10

With no strength left to keep me intact, tears flow down as I clutch my mouth shut in case others in the hall hear. I play back the words he had said to me before the arrival of Nightshades, the way I thought he was beginning to become soft despite his unruly nature, the way that I almost believed he could even like me. I am a squashed cigarette left on the side of the road in a pile of ash. I have nothing here, except to find his subordinates and tell them the truth.

Does he even know where I come from? I never disclosed such information, only that I am of royal blood. Wiping the last of my tears, I walk towards the door and open it just a crack to peek through. No one is there. I tiptoe carefully and stop, hearing voices from the other side of the hall. If it is not Jace, then I do not care. I will embarrass him the way he has humiliated me.

I walk towards the voices and see that it is three of the subordinates I had met earlier, and I bow as they see it is me.

"Princess!" Rina beams, whilst the others smile and nod their heads.

"What brings you here Princess?" Gudder says, his eyes piercing through mine.

"I thought I may consult you all about a situation, a situation about Jace and I..." I reply slowly, watching their expressions change.

"What do you mean?" Nathaniel says, rubbing at his tight robe.

"Oh it must be about the wedding of course!" Rina squeals, clutching my hands into hers. "Jace came to us just before you did and told us that you were soon to be his wife and that a wedding will be held in two days time, to speed the process up of course. I have already sent out the invitations, including to your Father!"

"My Fath..my Father?" I stammer, my blood turning cold.

"Yes, Jace and us all will be taking care of every bit, so do not worry, we welcome you all with open arms!" Rina and the others bow again and I stay stuck in shock over what just happened.

"So what did you want to tell us?" Nathaniel says while adjusting his robe again.

"Oh, um, nothing. Where can I find Jace? I must have lost track..." I reply, the anger rising past the fear of what my Father will think, over what I will be in three days time - a concubine!

"He will be in his chambers, although I am sure you knew that?" Gudder replies.

"Of course, I am just lost as to where that may be?"

"Up stairs to the left, golden door that is, something you ought to know obviously" Gudder says in an impatient tone.

I bow to excuse myself and step two by two up the stairs, to the left, until I see a glistening gold door.

"Cheap piece of shit, it would be so noticeable if he were to ever be attacked," I mutter, knocking on the door.

A man meets me on the other side, a guard perhaps, since he is dressed in armor. Behind him is another door. So it does not technically lead straight to his room.

"I am here to see my um, Fiance," I bow and he grunts, opening the second door. As I walk in, I notice how empty the room is, all but a single bed draped in red and gold fabric on one side, a table full of papers and whatnot, a closet, and a bathroom. No mirrors, no windows, not much color. Jace's back faces me upon my arrival, which is to be expected since he should have known I was coming with the scent of my blood.

I close the door behind me and clear my throat to catch his attention.

"For what do I owe the pleasure Princess?" he says, his back still facing me.

"It would be nice to talk to a face" I reply.

"Is that all you came for, to just talk?" Jace says, rushing in a split second to my side. I hold my breath in response.

"Why would you tell my Father of this bullshit marriage that you are doing? Are you willing to humiliate me this much?"

"It was only fit I did that in case you ratted me out, so now you have no way out. Your Father will receive news of it later today and you have no way of contacting him as fast as I contact people. You're stuck with me, Princess."

"It's not too late," I whisper, turning to him. "I could create scenes, wreak havoc, act so crazy that your kingdom refuses to have me as their Queen. Better yet, I will not even attend my own wedding, or if I do, embarrass you in the process. I will go lengths to do this all."

Jace sternly eyes me and steps back, almost as an act of defeat. Or so I hoped.

"It is cute that you would do anything possible to end this, and so it is only fair that we change this altercation into an alliance, what do you think? I need a Queen to become King, and you could gain the benefits of a Queen and waddle off to your own things, but in the constraints of Nightshades of course. Either way you're stuck with me, Princess."

His eyes gleam at my silence, my defeat. My head hurts at everything that is happening, including this. The more I want to fight , the more I want to give up. It's hopeless, I really would rather die at this point, but if I do become Queen, I would have power, more power then I have ever had before. Who in their right mind would say no in the eyes of power?