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then , she would stop and hand an assistant something specific. Leila watched what was happening but was not sure she was correct in her thoughts. In Lexia , engaged women pierce d their ears and w ore ornate jewelry to announce their engagement . Nalick was marking his intentions. Leila stood up. All six people in the room looked at her.
    “Kay, we are leaving,” Leila turned to go out the door.
    Before Kay had a chance to stand, one of the men placed both of his hands on her shoulder s and forced her to stay sitting. The two other men acted at the same time to hold Leila back down in her chair. Caught off guard and w ith her hands tied to her waist, Leila was unable to fight back efficiently. She had not assumed the men were there to fight.
    “The king has ordered you be prepared for your upcoming wedding,” the red - haired woman explained.
    “Then why are you holding Kay here as well ,” Leila demanded.
    “I was told that the king plans to marry both of you,” the woman continued. Leila’s heart sank. Was Nalick truly a man who would not only force one , but two women to marry him? Leila struggled to try to free her self from the two men.
    “I was told you were a fiery one . Everyone in the palace was told that they could not harm you for any reason , no matter how disrespectful you were, but the king never said anything about punishing her.” The woman walked over and forced Kay’s hands onto the table. The man holding Kay down placed her hands palm side up as the woman st r uck Kay’s hands with the lash she had just pulled out of the bag. Leila continued to struggle as the two men held her in her chair.
    “You will learn some manners,” the older woman said to Leila. Kay closed her eyes but did not make a sound as the woman whipped her hands five times. When she was done, the woman walked over to Leila. “You will learn that we all follow the king’s orders, no matter who we are.” Leila continued to struggle.
    Kay opened her eyes. “Leila, please stop. It is okay. I am fine,” Kay lied to her friend to try to calm her down , although her hands were red with welts beginning to form.
    “Let go of me,” Leila said angrily to the men still holding her in her chair. “ I have never killed a person before, but there is a first time for everything.” Both men did not hesitate as they immediately released her. Leila walked over to the door and opened it. Theo and Macarius were not outside the door, but a new guard was there.
    “Where is Nalick?” Leila demanded of the startled guard.
    “Um, at this time of the day, um,” the guard looked at Leila’s face and was beginning to get scared. “He should be in his office, on the fourth floor of the royal wing,” the young guard began to explain.
    Leila knew where she was going. She took off down the hall as the young guard stood near the door wondering what he should do. There were two prisoners . W hich one he should follow was the question , but before he could decide Leila was out of his sight. On her way up the staircase, Theo came down the stairs. He was so startled to see Leila coming up that he just stopped and let her pass by. After Theo realized Leila was alone, he hurried to catch up with her. Leila climbed the stairs two at a time and was soon on the fourth floor. Theo followed close behind, but did not try to stop her. From the look in her eyes, Theo had a good guess where Leila was head ing, and he didn’t want to bear the brunt of her anger. Leila took a sharp left at the fourth floor door and pushed past the guards that stood in the doorway. N ear ing Nalick’s office, she noticed a figure at the end of the hall standing on the balcony. I t was him. She walked down the hall quickly.
    “How dare you!” Leila yelled at him.
    Nalick slowly turned around , unfazed by the angry Leila that stood before him.
    “This is the best time of the day,” Nalick said , turning back to look out the balcony over the city. “The city gets this deep