บท 15: "FAREWELL, HALE"
ROSABELLA'S POV
I needed air. There was so much of it around me, but I still needed it. Is this what drowning feels like? Helpless Hopeless And, breathless.
Having him inside the same room, as everyone was walking all over me was exhausting. Especially when I saw that he was enjoying it.
He really hated me.
I gasped for air once I came out into the garden. I had to fight for myself every step of this way, and I wasn't sure if I was ready for it.
The level of anxiety was becoming unbearable, leaving me in a state of of unbelief. There was a significant lump forming in my throat.
He was smiling.
He was smiling at my suffering.
He was no longer the Hale I once knew.
I could feel it starting at the tip of my fingers, a numbing sensation that would soon spread across my skin like wildfire, goosebumps rising along my dark skin.
Every breath I took began to shallow into sharp and desperate gasps for air as my lungs threatened to collapse. My mind and heart raced against time.
The last time i saw him, he loved me. He would have given up whatever I asked him, just for me.
He would never have let anyone walk over me the way his council was doing right now.
Who was Hale Underwood, now?
And if he was no longer the man I loved, I knew I had to move ahead. Without even his shadow over me.
The pain of this realization was overwhelming me, but it wasn't something I could wish away.
It was there.
It would always be.
It would always be there to haunt me, to take away any source of joy from me.
I was doomed and there was no hope.
The only thing left was for me and it was to fight.
"That was quite an act you put there. Running from your problems. Classic, isn't it?"
My breath hitched as I looked back at the unfamiliar green eyes which were once the source of my comfort. What did he mean by that?
"Excuse me, your Majesty?"
I back away from him.
This was scarier than any other confrontation.
He wasn't the Hale that I knew. I don't know what he would do.
My back touches the hard wall of the castle.
"Well, I already knew that you weren't brave, but this? You just proved it to me."
His hand brushes against my right arm, as I hiss.
The wound and the pain were both fresh.
"What? My touch makes you shiver, Your Majesty?"
Somehow, it felt like he added my title to taunt me.
I breathed in and smiled.
I guess I had to begin fighting for myself against the man I once loved.
I gently place a hand on his shoulder and flipped us, so that he was leaning on the wall.
I quickly took my sword out and pointed it at his neck.
"This wound, Your Highness, is the reminder of my victory.You may not have heard, but I fought against Ryker, yes, the strongest warrior known, and I won. This was the only scratch he left on me, and I am glad he did. I could use this to show men like you that women are stronger than you think. And if that proof isn't enough for you, then why are you the one two centimeters away from the tip of my sword?"
I put my sword back into my scabbard and patted his shoulders.
"Be careful, your highness, maybe one day, this sword might even be the cause your people won't have a king."
I rose on my tiptoes and gently whispered in his ears.
"Farewell, Hale."
I curtsied before he could move and walked back into the castle, to take what was righteously mine.
HALE'S POV
"Farewell, Hale."
I unclenched my fists as she walked away; sadly, not taking her lavender scent with her.
I couldn't wrap my head around what had just happened. I could still feel the sharp sting of her sword on my neck.
Ryker.
The Kings envied at that name, while the common people either admired him or were afraid of him.
The Kings had put offers to the last Lormeian King for him to lend Ryker to their armies.
His family and him had been blessed with maximal strength. The rest of his family had been killed in the final war between the Mortales and the Lormeians.
Their case was investigated for months because it came off as a surprise, but they were finally declared dead.
The fact that she fought Ryker and came out with just one wound was unbelievable.
A part of me didn't want to believe it at all.
I could still hear her threat.
"Be careful, your highness, maybe one day, this sword might even be the cause your people won't have a king."
She used my title to mock me the same way I used hers.
I chuckled at how she tried to look courageous when she was talking to me.
Today has proved to be more interesting than my own coronation. There was more to her than just being picked by some magic ball. I began to make my way back to the castle when something crossed my mind.
If I wasn't mistaken, then I could swear that she was shaking when I came out of the garden.
Was she sick?
She was definitely not nervous, I could say that, after this little chat of ours.
Whatever.
Why should I care?
Once I walked back into the boardroom, the lormeian council was making their way back to the carriage while she was signing the contracts.
She did get what she wanted after all.
Her victorious smile was enough for me to realize that she wasn't one to keep peace.
She stood upright and pushed her hand forward, giving me the pen.
"Here you go, Your Highness."
That was my thing.
Mocking her title, was my thing.
I nodded and took the pen from her hand. I almost gasped when her nails dug into my skin.
That little vixen.
I turned towards the paper and noticed her signature. It was unique. It was bold and short.
Just like her.
Whatever.
Mine was better.
My hand smoothly glided across the paper, and signed the contract in a few seconds.
Once the contract was signed, I left the pen on my table.
"That will be the end of the meeting. It was a pleasure spending the past few hours with you, Your Majesty."
Sir Derek spoke to her. She turned to him and smiled.
"It wasn't a pleasure here. Hope it will be better next time."
I smirked internally at her boldness.
She turned toward me, and pushed her palm forward, waiting for me to shake it.
Once I clasped her palm, she spoke.
"Stay safe, Your Highness."
She pulled her hand away and pulled in for a hug.
Once at a close hearing distance, she whispered, "Especially from swords, like me."
She really thought that she was something, didn't she.
I put my arms around her and squeezed her right arm intentionally. She gasped in pain as I grinned.
"Good day, Your Majesty, good day."
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