Proposition

Rude Awakening

I was jolted awake for the second time that morning, though this time the call of my name is gentler and the shake isn't as harsh.

With another groan, I rubbed my eyes and glanced down at Ezabella, who had fallen asleep with her head resting on my swollen chest.

I didn't recall falling asleep, the last thing I did remember was grabbing a book and lying down again so that I could read to Ezabella as we cuddled and attempted to keep our minds occupied.

Turning my head to the other side of the bed, I see Loki crouched besides me with his arms resting on top of the mattress.

He looked fine, disheveled with a cut on his right cheek, but otherwise fine.

"There we go," he smiled tiredly while talking in a hushed whisper, "come on, you need to get up."

"Is it over?" I asked, my voice still heavy with sleep.

"Not quite, but over enough for me to be able to get you out of here."

I smiled widely and shifted, reaching over to give Ezabella a shake but Loki caught my wrist in his hand.

"No, I can only take you, someone else will come for her."

"What? Why?"

"It's still not great out there and I am already run down, looking out for one very fragile extra is bad enough but two is a risk I can't take."

With a frown, I glanced down at Ezabella then looked back at Loki.

"Can't we wait until her escort arrives?"

"No, darling, we really don't have time for this."

My eyebrow wants to twitch upwards at the pet name, but I managed to keep my face straight until I forced a smile.

Darling?

Loki never called me anything like that unless he was being playful, but his tone was too soft and the situation was too dire for him to be using a pet name, typically it was something he would do when we were alone and he was trying to coax me into doing something in order to get his own way.

"I would rather stay here until her escort arrives."

"That really isn't an option."

We had a silent stare down and I attempted to see something in his eyes that convinced me to drop my stubbornness and comply, but nothing spurred me to do so and I was beginning to question my own hesitance.

I couldn't put my finger on it, but something didn't feel right.

The air between us grew tense and eventually Loki's expression hardened, his eyes narrowing.

"Fine," he growled while standing.

Loki snapped his fingers and watched with a sickening smirk as the door was thrown open with a harsh bang and three guards in strange, black armour marched inside.

A yell of surprise had barely left me before Ezabella was viciously pulled away from me by one of the guards, who held tightly onto her arm while a second one grabbed the other.

Ezabella hadn't a chance to even wake up and comprehend what was happening before she was being dragged out of the room, she'd only just woken up enough to kick and try to protest before she was taken from my sight.

Her yells of protest gradually disappeared and all fell silent as I was left alone with Loki and the remaining guard.

"What in all of Helheim was that?" I cried, looking at Loki in shock and disbelief.