When he entered the office, Jeremy was already waiting for him. He looked eager to tell him something.

Dalion hoped he would say she was just a regular girl from the city. He didn't care if she was from the countryside.

"Jeremy, have you looked into the maid?"

He asked while heading to his desk.

"I did"

With a vibrant voice, Jeremy said.

"I could find nothing about her. Mirna the head maid doesn't even remember having hired her. It is as if she appeared out of thin air"

The butler looked very excited about not having found anything about the new maid. He sure felt a great mystery unraveled in front of him.

With stars in his eyes, he continued his tale.

"I tried to ask others and they don't seem to know anything neither, other than she is quiet and reserved...There are no documents about her of any kind, not even in orphanages"

Dalion's suspicions became real. Could she indeed be his bother's spy?

But Sebastian for sure would have sensed some malice around her if it was the case. He didn't detect any ill intent on her side, quite the opposite.

Was she that good of a deceiver, many times the ones you suspect the least are the most dangerous.

He did not take his brother as being able to assess characters so well. Has he gotten better?

She had healing powers, for sure. Was Sebastian aware of it? Was it the reason the mage took her under his wing and then sent her towards his care?

Did she deceive Sebastian and Tiago as well?

Tiago would have known immediately if she were to be a spy. That kid's hobby was to read people's minds to the point he didn't need to distress others to get even deeper inside.

"Have you talked to Sebastian about the maid again?"

"No, my majesty"

"I understand, you are dismissed then."

Jeremy seemed to want to talk more, but too many thoughts about so many scenarios just wouldn't let him think straight.

He could not take her out of his head. He wanted to believe in Sebastian's good judgment of character.

He wished his brother did not send her.

Why did he care so much about a mere stranger?

Even though she was a healer, he didn't care.

The palace possessed a great healer who could completely take away his pain, but his touch bothered Dalion regardless of how good he was. Always brought back memories from the past.

The touch of that wretched healer was useful, but felt too uncomfortable to him, just like any of the other healers before that.

So why the touch of this novice calmed him without effort. She didn't even fully take away his pain in any way. His headache stayed. Still, he longed for more.

It’s been a while since anybody had grabbed his attention.

He should not be deceived by her. If she were to be a traitor, he needed to find out.

He could not let his selfishness take his reason. Before anything, he was a ruler. Nothing about him should be more important than his people.

********

The next day he laid down in the dark again, waiting for her

Dalion felt she her arrival as she stood in the hall. He felt how nervous she was, hesitating to knock on the door.

"come in"

Is she nervous because of me? Is she nervous why?

How could it be true that an innocent-looking thing could be so conning to look so scared before him?

Did she take advantage of a hopeful old man and a naïve young man?

"Did Sebastian train you to be a healer?"

"yes" she responded while looking down

"and tell me... where are you from?

"From merician, your majesty"

she said her parents were merchants, but if it were to be true, there would be papers about them sending her to be a servant in the castle.

She was speaking in such a small broken voice; he sensed her laying, he would not let her lie any more.

"Don't lie to me!"

He got up and walked towards the frightened maid.

Why did she look so clueless? It annoyed him; so with force he pinned her to the wall. He wanted to know.

"Who are you?!"

she kept insisting on not knowing

"Did my brother send you?"

He felt her shaking and fear, he could not let her go and pressed harder.

"I looked for information about you, but there is nothing"

Finally, she spoke.

"I ... I am not from here,"

what does she mean?

"where are you from?"

She kept begging and said strange things

Now she left him no choice he needed to read her.

That place was noisy, full of strange sounds that were hard to describe since he heard nothing close to it. Unusual buildings and fast carriages he has never seen before were filling the black roads.

So many moving pictures and lights everywhere. He did not like it.

He could see her alone hiding emotionless in between books, walking alone in the halls.

Suddenly screams filled his ears as something hit him hard on his cheek.

It was a man standing on top of her," why won't you and your mother leave me alone already"

She just took it without a fight. It was as if she was used to it and expected it like it was normal.

"Rizzie, you will kill us if you don't obey! Do you want us to die?"

Said a woman with a deranged look on her face.

Dalion could no stand to see anymore.

It was too familiar; he let her go.

He was startled by what he saw, till her heavy breathing took him out of his deep thought.

"Rizzie..."