"I'm calling the squires to bring in the bathwater and food. You need to wash up and eat," Kyren said as he moved to the table at the bedside.
His hand reached for the bell and rang it twice. The sound of the bell reverberated loudly in the tent.
Not long after, three squires entered the place. Two of them carried a big wooden tub containing bathwater, while the other held a food tray.
Kyren stood closely before Anna, blocking the squires' sight with his robust figure. They left after bowing to their commander.
"We don't have female servants, and I cannot hire them as it's against the rule here. So, bear with it for now," he said.
Anna nodded.
She tried to stand up quickly, but her weakened knees and sore body made her nearly succumb to the floor. In haste, Kyren caught her and promptly hoisted her, bringing the princess to the tub. His bride was as light as a feather in his arms.
Anna was perplexed by his sudden action.
"I can wash on my own!" her voice shook nervously.
The commander stared at her with a stern face, and he paused moving.
"You can't even stand up. How are you going to do it by yourself?" His words felt more like a scolding to Anna's ears.
Kyren could not be bothered by her thought. He was doing his duty as a husband, caring for his sick wife.
His large hand grabbed the soft blanket to remove it, but the princess pulled it back with blushed cheeks. He sighed at the resistance.
"There's nothing to be ashamed of. We're husband and wife, and I've seen your whole body."
Anna felt the blood rushing to her face at the statement.
Kyren's hand pulled the blanket effortlessly, revealing his bride's entire body. Anna quickly closed her eyes as she couldn't bear to look at his face now. The unfamiliar touch brought anxiousness to her.
The commander lowered Anna's body into the bathwater carefully.
"Lift your legs high and put them on the tub's ledge. Your feet are injured. It might sting if you put it in the water," he instructed.
Holding her hands to the tub, she raised her legs to put them there. But the tub was too large for her body, making her fall backwards and nearly drown.
Fortunately, Kyren's hand seized and caught her.
"One moment."
Kyren lifted her again and sat her wet, exposed body on a chair near the tub. Then, he removed his robe, revealing his muscular, well-built body like a sculpture.
Anna averted her eyes from the sight in embarrassment.
The commander lifted his bride and carried her again to the tub. He entered the wooden tub, gently sat her on his lap, and leaned her back to his chest while raising her feet.
Water spilt out as they submerged part of their bodies into the water. Slowly, he lifted her auburn hair and put it on one side of her shoulders, revealing a slender neck.
Anna shuddered at the touch of his hands on her bare back.
She swallowed her scream when she felt the rough, calloused palm touching the back of her neck. She could feel his warm breath on her skin. The firm part of his thighs touched hers as they cramped inside the wooden tub.
Kyren's face was clouded as he looked at the body covered in vivid bruises and marks. He clenched his jaw at the sight. Even a man as brutal as him did not have the heart to hurt such a weak woman.
When he looked at it again, he swore that he would capture the gang of slave traders and kill them. He would ensure they suffered tremendously for breaking his kingdom's law and hurting his wife.
"Don't be scared. I won't hurt you," he said gently, as he felt her trembling body when he lightly touched the bruised area.
His hand traced her neck and trailed down to her shoulder and arm. Then, he lifted her hand as his eyes examined the wounds and bruises.
"Let me see your front."
Kyren moved Anna's body, holding her in bridal style in the water. One of his hands held her back as her feet rested on the tub's ledge.
This time, he inspected the bruises and marks on her chest, neck and face. He lifted her chin, making her raise her eyelids and look at him.
His lustrous, dazzling blue eyes stared intensely at her, and his fingers gently pushed the scattered hair to the back of her ears.
"You're badly hurt," he said.
"I'm fine. It doesn't hurt that much anymore," she slowly answered.
"Don't lie. I'm not blind. I'll catch the slave traders and execute them all." His face was full of displeasure.
"You don't have to. I don't want to trouble you. You've already saved my life," she replied.
"You're my woman now. No one can hurt my woman. They'll pay the price for harming you, and it won't be cheap," he went on.
There was a murderous tone in his voice as he declared revenge on her behalf.
A sharp, tingling feeling pierced through Anna's heart.
Amid her desperation, this man had appeared as her saviour and became her guardian. Her terrible experiences made her feel that the danger was still lurking.
The blood, yelling, and laughter of the wicked men flashed through her mind. In her eyes, she saw the dead bodies scattered in Ardel's castle when she was carried on the back of the Bargesian leader.
It was a gruesome view that haunted her every night.
Unable to hold back, Anna broke into tears, "I'm scared!"
The prolonged bottled-up emotional turmoil was finally expressed. Since the night of the usurpation outburst, mixed feelings of fear, sorrow, and heartbreak permeated her heart like a volcano.
"Don't cry. You've cried a lot," Kyren gently said as he wiped the tears trickling down her cheeks.
He could see the desperation and suffering she had endured from the mistreatment of the evil hands.
"I'll protect you. You have my word," he promised her.
"Don't leave me alone! Please! I'm so scared!" Overwhelmed by the emotions, Anna buried her face in Kyren's chest and cried earnestly, clinging to him as her last thread of survival.
He was the only one left for her, a stranger who had become her husband in one night.
Kyren wrapped both of his hands around his wife's body. His protective instinct naturally impulsed a movement foreign to him. He hugged the vulnerable woman and put his palm on the back of her head.
A sense of belongingness and security began to perfuse Anna's heart when she lay in his embrace. At the same time, a wish to keep her safe from any threat filled Kyren's mind.
It was the beginning of a relationship that radiated the desire to protect and to be protected.