Fake Princess
CHAPTER 118
Bella sneered while shaking her head. “ And who has such power?”
There was something that made me not want to mention his name; as if I was afraid, by saying his name, I could call him before us. But if I want to make Bella believe me, I have to. “ Melani Enderson,” my whisper.
The name made Bella flinch in shock. “ The baroness? He's the one who did all this?”
I nodded with all my heart. “ Please, let me tell you.”
For a moment, I thought Bella would turn me down. However, then he stretched his foot forward. “ Please,” Bella says bland. “ I need an interesting story.”
The night had already fully descended as I finished telling the story, and I had already spent an additional cup filled with diluted tea picked from the forest. Bella sat down while prying on a small fire. Finally, Bella said without looking at me,
“ You're a great storyteller, but I need a lot of effort to trust you. I mean, a sixteen-year-old plan known only to you and your friends. Various spells, infant exchange, and king assassination. Sounds like a poet's essay.”
“ This is true,” I said tired. “ I saw for myself the astrologer's confession. Melani tried to kill me using magic— by sending a storm, or at least scare me into keeping my mouth shut. The king was ill and no one, not even a witch and a doctor in Vivaskari, could cure him. Soon she will die, and Riana will be crowned queen. Above your throne. By God, Bella, I swear I told you the truth.”
One of Bella's mouths was lifted. “ I hope you're right. That would mean a lot, imagining I wasn't really born poor. But I know nothing about being a princess. Even if you take me to the palace and show me to them—if we don't get killed on the way—they won't believe you.”
“ They must have believed. You're the last piece of the puzzle,” I insisted, but my heart was crawled with a little doubt when I heard his words. What if Bella's right? What if, even with the real princess beside me, no one believed me? After all, who am I? Only the fake princess, a dead weaver's daughter, and a copyist working for a quirky witch.
“ I can't—“ said Bella, then fell silent. “ Did you hear anything?”
“ What?” my many.
Bella stood up, clasping the flame-piercing. “ I thought I heard something outside.”
“ I heard nothing,” I said, but then I heard it. The clang of metal and the grunts of a horse. Then a slow growl of a man's voice, followed by several footsteps moving forward.
“ Bella,” my whisper. “ Sounds men—many men.”
“ Maybe their arrival is not to hurt us,” said Bella, with eyes fixed on the door. But I know he doesn't believe her. Bella shows the expression of a cornered animal, ready to fight or attempt to escape. From his posture, I knew it was not the first time he felt this way, but his wide-eyed eyes could be interpreted as the worst.
We can't just stand by and wait for them to come in and attack. And there was no other way out, not even a small window behind the house. “ Maybe they are not ready. We can break down the door, try to escape. We can surprise them.”
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