The False Princess And The Beast

~005~ Twice deceived

"Find the princess?"

Cornelia ignored the commotion around her and looked for a way to escape the bloody castle, which, as she had come to realize, was a bloody maze. She had been walking for what seemed like forever and still hadn't found a way out. Around her, people scrambled about looking for the princess, which was technically her, but she had had enough of pretending to be that spoiled brat who had told her nothing but lies from day one.

The deal they had made was all a lie. Vienna had never planned to exchange places with Cornelia after the three days were up. Instead, she had arranged for Cornelia to be dragged to the other kingdom in her place for the marriage. The truth had come out during breakfast with the king, and Cornelia had been planning her escape ever since.

She recalled his words and cringed at how naive she must have sounded. After her bold declaration, the king had burst out laughing. "Who told you that was even possible?" he said, barely containing himself. "It doesn't matter what you do, Vienna. This marriage cannot be cancelled, and you will leave with the convoy in three days' time." It had taken everything in Cornelia not to immediately scream, "That bitch."

As soon as the king dismissed her, she had been cursing that b***h out, and not very quietly.

Now she made her way down yet another hallway that looked exactly like the last, dressed in a stolen maid's uniform. It pained her to admit it, but she had knocked out a maid and taken her clothes, knowing it was her only real chance.

As she turned the next corner, she walked straight into something large and solid, and for one horrible second she thought she had been caught. Then she looked up and found herself staring into the most beautiful pair of eyes she had ever seen in her life.

He was tall, much taller than her, and Cornelia had never been a short girl. But what caught her attention beyond his height was how different he looked. The dark tone of his skin, the style of his clothing, the way he carried himself. He was not from around here, that much was obvious.

She opened her mouth. "Who are you?" But then they both froze as voices drifted around the corner.

"Princess? Has anyone checked there?"

Cornelia flattened herself against the wall without thinking, surprisingly, the stranger did the same.

"What are you—" she started.

His hand came up and covered her mouth. He shook his head once.

They stayed like that while the voices passed, her back against the wall, his frame close enough that she could feel the warmth coming off him. Cornelia felt heat rush to her face, willing herself not to think about how close they were. She had never been this close to a man, not even her dead husband.

He looked entirely unbothered, like he did this sort of thing regularly. When the footsteps faded, he lowered his hand.

Cornelia immediately pushed him back. "Who are you?" she whispered. What if he was a thief or something and she had helped him hide? But if they discovered him, he might rat her out.

Alistair looked at the maid who had nearly knocked him over. She had been hiding too, which told him she was either a thief or in some kind of trouble. "Who are you?" he said, throwing the question back at her.

Cornelia blinked. She hadn't expected that. "I asked you first."

"And I asked you second. We can do this all day."

She narrowed her eyes. He had a nice face, which she resented, because it made it harder to focus. "I'll scream," she said.

"Then we both get caught." He tilted his head. "Is that what you want?"

It was not. "Fine. I am..." She hesitated. She couldn’t say she was a maid, as he had clearly seen her hiding from the guards. "I am someone who needs to leave this castle immediately."

"Interesting."

"So?" She arched a brow. “Can you help me?”

"Not unless you help me." He leaned against the wall, relaxed in a way that irritated her. "You know this castle. I don't."

She didn’t bother admitting the truth, instead she nodded, and he continued. "There's a room in this castle. The Royal Treasury. I need to get there, and I need someone who can take me there, and in exchange I might be willing to help you."

Cornelia's first instinct was to say absolutely not, but she considered it. "If you betray me," she threatened, "I will make you regret it."

He looked amused but still nodded. "Lead the way."

Now where was the damned treasury, she thought.

Luckily, they did find it, though they were almost caught twice and he had to knock out a guard. Cornelia made a quiet note to herself not to offend him after watching how swiftly he handled it.

They slipped inside, and Cornelia immediately forgot to breathe. She had heard stories, of course. Everyone had. But stories had done it no justice at all. The walls seemed to glow, lined floor to ceiling with gold. The large room was filled with jewels of different colors and shapes, more than anything she had ever seen before.

"Wow,"

The stranger had already moved past her and was scanning the room, as if he were looking for something specific.

Cornelia wandered between the glass cases that housed the jewels, trailing her fingers just above the glass. "Is there anything in particular you're after?" she asked.

He didn't answer.

"Alright." She glanced at a necklace with a large ruby stone. "I once wrote a character who broke into a treasury just like this, but even my imagination wasn’t this grand." She admitted.

Still nothing.

"You don’t talk much, do you?"

He moved to the opposite side, fingers pressing along the gold walls, and she saw his jaw clench.

Deciding to ignore him, she continued her own exploration, giving time to finish. As she was examining a massive crown, wondering which of the past kings had needed something so large, she heard the doors slam shut.

Cornelia spun, and just as she feared, she was alone. The bastard had ditched her.

Alistair had immediately known he wouldn’t find what he wanted with how easily they accessed the treasury, and so when he saw the chance to dump the unsuspecting maid, he took it. "Thief! There is a thief in the Royal Treasury!" He called out and just as he had expected all the guards left their posts and ran to the Treasury, letting him slip away unnoticed. He felt bad that he had tricked her but did what he had to.

Cornelia heard his voice from the other side of the door and froze before snapping herself out of it and looking for a window, but there was only one door.

She thought of hiding, but before she could move, the door burst open. Four guards stood in the entrance, and their eyes widened as they spotted her, standing alone in the middle of the Royal Treasury in a maid's uniform, surrounded by priceless jewels.

"Princess?" One of them called out.

Cornelia had never felt more grateful to share the princess’s face than in that moment. Though moments ago, the last thing she had wanted was to be the princess, now she welcomed it gladly. “Um, hi.”