Beast in Shining Armor (8 page)

“Haven’t
you?”

She
shook her head.  “There’s so much else we have to focus on.  We have to get
through this labyrinth and one of us will take over the kingdom and,” she
hesitated, “there’s also the
other
thing.”

“What
other thing?”

Belle
bit down on her lower lip, which just wasn’t fair to his sanity.  “I have a
straight flush.”  She laid it on the rock in front of her.

“Two
pair.”  Avenant showed her his cards.  “You win.”  For once, losing didn’t
bother him.  This wasn’t the real game.  He waited for her to talk to him. 
Belle wasn’t one to keep things bottled up.  She’d been brooding about this
“other thing” all day.  He wanted to know what it was and she wanted to tell
him.  One of the best parts about being mixed-up with someone Good was they
were lousy at keeping secrets.

Belle
hesitated.  “I’ve been trying to figure something out, but…”  She shook her
head.  “Any way I figure it, I come up with the same conclusion: Someone set me
up to go after you.”

Avenant
frowned.  “What?”

“About
a year ago, I was lying in my bed and I heard a noise downstairs.”

Even
though her tone wasn’t an accusation, Avenant felt the need to defend himself. 
“I didn’t have anything to do someone attacking you, Belle.  I would
never
…”

“Just
shut-up and listen.”  She interrupted, sweeping her hair back.  “I was in my
bed and I heard a noise, so I got up and went to investigate.  You know how the
upstairs balcony in my house sort of overlooks the foyer?”  She didn’t bother
to wait for an answer.  “Well, I saw three big guys, dressed in black, coming
through my front door.”

Avenant’s
jaw ticked.

“They
saw me, too.”  She continued.  “I ran back to my room, but they were right
behind me.  I have pepper spray on my nightstand, because I live alone.  So, I
was going for that.  It was the only thing I could think of.”

“You
should have thought of getting out of the fucking house.”

“I
told you to shut-up.”  She reminded him.  “I didn’t get to the pepper spray. 
Obviously.  The biggest guy caught me and he threw me onto the mattress, with
his hand over my mouth.”

“Christ.” 
Avenant sincerely hoped that man wasn’t dead. 
He
wanted to be the one
to kill the bastard.  It was like a physical
need
inside of him.  The
Beast howled and struggled to get free.  Any threat to Belle set it off. 
Avenant had to fight for control, although he suddenly wondered why he
bothered.  He wanted the monster to ravage the men who’d attacked Belle.

No
one touched what was his and lived.

“He
pinned me down on the bed.”  Belle went on.  “And he said so clearly, ‘Prince
Avenant says to stop digging into the missing money or next time you won’t wake
up.’  Those were his exact words.”

A
fury like he’d never know boiled up inside of him.

Belle
kept going with her story.  “Then, he hit me and I guess I passed out.  When I
came to, I was tied to a tree five miles from home.  It took me hours to get
free.  Then, I had to walk through the snow barefoot and in my pajamas.  And
the whole time I was freezing my ass off, all I could think about was how you’d
sent men to threaten and kidnap me.  And
that
is when I decided to take
your crown.”  She let out a long breath.  “I’m sorry.”

Avenant
squinted.  “
You’re
sorry?”

“It
wasn’t you who did it.  I see that now.  They wanted me to believe it was and to
go after you.”  She pinched the bridge of her nose.  “At the time, though, I
was just so
mad
that I wasn’t thinking straight.  I’d never imagined
you’d hurt me.  All of our fights and you’d never raised a hand to me.  Not
ever
.”

Of
course he hadn’t.  Not even the Beast would unleash its strength on Belle.  It
went against every instinct in his body.  Avenant and the monster both
treasured the woman.

When
she’d outsmarted him for the final time and come to arrest him, he’d known he
had to defend himself or be chained.  But, even then Avenant had refused to use
force against Belle.  Instead, he’d raised his palms and let himself be taken. 
The Beast had subsided with a cornered snarl, not even trying to seize
control.  There hadn’t been a choice for either of them.

He’d
sworn he could hear his father screaming from beyond the grave that day.

Belle
sighed.  “I felt so
betrayed
when it seemed like you’d sent those guys
to attack me, just to protect your stolen money.”  She gave an awkward shrug. 
“I don’t know why I felt that…”

He
cut her off.  “You felt betrayed, because you know what’s between us is more
important than gold.  You expect me to know it, too.  And I
do
, Bella.” 
He knew it better than she did.

“I’m
sorry.”  She said, again.

Whatever
resentment he’d been clinging to faded away.  He could never look at her and
stay mad.  Sitting in jail had pissed him off, but it didn’t do a damn thing to
alter his need for her.  He’d tried hating her for setting him up with that
embezzlement bullshit.  Tried telling himself that he’d been wrong about their
connection.  Tried forgetting about her and freezing the emotions right out of
his chest.  But it was like trying to shut off the sun.  His feelings for Belle
were indestructible.

No
matter how cold he got, he always felt her warmth.

“It’s
alright.”  Avenant heard himself say.  “Just so you know I would
never
send men terrorize you.”  He shifted closer to her.  “Not for any reason.  Do
you believe me?”

Chocolate
brown eyes stayed on his.  All his life, the color had soothed him.  “I believe
you.”  Belle whispered.  “Do you believe me?  About the rest of it, I mean.”

“Yes.”

“Good.” 
She exhaled in relief.  “Because, it’s the truth.  There were men in my house
saying
you
sent them.  I have no idea why, but I think we should find
out.”

“Oh,
I intend to track them down and discuss all sorts of things.  Don’t you worry
about that.”  It wasn’t even the framing him part that pissed him off. 
Everyone Avenant knew hated him.  It was only to be expected.  But,
nobody
came at him through Belle and survived.

She
hesitated.  “So you’re going to do something beastly to these guys?”

“Absolutely.” 
The Beast purred at the very idea.

Belle’s
mouth slowly curved.

Her
small grin dulled the raw edges of his rage.  “You don’t like it when I’m
Bad.”  He reminded her.  “You want a knight in shining armor.”

“I
just love the idea of letting you loose on someone who actually earned the pain.” 
Belle wrinkled her nose.  “That’s probably really hypocritical, but I don’t
care.  They deserve anything you do to them.”  She let out another shaky breath
and glanced away.  “They scared me.”  She admitted like she was ashamed of that
fact.

“Anyone
would’ve been scared, Belle.”

“
You
wouldn’t have.  You could’ve just waved your hand and they would’ve been frozen
forever.”

He
wouldn’t have been scared for himself, but he was completely terrified of
someone harming Belle.  It had always been his greatest fear.  She was so soft
and without her in his life…  “I would’ve been scared.”  Avenant murmured.

She
gave him another small smile.  “You’re nice to say that.”

“I
don’t know how to be nice.”  He assured her.  “Listen, those guys who
terrorized you?  They don’t know what fear really is.”  He dipped his head so
his eyes could meet hers.  “They will.”  It was a vow.

Belle
bit her lower lip, again.  “Thank you.”

Avenant
managed a nod, his mind already planning three executions.

Actually
four
.

Someone
had sent those assholes to attack Belle.  Someone had told them to hit her.  To
kidnap her.  To pin her down and put a hand over her mouth, so she was unable
to cry for help.  Belle was Good straight down to her soul.  She couldn’t even
bear to look at that asshole Pumpkin-Eater’s cracked gourd.  She was no match
for three armed men.  Someone had ordered those guys to overpower and frighten
her, because they thought she was defenseless.  Someone had preyed on her
vulnerability.

And
that someone was going to die screaming.

Rosabella
Aria Ashman might be hopelessly, frustratingly, beguilingly soft… but she had a
goddamn beast guarding her.  Avenant would shred anyone who harmed Belle,
without a drop of remorse.  Everyone in the kingdom knew that and, if they
didn’t, they were about to learn.

Graphically.

“I
mean it.”  She pressed when he didn’t say anything.  “Thank you for wanting to
help me, despite everything.”

He
closed the last distance between them, his body brushing against hers.  “You’re
welcome, my love.”  He murmured.

She
never had to thank him for protecting her, though.  The drive went deeper than
anything else inside of him.  The woman drove him insane, but Belle was a part
of him.  She was the heart he hadn’t been born with, beating outside of his
body.  Avenant smoothed her hair back from her cheek, his eyes on hers.

Belle
blinked up at him like she was in a trance.  “It’s a bad idea.”  She got out
breathlessly.

“Probably.” 
Avenant agreed and lowered his head towards hers.  “But, I’m a Bad guy.”

Belle
didn’t move away from him, her eyes going wide.  Every time they got this far
she looked panicked, but she never ran.  On some level, she knew they were
inevitable.  “What about the other girl?”  She blurted out.

He
almost sighed at how completely blind she was to the truth.  Being Good must be
like living with your head in a box.  “What other girl?”

“Well,
I mean, I know I told you it would be smart to give her up, but…”  Those
incredible eyes met his, looking apprehensive.  “Are you sure you
can? 
I’ve
never known you to just forget about something you want.”

He
tried not to smile.  Belle was right.  He would
never
forget his True
Love.  She would be the last thought he had in this world and the first one he
had in the next.  “You’re the only woman I can ever remember.”  Belle had been
his entire universe from the second he first spotted her across the
kindergarten classroom.  Avenant had looked at her studious little face and
he’d just… known.  “Bella…”

“
Move!
” 
Esmeralda the wicked witch came tearing around the corner at a dead run.  Her
curly black hair was in a wild disarray, her green skin pale.  “Avenant, we
gotta go!”

Belle
jumped to her feet like she’d been caught doing something wrong.

Avenant
bit back an oath.  “What the hell are you doing here, Ez?”  He demanded in
frustration.

“Saving
your ass!”  She shrieked.  “Except the music just pissed him off and I think
he’s immune to magic!”

“Do
you know that woman?”  Belle asked in confusion.  “What’s she talking about?”

“I
have no idea what she’s ranting about, but that’s Esmeralda.  She was locked-up
with me in the WUB Club.”

Esmeralda
had been part of the prison break, too, so it didn’t take a genius to figure
out that she was the one Scarlett had sent into the labyrinth to “help.” 
Avenant could’ve flipped opened the phone book, pointed at the first name he
came across, and come up with a better person to be his backup.  The witch was
annoying on the level of flesh eating viruses and electroshocks to the eyeball.

And
she had the worse fucking timing in the world.

Why
did these interruptions always happen to him?

“Can
we catch up later?”  Esmeralda shouted.  “He’s right behind me!”

“Goddamn
it, I was right in the middle of something important…”  Avenant’s words were
cut off by the explosion.  A fireball the size of a refrigerator blasted a hole
in an ice wall further down the down the corridor.  “Holy shit!”  Chunks of ice
and gallons of water sprayed through the air at supersonic speeds.  “What was
that?”  He roared.

“A
really pissed off minotaur.”  Esmeralda sprinted passed them.  “Time to
run,
people.”

Belle was
sweet little girl.  A bit of an oddball, but a very Good student.

She tried
hard to be a proper young lady.

It was
always the Beast who pushed her into those terrible fights.

Testimony
of Old Mother Hubbard, Seventh Grade Teacher
- The People of the Northlands
v. Prince Avenant

Sixteen
Years Ago

On
the day she turned fourteen, Belle stormed up the marble steps of the castle
with one birthday wish in her heart.

A
uniformed guard opened the huge door for her as she approached.  She wasn’t
sure if it was simply royal protocol or if Avenant had told them to expect her. 
Probably the later.

He
knew
she’d be showing up.

She
slammed straight through the cold, ornate rooms of the palace and into the
courtyard.  It was one of the Northland’s rare days of summer and dozens of
partygoers were taking advantage of the warm weather.  A huge waterslide had
been set up, along with several massive inflatable pools.  Water guns sprayed
and people laughed and three barbeques grilled up hotdogs for a line of kids in
swimsuits.

Tears
burned her eyes.  Avenant had done this just to spite her.

“Hey,
Belle.”  Peter Piper came dashing over, his bathing trunks a vivid shade of
purple.  If Northlands High was a movie, Peter would’ve played the computer
nerd.  He was a pudgy boy with a talent for math and an addiction to pickled
peppers.  “I didn’t expect to see you here.”  He had the grace to look slightly
abashed.  “Um… Happy birthday.”

“Thanks.” 
She said dully.

“I
was going to come to your party, too.”  Peter nodded.  “Really.  Like maybe in
half-an-hour or so.  I just wanted to check this one out first.”  He gestured
over his shoulder.  “Avenant’s paying some guy just to make
water balloons
. 
I didn’t know there
were
professional water balloon makers.  It’s unreal.” 
He hesitated, spotting at the gallon-sized cardboard cylinder she was
carrying.  “Hey, is that ice cream?”

Belle
ignored him, her eyes scanning the crowd.  The crowd who should’ve been at
her
party, except Avenant had hijacked them.  Her parents had hired a DJ, and
decorated the house with miles of sparkly streamers, and bought her a cake five
layers high to share with all her friends.  Only no one had shown up.

Not
one single person.

Her
parents were baffled.  Nothing like this had ever happened to
them
.  They
threw parties all the time and
everyone
came.  They’d patted her head
and told her the invitations must have gotten lost, but she’d seen the pity in
their eyes.  They all knew the truth.  Belle’s party hadn’t been important to
anybody, because
Belle
wasn’t important to anybody.  Not even her
parents, since they’d gone out to some art show opening and left her alone with
fifteen gallons of melting ice cream.

It
didn’t matter.  Belle’s sights were fixed on vengeance, not self-pity.

Right
from the beginning, she’d known Avenant must have sabotaged her birthday. 
Whenever anything went wrong, she always suspected he was behind it and she was
always right.  Two minutes of investigating her email had revealed that he’d
invited the entire school to an impromptu pool party at the palace that
morning.  Obviously, RSVPs to Belle’s birthday meant nothing compared to a wave
machine.

She
didn’t really blame the others.  It was hard for Belle to make friends.  She
was kind of an oddball, who liked reading far more than gossiping on a
telephone about boys.  Most of the people she knew were acquaintances.  She was
nice to people, but she wasn’t particularly close with anyone.  Of course, a
huge reason for that was Avenant.  People would much rather be his friend and
everyone knew he hated her.  They tended to steer clear, afraid of being caught
in the crossfire.

“Belle.” 
The Prince of Darkness must have been waiting for her.  He came loping over,
shirtless and wet and disgustingly chipper.  And handsome.  Lately she’d been
noticing how damn handsome he was and that made her even angrier.  “There you
are.”  He looked her up and down, taking in her yellow party dress.  “You look
pretty.”  He had the audacity to smile at her.

She
despised him.  “I got your invitation.”  She bit off.

“Good. 
I thought maybe there was breakdown in communication between our houses or
something.”  He gave a mock frown.  “People have been telling me that
you
were having a party today, too.  But I knew that couldn’t be true, because
I
didn’t get an invitation.  You couldn’t have invited
everyone else
in
the school and not me.”

“Yes,
I could.”  Belle assured him.  “In fact, I
did
.  I’d gladly have no
party at all before I let you come to it.”

Whatever
Avenant had been expecting her to say, that wasn’t it.  His smirk faded.

“I
got the invitations to both parties.”  Peter piped up.

Avenant
slanted Peter a look and Belle realized the other boy was still standing beside
her.  Avenant’s gaze went back and forth between them, his face growing hostile. 
“What are you doing hanging around, Piper?”  He demanded.

“Talking
to Belle.  I’m just here for another half-hour or so.  Then, I’m going to her
party.”

“My
party is over.”  Belle told him flatly.

“Really?” 
Peter blinked.  “’Cause, I got you a gift.”

“She
doesn’t want it.”  Avenant growled and glowered over at Belle.  “You had
him
on the guest list and not me?”

“I
like
him and not you.”

“You
like me?”  Peter sounded awed.  “Wow.  I totally like you too, Belle!  I think
you’re the most beautiful…”

“Get
lost.”  Avenant’s voice went dark and Belle could’ve sworn his eyes glowed electric
blue for a beat.  “
Now
, while you can still walk.”

Peter’s
eyes widened at the deadly tone.  The Beast of the Northlands was on a very
short leash and everyone knew what would happen when it snapped.  He’d ruin
lives without a drop of remorse.  It was why they’d come to his stupid party,
just as much as the gigantic water cannon.  If you defied Avenant you were
lucky if you lived to regret it.

“We
can talk later, Belle.”  Peter went scurrying off.

Avenant
scowled after him.  “Fucking little toad better enjoy this party, because it’s
the last one he’ll ever attend.”

Belle
glared at him.  “Peter’s harmless.  Leave him alone.  This is between you and
me.”

“It’s
not my fault he just committed social suicide.  I never even
noticed
that
twerp before he went and said that to you right in front of me.”

“You’ve
got
everybody
else on your side.”  She waved a hand at all Avenant’s
guests.  “
Everybody
here wants to be your friend.  You can’t even let me
have Peter?”

“Friends?” 
He scoffed.  “Please.  Like I’d ever be friends with these peasants.”  He
arched a brow.  “Your precious Peter is here because he’s weak.  He skipped
your
party to come to
mine
, because he knows what’ll happen if he crosses me. 
That’s
how much he likes you.  You
really
think he’s your friend?”

Avenant
was right.  She knew that.  Honestly, she didn’t even like Peter that much. 
The boy was just her study-buddy in math class.  That really wasn’t the point,
though.  “Peter’s the only one who’s wished me happy birthday today.”  She
said.  “So, right now, I think he’s probably the best friend I have.”  It was
depressing, but true.

Avenant’s
jaw ticked.  “He’s not your friend.  You invited all these people to your
birthday and they didn’t come.  If
I
was your friend,
I
would be
at your party and not here.”

“Except
you’re
not
my friend.  You’re the one who threw
this
party.”

He
shrugged.  “You didn’t give me a reason not to.”

“How
about the fact that it’s my birthday and you spoiled it for no reason, at all? 
My parents think I’m a loser, thanks to you!”  She didn’t want to give him the
satisfaction of showing him how upset she was, but the words burst free.  “Even
the caterer felt sorry for me, Avenant.  He told them there wouldn’t be a
charge and I could tell they were embarrassed to even know me.  We
never
bring parents into this.”  That was one of the unwritten rules of their war. 
It had been ever since the spelling bee.

Avenant
frowned.  “I didn’t really think about your parents…”

“Of
course you didn’t!”  She interrupted.  “You never think about anything but
yourself!”

“Hey,
you’re
the one who turned these parties into weapons.  I invited you to
mine, didn’t I?  But, you thought it was fine to snub
me
.  This is all
on you, Belle.”

“I
didn’t invite you, because I knew you’d ruin everything!  Which you
have,
just
like you
always
do.  You’re a selfish, mean jerk and I wish I’d never
met you!”

Pushed
to the brink, she hefted the carton of ice cream she still carried and threw it
at him.  She’d been planning to do it all along, but the result was even better
than she could’ve imagined.  The entire gallon of Strawberry Delight had melted
into a thick pink liquid.  When the cardboard cylinder slammed into his chest,
it detonated like one of those professionally-made water balloons.  Ice cream
exploded all over him.

For
a moment there was nothing but silence.  It seemed like even the music blasting
from the poolside speakers went quiet.  Everyone gaped at Belle and Avenant in
horror.

Waiting.

Even
Belle was a little shocked by what she’d done.  She’d just doused the prince with
ice cream in his own palace.  No way was he going to let this go.  People had
disappeared forever for doing less.  Her heart was pounding so hard everyone
could probably hear it in the eerie stillness.

Avenant
looked down at the sticky goo covering him and very slowly raised his eyes back
to hers.  “Get out.”

Belle
swallowed.  She wasn’t backing down, but she
was
willing to declare victory
and leave the field before the battle got even more intense.  “Gladly.”

“Not
you. 
Them
.”  Avenant’s glare swept over the dozens of guests. 
“Everybody
out.
”

There
was a stampede for the door.  Under other circumstances it would’ve been almost
comical.  Avenant told them to show up at his party and they were all too
intimidated to refuse.  He told them to leave the party and they were all too
intimidated to stay.  Everyone in the whole kingdom kowtowed to the bastard,
but not because they wanted to.  They were just terrified.  In that moment,
Belle didn’t even blame them.

Avenant’s
gaze stayed locked on Belle as the courtyard emptied out.  It only took a
matter of minutes to find themselves alone.

Belle
kept her attention on the cruel angles of his face, refusing to be intimidated. 
“I’m not sorry.”  She told him, braced for all sorts of Badness.  “And I’m not
scared of you.”

“I
know you’re not.”  He gave his hand a shake, trying to clear the ice cream from
his fingers.  “You’re not smart enough to be scared.”

“Not
smart enough?!  My GPA is two-tenths of a point higher than yours, so…
Hey!
” 
Her retorted ended in a yelp as Avenant picked her up and tossed her in the
pool.  “You maniac!”  She sputtered, coming to the surface.  “What if I
couldn’t swim?  Did you even think of that?”

“Then,
I’d jump in to save you.”  To illustrate his point, he hopped into the water
beside her.  His eyes swept over her soaked form, lingering on the front of her
dress.  The wet fabric was clinging to her body.  “That’s more like it.”  He
grinned like he’d somehow gotten exactly what he wanted.  “This party idea is
working out better than I thought.”

Belle
crossed her arms over her chest, although she didn’t know why she bothered.  She
wasn’t well-endowed enough for him to see much of interest.  “I hate you so
much, I can’t even think of anything mean enough to say.”

Avenant
casually rinsed the ice cream from his skin.  “Oh, I’m pretty sure you can come
up with something.  You always do.”

For
the good of science, some doctor should cut Avenant open and figure out what
had gotten twisted inside of him to make him such a despicable person.  “If I
had powers, I would drown you, right now.”  She headed for the edge of the
pool.

“If
you had powers, you would’ve killed me years ago.”  He paddled over to her.  “Come
on, don’t be a sore loser.  You just got here.  We have a whole barbeque thing
going on and you have to eat.  It might as well be with me.”

“I’d
rather eat beside a rabid dog.”

“I’ll
take you to see the stables, then.  We have twenty-six horses.  You can have
one as a birthday gift and we’ll forget all about how you tried to screw me
over today.”