"I think we share a mutual enemy here at court." she said, standing beside him now. A sly smile grew across his face.
"Im intrigued." he said, "and of who might you be speaking?"
     She sensed that he already knew, but wanted her to say it first. Such subtle little power games these boys play.
      "Fine. I'll say it.. Pike." 
Gilroy was stoic.
"Ah yes, that little weasel who wormed his way into the king's ear. But why should I concern myself with the antics of a fool?"
     "I think you know that he is more then just a fool." 
"Really.. in what way?"
Kara was growing impatient with these games. Everyone at court kept their cards guarded at all times, and it was so exhausting always having to dance around the truth.
     "Listen." she sighed, "everyone here has some agenda that they're playing at, but he's different, I can sense it. I can't put it into words, but there's something sinister about him.. and if you sense it too, then we can help each other rid our kingdom of his presence, or if not.. then I suppose I'm just crazy."
     She started to walk away when he reached for her arm. "You're not crazy" he said with the first glimmer of sincerity she had ever seen in the man.  They had reached a mutual understanding, an alliance to rid the court of the the wicked jester Pike.

~2~
  Twelve years prior: Jenilee
  Because of the risks that came with sneaking out of the castle, Jenilee would only visit the boathouse every couple of weeks, mostly to bring supplies such as medicine, clean bandages, and food to care for Caden while he recovered from his wounds. 
     It turns-out that the man he had killed that night was a member of the kings guard, and so his disappearance had placed the men on high alert. This also raised the question as to why a king's guardsman had been following Jenilee that evening to the boathouse. 
     Caden was under the belief that the man had been hired to tail Jenilee, which would mean that somebody high-up within the court knew that Jenilee was connected to his disappearance.
   Together they had buried the man's body under the dirt floor of the boat house, but any bloodhound worth it's salt would sniff it out instantly.
      The risk for Caden to continue staying the there was too high. It would only be a matter of time before he was discovered; He had to be moved, and soon. But the status of his injury still left him quite weak and incapacitated. Too much movement could threaten to reopen that wound making him susceptible to bleeding or infection. Also there was the small matter of finding a new location where he would be safe.
    This evening hadn't been too difficult for Jenilee to sneak out to the boathouse. Dinner was over quickly without any of the typical festivities that usually followed. Even the king had retired to bed early. And so the kitchen was quiet and empty when Jenilee made her escape through the cupboard passage.
        When she arrived at the boathouse, Caden was up on his feet to greet her, for which she scolded him like a doting mother, "What are you doing up walking around?" she said as she guided him back to the beading on the floor, "You'll tear open your wound you damn fool." 
      "At this rate I'll die of boredom long before the injury kills me." He smiled.
He was still pale but some of his former color had begun to return to his face, which was a good sign.