Caden stares at me during the negotiation meeting with Harrison. Flint’s mainly talking to my fiancé, the rest of us occasionally commenting. 

I spot Caden holding his arm under the table, and shake my head at him once we make eye contact. He rolls his sleeve back down, and stares at the table now. 

“Are you okay?” I ask Caden, after the meeting. “I want us to be friends again, so I want to help you.” 

“I’m fine,” Caden tells me. “Really, I’m fine, Ivvy, I-” I blink, then tilt my head, and he ducks his head. 

“Was that my nickname when we were friends?” I ask. Caden pauses, then nods slowly. “I like it. What’s wrong?” I ask him. He watches me through his glasses, and sighs. 

“I’m just anxious lately. The war, and stuff,” He says, shrugging. I nod. 

“Well, I can help get you counseling. I have plenty of money,” I tell Caden, who nods slowly. 

“I’m fine, Olive,” Caden informs me, taking a deep breath before saying it. I lean forward, and hug him, making him flinch. “I should… go.” He says quietly, pulling his sleeve down again as he steps away from me.

“Sorry. I guess you’re not touchy,” I mumble, flushing in embarrassment. 

“No, I… I usually am, I’m just not doing great,” He mutters, then waves before disappearing. 

“If you need anything, you can always come find me,” I add. I fold my arms tightly. Well, I tried to be nice to him. 

“Are you okay?” Harrison asks me the same question I asked Caden. 

“Yeah, Caden’s just acting weird,” I answer. 

“That’s why I told you to stay away from him,” Harrison advises, holding my hand, and kissing the ring finger where the symbol of our engagement sits. “That’s a nice dress,” He comments, as Wyatt stands near us, Harrison’s bodyguard. He’s very large, built like an ox, and kind of scary. 

“Oh, yeah, I liked the color,” I look down at the yellow skirt. 

“It suits you,” Harrison says, and kisses me, holding both of my hands. I giggle, blushing as he pulls me over to a wall and presses me against it. Flint passes us and turns away, his arms folded as he walks off. “I have to go to more meetings this afternoon and evening. You’ll be all right?” He asks, and I nod eagerly. “I’m leaving Wyatt with you, in case Angel’s followers want to hurt you,” Harrison tells me, and I nod again. He leans down and kisses me again, moaning quietly as he does. “I don’t think I’ll be able to stop doing that if I don’t leave now,” Harrison says with a chuckle, kissing my cheek. 

“When you get back,” I reply with a laugh of my own, and he kisses me quickly before departing, giving instructions to Wyatt. 

“Lady Ferrum,” Wyatt says, then gestures for me to follow him. 

I pick up my skirt and run, already behind, since he takes massive steps. Soon we’re back to my room, which has not been slept in yet, since I was in Harrison’s room last night and the night before. 

“It’s safest that you stay in here, Lady Ferrum.” My brows furrow. 

“I’m fine, I’m sure nobody will harm me anywhere else in the palace,” I argue, starting to move past him to the door. He picks me up suddenly around the waist with massive hands, setting me on the rug. I edge back. He’s very huge. I think. 

“It was your fiancé’s instructions that you stay here, for safety,” Wyatt tells me, as I look up at him. 

“Well, tell Harrison I’m fine. He worries too much,” I explain, standing up. Wyatt steps forward, and I move back. 

“You can discuss that with him tonight. Lunch will be delivered here, and he will be home by dinner,” Wyatt tells me. I fold my arms, and nod. 

“Fine, but I’m going to take a shower,” I mutter, and walk to go close the drapes. Wyatt just stands there. “I’ll need privacy.” 

“Lord Anders said to stay near you and keep you safe,” Wyatt booms. 

“Well, I don’t think my fiancé meant that you should look at me naked in the name of safety, so leave,” I argue. Wyatt leaves, and I lock the door, going to my closet to grab my robe. 

There’s a knocking at my door as I pull my hair up, and I look over. “Come in!” I call. 

Caden slips inside the room, and his face goes pale seeing me in a robe. “S..sorry, I didn’t know you…” He looks away his face suddenly red rather than white. “I can leave.” 

“No, I’m wearing stuff under this,” I quickly say, chuckling. “What’s going on?” I ask, straightening my robe. Caden still stares at me. 

“Um… “ He turns away quickly. 

“Are you okay?” I ask him, going behind a changing screen, and pulling on a dress over my corset. 

“Mostly. You just said I could come talk?” He asks, and leans on one of the posts of my bed as I step out in a light blue dress. He stares at me, then looks away, his arms folded. 

“What do you need to talk about?” I ask, and he shrugs. 

“I don’t know. I just.. I just want to be friends again,” He mumbles, pulling at the tassels hanging on my bed curtains. I nod. 

“What did we do when we were friends, hanging out?” I ask, going, and sitting on the edge of the bed. Caden shrugs. 

“We talked, and read books. It sounds really boring,” Caden mumbles, sitting awkwardly next to me. “I don’t know what I was planning on doing here, Flint says I’m depressed.” He leans on the bed frame with a sigh, closing his blue eyes. I nod, and reach over, taking his hand, and rubbing it. 

“It’ll be okay. I’m here for you,” I tell him. 

◈◈◈◈

Olive smiles brightly at me, patting my hand. I don’t know what I’m doing here. I’m pretty sure that being around her will not help me move on, or get over her. She’s engaged, you idiot. Engaged to someone more powerful than you, someone who deserves her.

“I’m here for you,” She repeats, squeezing my fingers. “And I’m very worried, since you keep doing this.” She reaches over and pulls up my sleeve, her gentle touch to my forearm sending waves of fire through my body. I can’t be here. I think. 

“I am not great at following directions,” I mumble, as she looks down at my scars. 

“Me either, we’re twins I guess,” Olive says, holding up her forearm with all the burns on it. “I have worse ones on my stomach and leg,” She mumbles, chuckling. 

“Yeah, I know,” I mumble, and Olive gives me an odd look, her face pink before she speaks. 

“How… would you know?” She asks. I blush. 

“You wore a bikini once during the competition,” I quickly mumble, and her brows furrow. 

“That doesn’t sound like me,” She says, tilting her head. I shrug. 

“It was probably Angel’s doing, as far as I remember,” I explain. 

“Oh, right. She was always mean to me,” She replies, nodding. 

“If you don’t believe me, there are photos in the news from the pool party, so I did see you in a bikini. I’m not… trying to be weird about this,” I mutter. Olive nods, then stands up. 

“Wait, there are news articles about the competition, that can help me remember!” She says, chuckling. “If I know what I was doing then…” She cheers. She’s going to find articles about us dating if she looks hard enough, this could mean trouble for her engagement. 

“Well, you can’t always believe the press, it twists every sort of story until it’s unrecognizable,” I quickly tell her, my leg starting to bounce up and down. Olive shrugs. 

“I have an instinct, I’ll know if it’s true or not,” She says, waving her hands. “And you can confirm stuff for me, whether it happened or not.” I shake my head, both of my legs quivering. I reach for my arm. “What’s wrong?” She asks, tilting her head, and walking over, pulling my hands apart, and putting her hand on my knee. 

“I… you get a headache when you try to remember,” I explain. “I don’t want you getting sick. Your life is much better now than it was then,” I tell her. 

“How would you know? You weren’t me.” Olive sighs, then bites her lip. “I just want to know what I’m missing. Like when you tutored me back on Metal Island, I just want to know what everyone but me seems to understand.” I nod, my eyes filling with tears. 

“You remember that?” I ask. She nods. 

“You were a bit more cheerful then, but yeah.” She sits down next to me, patting my hand. “It’ll be okay. We’re best friends now,” She holds up her pinkie finger, and I bite the inside of my cheek as I lift mine and they interlock. “I have to go find those articles.” She stands up, and passes a red book on a table. “Oh! I should give this back to you, Harrison said I shouldn’t read it.” She puts the Scarlet Pimpernel into my hand as I get to my feet. 

“Why not?” I ask. 

“Well, he said it’s super inappropriate. And I’d like to keep what innocence I do have,” Olive explains. I look down at the cover. 

“There’s literally nothing of that sort, not even curse words. They maybe say damn once.” I hold up the book. Olive shrugs. 

“Well, I just don’t want to argue with Harrison, and I think I’d prefer fantasy anyway,” She says. “Um, remember, if you need anything, I’m always here,” She says, and walks towards the door, bumping into Captain Dellyn, who is always following around her and Harrison. “Wyatt,” She says quietly. 

He turns to look at me, and I leave the room as he glares, the red book clutched to my chest. He shuts Olive inside and turns to me in the hallway. 

“Stay away from the girl,” He says, and I step back. 

“I’m not going to hurt her,” I argue. “I assure you, I would never harm her.” He grabs my arm, pulling me down the hallway. 

“That’s not what I’m concerned about. She’s engaged, Sir Imperos,” He growls. I blink. 

“I’m not going to do anything in that sense to her either. We’re just friends,” I add, my voice cracking. Dellyn glares at me. 

“Just stay away from her. I will not hesitate to snap your neck if you are a threat to Lord Anders,” He threatens, and I nod, stepping backwards. 

“Right. Sorry,” I turn and walk away quickly. I get to my room, and sit in the falling snow on the balcony, my arms folded. It’s freezing, and I’m only wearing one layer, but I’m having a great time. 

“It’s too cold here,” Julia says, sitting next to me, and sipping from a full bottle of whiskey. 

“That’s not healthy,” I tell her, and she shrugs. 

“Neither is sitting in the middle of a snowstorm,” She says, and passes the bottle in my direction. 

“I’m fine,” I tell her. She nods. I nod back, shivering.