14: His strength and weakness

"I am not immune to such fears, Adnan," the King paid him attention. "I am the king but when I take off my crown I become a man like everyone else," he added.

Adnan froze.

It occurred to him, the king can hear his thoughts. He had goosebumps all over his skin. His throat ran dry.

"I work hard to be good enough for Soren. I am afraid that a day will come when my efforts are insufficient and he ends up leaving my side," the king admitted.

Soren was his strength and weakness. He was the one person that made him feel ordinary. That made the crown on his head feel useless. Soren didn't care for his wealth or title and did not need it. The man was with him because of love.

But love was a fleeting feeling that didn't last forever. At some point, Javier knew Soren's eyes will waver and catch someone else eyes. His interest will sway to someone else and he will be left utterly alone with a void in his heart that will impossible to fill.

"He doesn't care for my crown so I have to work hard on myself to keep his interest. I know he likes me just the way I am but I can't help feeling insecure all the time," Javier confessed. "So don't think that I am without fear."

Adnan listened.

"Other than the fear of being sent back to your master and offending me. What else scares you?" the king asked changing the topic. He once again clung to Adnan's hand.

Adnan didn't have to think to come up with an answer. As a slave, everything terrified him. Letting out the wrong words, thinking careless thoughts, and dreaming of freedom were things that could get him killed.

"I'm scared that I will never be free to be my own person," he dared to express. The king threw him a childish confused look.

"If you got your freedom, would you cease to be afraid?" Javier dared to indulge the boy. Adnan nodded his head. Freedom would take away all his worries and leave him at peace. "Serve me well and I'll grant your wish," the king uttered.

Adnan's eyes widen with disbelief. His first day in the palace and the king was already promising him freedom. His heart felt warm. A fuzzy feeling crept inside him dispersing all the fear that had taken root in his heart. A tear of joy trickled down his cheek. Happy and excited to have gotten the chance to meet the king.

Who would have known that being sold off would be the first step to achieving all his dreams?

Javier laid his head on Adnan's shoulder. He listened to the sound of Adnan's heartbeat. The rhythm calmed his mind.

He siphoned warmth from Adnan to stabilize his panicked soul. Today was one of those days when his insecurities shot up more than ever. Javier was threatened by Adnan's presence and feared the boy would take his place in Soren's heart. He gave Soren a reason to leave his hand, a part of him worried it might be the first step to their relationship coming to an end.

"Where are we headed?" Adnan questioned. They kept walking around the palace without a destination in mind.

"I want to go somewhere where I am not king," Javier expressed subconsciously. Adnan didn't know a place like that. Arendar was at Javier's feet and beyond the borders of Arendar there wasn't a soul that didn't know of him.

"Your majesty," they were interrupted by an unknown man. The King opened his eyes and glanced at his marshal. "What is it?" he asked in irritation.

"I've received orders of the war. Five of our best soldiers have been dispatched to scout Zarlos," the marshal informed.

The king furrowed his eyebrows. He had given no such orders. He agreed to proceed with claiming Zarlos however he had not decided on when it was all going down. As king, the decision remained his alone.

"Who gave you such orders?" he called. His blood boils at the audacity of someone in the palace to dare and undermine him as king.

"Lord Soren did, Sire," the marshal gave an account. The king was taken aback. The fight with Soren replayed in his mind. He was filled with guilt. "He informed us that he will be the one leading us to battle," the marshal declared.

"You've been misinformed, Soren won't be joining the fight this time," Javier spoke up. It was a mistake to decide on the male. A mistake he intended to correct to avoid losing him. "Inform the others not to expect Soren to make an appearance," he ordered.

Javier closed his eyes and sighed. There was a hammering in his head that drove him crazy. Causing him to have outlandish thoughts.

"Why not?" he heard the marshal's voice. The king lost it. In a blink of an eye, he had let go of Adnan's hand and had flipped the marshal off his feet and off the lanai. Holding him by the hand as the man dangled in the air off the third floor of the palace.

"From this height, you won't die but will break a few bones. How dare you question my orders?!" the long barked. Colors dancing in his pupils, as his eyes focused on the marshal. "Are you courting death?" he asked in a soft almost nonexistent voice with a mischievous smile stretching on his lips.

"Your majesty, forgive me," the marshal pleaded. Looking down at the ground he couldn't help but smile. Yet when his eyes cast back to the king he wore a helpless look that made him appear weak and frail.

"Why should I do that?"

"Because I'm too tired to fight you," the man uttered. "Pull me up."

"Soren?" the king hastily pulled him up. "What the hell? I could have killed you," Javier struggled to catch his breath.

"You could have tried," The male spoke taking his original form. Adnan's jaw dropped. It was the first he had seen of someone transforming their appearance to look like someone else.

"Amazing," Adnan exclaimed.

"You aren't mad at me?" Javier anxiously questioned Soren.

"I'm hungry," Soren said dramatically throwing his body onto the king. Javier caught him and laughed at Soren's childish actions. "If you don't find me something to eat, I'll have no choice but to eat you," he let out in a seductively husky voice.

"I told the cook not to make food for us today," Javier confessed.