack you.” I nodded mutely. The stranger's hold on my hips tightened. I sucked in a breath when he easily lifted me off the ground. I reached up, and grabbed onto the first thing my hands came into contact with. I barely had time to get a good grip before his hands disappeared. He wanted me to climb a tree, but what I didn’t know was how high I was supposed to climb. The branch I sat upon was on the thin side. It groaned and bent when I moved back. I was shaking from the cold and the fear of falling. One wrong move and I would just be a splatter on the dirty ground. Another flash of lightning made me bite back a whimper. It was followed by thunder so loud it made the ground vibrate. My hands tightened around the branch. “Why the hell are you outside in the middle of the night during a thunderstorm?” the stranger growled. I shrieked. My body tilted to the side. I would’ve tumbled to the ground if two big hands hadn’t clamped down on my thighs. “I can’t see a damn thing.” The words ended up coming out weak. “I forgot you’re human,” the man muttered. “It just seemed natural watching you walk around in the dark. What were you doing outside your room, Angel?” “I couldn’t sleep so I decided to go for a walk,” I lied. “In the dark?” “You know, normal people have lights outside.” “We are not normal,” he muttered. “Lights messes with our night vision.” “Are you a guard?” I asked him. He remained silent for a few seconds. “No, I’m not.” I was scared to ask, but I needed to know. “Who are you?” “My name’s Mason,” he said softly. “Now tell me the real reason why you’re sneaking around in the middle of the night?” Licking my lips, I glanced around, but I couldn’t see a thing. “I…I…King Lucas gave me permission to use the library.” Mason hummed. “You don’t know where it is, do you?” Colour flooded my cheeks. I was glad that he couldn’t see it, until I remembered what he said about his night vision. “Lucas failed to mention that we have special…dogs that guard the castle at night. It’s to prevent attacks in case one of the guards slips up and falls asleep.” “Oh.” I took note of the way he called his king by name. “It’s going to rain soon; you need to get back to your room.” The lightning and thunder were increasing. I knew he was right, but how was I supposed to tell him that I couldn’t remember the way back to my room? It was why I had been wandering around in the dark in circles. “Can we get down now?” I asked softly. Mason said nothing, but I heard him move. A few seconds later his voice came from below me. “Slowly move your leg over the branch and then reach down.” I bit my lip as I did what he ordered. My body rocked dangerously from side to side. My hold on the tree tightened as I tried to balance myself. “Now jump.” My eyes widened. “Are you mad?” “Apparently,” he muttered under his breath. “Come on, Angel. The dogs will return in a few minutes. I promise I will catch you.” “You better,” I muttered. Closing my eyes, I counted to three before jumping. My mouth opened, but before I could scream, strong arms caught me. Mason did the opposite of what I expected him to do. He hoisted me higher up his body and guided my legs around his hips. “Hold on,” he ordered against my ear. Before I could utter a word, he was moving. I clung to him with my face buried against his neck. The speed we were moving in was not normal. It made me feel sick to my stomach, but I didn’t ask him to stop. I didn’t want to be eaten by those dogs. Mason tightened his arm around my waist and then loosened. “You can let go now,” he said softly. My arms slowly loosened and then slipped away. He lowered me to the floor but didn’t immediately step back. I blinked up at the man in shock. He was as good looking as King Lucas despite the scar on the right side of his face. Emerald green eyes darted over my face. He turned away from me and glanced around. I watched as his brows dipped into a frown. We were standing right in the middle of my room. “I-It’s not so bad,” I said softly. “I already have more than I ever did.” “What do you mean you have more than you ever did?” he questioned. I hesitated. “My mother died when I was young, and I never knew my father. We moved around a lot until she died, and I was placed in foster care.” “So, you are better off here than in your world.” “What’s better about being here?” I cried out. “It’s still the same! I clean after everyone. They order me around. They walk all over me because I’m just a damn slave! I have no freedom. I know nothing about your world.” I sucked in a deep breath. “Do you want me to go on?” “You are safer here than you will ever be anywhere else,” he said so softly, I almost didn’t hear him. “Get some sleep, Angel.” I stared at him. What just happened? Mason walked over to the door and gripped the door handle, but he didn’t open the door. He stared at the dark wood for a few seconds and then slowly turned around to look at me again. “The library is on the second floor. It’s hard to miss.” With a small smile, he opened the door and stepped out of the room. “No more midnight walks, Angel. We have rules for a reason.” “Wait!” I called out before he could close the door. I hurried forward. “Thank you for…you know.” His lips twitched. “I liked being your knight in shining armour, but stay out of trouble.”