CHAPTER 3 :Run away, Don't look back
1498 Words
After the long and painful hug, both girls slowly pulled away from each other.
Their eyes were still wet, but somehow… they started laughing.
Not because anything was funny.
But because sometimes when pain becomes too much, laughter is the only thing that keeps you from breaking.
Emily wiped her face with the back of her hand.
“If you keep crying like this, your face will swell,” she teased softly.
“And if you keep crying, mine will swell too,” Sophie replied, trying to smile.
They both sat on the edge of the bed.
The room felt heavy, but at least they were together.
“Sophie…” Emily said after a small silence.
Her voice changed.
It was not playful anymore.
It was careful.
Sophie noticed immediately.
“What is it?” she asked.
Emily looked at the door first, as if checking that no one was listening.
Then she leaned closer.
“I heard something,” she said in a low voice.
Sophie’s brows frowned slightly. “About what?”
“About King Richard’s palace.”
Sophie straightened a little.
Emily paused and stared into Sophie’s eyes, making sure she was listening carefully.
“You know King Richard has one son, right?”
Sophie nodded slowly. “Yes… I think so.”
“They say people fear him,” Emily continued quietly.
Sophie did not speak.
Her heart beat a little faster.
“I heard,” Emily swallowed, “that wherever he goes, bad luck follows.”
The room felt colder.
Sophie tried to laugh it off. “Bad luck? That sounds like village gossip.”
Emily shook her head. “No… listen. I heard something worse.”
She leaned even closer.
“I heard he killed his own mother when he was four years old.”
Sophie froze.
“What?”
“That’s what people say,” Emily whispered. “They say he pushed her from the balcony. Some say he poisoned her. Some say he stood and watched while she bled.”
Sophie’s throat tightened.
“That’s not possible,” she said softly. “He was just a child.”
Emily shrugged. “That’s why people fear him. They say he was born with something dark inside him.”
Sophie stared at the floor.
Born with something dark.
Her chest felt strange.
Emily continued, her voice trembling now. “And recently… I heard he kills anyone who crosses him. Guards. Servants. Even noblemen.”
“That’s frightening,” Sophie said honestly.
But Emily was not done.
“I also heard… that any wife or concubine given to him dies before the next day.”
Silence filled the room.
Sophie slowly lifted her head.
“Dies?”
Emily nodded, tears gathering in her eyes again. “Yes. Some say it is sickness. Some say poison. Some say he kills them himself.”
Sophie swallowed hard.
For a moment, she remembered the eyes from the staircase.
Fire.
Then ice.
Cold.
Unreadable.
Her heart beat faster.
“My princess,” Emily said softly, holding Sophie’s hands tightly now. “I pray you never cross paths with that horrible prince.”
A tear rolled down Emily’s cheek.
Sophie forced herself to stay calm.
“Don’t cry again,” she said gently. “Or you will make me cry too.”
Emily quickly wiped her face.
Before she could speak again, a maid knocked.
“Emily! Your mother needs help in the kitchen!”
Emily stood up quickly.
“Bye, princess,” she said softly.
Then Sophie remembered something.
“Wait.”
Emily turned.
“What is the name of that prince you mentioned?”
Emily shook her head. “I don’t know, my princess. But I will ask and tell you tomorrow.”
She closed the door.
And Sophie was alone again.
The room suddenly felt too big.
Too quiet.
Sophie lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling.
If her mother was alive…
What would she say now?
Would she fight this marriage?
Would she protect her?
Or would she also tell her to obey?
Memories slowly filled her mind.
Memories she tried every day to forget.
But they never left.
They only waited.
Waiting for silence.
Waiting for night.
Waiting for weakness.
She was young again.
Small.
Her mother’s hand holding hers tightly.
“Sophie, go and hide,” her mother whispered urgently.
“Run. Don’t look back. I am behind you.”
“Mom, I don’t want to leave you,” little Sophie cried.
Her mother’s face was serious, but gentle.
“Remember what I always tell you. You are the boss of your future. Don’t let anyone decide it for you.”
“Now run.”
Sophie shook her head, crying harder.
“I don’t want to!”
“Run and don’t look back!”
The sound of boots.
Soldiers shouting.
Her mother pushing her toward a hidden door.
“Run!”
A loud gunshot.
Sophie stopped.
Her small body turned back.
Blood.
Her mother on the ground.
Her white dress turning red.
“Mom!”
“The princess is here!” a soldier shouted. “Go and hide her!”
“My mom is still there!” little Sophie screamed. “Let me go! She is on the ground! Please let me go!”
But strong arms carried her away.
She kicked.
She cried.
She screamed.
But she could not reach her mother.
The memory ended the same way it always did.
With blood.
With silence.
With guilt.
Sophie blinked back to reality.
Her pillow was wet.
She didn’t even realize she had started crying.
Every time she remembered her mother’s death, her heart felt like it was breaking all over again.
Only if I didn’t look back.
Only if I ran faster.
Only if I was stronger.
Maybe she would still be alive.
She always wondered that.
Always.
Her chest felt tight.
And then—
The nightmare changed.
Recently, her dreams were no longer only about her mother.
Now, there was someone else.
A man.
Cold eyes.
No emotion.
No warmth.
She saw him standing in darkness.
Holding a knife.
Blood dripping from it.
People lying around him.
He walked slowly toward her.
Step by step.
No hurry.
No mercy.
The knife raised.
Ready to stab her.
She tried to run.
But her feet would not move.
Then—
She woke up.
Sophie gasped loudly, sitting upright in bed.
Her body was covered in sweat.
Her breathing was fast.
Her heart felt like it would burst.
“What bad dream again…” she whispered, panting.
A knock sounded.
“Sophie?” Emily’s voice.
No reply.
The door opened quickly.
Emily rushed in, fear on her face.
“My princess! What is wrong? Do you have a fever? Should I call the royal physician?”
Sophie shook her head.
“I’m fine,” she said quickly. “Just… water.”
Emily rushed to pour water and handed it to her.
Sophie drank slowly.
“My princess,” Emily said gently, “did you have a bad dream?”
Sophie forced a small smile.
“No. It’s just the heat.”
But deep down, she knew that was a lie.
She did not want anyone to know she still dreamed about her mother’s death.
She did not want anyone to know about the man with cold eyes in her nightmares.
“Okay,” Emily said softly. “But you don’t look well. Maybe you should still visit the royal physician.”
“I said I am fine,” Sophie replied, a little sharper than she meant to.
Emily became quiet.
She did not press further.
“What would you like to eat this morning?” Emily asked carefully.
Sophie did not answer at first.
Her mind was still stuck on the dream.
On the cold eyes.
On the rumors of King Richard’s son.
Was it possible…
No.
She shook her head slightly.
It was just imagination.
It had to be.
“Anything,” she said softly. “You know carrot pie is my favorite. Can you prepare that for me?”
Emily nodded and left.
The room became quiet again.
Sophie sat there for a long moment.
She had never watched horror stories.
She did not fill her mind with dark things.
So why did she keep seeing that man?
Why did his eyes look so real?
Why did they feel familiar?
Maybe I am overthinking.
Maybe it is fear.
Maybe it is just my mind.
She slowly stood up and walked toward the bathroom.
The mirror reflected her pale face.
Her eyes looked tired.
Older.
She touched her reflection gently.
“You are the boss of your future,” she whispered to herself, repeating her mother’s words.
But right now…
She did not feel like the boss of anything.
She felt like someone waiting for the red moon.
Waiting for a future she could not see.
And somewhere in the back of her mind—
Cold eyes watched her.
- Writer
