22. Livy

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

LIVY

T he minute I woke up this morning, the first thing I did was go over to the mirror in the corner of my bedroom. I did this just so I could confirm what I already knew. The enchanted heart tattoo on my chest was completely filled in with black. And I'd been staring at it on and off for the last hour. I had officially lost the bet.

Not that it made a lick of difference. Last night in the safety of Malek's embrace, I made my choice. And I was resolved to live with that choice for better or worse.

Someone knocked at my bedroom door, easing me away from the mirror. "We have a few more gifts from the king for you, my Lady."

"More?" I turned to the three designer blouses and four fancy feathered hats that rested on the dresser.

They were there when I woke up.

"Come in." I called out and three maids entered, one brandishing a pair of gold heels and the other a shimmering gold bracelet.

"Our king hand selected these personally, my lady. Do they suit your taste?" The girl with the bracelet asked .

"Of course. They're beautiful. They're all beautiful…but what's the occasion? Not that I'm complaining, but why is he sending so many extravagant presents?" I questioned and they both looked at one another, giggling as if they knew a secret I wasn't in on.

"Just a kind gesture of affection, my Lady. Nothing more." They graciously bowed before leaving the gifts on the bed and sliding out the door.

I've never been overly materialistic. But what all the gifts showed me was that Malek cared about me and though he was rough around the edges at times, he did whatever he thought would make me happy and comfortable.

Just knowing how much he thought about me made my heart swell.

"Knock, knock," Ferina purred from the open doorway, letting herself in.

"Ohh, are those the new blouses Malek sent? How cute. Mind if I try them on?" She held her perfectly manicured nails to her red lips.

"Of course, you can. When did you get out of the infirmary? I was about to come and visit you. Are you feeling better?" I checked her for bandages, of which there were none.

"I got discharged this morning. Not that I could sleep in the infirmary anyway. It's too close to Malek's room. The banging kept me up all night," she yawned, peaking at me through the corner of her eye, knowing.

"Must have been the thunder." My mouth slackened, thoughts of last night replayed in my head. Last night's encounter was more than a romp in the sheets. He claimed my body, his essence imprinted on my skin so thoroughly that I still felt him on me.

"Thunder, huh? If we have a few more thunderstorms like that, the whole palace might fall to rubble and we'll have to erect a tent on the ruins." Her lip curled up into a cheeky smirk .

"Did anyone ever tell you that you have a wild imagination? You should channel it into art." I snapped my fingers. "I know. You should write a book. I'd be your test reader."

"Mhmm?" Her squinting eyes lit with a glint of mischief.

"Excuse me, Lady Sunny. Princess Ferina. Is now a good time?" Two beautiful demonesses waltzed into my room, both with two adorable, young children accompanying each of them.

"Mrs. Pennington, Mrs. Jennings. What are you doing here?" Ferina welcomed them warmly.

"We've come to officially welcome Lady Sunny to the city. I'm Devina. It's a pleasure to meet you." One of the ladies curtseyed, taking a perfect white rose from her handbag and handing it to me.

"Thank you. And who is this cute little guy?" I knelt down to shake the hand of the little boy next to her. He refused my hand, to his mother' s visible chagrin.

"This is my son. Shake the nice lady's hand, Justin." His mother instructed and the boy nervously obeyed.

"I'm Scarlette and these are my daughters." The other woman stepped closer, delivering me a handful of daffodils. "Today is the first time the king's allowed so many outsiders into the palace in ages. You must be having quite the effect on him." She said as if inviting me to gossip, but I wasn't sure if I liked her tone.

Seeming to notice my discomfort, Ferina cleared her throat.

"Yes, my brother has been in a much more social mood of late. I think it's the economic boom the city's been enjoying." She ended with a counterfeit laugh.

I played with the children for a few minutes as Ferina hobnobbed with their mothers. It was interesting to see how demon society worked. These two demons were from the upper class, looking to elevate themselves in any way they could .

There were a few social climbing wolves like this in the Prometheus Pack, I never had any interest in befriending them and I wasn't interested in that now.

However, watching Ferina taking on the role of hostess, eager to please her guests made me think I at least needed to be as polite as possible and not undermine her.

Ferina and I entertained the demonesses and their children over tea and sandwiches in the dining room for an hour. They left a little bit after 10 am and we saw them out at the front door.

Teams of demons in buses up and down the driveway, carried heavy equipment into the palace. They had hammers, screwdrivers, brooms and some had vacuum cleaners.

I asked Ferina what was going on and she was just as clueless as I was. So, we followed the workers to see where they were going. They funneled up the stairs, across the palace and over to the library. Inside, a large-scale clearing and rebuilding operation was underway.

Like a finely tuned engine, some workers swept, others erected fallen shelves, and many removed heavy debris, ushering it out of the library.

"Mally sure didn't waste any time. I didn't think he'd call in the cleaning crew this quickly." Ferina stepped out of the way of a demon pushing a broom.

I loved libraries and books. It made me sad to see this once beautiful place looking so disheveled. I thought while watching the librarian help the crew remove a destroyed shelf. She greeted me as they took the shelf out the door and I returned her greeting.

"I want to pitch in and help them clean up, but you don't have to. You're still recovering."

"Girl, it takes more than a few tussles with mages to keep me down. We can both help out. Besides, I need to do more to shed my spoiled princess reputation with the public." She rubbed her hands together and grabbed a broom .

"It's a win win then. Let's help save the library." I took one of the dozen brooms that had been left near the door and gathered the pieces of broken shelf near the smashed-up water cooler.

Ferina assisted two demon males who replaced a destroyed bookshelf in the science fiction section.

The other sweepers nearby welcomed me with animated expressions of awe and curiosity. They tried to convince me this type of work was beneath people of my and Ferina's stations.

I then explained to them that all beings were created equally, regardless of where the road of life takes them. I became even more hands-on, sweeping more vigorously and trying to be as helpful as possible.

I hated the idea that some of us were made to serve and others only to reap the benefits of being served. Any idea that some were superior to others was a man-made idea. One that men like Alpha Prometheus were only too happy to embrace.

After two hours we'd gotten most of the floors in this part of the library clean enough to eat off of. Many of the shelves that weren't too damaged had been put upright and the hammering continued as the workers repaired the shelves that had been only marginally damaged.

I helped by returning books to the erected shelves. Then the sweepers and I moved to the adjoining section. The disfigured door to the restricted section laid behind some rubble.

The sweepers started up on the dust and then powdered the floor near the metal door. I stood with the broom hanging loosely in my hand. I imagined what lay just on the other side of that door.

Secrets, maybe? Secrets about Malek's past that he refused to divulge. Possibly the kind of secrets that might help me stop his war. Maybe there was information I could use to understand him better. Then I could reason with him or maybe even force his hand. Then I could prevent him from starting a war.

My thoughts fluttered off the instant Malek strode across my path. Smiling like the sun, he diverted to me the second he noticed it was me .

He drew me into his arms and the broom fell. He smelled of pine and aftershave, my nostrils stretched as I greedily drank it all in. My face nestled in the safety of his sturdy pecs; I hoped nothing would ever tear me away from this.

All thoughts of the restricted section and hunting for secrets drifted away like a coin down a bottomless trench.

"I've been looking for you. Did you like the gifts I sent?" He asked with a childlike excitement dancing in his eyes.

"It was like Christmas when I woke up and saw them. I love them. Thank you."

He carefully rubbed a speck of dirt from my neck with his thumb. "I knew you would. Anything for my bride."

This feeling was so new to me. I felt so cherished by Malek. For the first time in my adult life, I was the apple of someone‘s eye. It was an addictive sensation, so sweet I couldn't remember life before the taste.

"I'm planning a ball for the night after tomorrow. We'll be opening the ballroom to a select number of invited guests. That's why I brought in the cleaners and asked them to put a hurry on the repairs." He said while watching someone hammer nails into a reading table.

"A ball? So soon after a hostile mage invasion? Don't you think we should lay low for a bit?" I absently wiped my mouth.

"I refuse to give my enemies the satisfaction of affecting my life or plans in any way. We survived our first invasion without a single casualty on our side. I think that calls for a celebration, don't you?" His chest puffed out and chin went high as he watched my reaction.

"Okay, that's fair. But I never took you for a ‘boogie all night,' type of demon." Bending my knees, I swayed my hips from side to side.

"Ha! I may be ancient, but I'm far from a stiff old man." He turned away, bursting into laughter.

"Come on, a ball will be fun and besides I want the demons of the city to get to know you better. The minute they see your warmth and charm, you'll be an instant hit with the public." He said confidently.

"Ummm, I'm not everyone's cup of tea. I wouldn't be so sure." I rubbed the back of my neck.

"They will love you just as I do. I promise you. Just wait and see." He kissed me sweetly, silencing my dissent and drowning me with his delicious scent.

Ferina poked out from behind a bookshelf. Seeing that we were kissing, she spun around mid-stride, allowing us privacy.

Malek joined in on the cleaning effort and with his help, we manage to get close to fifty percent of the undamaged shelves back up and most of the debris removed. It was so much more fun with Malek there, he cracked jokes and made a game of everything.

Even the cleaners seemed surprised by how cool and down to earth Malek was. He was so different from the cold, scary image he showed the world.

Outside the window, I saw there were even more workers. A cool two hundred worked on removing the fallen giant from the garden. The entire palace was abuzz with crew, getting the palace back to its usual glory.

We called it a day in the early afternoon and Ferina invited me to go with her to the shopping district for an afternoon of fun.

Malek insisted we take bodyguards because no one knew if there would be another mage attack. They were determined to prevent war by killing Malek before he could declare it. While I understood their motives, their tactics were brutal and inexcusable. Senseless violence only birthed more senseless violence.

Ferina and I departed the palace in a chauffeur driven car. We hopped out in the busiest street of the blue line fashion district, accompanied by two tall and bulky bodyguards.

Oodles of shoppers lined the streets, carrying bags and boxes of different sizes .

Roasted sweet potato stalls dotted the busy sidewalk, setting a sugary, floral scent sailing on the wind.

Street performers played melodious violins and guitar music nearby, setting the stage for a lively and buzzing atmosphere that excited the senses.

"Oh-oh, let's go in there. That's one of my favorite shops." Capturing my hand, and pulling me through the crowd, Ferina ushered me into a shop with neon-colored clothes in the window. The bodyguards shuffled along after us, always giving us several feet of breathing room.

I tried on a couple of outfits and Ferina tried on all of the latest arrivals. Setting aside what I didn't want from the ones I'd tried on, I carried a top and pair of shorts to the register.

I couldn't even see Ferina's face behind the tall mountain of dresses she miraculously managed to balance on one arm, while carrying twelve handbags and a pair of sneakers with her other.

"Put everything on this." Ferina handed the clerk a card with Malek's name on it and the clerk swiped it. She handed Ferina the receipt and boxed everything up for us and thanked us for coming.

We went to a couple more stores and tried on a few more outfits. Even the outfits I was sure didn't flatter me, Ferina insisted made me look like the epitome of style and grace. She always said it with a flamboyant twinkle in her eyes.

I couldn't help but love Ferina, even though I was beginning to suspect that she got off on that beeping sound the credit card machine made every time a transaction was successful. She may have been a shopaholic, but it suited her personality.

I loved girl time, this was one thing I dreamt of when I was growing up in the Prometheus Pack. To have a friend I could go out into public with was a dream I was so cruelly denied. Now thanks to Ferina, I was able to make up for lost time in ways I never thought possible.

We were back on the sidewalk. Ferina and I headed towards the burger place where we planned to have dinner .

The bodyguards carried most of the bags, but Ferina and I kept two each, as it provided a small buffer between us and the extremely thick crowds.

I could almost smell the ketchup, mustard and cheese as we got closer to the restaurant. But the street we entered had a far less happy atmosphere than a few streets back. Here it was like all joyful ambiance had been sucked from the scene. We'd even left all the street performers behind as none of them would come to such a gloomy, gray block.

A stomping noise lugged me toward the soldiers that marched through the street ahead. Starting as a fine trickle and building to densely packed lines of soldiers, they marched through the street. They chanted something I didn't understand, probably because it was in Demonish.

Some pedestrians cheered and others complained about not being able to cross the street. Crowds on the sidewalks diverted with some shuffling away down alleys and side streets.

"It's just a military exercise. A simple drill meant to keep the soldiers limber and on high alert. They're probably marching from the northern base to the southern base. It happens every couple of weeks." Ferina said, sounding unperturbed.

Two dozen rockets sat on the backs of trucks, following behind the batch of soldiers. These missiles were black with blood red stripes. Each larger than three demons put together. These were weapons of mass intimidation and destruction.

"What are those for?" I asked.

"Oh, we bought those from the humans," she said simply.

"That doesn't exactly answer my question." I said, and she did a one eighty degree twist, facing me.

"Sunny. Magic alone will not keep us safe. You better believe that humans aren't only selling these to us. They've sold hundreds of missiles to the mages too. This is how the world works now. It's a balancing act. As long as both have the same deadly weapons, neither side can use them. "

What she said made sense. I'd learned in school how the humans maintained a similar balance between America and Russia. But these weapons didn't belong in our world. They were far more deadly than anything magic could ever conjure.

We continued to the restaurant and Ferina quickly changed the subject to something more pleasant. We chatted for over an hour, eating our burgers and having a few drinks before retiring to the palace.

Malek's warm embrace greeted me at the door. His soothing hug calmed the rough seas in my head to a mild ripple. Just looking at him was all it took to chase away the darkness that engulfed me. This was why I chose to remain on his side.

Maybe I didn't need to be the hero. Maybe I just needed to allow myself to be happy. For the first time in my life, I was finally happy. I had love. I finally had the freedom to make friends and do anything I wished, anywhere I wished. Was it so wrong that I didn't want to give up all the good I'd finally been given?

Plus, when it really came down to it, things always worked themselves out somehow. Didn't they? Every day Malek and I drew closer, becoming happier and more at ease with each other. If I was patient with him and gave him time I was sure he would come to see that all these soldier marches and missile exhibitions were unnecessary. That war itself was unnecessary.

The more we built a happy home, and life became more stable, he would come to see that we could be safe right as we are. All he needed to do was stop all foreign aggression and we'd be safe.

Through our love, he would come to see that he didn't need any more power or to subjugate a single person.