Selin Hizli

Thank you.

Me.

It is strange sleeping again in this four-poster, with the beautifully carved cherry wood headboard and the luxurious silk sheets.

The same bed in which I spent my wedding night with Athos.

As I drift off to sleep, I am remembering how he snored drunkenly to the following afternoon on that joyous occasion.

I'm a light sleeper.

The smallest of sounds will wake me.

and I am trained to defend myself from ambush under cover of darkness.

I silently slip out from beneath the silk, putting my pillows there in my place.

I lie on the floor and reach under the bed to retrieve the rapier I have concealed there.

He stabs at the pillows.

Feathers fill the air.

Only when he feels the prick of my rapier on the back of his neck does he realise the bed is empty.

It is polite for a gentleman to await an invitation before entering a lady's boudoir.

I wish that were true.

I wanted vengeance.

It will always be a source of great regret that an oak tree got him before I did.

You came to do me violence and now expect me to feel pity for you.

What is wrong with you, man?

Are you crying?