Dedicated to: AngelWings1795

(Thank you for the mention. You may like this one as much as the last 2)

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"To be trusted is a greater compliment than being loved."
-George MacDonald

As Adelaide slumbered, she dreamt of Simon's death. Even though it was all but a speck to her in the distance, Simon's death haunted Adelaide, more so than her brothers'.

The scenarios her brain cooked up to supplement her lack of view were harrowing. Simon being dragged down into the depths of the freezing water, Simon turning to ice in the snow, Simon being dug up by the Vikings and roasted over a hot fire. The possibilities were endless.

She woke up in the night, drenched in a cold sweat, instinctively her hand reached out into the space beside her.
The empty cold air that met her fingers shocked Adelaide into the reality of what she was doing.
Pulling her hand back in and sitting up, she pressed her lips into a fine line, and internally scolded herself.
What was the world coming to when to seek comfort for her night terrors she would reach out for her former mortal enemy.

She wasnt suprised that he was gone, for Iolas had spent the whole day avoiding her gaze, and saying as little as possible, it was such a stark change to the day before, when they had played in the snow with the children.
He looked today as if something greatly bothered him, almost even disgusted him. She saw him for only fleeting moments throughout the day, as he would come in to check on her, or take meals with her but the prince spent the entirety of the time with his eyes locked onto either the floor, or his plate.

Unable to stop chastising herself for wishing for aid from her terrors, she stepped out of bed and wrapped herself in a thick wool cloak before creeping down the stairs and out the door. The queen walked in the direction of the stables in search of Chester. She needed to feel his soft fur in her fingertips, to seek real comfort and sit next to him, remembering the good times.

With footsteps as light as a mouse, she neared the barn where Chester was kept, a wave of woe struck her when she saw the barn door was halfway ajar, but she took a breath, and brushed it off to a forgetful stable hand.

Nobody will ever care for these animals like Simon did.
She thought to herself with a wave of sadness, stepping through the barn door and closing in behind her so as not to let any more precious heat escape.

She passed the horses, most of them sleeping, standing up, as horses like to do; until she reached the very last stall.

"Chester?" She called softly as not to greatly disturb the other sleeping equines, when his big brown head did not immediately pop over the stall door, another pang of dread gripped her stomach.
With bated breath she took the last few steps and peered into the dimly lit stall; but the brown donkey was gone.

Adelaide shook her head. It couldn't be. Chester would never run away.
It looked like he had kicked the gate open and escaped. Searching for Simon no doubt, she thought, as it wasn't the first time this had happened. Crippled by worry, and without even thinking, she followed his snowy tracks.

Adelaide ran out into the snow, stepping over the rubble of a recently demolished section of wall, searching for a patch of brown in the sea of white.

"Chester!" She shouted.
"Chester!"
Distraught and completely over taken by her fear she ran into the woods as fast as she could in the deep coat of frost.

Simon's deaths played in loops in front of her eyes and she found herself helpless to do anything but search for her last piece of him.
Eventually her rush faded, and Adelaide soon realized that she was very lost, and even more alone.
Defeated in every sense, she buried her face in her hands.

"Adelaide!"
A deep, familiar voice called out from behind her.

"Adelaide what are you doing out here?!?"
It was Iolas, sitting atop his silver steed, hastily trotting up to her.

"Chester is missing. Im looking for him. What are you doing here?"
She quickly composed herself to say, shivering from the cold.

"Following you, you crazy woman, it's freezing out here!"
He cursed, sliding off his horse. Iolas took off his thick white jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"I don't need this." Adelaide tried to shrug it off, which only made him wrap it tighter.
"Not a request." He stated.

"Move and you die!" A hard voice called from within the trees. She took in a jagged breath, as figures emerged from the darkness.

Adelaide felt the tip of a blade being pressed against her back.
They were surrounded by Vikings.

Iolas pushed the Queen behind him and unsheathed his blade. She fearfully gripped onto his shirt. Iolas suddenly found himself fearing for her safety, it was almost strange, and also he began feeling incredibly protective of her, perhaps more so than his obligation required of him.

"Well what a pleasant surprise." The voice chuckled with a menace that made even the dastardly prince shiver. A pair of rough hands reached out from the darkness and pulled Adelaide away, clutching a knife to her throat.

"Iolas!" She whimpered in fear, reaching out for him.
"Let her go!" He ordered fruitlessly.
"Drop it boy." Said the tallest one, who he immediately presumed to be the leader.

Boy? How dare he?!? Iolas thought to myself, infuriated at the insult, ready to strike. Another thought occurred to the Prince that caused him to take another approach. The burly pillager appeared to not know who he was, and Iolas hoped the same went for Adelaide. Muttering to himself, he cast his blade aside.

Iolas felt a pain in the back of his legs and he fell to his knees into the snow.
Realizing someone had kicked him down, he glared up at the ugly beast of a man, unable to see Adelaide but he could hear her struggling.

"Now, you will tell us where the Queen of this god forsaken land is hiding!" The beast shouted, placing the tip of his sword at Iolas's neck.

Good, he hasn't found the castle, and he does not know who we are.
Iolas thought with relief.

The Prince felt the blade at his neck again and suddenly it felt as if his own life paled in comparison to the lives of all the innocent villagers hiding away in that castle, and for once in his life Iolas found himself thinking not only of himself.
"I'd die before I told you." He spat.

Adelaide sighed in relief.
The Viking looked from him to her and smiled. Iolas could do nothing but turn on his knees and watch as the brute walked over, ripped open the front of the elegant, princely jacket that he had leant her, and pulled it completley off to stare hungrily down at her.

The tall invader trailed a rough, callised hand down the side of her face. Adelaide flinched at his touch and glanced towards Iolas with a look of sheer terror. The islander prince tried to stand but one of the enemy troops slugged him across the back, sprawling Iolas into the snow.

"What a warm little thing." The big man sneered down at Adelaide.
"I only need one of you to tell me where the camp is."
He continued to leer, satisfied by the color draining from her face in fear.

"Kill the boy and bring the woman to my tent. Trust me, by morning she will talk."
He ordered his men
"Oh." He laughed perversely before continuing, "and make her watch."

"Iolas!" She cried his name, reaching out for him, but her captor held her back.
Fearing for both her life and his own, Iolas jumped to his feet, and tried to run towards her, but with no avail, for just as quickly as the ground was beneath his feet again, the two other Vikings grabbed him and pushed me down once again.

Iolad struggled uselessly to break free as a third goon held a sword out to the back of his neck, ready to behead the fire headed captive.

The burly goon raised the ugly blade high up and was about to strike when Adelaide cried out with all the regality that she could muster.
"Stop in the name of the Queen!"

The would be executioner froze.
"You are the Queen?"
The leader laughed in disbelief.

"Yes!" She replied.
"Yes, I am Queen Adelaide of Aelford. Only sister of former King Xander." She stated, head held high, despite the obvious fear in her eyes

"I beseech you. You are to let that man go." She held up her hand displaying the royal crest on her ring.
The disbelief faded from the crude barbarians face and his smile dispersed, replaced by a more serious expression.

"Oh and why should I? If you are indeed the prize we seek, I have no use for that boy." The Viking stated.

Adelaide took another breath before speaking. Her voice as calm and as steady as she could force it to be.
"Because, if you do not let him live, I cannot, and will not marry your ruler."

Oh god.
Iolas thought. His jaw gaping.
Was she surrendering Aelford to save his life?

"Well boys..."
The Viking gave a hearty laugh.
"It looks like we've got what we came for." He grabbed her wrist.
"Highness, despite how we would have captured you, you are going to be marry . Our leader is claiming both you and your country as spoils of war. What difference does that lad make?"

With her head held high, she gave him a valid answer.
"It is Aelford law that a bride be given away by a member of her family. Now I promise to surrender without fuss, but I DEMAND this be done legally."

"And this guard of yours is family?" He asked suspiciously, grabbing the hair on the back of the prince's head and pulling it back to look closer at his face. Iolas glared at him, biting back the pain.

"Y-Yes" she stuttered.
"He is my cousin. Look at our red hair, do you not see the family resemblance?"

"Very well." He agreed, knocking Iolas flat onto my back with a good smack, and tossing the white coat back atop his body.
"We will indulge her Majesty. Put them into the wagon."

The group carted the queen and her would be cousin back to their camp, which was shockingly closer than they expected. They were thrown roughly into a wagon that Adelaide recognized was the citadel jail wagon, despite the snowy darkness.
The wagon was thick oak, with only one small, barred window at the back. Barely any light permeated the bars and Iolas and Adelaide could hardly find the benches that ran the along the sides of the wagon.

With a jingle of keys, the door was locked.
Silently Iolas stood by the door. Peaking through the bars and watching his captors boast their victory to one another. After a while, the camp died down and they all climbed into their tents for the night. With the exception of one guard who sat lookout on the other side of the camp.

Iolas turned and found Adelaide sitting up against the back wall, staring blankly ahead, looking utterly broken.

With a sigh, he crossed the wagon and slid down beside her. She was trembling from the cold, wearing only a nightdress under her cloak, and it was clear her cloak wasn't doing much good on its own.
Realizing he still held his jacket in his hand, he held it out to put over her shoulders.

"No. I've got my cloak, you need to wear it." She argued, batting his hand away.

"Adelaide, you are trembling. If you do not wear this you will die."
He argued firmly, refusing to budge.

"Maybe its for the best." She mumbled, almost completely under her breath.

"What?" He asked, completely taken by suprise.
"Nothing..." She mumbled again.

Iolas kept persisting until eventually they reached a compromise, she removed her cloak and threw it over the front of both of them, then, once she was sure he was also covered, she put on his jacket.

"What just happened?" He asked after a few minutes of tense silence.

"You were there. You know what just happened."
She answered, still staring blankly ahead.

"You surrendered... to save me?"
He stuttered, still in disbelief.

"Not just you, also to protect the villagers at the summer castle!"
She shook her head,
"But mostly..." She continued slowly, voice filled with guilt.
"To save myself... from them."
Adelaide shuddered so violently it traveled from her body and into his. "So selfish, I know."
The princess appeared as if she positively hated herself in that moment.

"What you did was not selfish, you saved my life, and hopefully the lives of your people. You also bought us time, perhaps we can escape from this."
He grabbed her chin and forced her to look up and at him.
"Adelaide it is NOT selfish to want to save yourself from being raped to death!"

She cringed at those last words.
Iolas noticed she was still shaking so he lifted his arm up.
"Come closer, you are still freezing."
For once, without arguing, she listened to him. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and without any hesitation, she rested her head against against his chest, like she used too.

"What did you mumble earlier."
He asked gently, speaking into her hair.
"Nothing..."
She pushed the question away.
"Do you wish to die?" He prodded.

"No... I don't know, sometimes I guess..." She replied.
"Why?" He rubbed her shoulder, trying to warm her.

"You are really warm." Said Adelaide, trying to change the subject.
"Yeah, its that hot southern blood."
He chuckled slightly, but would not be strayed off topic.
"I see through your thinly veiled attempt to distract me. Please Adelaide, why?" He asked again.

"You are the last person I wish to talk about this with..." She sighed sadly, staring at the wooden floor in front of her. "But there is no one else left. I guess that is the problem. Everyone I have ever loved has either been killed, or has tried to kill me." Adelaide said quietly.
A pang of guilt stabbed through his heart, and it was a feeling so foreign to him. He knew she was talking about him, and he also knew no number of brave deeds would ever be able to overcome the horrible thing he had done.

"I am now left alone to run a kingdom full of strangers, and win a war that I don't think I can." Silent tears streamed down her cheeks, as months of holding her emotions back and now they all broke for the surface. Something inside Iolas snapped, like the band of an overused catapult, and it honestly tore away at him just to see her in such raw pain.

He wrapped both arms around her and pulled her closer, stroking her hair to the best of his limited ability, as she freely sobbed into his chest.

"Iolas?"
She spoke into his chest, the slick warmth of her tears starting to seep through his shirt.
"Yes?" He answered back.

"Even though I'm all alone,"
began Adelaide finally,
"I'm glad you're here. Even though I don't have Xander, or...Simon,"
Speaking their name's sent an arrow of pain directly to her heart.
Iolas strangly found himself forcing back a flinch at that last name. This was the first time she had mentioned him. The prince had been informed that the pesky, overgrown stable boy had been given a title after he had foiled his dastardly plot, and that the newly titled Sir Simon, Master of Equines, had even begun courting her after the banishment.
"Or even Chester," she added through the sobs, her voice quickening with the fresh pain of recent loss before saying something that would shake the prince to his core.
"I'm glad that I have you."

Iolas took in a breath.
In slight disbelief of her last statement. No one, not even his own family had ever said anything like that to him. He had never experienced gratitude in such a way. It struck him like an anvil over the head.

Iolas brought her in even more impossibly closer, crushing her against himself, wanting no distance between them at all.
"It's okay Adelaide," he comforted "I'm here for you. I am not going anywhere, and I promise, I'm going to get us out of this... somehow."

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A/N: Happy Tuesday my pretties!
I love all this drama!
Trying to get more readers for this story. I would love you so much if you could help me out. It's easy, just vote, leave a comment, save it to your public library, tell your friends, post about it here on wattpad, just share it in any way and help me climb the ranking so more people can learn about this book. :)
Love you all!
-QueenOfGeeks