Love Among The Ruins Chapter 5

NADINE'S P.O.V

"What the fuck were you thinking?" Caine hissed, pinning against the wall as soon as I opened the door for him the next morning.

He was lucky that my father was nowhere near us or else it would have been a completely different situation entirely. He wasn't ant to touch , much less this way with his hand against my chest as he kept pinned to the wall of our room.

"Get off ," I tried to push him but it was to no avail. He was much bigger and stronger than I was and he had no intentions of moving. "I'll scream."

That was all it took for him to take a step back but the smoldering look in his eyes didn't ease up. "Do you know what you've done? How could you be so stupid?"

"The people deserved to know the truth."

"Did you really think they would believe you over the general? Over the man who has protected and clothed them their entire lives or did you actually think they didn't know about what was down there."

I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to protect myself from the heat in his eyes. "Maybe he forgot."

He stared at incredulously as if waiting for to tell him that I was joking. When I didn't, he muttered a small curse under his breath and ran his hands down his face in frustration. He paced around the room like soone had lit a fire under his ass before finally turning to .

"Are you this stupid?" he spat and I hated how much his words affected .

I had been called a lot of things in my life but stupid was not one of them. Sure, I was inexperienced and maybe a little naïve but that didn't an I enjoyed being called stupid.

"Don't call that," I mumbled and he threw his hands up in frustration.

"Then don't act like that! Fuck! Do you know what you've done?"

I frowned. "If you're worried about being asked if you were there, you don't have to worry. I can tell them you weren't."

"And have flogged on your behalf? Yeah, no fucking thanks. You have done enough for now. All I want you to do now is shut the fuck up when you're called."

Now, I was confused.

"Called?"

"Did you really think you wouldn't be called after that stunt?" he pulled back from . "Wake up, princess, life isn't as picture perfect as you think it is."

He stord off without another word leaving to wonder what the hell had just happened.

Even with all his one-worded answers and asshole glory, he had never been angry with . What I saw on his face during that conversation was a mixture of fear and anger and I didn't know that soone like Caine could be scared of anything.

He was ripped from head to toe and had the kind of expressions that could send a grown man running but I knew fear, I had seen fear, felt it even and there was no mistaking it, not even on his otherwise stoic face.

The question was, what could make a grown man like him quiver in his boots?

That was the only question running through my mind as I went through my duties for the day. I trained on my own, choosing to ignore Joshua when he tried to speak to . I was still pissed off at him for ignoring , especially when it ended up making seem like a liar in front of everyone.

"Co on, Nadine," he walked up to at the end of training. "Are you really going to act like this? I had to leave. You had a guard, you were safe."

"This isn't about the guard," I turned to him sharply. "It is about you abandoning right after asking to have your stupid babies."

"Don't say that out loud," he looked around sharply, his ears turning pink. "Look, I was just saying that it didn't sound like a bad idea. I wasn't proposing."

"It's a good thing you weren't because the last thing I want is to have kids for a coward."

His cheeks turned red and his lips turned down in a frown. The vein at the side of his head popped and it was clear that he didn't take too kindly to my words. He opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by the sound of the door opening.

Gasps rang through the room and I turned only to find so guards walking in. They weren't like the others, their uniforms were a dark blue color- the general's personal guard. They were easily distinguishable from the others, their nacing frowns and large builds told everything you needed to know.

I watched in horror as they walked over to and spoke in a monotone. "Co with us."

"Where?" I asked pretending to be brave when inside, I was shaking like a leaf.

"The general will see you."

"Why?"

Their frowns deepened. "Co with us, now."

I knew in that mont that they wouldn't be against dragging out of there if I put up too much of a fight so I nodded. My insides churned and my legs shook but I forced my head high and followed them down the halls and towards the general's chambers.

I had never been here before.

I heard rumors about how it was the size of four chambers put together and how he had an indoor Jacuzzi and a pool, but I was grossly disappointed by the small office and the little wooden door that led into what I believed was his bedroom.

Caine was already in the office when I arrived. His hands were clasped at his back and he stood with his spine straight. His eyes t mine and his expression was carefully blank but I could clearly see the warning in his eyes. He was telling to shut the fuck up.

"Thank you for coming," General Trent walked out of what I presud was his bedroom. "I hope you weren't busy when I sent for you. I deliberately tid your schedules."

I shook my head, choosing to stay quiet like Caine had told .

General Trent sat in his chair leaving Caine and I standing. I wasn't sure if it was a power move or if he just didn't have enough chairs. It could be either with him, I wasn't sure. I was never able to get a read on the kind of person he was. He always seed very elusive and he was different but not in a good way.

"I hope you don't mind being called here, I just had to know, Nadine. Perhaps there was sothing you heard that we didn't yesterday. I would hate to have people in danger because of ."

My first instinct was to tell him the truth, it was at the tip of my tongue but I couldn't help but rember Caine's words from earlier. He said they had to have known, he said they were deliberately keeping us in the dark.

I risked a glance at him but he wasn't looking at .

"Nadine?" Trent asked, causing to turn to him again. "Please, feel safe here."

"I don't know," I said finally. "I could have sworn I heard sothing but now that I've slept on it. I realize it may have just been my mind. I haven't seen a power outage in a while. I was just scared is all."

He pursed his lips before turning to Caine. "What do you say, guard? Is there sothing that she could have heard?'

Caine shrugged. "I was trying to get her to safety. I was more focused with maneuvering my way in the dark. I didn't hear anything."

"You both wouldn't be lying to , would you?"

My stomach churned but I shook my head. "No, sir."

The air stretched thing with silence and I swallowed thickly. It felt wrong to lie but sohow, I just knew it was what I had to do. I blad Caine, if he had never told what he did this morning, none of this would have happened.

"Well then, since it has been settled, you may leave," I started to go when he stopped . "Nadine, a second, please."

Caine imdiately stopped in his tracks. His movents ceased and he glanced over at and General Trent.

"You may go, guard," Trent said without missing a beat but Caine didn't move imdiately.

For a second that seed to stretch into what felt like hours, he stared at , almost as if he were contemplating staying. At the last minute however, he turned on his heels and walked out leaving Trent and I alone in the office.