chapter 4
1104 Words
I was exhausted, so I lay back on my bed, staring at the ceiling.
Why did no one care about my opinion?
It was my life. My future. And if I married Rahan, it would be a prison with no doors. I would be bound to him forever, while he could take as many mistresses as he pleased.
The day had barely begun, and already, my head throbbed.
A soft knock came from the door.
“Come in.”
It creaked open, and my little sister Zara stepped in. She wore a blue silk ball dress, the fabric shimmering as she moved. She was alone.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I’m fine. What about you?”
Her eyes lit up with excitement. “Do you know what Albert and I saw?”
“Albert? Your parrot?”
She nodded eagerly.
“What is it?”
Zara took a deep breath. “We went to the dungeon.”
I sat up immediately. “How? Father said we’re not allowed there.”
“I know, but… that’s not the point.” She lowered her voice. “A theft is about to happen.”
“What theft?”
“A gold theft. Someone is planning to steal gold from the palace.”
I frowned. “How do you know?”
“I heard it. Two men were talking.”
I reached for her hand. She looked hurt that I didn’t believe her, but I had to be careful. Raising a false alarm without proof could cause chaos.
“Did you see their faces? Can you recognize them?”
She hesitated.
That was the problem.
Still… Father had been bringing in large amounts of gold lately.
Maybe Zara wasn’t wrong.
“Let’s tell Mother,” I said finally.
Mother’s chamber was the simplest in the castle. No excessive luxury, no overwhelming gold. Just rare antiques arranged with quiet elegance.
She sat on the edge of her bed, examining a set of jewelry.
I had always found her collection strange.
Three antique necklaces lay in her hands. She always wore one around her neck and called it her key home. The other two were kept in a locked safe… until Zara was born. That was when I noticed a fourth.
Sometimes, she called them our protectors.
I nudged Zara. She explained everything she had heard.
Mother listened patiently, then sighed.
“Without evidence, we cannot raise alarm,” she said gently.
The same answer I had given.
Zara’s shoulders slumped.
Later, I wandered toward the kitchen, hoping to find Laura, but she was busy. I wasn’t allowed inside anyway, so I watched through the small peephole.
Father had forbidden it. Any servant who let me in would be punished.
A guard suddenly entered and ordered the staff out. It must have been their break.
One by one, they left.
The kitchen fell silent.
I was about to leave too when I saw him.
A man slipped in through the back door, his upper body hidden beneath a ragged blanket. I hadn’t even known there was a back entrance.
He paused, scanning the room carefully.
The guard remained nearby, helmet on, unmoving.
They didn’t speak… but something about them felt connected. Familiar.
Accomplices?
Or was I imagining things?
Zara’s words echoed in my mind.Could they be conspiring.
Rahan was searching for Catherine.
He hadn’t seen her since she fainted, and his mother had insisted he speak with her.
He knew she didn’t want the marriage. If it were up to her, she would cancel it and send him away without a second thought.
But appearances mattered.
If they were seen together, her father might believe the union could work.
As he walked down the corridor, a maid carrying a tray stumbled.
Wine spilled across his clothes.
Rahan’s expression darkened.
Without hesitation, he struck her.
I pulled away from the peephole.
I needed to tell Father.
But when I reached his chamber, I was told he was in a meeting. Women were not allowed to attend.
So I turned back.
I hated this stupid law women weren't allowed in royal affairs barbaric rules.
That was when I saw Rahan.
His clothes were stained, and he stood over a maid who was on the floor, crying.
He kicked her.
Hard.
I rushed forward. “Stop!”
He shoved me aside. “Stay out of this.”
The guards did nothing. They stood like statues, watching.
Rahan pressed the sole of his shoe against the girl’s face, grinding it into her skin, her hair.
“Please…” she sobbed.
He ignored her.
Again and again, he humiliated her, as if she were less than human.
Something inside me twisted.
“Enough!” I stepped in again.
He grabbed my wrist and twisted it painfully, pulling me close while blocking the guards’ view.
“There is a line,” he said coldly, “between the worthless and the priceless,peasant and noble consider yourself”
Then he released me and walked away.
My hand throbbed.
We weren’t even married yet… and already, I could see what my life would become.
Father’s meeting was about the alliance.
About my marriage.
Tomorrow, it would be announced to the entire kingdom.
It was final.
The decision had already been made.
I was no longer part of it.
Mother approached me, smiling.
“The royal seamstress is here,” she said, placing a hand on my shoulder. “She brought your dress for tonight… and designs for your wedding gown.”
My chest tightened.
“Wonderful,” I forced out.
“The wedding will be in two weeks,” she continued excitedly. “Everything must be prepared quickly.”
Every word felt like a weight pressing down on me.
The seamstress greeted me warmly.
Dress after dress was fitted, adjusted, admired.
Finally, Mother chose one.
A floor-length sapphire gown, embroidered with gold. A round neckline, slight puff at the shoulders, and a golden girdle set with ruby-like stones.
She loved it.
I barely saw it.
To escape the endless talk of marriage, I offered to fetch Zara.
Her room was chaos.
Wood pieces, scraps of metal, scattered tools, and blueprints covered every surface. It looked more like a workshop than a princess’s chamber.
She was in the washroom.
I sat on her bed and picked up a book.
A children’s fairytale.
Inside were drawings of mermaids, witches, and other creatures, all described as dark and dangerous.
I flipped another page.
Then another.
And then—
I felt it.
That quiet shift in the air.
The unmistakable sense of not being alone.
I slowly lifted my head.
- Writer
