"You didn't seem happy to be called his lady." Joseph observed as they walked back to her room. The halls were empty for the most part besides a few guards that stood tall against the wall. When she came here undercover with William, she hadn't noticed any of them. Perhaps they doubled up since they realized the prince had neck in right under their noses.
"I'm not his lady. I'm not sure why he said I was." Doris turned the corner. "Prince William has no plans to make me one. He has a lady back at the palace waiting for him and I was only brought as a servant."
Joseph hummed in understanding, but she had a feeling he was only humoring her. "I heard he has had a lot of ladies. Is it normal for a prince to go through so many?"
Doris felt her cheeks redden and suddenly wished she was already locked inside her room and far away from any of these questions-she had no business answering any of them. "I suppose it's normal for him. I wouldn't know, really. Each prince has their own preferences."
She felt a bit of relief crowd her chest when she saw the hallway where her room was. He didn't seem to notice in the slightest as he continued, "It's odd, isn't it? That he can't stay with one lady. He keeps naming women as his lady's and throwing out the last as if they're trash rather than people."
"It's how it works at the palace. Some prince's are happy with their lady's and others go through many and sometimes never decide on one." Doris stopped at her door and waited for him to unlock it. He fumbled with his keys, she eyes another nearby guard that watched her intently and threw out any thought of trying to run while he was distracted. She'd barely make it half way down the hall before one of them would stop her.
"Well, I'd hate to see it happen to you." Joseph said as he pushed open her door and let her inside before he removed her cuffs. "You don't seem like the type anyone would easily throw away."
"You don't have to worry about that. I have no plans on becoming his next lady." Doris breathed and rubbed her wrists. Even though it wasn't tight, it still burned against her skin.
Joseph attached the cuffs to his belt as he looked her over. She shifted her weight onto the other foot and waited for him to leave. "Can I ask you something?"
"Oh-yes. I suppose so."
Joseph glanced back over his shoulder as if to check no one had followed them in before he lowered his voice. "They say you stayed at Lord Enzo's camp for a bit." Doris nodded, he continued. "Did you ever meet Sir Antony?"
"Oh, yes." Doris smiled a little at the reminder. "He was very kind. I didn't want to bother him much when I was there since he seemed to be resting. He'd been through a lot before I came."
"I heard." Joseph frowned a little. "I'm glad to hear he was doing okay. I've never gotten to meet him but he's a legend around here. I heard what the kingdom had done to him and took him as their prisoner."
"He helped me when I was in the prison." Doris said softly. She didn't want to bag on the kingdom, it felt wrong despite all it had put her through. Half her heart was still loyal to the palace even when she wanted to be free of it like they were free of the kingdom.
His brows furrowed. "Why were you in the prison at the kingdom?"
"Oh-I... was wrongly accused." She said before she pressed her lips together. It wasn't wise to give too much information about herself or the palace. Her words only made him appear more confused.
"And Sir Antony helped you? Did he help you escape from them? Is that why you're here?"
"No, I was... I had a few injuries and he healed me. He's not the reason I ended up here. I had no idea who he was when I met him."
Joseph's eyes widened. "So it's true... the founder of the rogues can heal with his blood. I had only heard rumors before-I had no idea how much truth they held."
Doris felt her head spin a little and she could tell Joseph wasn't ready to leave just yet. She seated herself on the edge of her bed. Half of her worried she'd accidentally tell him that William healed her once too, and she knew how much more trouble that would get him in.
Joseph glanced at the door again and seated himself across from her. "I know you must not think the best of the rogues, but we're not as bad as you think."
"I would like to be proven otherwise. So far, I don't think it would be possible." Doris said with a half hearted laugh. There was no way he could try to reason with her when she was a current prisoner.
"You know why we came to the north, don't you?"
"I do now. Enzo had told me the story when I first came."
"Then you know how horribly we were treated by the kingdom. Your prince's father has tried to destroy our peace for years and forced us to obtain a horrible reputation."
Doris sighed and brushed her hair behind her ears. "Tell me why you think the kingdom is so bad if you've never been there. I'm not claiming it's not, I just want to hear what you believe."
"I don't need to have been there to know it's an awful place. I've heard all the stories of what my family and friends' families have been through. Everyone that has come to the north is viewed as the lowest rank no matter what family we're born from in the eyes of the kingdom. They have never had any respect for us our what we've been through, they even try to tax us so heavily to the fact that we could barely feed our families. They're slowly trying to kill us out so there will be nothing left to stand against them."
"They tried to tax you harshly here?" Doris straightened a little. She hadn't heard that, she thought the north was separated from the kingdom.
"They do. One of our last leaders went to reason with them and get them to lower the rates but he was killed as a message to us all. We came here to be free, but they still have a hold on us. Knowing how poor we are here, they only make it worse. Did you notice how half of this building is falling apart?"
Doris nodded slowly. Half looked as if it was one earthquake away from crumbling to the ground. Now she understood why-and why they were desperate to fulfill any bounty on William's head or get a recipe for the cure. It would make them more than enough to cover any sort of tax the kingdom put on them.
"Why are you telling me all of this? Five minutes ago you were asking if I was Prince William's lady."
"Because you claimed you're a maid. I know that any servant at the palace would understand us and the freedom we stand for. We live under another's foot and it's hard to get out from under it." Joseph smiled at her a little before he stood. "I'm sorry for imposing."
"No, no. It's quite alright. I appreciate your honesty and your loyalty to the rogues." Doris stood as well when he turned to the door. "I can hear how passionate you are about where you come from."
Joseph offered a smile before he bowed his head. "I've said more than enough for today. I wish you well, my lady."
Doris parted her lips to correct him, but he was already gone before she could. She plopped down on her bed and stared at the ceiling. She didn't expect William to have actually come back for her. Did he turn back before he'd gotten too far, or did he never truly leave the area?
Why did he even bother when he made it clear that no one cared for her, least of all him? He should celebrate that one of his lovers was taken away so he didn't have to deal with what happened to her rather than chase after her to save again.
A loud bang startled Doris out of her thoughts and right out of bed. She looked around but couldn't tell where it came from. A moment later, she heard it again and the sound of tearing as a window ripped open. Enzo popped his head through the small area and grinned down at her.
"I thought he'd never leave, how are you my love?"