The Crown's Obsession

He spent enough time in the bath, cooling himself off over the anger and restraint that slipped through his fingers like sand. His clothes were soaked, and drops of water fell on the dried ground of the room. His hair looked darker, and so did his eyes with the water sliding down to the tip of his hair.

When Madeline was under him on his bed, looking up at him defenceless with her eyes teary, all he had wanted to do was sink his fangs into her to hear her cry out his name and the thought had driven him to the edge. Her body was small against him, just a bunch of clothes separating her from his touch.

When Calhoun had found that she was nowhere on the grounds of the castle, he was furious that Madeline could think that she could run away from him. No matter how many times she would run, he would find her and bring her back to his side. She was being stubborn because her freedom was taken away, but if he returned her freedom to her, she would take less than two seconds to leave again, and it wasn't something he was willing to do; when in truth he wanted to lay her down on the bed and have his way with her.

Madeline continued to lay down on the bed, not willing to step outside the room. When a maid arrived to knock on the door to let her know that dinner was ready, she sent the maid away telling that she had a headache and wanted to sleep. Hearing the footsteps leave, she finally got up, staring at the door with an unhappy face.

Her freedom was right there, to her hand's reach. If not her house, she would have gone somewhere else as she had worn the jewels that were given to her which she could sell. Somewhere she was also thankful for the carriage to stop as the man who was dead now had tried to touch her. If Calhoun had not arrived, the carriage would have never stopped, and she didn't know if the man would be successful in molesting her or she would have hit him enough to throw him out of the moving carriage.

Her room was filled with silence and not a sound heard from outside. When she tried to move, she realised she had hurt herself during her time in the maze when she had tried to climb up the holly plant.

With Calhoun who had himself told her to get out of the room, she decided that he wouldn't be speaking to her today.

She started to take her clothes off one after another until she stood in nothing but her petticoat. She sat back down on the bed. She raised her leg to place it on the bed to see the dried blood that had trickled down from her calf muscle to her ankle. When her hand reached for it, she winced as the wound felt tender. Getting the towel wet, Madeline sat down ready to clean the blood when the doors of the room opened, and she thought she had locked it.

"Do you need an invitation of threat every time you are asked to join me for a meal?" asked Calhoun who hadn't noticed the towel she had dropped on the ground along with her leg which she quickly placed down.

"I am not hungry. And didn't you ask me to leave?" asked Madeline. She had to crane her neck up when he walked forward. to stand in front of her.

When he leaned towards her, Madeline leaned back to have him place both of his hands on either side of her. He stared into her eyes, "You will come when I call you, where I call you. Haven't you done enough by causing trouble today?"

Madeline gritted her teeth, "Maybe if you hadn't lied this would have never happened," she said, and she saw how Calhoun's lips twitched. That malicious smile coming forward.

"Are you blaming me, Maddie?" asked Calhoun, his words coming out slow and deliberate, "If you had come straight to me, there wouldn't have been blood on my hands today. Look what you made me do."

"I didn't ask you to kill him," whispered Madeline as they pushed the blame on each other.

"You didn't, but I felt the need to do it," agreed Calhoun. His eyes moved from her eyes, taking in the attire of the flimsy cloth, "You think I don't know he tried to touch you in that carriage of his? The way he kept trying to put his hand back on you, trying to usher you into the carriage. I didn't know you were into men like those. Is that your secret fantasy?" he asked, and Madeline frowned.

"I don't have such ill thoughts," she had been desperate for help and to get a ride.

"Nothing wrong in wanting it. I feel like wanting to touch you all the time," he grinned that had Madeline gulp, "I cannot help but think about it," this made Madeline lean back.

He then pulled away to say, "Get dressed. We are going to have dinner."

"I am not hungry," Madeline said and it was the truth. She had lost her appetite. All she wanted to do was crawl back into the bed and sleep.

"If you won't eat, I know how to feed you myself. Don't try to test me Madeline, not today when you have tried to defy my words. Join me before I change my mind to something you won't like," he lowly threatened her and Madeline felt trapped. This was no courtship! All he was doing was forcing her to come to his terms.

Calhoun had meant every word, and those were not empty threats. His eyes then caught sight of the wet towel, and he remembered how she had her one leg placed on the bed when he had entered the room,

"Did something happen to your leg?" he asked her, sitting down on the bed before she could protest, he pushed her petticoat up until her knees without any shame.