The Tiger Within Chapter 131

The Emperor's Gardens

The Queens were busy preparing for the ceremony . No one noticed the Emperor had gone out into the gardens where the lions rested . His eyes took in the emerald vines and golden flowers that looked as though they caught flame the evening light . The wooden swing slowly drifted back and forth in the wind .

Advertis.e.m.e.ntHis mind drifted back to the day he had it installed . A beautiful wooden swing, delicate and serine, carved for two people to sway together in the sunlight . Eve had always said how perfect this tree was for swinging . The view from this tree was beautiful, it gazed down into the valley below, the forest laid out before them . So many nights she had spent here, alone when he watched her from his study . Then when the children were born she had frequented it with them as well . He watched his son and daughter grown in this little wooden swing .

Not for the first time, The Emperor sat down on the swing and let his mind wander over his choices . Some of them were wrong, and he knew that now . He had done so to protect her… to protect their family in the beginning . Yet somewhere, something went wrong and she needed to be protected from him . Tears p.r.i.c.ked his eyes as he swung his legs slightly to achieve some motion from his lonely perch .

The View to the west of the swing drew his eyes . The cold palace outlined against the sky . A simple garden and little palace that now held the love of his life . Pride warred with his heart as one yearned to go to her, but the other refused to give himself the chance . She had defied him… but he had wronged her . Did he truly have a right to expect her to apologize?

Without thinking further, The Emperor slipped off the swing and began walking . Consciously he was still preoccupied with what he had done . How to face her and fix this . His feet had their own plan as he made his way to the cold palace . Lost in thought, he felt the chill in the air just before the scream erupted shattering the night's calm .

He took off at a full run for the cold palace . The familiar tone of that scream chilled his heart to the core . If she was in danger . . . so far from the main palace…

The bodies of the two Cold Palace guards laid dead on the path . Only increasing the Emperor's speed . As he threw the door open he gasped in surprise .

Beauty Adela was on her knees, holding the Empress's head on her lap . Tears streamed down her face as she tried to wake her mistress . Angry eyes turned on him as she saw him enter . Though she would never say it, he knew she blamed him . Little did she know she could never blame him more than he blamed himself

The Emperor knelt over her searching fo the damage . A b.l.o.o.d.y patch on her dress near the abdomen caught his eyes . He gripped either side of the gash in the soft fabric and ripped it open with all his effort . The whole in her waist was pouring blood . It didn't look like a wound he had seen before .

"Adela Call the Imperial physician, now . " he ordered checking her pulse . Several long moments pa.s.sed with his fingers pressed to the inside of her wrist . For several terrifying breaths there was nothing, his worst fear nearly confirmed but then he found the soft beat . Weak but familiar no feeling had ever been more welcome .

Adie ran out the door as the Emperor poured his aura into her system, trying to strengthen her against this wound . He feared poison, or the damage would take her away . Sweat poured from his brow as he did all he could to help her .

"Why didn't I learn basic healing! . " he growled at himself and her brow wrinkled at his voice . His eyes softened as he smoothed her hair with his hand . "Shhh Eve… Evelyn, it's okay . You will be okay . " He whispered to sooth her . Though he wasn't entirely convinced of his words, he sounded sure . There was no room for uncertainty facing death .