Forbidden Mating With The Alpha

Chapter 5: Karena

Her bedroom had two small windows on both sides of the bed that was large enough to easily fit three or four people if there was ever a need. It was only an inn room but it was by no doubt a lavish one. To think that the other women were also sleeping in a room that was similar to hers. She wondered how much it must have cost to pay for those six rooms, and how long they would have to sleep in the same inn until they would be welcomed in the castle.

She walked over to the bed and ran her fingers over the silk bed covers. They were so soft and so inviting that she almost jumped on top of them to end that tiresome day. But she could not do that just yet. She was still dressed in clothes that weren't suitable for sleeping and the corset was becoming almost too unbearable. She had to remove it and quickly walked over to the wardrobe that she opened to reveal nothing but more lavish dresses in waiting for her.

The sight was so overwhelming that she immediately closed the wardrobe and felt herself sigh once more. Even the night dress tucked away between the other dresses looked as though it would cost her entire life's savings.

"You're marrying a prince, Lucy. You have to get used to this," she muttered to herself, opening the doors again to quickly pulled out the night dress and closed them once again. She carefully laid the dress down on the bed before walking over to the full-lenght mirror on the other side of the room. It was the first time that she was able to see her face and it took her breath away.

She stood in shock for a moment as she could not recognize whom that beautiful person staring back at her was. Was that how she always looked? She could not recall because she absolutely had no idea how else she was supposed to look. What she did know was that her hair color was different and the length as well.

There was a tingling feeling in her body to pull up frames on her face as was the habit with people who wore glasses. From that, she was able to deduce that she used to wear glasses herself. She blinked a number of times to try and tell if she had on any contact lenses but she did not. It was all very strange to her but she pushed aside the displacement as having been caused by her memory loss.

She brought her hands down to her blue dress and felt the smooth fabric between her fingers.

"Why can't I remember who I am? What happened to me?" She asked out loud and proceeded to remove her overcoat. She tossed it aside at the bed and just as she was about to take off her dress so that she could allow her body some reprieve from the constraints brought on by the corset, a knock on the door reached her ears, startling her on the spot.

What happened a moment ago with Layla and the commander was still fresh in her mind. She walked over to the door and opened it to reveal Karena, who had already changed into her night gown and was holding a small container of sorts in her hands. Neither of them knew what to say to each other until Karena reached out her hands to her.

"I was to thank you for helping me. This is some ointment... for your face. It'll help with the swelling and the pain," Karena said and Lucy cracked a smile of gratitude. She did not know much about Karena but she was nice enough for her to not act as though they were complete strangers towards each other. So, she took the container from her hands.

"Thank you. I don't want to sound nosy, but why did Layla... you know...?" She wanted to ask what exactly Karena did that was deserving of punishment, as Layla had resorted to calling it, but did not want to seem impolite. Karena sighed and glanced at Layla's door.

"It was my fault. Layla and I have known each other for some years. I say 'known' but we've only ever talked a few times," Lucy listened to Karena's story attentively and noted how low her voice was as she spoke. She did not want anyone else to listen in on their conversation but she doubted that the other women cared enough anyway.

"She wasn't pleased when she heard that I was also to be married to Cr... the prince," both Lucy and Karena creased when she almost said his name; Karena because she was not at all close to him to refer to him by his first name though she made the mistake, and Lucy because hearing another woman refer to him as though they were personally close hurt her feelings.

"She thinks she's better than everyone else. She always has and always treats everyone like they're... trash," Karena had intertwined her index fingers and was fumbling them together to show how nervous she was. Lucy did not want to force her to tell the story but it was the least Karena could do to explain why the argument broke out in the first place.

"Today, I had enough of it and reminded her that the only reason the prince wants to marry her is because her parents are friendly with the king and they're tired of having an old maiden as a daughter," Karena finally finished by once again looking at Layla's door. Hearing that story made Lucy's heart crack for Layla.

Layla may have been a woman with a bad temper but to have your parents beg the king so that they're son could marry you would wound anyone's bride. To Lucy, it appeared that Layla's parents were too embarrassed to have a daughter in her late twenties who was not married yet. Perhaps their overbearing nature was why Layla was choleric to begin with.

"I think I understand how she feels," Lucy began.

"I don't," and Karena replied with a scoff.

'How can you say that?' Lucy wanted to ask but she remembered that Karena was the one who was practically thrown against the door by Layla. It was understandable if she felt any hatred towards her.

"You should apply that medicine now. You wouldn't want to appear before the prince with a puffy face, would you?" Karena asked with a warm smile. She turned to walk away before Lucy could reply and went back to her room. Lucy glanced at Layla's door and then at the ointment in her hands.

"What would Creed think if he saw me like this?" She muttered, trying to figure out what his reaction would be like if he were to see her face all red and swollen. Would he lose his temper just as Dante did? Would he try to comfort her or show any sympathy at all? Would he realize that marrying more than one woman at once would be a bad idea because they would not get along?

She shook her head to get rid of those thoughts and closed the door to get back inside. She did not want to see Creed in a bad lighting though it was becoming increasingly difficult. She could admit that she loved him... or at least she felt a warm feeling of security whenever she thought of him. He was kind and handsome, and the way he spoke to her as though she were the only person he cared for in his life...

Before she knew it, she was already blushing with half a smile, her heart rate having sped up.

He called her Rosalie when they met earlier that evening, and had done so more than once. Her name was Lucy, or so she thought it was. Was Rosalie her name before she lost her memories? If so, then why was the name Lucy stuck in her mind? She wished she had someone she could speak to about her problems.