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DESERT DESTINY
Chapter 6
Sailor Galaxy

Serena sighed under her breath as she noticed that the woman carried two 
trays. She wasn't there to free them or anything like that. She was there to 
give them food. She was thin and wore an old black dress. She avoided their 
eyes as she put a tray in front of both of them. Serena stared at her.

" Who are you?"

The lady ignored her and walked out. Darien looked at what was in the tray. A 
plate full of rice and curry, some dates and a glass of lassi.  Serena was 
wary.

" Do you think we should eat this?"

" Why should we not?"

" It might be poisoned."

Darien paused before picking up a spoon.

" I very much doubt that. If they had wanted to kill us, they would have done 
it sooner. They have had many chances before this."

" Yes but maybe they wanted us to suffer. Getting poisoned is very painful."

" As is torture."

Serena looked at him as he swallowed a bite. He noticed her regard and stopped 
eating to look at her. 

" We might as well eat to keep our strength up."

Serena shook her head.

" I am not hungry." 

Her stomach loudly protested that fact.

" You are not?"

She scowled at him and then sighed when he merely raised his eyebrows. She 
might as well eat. She would need her strength like Darien said.

Ten minutes of silence passed as the two victims ate their food. It was tasty. 
But then anything would be since they were very hungry. But how could that be? 
They had been kidnapped just after midnight and they had eaten at sunset. 
Nobody could get hungry in that short a time. They must have been here for 
more that a day then. That seemed the only reason they could think of.

" Your highness?" 

Serena pushed her tray aside. She felt a little ridiculous calling him that in 
the position they were in but it was Darien's title and there was no reason 
that this situation should change that fact and allow her to call him by his 
given name.

" Yes?"

" How were you kidnapped?"

Darien paused.

" Why?"

Serena gazed at him.

" I am curious. Besides which I am also bored and talking will help pass the 
time."

Darien shrugged.

" I was not aware of them and there were many of them. I was outnumbered. If 
there were two or maybe even three, I doubt I would have been caught."

" Meaning that you were very badly humiliated at having been caught easily?"

Darien glared at her but said nothing.

" I do not mean that you are not brave or anything."

Darien shrugged casually.

" It does not bother me about what you think of me."

Serena's eyebrows lifted.

" Really? You don't care at all about what I think of you?"

" That is right."

" Oh."

Darien studied Serena.

" How were you caught? There were guards outside your door."

" No."

Darien frowned.

" No? What do you mean no?"

" There were no guards." 

Serena elaborated. Darien stilled and waved a hand in the air as a dismissal.

" The guards were there."

" And you would know how...?" 

Serena trailed off.

" I ordered them there." 

Darien lifted his head arrogantly.

" And since you ordered them to be there they were there."

" I do not understand where you are heading. I trust all of them completely."

" It looks as if they broke that trust. I am telling you, there were no guards 
outside my room. Anyway, it really does not make a difference."

" What do you mean it does not make a difference? The kidnappers were able to 
enter your chambers."

Serena smiled grimly and shook her head as a negative.

" No. They did not enter my chambers. I went out in the garden and that is how 
I was captured."

" I see. And what were you doing in the garden?"

" Taking a walk."

" Taking a walk. She was taking a walk." 

He mockingly repeated the sentence. It was obvious that he was insulting her. 
Serena glared at him.

" Is there anything wrong with that?"

" Of course not. Did I say so?"

Serena remained silent. Darien sighed.

" It is extremely dangerous in the gardens at night."

" I thought they were supposed to be guarded."

" They are not as safe as I assumed."

" Thank-you for the warning but do you not think that it is late?"

" Listen Lady. I am telling you as it is. The gardens were obviously not 
properly guarded."

" And that is my fault is it?"

" I did not say that. But I am astonished that the kidnappers managed to get 
in. It can not be possible. The security is very tight. Especially lately."

Serena pretended to study her nails.

" There is one way but....."

" Yes? But what?"

Serena shrugged one shoulder.

" It would be easy for them to get in if they had inside help."

Serena stared at Darien as dark colour highlighted his prominent cheek bones.

" You have to be out of your mind to suggest such a thing to me."

Serena shrugged again.

" Have you got any other explanations? I would be glad to hear them."

" Let me think. There is another explanation. My guards would never betray me."

Darien gritted his teeth and tried to control his anger.

Serena rolled her eyes.

" Think away. Have all the time you like."

A half hour passed. An hour. Two hours.

" Thought of anything yet?"

Darien threw Serena a dirty look. Serena smirked in response.

" No? Why am I not surprised?"

" Give me some more time."

Serena looked heavenwards.

" Please Darien. You know as well as I do that my explanation is the only 
proper one."

Darien grew disgruntled.

" Who said you can call me Darien?"

" What would you like me to call you instead?"

Darien closed his eyes, counted to ten and then opened them again. No, didn't 
work. He was still angry.

" What does one normally call a person of Royalty?"

Serena pretended to ponder over that question.

" You mean you do not know?"

" That is not what I said."

" What did you say?"

Darien lost his cool.

" Just please, be quiet. You have to be the most aggravating lady I have had 
the displeasure of meeting."

Serena looked at him through narrowed eyes.

" Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. I am trying to get your mind off 
this fiasco. I do not even know why I am bothering since you do not know how 
to appreciate things."

Serena crossed her arms over her chest and turned away from Darien before he 
could glimpse the tears filming her eyes. Looked like the day had just 
finished as it had started. Serena crying and trying to hide it from Darien. 
Someday, no matter how hard he tried, Darien wouldn't ever effect her. 

***********************************************************

" Serena? Serena!"

Serena blinked her eyes open and then groaned out loud when she felt the aches 
in every muscle of her body. 

" Serena?"

She frowned but ignored the voice and burrowed back down into her shoulder. 
She wanted to sleep. Couldn't the voice see that?

" Serena!"

Obviously not. The voice must be blind.

" Serena?"

But voices don't have eyes so how can they see?

" Serena!"

And it was obvious that this voice couldn't see.

" Serena! Wake up!"

Stupid voice. Serena grumbled under her breath as she slowly shifted into a 
sitting position and blearily opened her eyes to focus on the voice and its 
source. She closed them again as she saw that it was only Darien. No big deal. 

Somewhere in her mind, which wasn't so fogged with sleep, Serena marvelled 
that she could think of the Sultan in this way. As being a no big deal. Four 
days ago, she wouldn't have ever dared to think of him like that. She hadn't 
liked the fact that a person had such power, money, and respect just because 
he was born into a certain family. That wasn't fair. But even though that was 
the case with Darien, she had been in awe of him. He wasn't an unkind ruler. 
Amazing really considering his personality. She hadn't ever seen him before 
but she's heard things about him.

" Serena."

Serena growled a little in her throat and opened her eyes again. She stretched 
her arms over her head to try to loosen her muscles, unaware that the material 
of her dress pulled tightly against her breasts and made them stand out 
sharply to the gaze of the man watching. Focusing on Darien, she felt her 
heart beat accelerate a little but tried not to show it. 

" What?"

He looked great. His hair was mussed, his face softer with the edges of sleep 
and his clothes casually wrinkled. Serena swallowed as she saw that he'd 
unbuttoned the sleeves of his shirt and had rolled them up to his elbows. The 
strong muscles of his arms were very visible and the dusting of hair made his 
skin look pale in comparison. She licked her as she noticed that he'd also 
unbuttoned the few buttons on the shirt at his throat. She could just see the 
beginnings of body hair, and the thought which followed, made hers legs go 
shaky and her stomach tremble.

" What?"

Serena repeated her question because it seemed as if Darien hadn't heard her. 
He was looking towards the door. Serena followed his gaze and sat up 
straighter as she noticed the two men who were standing there, watching her. 
She frowned a little in anxiety as she saw that they wore two swords at their 
waists. They also had scythes attached to their shoulders. What were they 
going to do with the weapons? They weren't going to kill her and Darien were 
they? Maybe they had just come to look at the prisoners.

As fear began to coat Serena's mouth, she felt her hands start to shake and 
the rest of her tremble in terror. She stared at the two men. They didn't look 
as if they were just here to see the prisoners. They had cruel, malicious 
looks about them. Each wore a huge gold hoop on each ear. Serena had heard 
stories that these hoops were illegally bought from the Pirates who terrorised
the seas. Serena had always been glad that she didn't live near the sea. But 
it seemed as if that piece of good luck was about to change. Instead of Sea 
Pirates, Serena was now faced with Desert Pirates. Just as deadly. Just as 
murderous. And just as lethal. 


How did the kidnappers get into the gardens? Has the murderer been getting 
inside help? And what are the Desert Pirates going to do to Serena and Darien?

(Lassi is made mainly of milk and water in the Middle East. Very tasty! I love 
it!)

Sailor Galaxy

sailorprincessuk@yahoo.co.uk