Chapter Six
Erdal rushed back to the palace, his mind racing. Natalie followed closely behind, holding his hand. She wore a long, dark gown and a hooded robe so that her face wasn’t visible. She had to walk quickly to keep up with him.
Erdal knew that what he was doing was punishable by death. He needed to work fast and get her out of the palace right away. He would have to be very careful. Only Gezek knew about the king’s orders. Erdal needed to escape the wily old creature. His shrewd eyes were everywhere as he was the king’s spy.
Erdal crossed the palace gardens, staying out of sight of the palace guards who prowled the vast lawns until they reached the building on the other side. Still holding Natalie’s hand, he circled the wall until he reached a pair of doors that would lead them to the basement parking area. He got in the elevator and tapped in the commands as Natalie stood close by. He checked his Light-Shard as he slung it across his shoulder. The elevator came to a stop. The doors slid open and, as he stepped out, a cold, raspy voice greeted him from his left.
“Going somewhere?” Gezek asked, a sinister smile curled across his thin, dark lips.
The guard on his right held his crossbow, ready to shoot anytime if he moved. Two more royal guards stood alert, one to his left and another behind him, holding Natalie. Their katanas were unsheathed and ready at hand. Natalie’s pupils dilated and her scream was lost on her lips as the guard who held her brought a hand to her mouth and twisted her arms behind her back.
“Gezek,” Erdal began in a cold voice despite the rage boiling his blood. “Let her go.”
“Traitor! You dare defy the king’s orders?” Gezek said, his eyes gleaming with madness. “Take them away and lock them up in the Dark Cells.”
Erdal couldn’t believe his bad luck. The guards dragged him and Natalie back toward the elevators and down to the Dark Cells. Then they shoved him roughly into a cell and shut the door behind him.
The Dark Cells were the dungeons where the prisoners on death row were held. The inmates there were tortured and then executed. The walls themselves were dark and gruesome. No one ever made it outside of their reaches. Erdal was stripped of his royal guard’s ensemble and he now wore only dark pants. His muscular chest was bare and his dark hair fell loosely past his shoulders. He was nothing but a traitor whose fate was sealed.
Erdal sank down, his back scraping against the wall of the dreary cell. The place smelled of death. His hands and feet were shackled and the rusty, old metal cut through his wrists. His heart sank as he thought of Natalie and the unborn child. She was right. He shouldn’t have brought her here. He had been a fool.
He wondered where they had taken her. They couldn’t lock her up in these cells; she was too fragile and wouldn’t survive it. His chest constricted as he clenched his jaw. This had to end. He unconsciously struggled against the restraints, the metal cutting through his skin. Blood the color of dark blue ink oozed out. He must find a way. There was no time. He had to do something.
You brought this on yourself, Erdal. There’s no one to blame but you, the voice whispered inside his head.
He had hurt her, and she didn’t deserve to die. He did. She had to live. A lone tear rolled down his cheek.
The next morning, one of the prison guards dragged him out into the yard and tied his hands to two wooden stakes set six feet apart. He stood, suspended, the sun bearing down upon him. Men and women gathered there – mostly slaves who had served in the court or other royal guards. Orgus, a hulking one-eyed man known as the master executioner and punisher emerged with a large whip in hand.
Erdal’s left eye was already swollen from the blow Orgus had given him earlier that morning when asked about Natalie. His nose bled. His face was soiled with dirt and his dark blood dripped down his bare chest. His head ached with a distracting throbbing. He tried to gather his thoughts, concentrating on reading the punisher’s mind.
He won’t be much fun, but I’d like to hear the woman cry, Erdal could hear him gloat.
Erdal’s breathing became staggered as rage surged through his veins. His hands closed into fists, straining against the metal restraints. Sweat dripped from his brow. Then, he saw her.
One of the prison guards had dragged Natalie out into the yard. Her hands and feet were in fetters. Her dress was in tatters, her ivory shoulders bare. Her pale face looked as though she would swoon at any moment. Then he saw the blood, bright red, dripping from her delicate wrists as the harsh metal cut through her soft skin.
Erdal’s chest constricted at the sight. He had done this to her. Now there was no way that he could save her or the baby. He must do something – anything – to save her from this torture.
“Let her go! She doesn’t deserve this punishment,” Erdal said through his clenched teeth. A futile attempt, but an attempt nonetheless.
He didn’t fear death. There was something he felt for her. The emotion made it unbearable for him to see such a fragile being endure any form of torture.
“Shut up!” Orgus grunted, flicking his large, ominous whip. He flexed his arm and brought down the first lash. Hard.
Erdal winced, gritting his teeth as the whip cut through the skin on his back, slashing it open. Searing, hot pain shot through the gash, bringing tears to his eyes. He dared not scream. He would bear the pain as long as he could. His head reeled as more gashes appeared on his back again and again and again. He could no longer take it. He screamed, the pain blocking everything else out.
Natalie stood bound to the wooden post opposite Erdal. She didn’t realize she was trembling all over, tears uncontrollably streaming down her face. She couldn’t breathe. The heat was making her thoughts fuzzy. She closed her eyes, wishing for time to stop. She longed for the hulking man to stop hurting Erdal. Natalie flinched with each blow that was laid upon him. She hated violence, and now she was being forced to witness it. Even worse, she had to witness its use against Erdal.
“S-stop it! Please don’t hurt him,” she heard herself cry aloud.
Why did she feel his pain? He was a stranger to her – her captor. He wasn’t even human. Was it because he was the father of her unborn child? Or was it because she needed him now? He said she was his mate. Something had changed between them, although she couldn’t figure out what. Yet, she knew in her heart that he was the only one in the entire galaxy who could protect her from the king. If he died, there was no chance she could survive among these barbarians.
Orgus strode toward her with heavy steps, whip in hand. She strained at her shackles. The cold, relentless gleam in the man’s eye was more terrifying than the sight of the whip. She shuddered, catching her breath and bracing herself. She wouldn’t let him gloat over her. She would bear the pain if she could.
She glanced over at Erdal, his long hair matted to his face, still struggling against his restraints. She saw him looking at her and caught naked fear in his emerald eyes as he helplessly gazed back at her.
Just as Orgus stepped behind her, ready for the first lash, out of the corner of her eye she saw a man running toward them. The man wore gray overalls and held a piece of paper in his hand. He waved wildly as he hurried over to them.
“Stop! In the name of the king, stop!” he yelled, as he approached Orgus. He stood for a while, catching his breath.
“I have the king’s orders to release the woman right away,” he said as he thrust the paper into Orgus’s hand.
“What is the meaning of this?” Orgus grunted, irritated at being interrupted.
“The king wants her back at the palace now!” he said. “And he wants Erdal back in prison. His sentence is postponed,” he added quickly.
Orgus stared at the paper and reluctantly released Natalie. She stumbled and the man who had come to her rescue held her, steadying her. Her head spun and she shuddered, taking a deep breath. She turned, taking one last look at Erdal as the man led her inside, back to the harem.