"If I may, your majesty, ask your daughter to dance?" James asked.
"You actually want to be near her?" my mother asked, surprised.
"You know I'm not so awful!"
"You act so ungrateful, Evelyn."
"I want to have my own life, mother."
"I'm sorry but that is not an option when you're a princess and who you are."
"That is so ridiculous!"
James stood and grasped my hand, dragging me away from the table.
"I beg your pardon!" I exclaimed to him.
"Just smile and look as though you are having a grand time."
"Why should I? I'm not."
"Why are you such an impossible child?" he asked.
"I am not a child. I am nearly eighteen years of age."
"Your age matters not, Princess. The way you are acting is absolutely ridiculous." He shook his head and looked about the room.
I furrowed my brow and bit my lower lip. Nobody, besides my mother, had ever spoken to me in such a way. "Who do you think you are to berate me in such a way? And in my father’s court no less.”
"It's something you need to hear. You should be grateful for what you have."
"And what do I have? Since you are so keen on my life," I asked as he spun me about the dance floor.
"You still have both of your parents who love you dearly despite the fact that you never obey a word they say. You have everything you could ever want. You're not hungry. You get to attend all the balls, parties, and happenings at the palace. You have fine clothes. You inherited your mother's beauty and have the most remarkable ocean blue eyes I have ever seen. In fact, they almost glow."
"Did you turn your insult toward me into a compliment?" I questioned, turning my attention to the prince who held me tight.
His cheeks turned a crimson red and he averted his gaze elsewhere. "No. Of course not."
"Thank you," I whispered.
"What was that?"
"Thank you. For saving me from my mother. It was very nice of you. You didn't have to whisk me away and you did."
"You're thanking me?"
"Yes. I'm not as awful as I seem."
"I never thought you were. I understand what it's like growing up as a royal. It is rough. Our lives are not as easy as they may appear to others. However, you do need to listen to your parents."
"Even if it means marrying someone you don't know?"
"Yes." I could feel him push away from me a bit. "Do you think that I'm okay with this? Do you think there isn't someone else I may have feelings for?"
"Oh." My heart actually grew heavy at the revelation.
I never thought about anyone else being affected by this arrangement.
"There's no saying we can't grow to love each other in time though."
"I don't want you or me to have to grow to love each other. I want to marry someone I already love. Not to mention the possibility of you being unfaithful with the woman you already love."
"I'm not going to be unfaithful, Evelyn. I take my duties seriously."
"I am not a duty! I am a woman. I will marry someone that I love. And I don't love you." I broke from James's grasp and stormed from the great hall.
I slammed the door to my chambers shut behind me. Everything was dark and quiet. I crossed the room and sat in a window seat, staring out over the gardens. The roses were in full bloom, the dew that collected on the delicate petals glistened in the moonlight. Sighing heavily I kicked off my shoes and unlaced the stays of my bodice and skirt. I let the fabric fall to the ground, smiling at the release of all the weight on my hips. I stood in my petticoats when something glistened on my desk in the dying firelight. Cocking my head to the side, I strode toward the object. A beautiful silver tiara of hematite and garnet. I couldn't take my eyes off it. The blackness of the hematite streaked with blood red veins. The garnets almost shone in the pale firelight. I removed the tiara I already wore and held the new one above my brow.
"Do not put that on your head." My mother stood in the doorway, staring at my new headpiece.
"Why not?"
"Where did it come from?" she asked, arching her brow.
"I assumed you and father had it made."
"I'd never use hematite and garnet together."
"Why?" I asked.
"Hematite is the gem of war and garnet is a very complex jewel. It takes many minerals working together to make it. The Guild had it sent."
"How do you know?"
"I know them. It was probably Agnolo. He has a fascination with beautiful objects." My mother took the tiara from me and turned to leave.
"You're keeping it?" I asked.
"It's getting locked up. Evelyn, don't think I do this to punish you. Trust me for once when I say you want nothing from them."
"Then why are they sending it?" I asked.
"They're coming for you," she said sadly.
"Coming for me? Why me?"
"You're my child. That's why."
My mother shut the door; it clicked softly as she left me in solitude. I didn't know what to think or how to feel about the latest revelation. How long would it be until they came for me? Would I have to use the skills that I'd been taught for so many years finally?
Oh God, is my mother right?
I sat near the window, hugging my knees and staring at the roses. A light rain began, tapping against my window.
"Evelyn?"
"What, James?"
"I, um, I said some things I shouldn't have. I didn't mean to say that I didn't, or couldn't, fall in love with you."
"Now really isn't the time, James. I appreciate the sentiment, but your timing is not right."
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"Some things just came up that I need to figure out."
"Let me help. I want to try to make this as happy a union as I can."
I sighed heavily and stood.
"Oh. You're not decent!" He turned quickly and shielded his eyes.
"It's fine. I still have my petticoats on."
"I'll come back tomorrow. We can have breakfast together." He headed for the door without turning around again.
Now isn't he quite the gentleman?
"Princess Evelyn?" Charlene called, walking in after James. "Are you all right?"
"I'm fine."
"What did Prince James want?" she queried.
"Nothing. Just to talk. I left dinner early."
"Yes. So I heard. You left after yelling at the prince."
"Hmm. Yeah. He said some rather horrible things."
"He's going to be your husband."
"Don't say that. It's not set in stone yet. There hasn't been an announcement or anything."
"It's inevitable," she said, picking the discarded clothing up from the floor. "Do you want to wash up before bed?"
"Yes." I sat back down waiting for her to finish up and get my water.
Charlene jumped at the sound of a crash in the hallway. “What was that?”
I stood and listened as someone was screaming just beyond the door. Charlene grabbed my hand and gasped.
“What is happening?” I asked.
I shrugged and pulled out of her grasp. “Don’t!”
“Shh,” I whispered.
I crept to the door and placed my ear to the wood trying to listen. Things had gotten very quiet. Quieter than normal. I couldn’t hear the usual whispers of the guards who marched about the castle.
“Something’s not right.”
I hurried away from the door to a bookshelf on the far wall.
“What are you doing?” Charlene asked.
“We’re sneaking out of here.”
“Is that necessary?” she questioned.
I reached into a crevice behind Erasmus’ book Praise of Folly. A small lever activated a mechanism within the shelf, allowing me to pull it away from the wall.
“Come on.” I grabbed Charlene’s hand and pulled into the
small room.
I quietly shut the shelf as my chamber doors burst open. Muffled voices drifted from beyond. Charlene stood behind me sniffling as she cried.
“Are we going to die?” she asked.
“No,” I whispered. “Be quiet so they don’t hear you.”
I crossed the room and pushed on a brick that was caved into the wall. Another door popped open leading to a staircase.
“Come on.” I motioned for her to follow me.
“Where does this go?” she asked, keeping her hands on the wall.
“It goes to the throne room. We will be safe there.”
“What if the intruders are there?” Charlene asked.
“Then we wait here in the tunnel. Either way we’ll be safe. Don’t worry.”
Chapter three
I stood near the door to the throne room and listened. It sounded quiet. Too quiet like my hallway. I glanced over my shoulder at Charlene. She stood on the bottom step crying.
Poor dear.
“Who do you think they are?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I suppose my mother and father have enemies. Maybe it’s those Guild people.”
I pushed on an emblem carved onto the door activating another switch.
“Please, don’t go, Ellie.”
“Stay here, Charlene. You’ll be safe.”
“I can’t let the princess go out alone and do nothing. Your guards should be with you.”
“They’re probably dead. And don’t worry. Mother has taught me how to fight and protect myself. It was part of that daily training she’s had me doing since I could walk.”
“I don’t know, Ellie. This is really dangerous.”
“Just stay close to me, okay.”
I pulled open the door enough to squeeze through. The stone was cold on my bare feet as I snuck along to the doorway. Hiding within the curtains that lined the entrance, I peaked around the corner. Charlene breathed heavily in my ear. I reached back and held her hand. There were torches laying on the ground and a few overturned chairs. I snuck to a suit of armor that stood in a corner. Father always told me that it belonged to his father and he’d wear it into battle. Attached to the armor was grandfather's broadsword. I pulled it from the sheath at its side as silently as I could.
“There she is! The princess!”
I turned to see three people dressed in all black running towards me.
“Oh.”
I took a stance like mother had taught me, holding the heavy sword at the ready, prepared to fight them off for as long as I could.
“No.” I looked to my left and saw mother, father, Prince James and the rest of the royal guard running towards me as well.
“Drop the sword and run, Evelyn!” Father screamed.
I looked at the three black clad people and decided to listen to my father. I dropped the sword and ran to them. Mother and father pushed me into James’s arms as the royal guard surrounded us.
“James, take Evelyn to safety.”
“No! I’m staying here! I’m helping,” I shouted at them.
“This is not up for debate, Evelyn. You are going with James. They are here for you. They will not stop until you are dead and they are lethal. Go!”
I pursed my lips and let him pull me away from the scene in the dining hall. Mother, dressed in nearly identical clothing to the three who were trying to kill me. Father was uncharacteristically under dressed. He wore nothing more than his breeches, boots, and shirt with his sword at his side.
“Hold on,” I said, breaking from James’s grasp.
“No, we have to go.”
I glanced back to see the three people attack Mother.
“Mom,” I cried out.
One of the black clad people spotted me and darted around the guard.
“Let’s move!” James pulled me through the kitchen to the stables out back.
Charlene followed close by.
“Don’t follow us, madame. Hide within the woods beyond the barn. They are not after you, they want the princess.”
“I can’t leave her,” Charlene cried.
“There is nothing more you can do. Hide and return to the castle once it’s safe.”
“Do we have time to saddle the horses?”
“No.” He threw a bridle on a very large draft before heaving me onto the horses bareback.
“No saddle?”
He pulled himself up behind me and nudged the horse into a gallop. The magnificent beast kicked through the front of the barn, knocking one of the people over. I looked into the woods but could not find Charlene.
I hope she’s safe.
“Where are we even going?” I asked.
“My uncle owns land not far from here. We’ll be safe there.”
He didn’t slow the horse down. The animal breathed heavily underneath us as we ran through forests and over streams. I held tightly to his mane and squeezed my legs as hard as I could around his belly trying to not fall off.
Ladies do not ride horses bareback.
The cold night air blew through my hair as we came to a well manicured lawn. A large stately house came into view. The house was dark, silhouetted in the moonlight. James rode the horse into the stable, closing the doors before helping me down.
“Hurry.” We snuck out a side door to the house, entering in a dark room.
“Is there even anyone here?” I questioned.
“Yes. Uncle should still be awake in his study.”
We walked down a narrow hallway until we saw light flicker beneath a door.
“Wait here,” James commanded.
I nodded as he opened the door.
“Who dare...James!” an older voice shouted from the room. “James, my boy! What are you doing here?”
“Uncle Edward, I do apologize for the late intrusion. There has been an emergency at Hampton Court…”
“The king and queen?” the old man asked.
“They are still there, fighting.”
“Oh no. What about the princess?”
“Well, that’s why I’m here.”
“Princess Evelyn, please come here.”
I peered around the door and smiled at the old man. “Um, Prince James, I do beg pardon, but I, uh, cannot come there.”
“Why?” he asked.
“You see, I was in the process of readying for bed when we left so suddenly. I am in nothing but my petticoats. I do not think it proper for England’s princess to be presented to Lord Edward Norfolk in nothing but her petticoats.”
His eyes grew wide. “Of course not!”
He hurried out to me, removing his jacket and helping me into it.
“I do beg your pardon sir, I was not expecting to leave the castle tonight. Unfortunately, we were invaded,” I said, as the Duke knelt before me.
“No apologies are needed, madame. I am simply happy that you are safe.”
“Uncle, would it be possible for us to have one of your rooms for the night.”
“One?”
“I wish to stay with the princess to ensure her safety.”
“Where are her guards?” Norfolk asked.
“Dead,” I said a bit too bluntly while staring out a window. “I’m sorry.”
“No need to be. It’s been a long night, Evelyn.”
“Follow me. You can have the room opposite mine. The more of us to protect the beloved daughter of our king and queen.”
“Thank you for your kindness, sir.”
“James, what are you doing in England?” Norfolk asked.
“Well, that was supposed to remain a secret until negotiations were over.”
“Negotiations?”
“Yes, Uncle. Princess Evelyn and I are to be married. We are going to unite our kingdoms.”
The duke stopped on the stairs and clapped his hands together. “Wonderful news! Wonderful news! Congratulations. But be sure to know not all subjects will be as happy about this union.
”
“I’m sure there won’t be. A protestant king and a catholic queen? We are quite the scandal, James.” I looked up at him.
“Well, I’m not sure what’s going to happen until we return to the castle tomorrow.”
“Are you certain we’re safe here?” I questioned.
“Yes. I’m pretty sure nobody followed us.”
“I will have one of the servants bring you hot water and clean clothes. Please, rest, your grace.”
“Thank you, my Lord.”
“I’ll let you have some privacy. I will be outside the door, Evelyn.”
I smiled and nodded as I waited. I stood near the window looking over the yard for any sign of movement. We were far enough away from Hampton Court that I couldn’t even see the guards towers.
A soft knock came from the door.
“Enter.”
A short, petite red-head entered the room. Her eyes had dark circles under them and she attempted to hide a yawn.
“I do apologize for them having roused you from sleep.”
“It is no trouble, your majesty. I am only happy to help you in any way I can.”
“A hot bath would be wonderful and clean clothes.”
“Right away.”
She filled the metal tub in the room with hot water and assisted with scrubbing my hair. Climbing into a strange bed with a man in the same room was very strange. I watched as James stretched himself out on the couch in front of the fire. He was so tall his large, booted feet hung over the edges.
Chapter four
I eventually drifted off to sleep. It felt as though I had just shut my eyes when I heard voices. Sitting up, I looked around the room. It was empty.
I grabbed the heavy, red blanket from the bed and hurried into the hallway. Mother, Father and Charlene stood there with Edward Norfolk and James.
“You’re safe!” Charlene cried, running to me.
“I am.” I wrapped my arms around her as she hugged me tight.
“What happened last night?” I asked my parents.
Mother and father looked at each other before looking back at me.
“We were right about the Guild. They are coming after you. The three that encroached on the castle were Guild members. From how they fought they aren’t very advanced. I would think only fifth or sixth year defenders.”
“Only?”
“I was a fourteenth year defender when I went to be your father’s.”
The Defender's Daughter: The Defender's Book 2 Page 2
