Capítulo 20: Chapter 19.
The old Knight sat his daughter on a bench outside the palace. He noticed the watchful eyes of the guards, realizing that the king already knew of his visit.
He looked at his daughter. How changed she was in a day! Her eyes sunk deeper, darker and there were bags under her eyes. Her shoulders, which just days ago, were strong and confident, were now slumped in defeat.
The old knight sighed. What had he done? Had he overestimated his daughter? Had he given her a burden she could not carry?
He had thought her relationship with the Prince would flourish, but he had noticed her avoiding his eyes and sensed a misplaced hatred toward him from her.
Someone had tried to kill her, and yet the king had said nothing to him. Had he sent a sheep dressed as a wolf into a wolf's den? He had hoped his daughter would fit right into the place. She was very strong-willed. But it seemed to him that the palace only swallowed her up.
It was however too late now. The ship had already sailed. Charlotte would need to fit in with the crew, or she would be thrown overboard. He prayed she could swim against the strong waves if she failed to fit in.
"I see life in the palace isn't agreeing well with you, my daughter." He said.
She turned to him, tears in her eyes.
"Is there any way I can get out of this father?"
The old knight gave her a sympathetic smile, perhaps Charlotte was not the wolf he thought she was.
"I'm sorry child, I don't think so."
"But you said it was your fault, if we find the person that killed Frederick, then the king-"
"-Will change nothing." He cut her off. "Your arranged marriage to the king has nothing to do with that..."
"But you said-"
"I was mistaken, child. I'm sorry, the king loves to play games."
His daughter's face crumbled, devastated. He wished she would mask her emotions better. In the palace, emotions were like a currency. If you showed them to the wrong person, you would only get hurt.
"What do I do then, father? I cannot survive in that place anymore." she sobbed.
He rubbed her back reassuringly.
"You have to, sweetheart. I'm sorry. Make a name for yourself. Remember when you first joined the others in training? You didn't think you would survive then." They both smiled at the memories of better times. "But look at you now. You thrived! If you had left with the battalion you were assigned, you would now be a knight!"
"And I wouldn't be in this position." She said, smiling hopefully.
The old knight refrained from telling her that she probably still would. Her fate had been determined long before she was born. The king would have pulled her from the battle if he had to.
"We are survivors, daughter. You will thrive in the palace if you accept your position. You now have power, you could tell me what to do if you played your cards right." he smiled.
Charlotte smiled back.
"Boss you around?" she asked.
Her voice was small, reminding him of her younger self.
"Boss me around." He agreed. "But only as a princess." He paused, thinking of his next words. "You will have to fix your relationship with the Prince, then you will have all the power you would want, subject only to the king and the prince."
He watched an array of emotions pass over her face. But they disappeared before he could tell what she was feeling. He waited for her to say something, but she only stared straight ahead.
"What are you thinking?" He asked after a while.
"The man who killed Frederick, how do we find him?" Her voice was all business, the tears in her eyes gone. He didn't know whether to be proud or worried.
He sighed. "That door is closed. He was over-exerted in his interrogation. He sadly died before we could know more."
A weird look passed over his daughter's face. In a moment it was gone. He wondered if he had imagined it.
"The man last night," she said, "He said he was the assassin's friend. There are more of them. " she looked at him, her eyes cold. "I grazed his arm, if we can find him, he could tell us more."
The old knight chuckled. "Leave that to the investigators Charlotte. You have more important things to do."
She stared at him in a way that made him feel like he had said something wrong. He moved to redeem himself.
"What I mean, Charlotte is that we have more qualified people working on that. As the king said, he will not rest until he gets justice for Frederick."
His daughter did not answer him. He felt like he had driven a wedge between them. After a while of silence, he took her hands.
"Sweetheart, I know you and the prince were close friends," she stiffened. "But by now you must have realized that the palace is nothing like the house you grew up in, right?"
She did not answer.
"I assure you, daughter, I am working on it. We will find everyone involved and bring them to justice."
"You leave in a week." her voice was accusing.
He gasped in mock surprise, "I am wounded! You underestimate me. You don't think I could find these people in a week?"
Her smile lifted a weight off his shoulders.
"Everything will be alright, I promise." he lied.
Charlotte turned and leaned on his shoulder, he wrapped an arm around her, sighing with relief.
As he led her back into the palace in comfortable silence, two guards joined them.
"We present ourselves as her Ladyship's security. It's an honor to serve you, Lady Charlotte," they said.
The old man glanced at his daughter. 'I told you' his look said. They both smiled.
Their pleased smiles disappeared when they ran into the king, Charlotte almost losing her balance and falling to the ground. Her father held on to her tightly, saving her from the fall.
The old knight bowed and Charlotte curtsied.
"Father and daughter. What are you two plotting in these halls." He said laughing.
Her father smiled. "Is a man not to walk with his daughter, old friend?"
The king turned to her, ignoring his friend's retort.
"You looked exquisite at the dinner last night, did I mention?" he did not wait for an answer. "My son couldn't take his eyes off you. But then again your father only dressed you in metal and rags. You must be pleased, finally a proper lady."
'I'm a warrior, not a lady.' She wanted to say. Not that she found offence in being a lady, she did not want people to think that was all she was.
Instead, she smiled sweetly, taking her father's advising look.
"A shame what happened to you last night, but then again, your father will not rest until he finds that man. You are very lucky, Lady Charlotte."
The king placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. To Charlotte, he placed another heavy weight on her, and her spirits sank. It seemed the king only brought her grief.
"Walk with me old man," He said to her father. "Your daughter is safe in the palace." He added signalling one of the guards behind them to take her.
Father and daughter did not miss the irony in his statement.
As the old knight handed her to one of the guards behind them, he hugged her again.
"Remember my words," he whispered in her ear. "I love you always."
Charlotte smiled sweetly at him, turning and walking away with the guards.
"Your daughter attacked my son." The king said, a smile in his voice.
The old knight knew the statement was just as dangerous if the king had been smiling.
"Lover's quarrels. You and I both know better than to get between that," he answered smiling.
"You are funny Sebastian. I will miss you when you die in the battle in the South, but I know that you will bring victory to us even from your grave. Rest easy knowing your daughter will be loved."
"I don't die easy, dear old friend. Neither of us do."
"And yet, I have this nagging feeling like I'm about to," He turned to him. "And if I go, then so do you, remember? "
"All too well." The old knight answered, melancholy.
"Don't get all mushy-feely on me. And stop calling me 'old friend', I'm older than you."
They both laughed.
"Be careful, old Seb, you know what they say about the sins of the father."
"They are passed on to the son? I didn't know you to be a religious man."
"We must all lean on something, dear friend."
"Well, thankfully, I do not have a son. And I stopped sinning long ago."
The king's smile was bitter.
"Still, one must be careful to repay his debts while he is still alive."
"I will remember that, old friend, and we both know God doesn't scare me." The knight said as they prepared to part ways.
"Blasphemy, Sir Sebastian, you could be hanged for that." The king said as he disappeared into his chambers.
"And yet here I stand." The old knight mumbled to himself.
He turned and headed for his office, praying that his daughter would heed his words.
She would only be safe as the prince's wife.
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