The king raised his eyebrow. He seemed more amazed by her words than actually annoyed by them. "You can't possibly believe he survived, princess Celeste. Please-" the man squeezed her hand and reached his hand out to her, grabbing her chin and raising her head, smiling disgustingly. "-it isn't important now. These are all bad memories, but it had to be done. Now, I am glad you accepted. Believe me, princess, you'll become the greatest queen by the side of the greatest king." He stroked her chin with his finger and let her go after a moment, turning his back to her.
***
A few days had passed and the king made sure to have Celeste right next to him most of the time. For now, he kept talking with her, enjoying every little twitch he saw when he mentioned her brother or the death of her family. He intended to marry her, of course, and "make peace", as he called it, but these things could wait. He was already a winner.
He was just spending his evening with Celeste, eating dinner, when the guard walked into the hall and talked to one of the servants. The woman's face changed a little, but she moved closer to the king and leaned in, whispering to his ear. The man laughed and looked over to the young princess. "You will love it, Celeste, my dear. Where is he?" The king turned his head to the guard. "The cells, sire." The king smiled and stood up, taking Celeste's hand.
***
Talhad touched his side and winced. The guards didn't miss any chance to kick or punch him, but the way they did so was almost annoying. He could do a better job himself. Sighing a little, the knight looked around. These cells were probably one of the last things anyone would like to see in their lifetime, but at least they were relatively clean. As he sat down, on the cold stone, Talhad let his eyelids drop down. A week ago - maybe a bit more - he was back at the castle of Celeste's uncle, ready to receive his punishment. Now he was slowly starting to realize exile would be better than this. His honour was in pieces already, and Talhad didn't have any idea on how to rescue Celeste.
He didn't even fight - there was no way for him to kill so many people. He was only a single man, and he was as far from being an assassin as it was possible. When the guards grabbed him, the knight's instincts pushed his fists into motion, delivering a few punches and breaking a few jaws, but that was about it. He needed to get inside, and he needed to see if Celeste was still alive.
"..to see an old friend. What a watchful dog! I wouldn't mind having something so committed to me.."
Talhad blinked and looked at the entrance to his cell. He knew that voice. Growling quietly, he stood up and walked closer to the bars. Even with his face bloody and one of his eyes hidden behind swollen flesh, the man managed to look as if it didn't worry him too much.