章 3: A Gross Misunderstanding
The day dawns bright and clear with possibility. Hope blooms in my chest and I jump out of bed to greet the morning. I have finally had enough of men trying to rule my life; of trying to rule me. It's time I take matters into my own hands and make my own path. Margaret arrives with my breakfast and afterwards helps me dress in a pretty light green day gown made of a light and airy material, perfect for strolling around the festival.
Unfortunately, it's not perfect for my plan. When she leaves I pack a small valise with my breeches and tunic and some other necessities to complete my stable boy look. I put on my mother's locket, complete with her picture inside, and rush downstairs to hide my bag in the carriage before my father awakens.
He has never been an early riser and also insists on a leisurely breakfast, so I still have time to take one final ride on Cleo before we leave. Leaving her and Margaret will be the hardest thing I've had to do in my life, but it's certainly better than the alternative.
I thought seriously about telling Margaret my plan because I know she's not a fan of King Luther, but I also know that if I involve her and get caught, she might get into serious trouble.Losing her job or possibly locked away forever kind of trouble.
I couldn't do that to her after all she's done for me. Still, my heart is heavy as I sneak over to the stables. The groom, Jimmy, greets me with a smile and brings Cleo out for me. After my ride, I brush her beautiful coat and give her an apple as a final gift of affection.
"Jimmy, can I ask you something?" I ask.
"Of course, princess, anything you want," he replies.
"If anything were to happen to me, can you make sure Cleo is taken care of and ridden every day and given lots of apples?" I request, getting a little choked up. He gives me a confused look but nods.
"I don't think anything will happen to you, but of course I will," he says, eyeing me warily. I feel the need to give him an explanation since he's been so kind to me all these years.
"I'm just worried that King Luther won't let me bring Cleo with me when we marry," I explain.
His face softens and he puts a comforting hand on my shoulder. He is aware of Luther's reputation and he doesn't have the heart to reassure me.
"And thank you, for everything," I tell him. Tears threaten to spill over, so I make a hasty exit.
Apparently I am just in time because I hear my father shouting from the house.
"Renata! It's time to leave!" he yells.
I make my way to the carriage, giving one last look to Cleo behind me. Margaret is waiting there for me and she gives me a quick nod and a smile. I hug her fiercely and afterwards she gives me a strange look.
"Are you alright?" she asks.
"Of course. I just want to say how much I appreciate everything you've done for me and tell you that I love you," I say.
We've never really exchanged the sentiment and she looks a little taken aback at first. Then she smiles at me and squeezes my hand. It seems like she wants to say more but my father barks at me to hurry up.
I climb into the carriage and give her a little wave as we jolt forward to our destination.
I take a deep breath and steady myself. I've said my goodbyes to everyone important to me and my bag is secure underneath my seat. I'm ready to start on a new journey in a new life and as sad as I am to leave Margaret and Cleo behind, I feel a buzz of excitement pass through me.
In a few short hours, I will be a free woman, dependent on no man.
It only takes about two hours to reach the kingdom of Tarragon and as we get closer I notice a huge wall surrounding the village where the festival will take place. We have to show our invitation to the guards and my father bristles in annoyance, like everyone should know who he is. I roll my eyes behind his back and I see the guard smirk at me.
"Enjoy the festival, King Albert, Princess Renata," the guard remarks with a wink and I blush with embarrassment.
When we enter the village, I am in awe of the enormity of it all. Children run beside the carriage, waving banners with the kingdom's colors and smiling, curious to get a look at the new royal guest. I wave to them and they squeal with excitement. Even the peasants seem to be healthy and taken care of.
Having a wealthy king doesn't necessarily mean the people have good conditions to live in. I have heard rumors from the kitchen staff that many of King Luther's villages are dirty and the people are often sick and don't have enough to eat. The situation before my eyes makes me feel a tinge of respect for their king.
We pull up to a tent that is clearly meant for royal guests and is surrounded by guards. This may pose a problem for my escape, but then again I am a princess; I can do as I please. Once inside the tent, I take my father's arm and he leads me over to King Luther. He takes my hand and kisses it, lingering a little too long, and it makes my skin crawl.
"Renata, it's very good to see you again. I can hardly wait until the wedding. No man in all the kingdoms will have such a lovely bride as me," he says in a slimy voice.
I give him a tight smile. He is putting on a show because we are surrounded by other royals, but I know what he really means. He can't wait to have me under his control and probably do vile things to me. Just the way he is looking me up and down gives me stomach cramps. My father is completely oblivious, as usual, and overcompensates with compliments to King Luther.
"Father, may I go sit with the other ladies?" I ask sweetly.
"Of course, my dear. King Luther and I have important matters to discuss," he says dismissively.
I walk over to a small group of princesses, all dressed in their finest gowns. I assume these are the ladies who are vying to be the new queen of Tarragon. I introduce myself and they tell me all of their names as they assess me in competition.
"My maid told me nobody in the village has ever seen King Drake," Rosemary whispers after she looks around to make sure nobody is listening.
"I heard he's very reclusive and never leaves the castle," Jeanine replies.
"Oh dear, I hope he doesn't keep his queen locked up in there with him. I do love to be outside in the sunshine," Cassandra says quietly.
"This contest will be fierce, Cassandra. The invitation said it will take skill and cunning to win. No offense, but you seem much too nice to be cunning," Alexandra remarks.
"That's just fine with me. I prefer books to husbands anyway," Cassandra replies, then blushes and looks away.
Cassandra doesn't seem keen on marrying the king. She's very sweet and contemplative, and I feel bad for her. I assume her father is making her participate in this...contest?
"Do you mean you have to compete to marry the king?" I ask incredulously. Everyone turns their gaze to me, looking at me like I have two heads.
"It says so right on the invitation," Rosemary retorts.
"My father didn't bother reading it to me," I admit.
"All I know is, he is the richest man in all the kingdoms, so marrying him can't be all that bad," Jeanine remarks.
I stop myself from rolling my eyes. Clearly all she cares about is wealth and power. Cassandra seems to be more my speed as far as friends go. I spend the next half hour talking quietly with her and find out we share the same taste in books and we both love animals. She's more of a cat person and gushes about the new litter of kittens that were just born last night at her castle.
All the royals partake in a delicious buffet provided by King Drake and drink champagne out of beautiful crystal flutes. No expense has been spared and everyone remarks on the king's generosity. He even has jugglers, bards and other entertainment to distract everyone from the fact that he has yet to make an appearance.
The competition will be starting soon, according to an announcement made by the king's vassal, and the princesses begin to get nervous. They all whisper to each other and trade theories about what King Drake will look like. Rosemary seems very concerned about whether he is handsome.
"Nothing would be worse than having an ugly husband, king or not," she states.
"You'll just have to close your eyes when you're in his bedchamber," Alexandra snickers.
"Alexandra! You shouldn't be speaking about such things," Jeanine scolds.
The ladies get lined up and prepare to go out into a private area where the competition will be held. Apparently only the king, his family and his council will be present for it, in addition to some ladies' maids for chaperoning purposes. My father signals to me and I realize this is the only chance I will have to escape.
"Father, I must take care of my needs. I had a little more champagne than I thought. I will be right back," I tell him.
He nods awkwardly and waves me away. The gods are smiling upon me, because King Luther is nowhere to be found. I ask a guard where the royal privy is and he points me in the right direction. Right outside is a huge grassy area with stone benches surrounding it.
It looks to me like a small arena of sorts. There are archery targets and a group of horses set up, as well as three other medium sized tents. This seems like a contest for knights and I wonder what kind of man the king is. I shake my head as I make my way to the smallest tent, planning to hide in the privy until the competition is underway so I can sneak out the back while everyone is distracted and get to my bag in the carriage.
It's just a short walk to some stables I noticed nearby earlier and then I'm home free.
Suddenly I see movement out of the corner of my eye. The king's family is being escorted onto the field to a set of gilded chairs under a canopy. They are on the other side so it's hard to make out any definitive features, but I see two women, one older and one younger, wearing tiaras. I have to assume they are the king's mother and his sister. But no king in sight.
Several guards and servants surround the canopy, attending to the royal family and making sure they are settled. There is something about one of the guards that seems familiar, but that's impossible because I've never been here before. I lingered too long, because suddenly the princesses are right behind me.
"What are you doing out here already?" one of the guards asks.
"I had to use the privy," I reply haughtily. He raises his eyebrows at me and then ushers me forward.
"Wait, I'm not-" I begin to protest, but I'm interrupted.
"The king is not a patient man, princess, move it along," he says curtly.
"But-" I try to talk but I'm interrupted again. I stand there and refuse to move, the other princesses giving me shocked looks as I cross my arms in defiance. The king's head of security comes over with a stern expression.
"What's going on? The king has many important matters to deal with and he would like to proceed swiftly through this event," he states.
"Sir, I am not supposed to be here, I-" I start to say, but of course I'm cut off. Again.
"Princess, you wouldn't be here if your father didn't receive an invitation and agree to it. Believe me when I tell you, you would be wise not to irritate the king," he says firmly.
"He's not even here!" I reply. He glares at me and his answer sends a shiver down my spine.
"He's always watching."
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