Chapter 5 Shattered Trust
809 Words
He walked over quickly. Lotty collapsed into his arms, sobbing so hard she could barely speak. Joshua held her tightly, whispering gentle reassurances, but when his gaze shifted to Charlotte, pinned to the ground, it turned icy.
"Your Highness," someone reported sternly, "this servant holds a grudge against Princess Lotty. When Princess Lotty spoke to her just now, she seized the chance to throw the late princess's treasured bracelet into the lake."
Joshua's eyes immediately locked onto Charlotte. Her hair hung in disarray as she struggled against the servants restraining her.
"Retrieve it," he ordered coldly.
Terror twisted through Charlotte's chest. Her body trembled uncontrollably. Her eyes flickered from the crushed herbs scattered across the ground to the way Joshua held Lotty protectively, before settling on the lake where broken sheets of ice floated on the surface.
"I didn't do it," she whispered.
The words only hardened Joshua's expression.
Without warning, he kicked her in the chest.
"Stay in the water until you find it."
Charlotte fell into the lake with a splash. Her lips turned pale instantly as the soaked dress clung to her body, faint pink spreading through the icy water.
Desperately she looked toward Joshua, searching his eyes for even a trace of mercy.
But Joshua's gaze drifted instead to the scattered herbs and the color spreading in the water. A flicker of realization crossed his face. He opened his mouth as if to speak.
Lotty suddenly clutched his arm.
"Josh… I feel dizzy."
Concern immediately replaced everything else. Joshua lifted her into his arms and called urgently for the physician, leaving Charlotte struggling in the freezing lake.
Charlotte slowly sank beneath the surface.
The water felt like knives carving into her flesh. Though she had been a strong swimmer since childhood, the cold quickly drained her strength. Again and again she surfaced for breath, her hands scraped raw by submerged stones and branches.
By the time dusk settled, her fingers finally brushed against the cold metal of the bracelet.
Relief surged through her as she struggled back to the shore. Blood seeped from her torn palms as she climbed out of the lake.
But the lakeside was completely empty.
In the distance, the study stood dark and silent.
Understanding struck her slowly.
Joshua was likely tending to Lotty at her bedside.
Shivering and soaked, Charlotte staggered toward the warmly lit bedchamber.
Jane stood outside the door, her face twisted with contempt. As Charlotte approached, Jane casually stuck out her foot.
Charlotte tripped and fell heavily to the ground.
The bracelet flew from her hand and struck the stone floor, snapping with a sharp c***k.
The sound drew startled gasps. Nearby servants immediately knelt in fear.
Charlotte scrambled desperately toward the broken pieces.
Jane kicked her aside, sending her sprawling again onto the cold ground.
Inside the room, Lotty's calm voice rang out.
"If it were only my bracelet, I might forgive her. But this belonged to my mother. For such disrespect, she deserves ninety-nine lashes as a warning to everyone."
The whip cracked through the freezing night air.
Each strike tore into Charlotte's back. Snow beneath her melted as blood seeped into it, staining the white ground crimson.
Joshua returned just as the punishment continued.
"Enough!"
His voice stopped the whipping instantly.
Charlotte lifted her heavy head. Joshua stood there holding a bowl of medicine, anger written across his face, the sight freezing everyone in place.
"Josh," Lotty called weakly from inside, "her disrespect toward me could be forgiven, but breaking my mother's bracelet cannot. My authority here must not be questioned."
Her words dissolved into coughing.
Joshua hurried to her side immediately, abandoning the scene outside.
The whipping resumed.
In the biting wind, Charlotte counted silently.
"Fifty-six… fifty-seven… fifty-eight…"
Her lips trembled. Bloodied hands pressed into the freezing snow as she watched through the open doorway.
Inside, Lotty reclined against the bed while Joshua gently coaxed her to drink the medicine.
Even amid such cruelty, Charlotte felt nothing—no anger, no hope.
Later, she was tied by the wrists in the servants' courtyard as a warning.
Princess Lotty ruled here. Anyone who defied her would suffer the consequences.
Charlotte's blood continued dripping into the snow, bright red against white. Servants gathered nearby, whispering among themselves but offering no help.
"Has she forgotten her place? Just a maid thinking she could challenge Princess Lotty."
"I heard she was bought because her eyes resemble Princess Lotty's," another scoffed. "She must have mistaken the prince's attention for affection."
"Princess Lotty is merciful not to have driven her out already."
"I heard Princess Lotty was so upset last night she couldn't sleep. Prince Joshua sang lullabies to comfort her until dawn."
Shivering in the cold night, Charlotte finally understood the bitter truth.
She had been allowed into the mansion for only one reason.
Her eyes resembled Lotty's.
- Writer
