I wondered if my stay here, although brief, would leave stains, too. On the floors of the house, which I’d meticulously cleaned. In the drawers of the kitchens and the library and the parlor, where I’d rearranged things in my search for lost items and reads.
I wondered if my stay here would leave any sort of residue on Shao’s heart.
Unwilling to think anymore, I pressed on, heading back towards the parlor with brisk, wide steps. Before I knew it, the voices had already died out; I couldn’t tell if the conversation had died through its natural course or if Shao and his siblings had heard me shuffle around.
When I turned a corner, I saw the parlor at last in its familiar, beautiful, clean glory.
Although it had once been blanketed by decades of dust and decay until nothing of itself could be seen, like the peaks of mountains in the wintertime were layered by snow, it now revealed a round, wooden coffee table accentuated by a glass top and crystal beads at its sides and speckling its legs. Surrounding the desk was a circle of plush, velvet couches I’d often lounged on while reading in Shao’s company.
The sight tugged at my heartstrings, and I swallowed as I focused my gaze on Shao, Solien, and Isabella, who were huddled together near one of the wall’s corners. Fatigue and tears had bagged, swollen up, and reddened their eyes.
Shao stood farthest from me, leaning back against one of the walls in his characteristic, cat-like sprawl, while Princess Isabella and Prince Solien stood between us like the guards who’d attempted to protect the princess from her own brother so many years ago.
Only, the two royals were protecting Shao from me.
Silence sparked and crackled between us like a jolt of lightning or fireworks.
“Did you sleep well?” Princess Isabella asked at last, flashing her characteristic grin, and I was… conflicted to know it looked at least somewhat genuine, although there was a caustic edge of chagrin to it as well.
I nodded.
I took a glance at Shao, and his lips parted slightly, signaling a desire for him to say something—but instead, I got reminded of the almost-kiss from last night, and zipped away my gaze.
When I found the courage to peek back at him, he’d clamped his lips back shut.
“Are we heading to my home?” I asked and cringed when my voice came out as quiet yet shrill as a mouse’s quip.
I swept my eyes around the walls of the parlor in one last attempt at memorizing everything I could, and my eyes lingered on each of the paintings, which had all been turned back around to display the neglected blond child’s doodled masterpieces.
There was a buzzing series of noises that I paid little attention to in my reveries, and I only realized the royals had been speaking to me when I felt them brush past me outside.
Shao stood at his corner of the room. He watched me like a hawk, his gaze sharp and attentive while he said nothing. I broke my stare again, feeling like he could sweep in and tear away my heart once more at his discretion.
It took every fiber of my being not to run back to him and ask him about his second secret. To plead him to disguise himself with magic as he’d done before and come with me.
Instead, I turned away and followed Prince Solien and Princess Isabella, who remained silent and left several yards of distance between each other as if in respect to the emotional turmoil in my heart and the silent warfare between Shao and me.
“I’m sorry,” a gruff, male voice said behind me. Echoes of a time we’d thrown away were embedded into his tone.
I didn’t turn back or respond.
Chapter 20
The moment we were out of Shao’s earshot, Princess Isabella heaved a huge sigh of relief. Surprised, I glanced up at her, and I gaped when I saw her quirk a genuine grin.
''My heart and a half, that was one of the most stressful situations I’ve ever been stuck in,” she whispered, stretching out her arms.
“I’m… Pardon me?” I asked, uncertainty lacing my brows. Isabella almost seemed to pout in a playful manner as she pointed at me.
“You and Shao are quite the duo,” she grumbled into the sleeve of her dress. “You guys were just dripping with teenage angst in the way you were looking at each other.”
I knit my brows, unsure how to feel about someone younger than me discussing my so-called teen angst.
“One of you, Sol and I can just barely handle, but both of you at once?” She feigned a shudder, only I wasn’t even sure if she was faking it.
I blinked, trying to make heads or tails of her reaction and casual demeanor. I rested my palm against the knotted, gnarly bark of a nearby tree to ground myself.
Although I could have asked a thousand questions, or no question at all, I settled on remarking, “You guys aren’t… mad at me?”
Because that was the best and only method I could come up with to gauge whether Shao was mad at me, too, which was… ridiculous. If anyone should have been angry, it was me—and I was fuming.
Princess Isabella’s eyes widened before she burst into laughter. “Mad at you? We’re grateful!”
I pressed my hand harder against the next tree we passed on our way to the clearing, and I brushed away a strand of hair from my face. “Grateful? Princess Isabella—”
“You were calling me Isabella just fine before, weren’t you?” The princess asked, putting a hand to her hip, and I was sure I blanched.
“Th-that was before I realized who you were—”
“What does my identity matter? I was born a princess through sheer luck.” Princess Isabella sighed, but her eyes twinkled with delight. I had a nagging suspicion that she not-so-secretly enjoyed putting people in their place by lifting them up.
Well, she, too, was only a teenager, I thought with false sympathy and understanding that made me feel smug.
Following a mini-speech on rising through one’s merits alone that I didn’t listen to, the princess pleaded, “Please, call me Isabella. Won’t you, darling?”
Belying her words, her voice was filled with authority and gravitas that compelled me to obey; at the same time, she was making a puppy dog face at me… and I only ended up feeling conflicted, concerned, and confused.
“S-sure, Is…abella,” I drawled. Uttering those words felt vaguely like pulling teeth—my own teeth. With moisturized hands.
Shortly after I spoke, we arrived at the clearing that doubled as a parking spot for the carriage. Before us stood firm a barrier of branches and leaves that hid the pathway, although they were weak to touch and quickly gave way to our presses.
I peered through the leaves and saw specks of a familiar brown and dusty rose.
Prince Solien stood at the corner, keeping the branches held up high to keep the pathway clear and easy to pass through.
Though I’d seen him move there, lift the branches, and stay in spot, my heart still gave a faint jolt when I saw his hand against the intertwined shades of green and brown. I’d forgotten his presence.
In a way, he reminded me of Shao. Both were quiet and wary, although Shao could fill a room with his silent presence and Sol used his as a cloak of invisibility.
Was this guy really the crown prince?
Then again, he was even younger than Isabella, and he had a lot of time to grow into the large shoes of the country’s ruler.
I nodded at him in thanks, but my mind remained on the thought of rulers.
It was clear Shao wished to be king. Throughout my entire visit, the only books he’d read—and he devoured them, although he’d already read them a thousand times over—had been books relating to politics and ruling. He’d often talked about wishing to emulate his father, too; this had taken on a completely new meaning now that I realized his father was the freaking king. And, finally, he’d reintroduced himself as the former crown prince of Perintas Kingdom…
Clearly, there were some lingering feelings of loss and regret there.
A part of me wished I could save him somehow, but I shoved that part of me into a corner and tried to box it up in
the deepest recesses of my mind.
It was too late, and Shao… from the way he’d spoken, he was keeping something big from me. I knew in my heart of hearts that it would crush me into dust and ash if I learned his secret…
Because I had the worst suspicion that I knew what it was.
Look forward, Beatrice, I thought to myself, forcing my thoughts away from Shao and his deceit. Face reality, not the past or your stupid what-ifs.
A rather large, pumpkin-shaped carriage filled my view, and a wind bristled in my direction, coating my nose with a pungent scent that was the mixture of metals, rust, and horses in desperately need of cleaning. Familiarity tickled my nose.
Tilting my head, I took a closer look at it, then rubbed my hands against the ridged surface as I tried to fathom why everything about this moment reeked of déjà vu.
Nothing came to me until I hopped onto the coach after Isabella; the familiar hefty step that was too tall for normal, human legs caused me to gasp in familiarity and understanding.
This was the carriage I’d arrived at Shao’s mansion in.
I turned back towards Prince Solien, but he was missing; where he’d stood, there was a tall elderly man with a stooped back. He held two torn halves of a thin yellow strip of paper in his hands, and his gaze was almost taunting.
My lips parting, I turned back to the carriage and eyed Isabella. This time, I saw her rip the paper and heard a sharp tear.
With a pop, a puff of purple-and-pink cloud enveloped her from head to toe, and where it poofed away, she’d been replaced by a completely different, older woman with bushy brows and jet-black hair cropped to her shoulders. She still looked elegant and poised, but without the youth of her features and the wild curls of her blonde hair, the air she carried took on a completely different form than that of a young heiress with much room to mature.
Regal. Queenly. Majestic.
That was how I’d describe her, posing with her hands folded above her lap, even as she sat without anyone important watching.
She gave me a sheepish grin, but on her altered features, it looked almost coy and taunting.
“You don’t look very surprised,” she said with a Northern tang to her voice. Her voice was deeper yet more feminine.
“Shao gave me a demonstration already by transforming into a wolf,” I said with a snort. Or rather, he’d transformed back into himself from wolf form, but the distinction didn’t matter enough for me to correct myself. “I reckon that’s just a tiny bit more surprising.”
Princess Isabella pouted again, and it looked a lot less fitting in the body of a mature young lady. I stifled my laugh.
She bent down to lift a large black duffel bag from beneath her seat, and I marveled that something so big could fit in the carriage so well that I hadn’t even noticed it.
Without any regard for me, she ruffled through the bag, and I grew bored after a few moments and turned my gaze to Prince Solien. He was whispering something to his horses, and I heard the moist sound of them crunching on something hard as he patted their manes.
Once they were fed and gave a purr of pleasure, Prince Solien quit dawdling. He mounted his small seat in the outer compartment of the carriage and tugged on their leashes.
With a vibrating cacophony of neighs, they convulsed back for momentum, hopping around haphazardly in the process, before rushing forth through a path they knew well.
I flinched at the sudden motion. Beside me, Princess Isabella yelped, then yelped again with a different tone as she turned back to me.
I forced myself to turn back towards the princess; it was hard, as my eyes kept trying to roam back to the passage back to the mansion, which I could no longer even see. And yet… I wanted to see the sprawling mansion once more. I wanted to mull over my history with Shao before I left him for good.
When I finally managed to turn my entire head towards Isabella after fighting every muscle in my body, I saw something flicker in her eyes that seemed almost like understanding.
She simpered, and her hands were outstretched towards me, holding a small glass vial the height and width of a coin. Black tar-like liquid that almost looked like the protective ink of an octopus stuffed the entirety of it, and I could see the liquid shimmer as it vibrated with the carriage.
“This… is it?” I asked. My heartbeat thrummed; I was anxious and excited all at once, but I refused to hope just yet. Not until I saw my father recover before my own eyes… and I had a suspicion that I’d have my doubts about the authenticity of the inky cure even then.
Briefly, I wondered if it could be fake… but what would be the point of that kind of deceit? It wasn’t like I’d paid any of them, and if they were royalty, they couldn’t want for anything someone like me could offer.
Princess Isabella squeezed my hand. I noted that the sealed vial was already in my hand, and I was clenching onto it for dear life. When had I taken it from her?
“I’m surprised you kept it in the carriage,” I managed weakly, because I was wanting for so many things to say but could utter nothing. “What if someone stole—”
Princess Isabella chuckled. “Hardly anyone makes it this deep into the forest in the first place, and of course, the carriage was warded.”
Of course.
These royals and their infinite wealth. I didn’t even have it in me to grumble any more than I already had, though. My grip on the vial tightened. I refused to drop it or lose it.
Could Father really be saved?
Chapter 21
I soon drifted asleep, oblivious to my surroundings or the frequent lurching of the carriage. If anything, the sounds of the horses’ feet pelting the ground and the scraping metal wheels relaxed me and lulled me into comatose-like rest.
Tickles bloomed on my shoulders. Combined with the soft female voice that grew louder and more irritated, I woke up with a frustrated growl, and I realized Princess Isabella had been tapping my shoulder while speaking my name.
“G-good morning,” I grumbled, and rolled my eyes at my own indecipherable, mangled words that even the most generous souls wouldn’t call the Arithyan continental language. My words were gibberish, plain and simple.
“Have a good night’s rest?” The princess asked. She quirked a brow, and I flushed under her giggles. “We’re almost here.”
I gazed outside the windows, and I saw Prince Solien’s hesitant stare, his head turned so he could peer into the carriage from outside.
Behind him sprawled a series of small wood-and-brick houses, one of which I’d lived in for two years. The faint scent of incense, gruel-like porridge with too much salt to disguise the lack of a palatable taste, and ever-burning candles engulfed me.
Nostalgia filled my soul, and I took a deep breath in, knowing I was home.
“Wait a second,” I said, narrowing my gaze as the carriage drew closer to the red-bricked house. “How did you know where I lived?”
Isabella blinked. Her smile grew, and I couldn’t tell if it was girlish or taunting. “Asha may have requested it, but Sol and I weren’t about to hand someone a cure without doing a background search first. It was cursory, though, since we already did a thorough one many moons ago when you were almost imprisoned.”
I groaned. I should have known. Families didn’t remain on the throne unless they were discerning and protective of their powers, and the Villeneuve family had ruled Perintas for almost as long as the written record. It was a miracle they were handing me a cure at all—even at Shao’s behest.
Princess Isabella leaned in conspiratorially. “Don’t tell the king we stole the cure from his vault.”
She had the audacity to wink at me, relaxing against the soft, plush back support of her seat, as I looked at her open-mouthed and terrified for my life.
Of course, I doubted the king would punish me when he found out, since this had technically been the act of his children. I wasn’t even sure if he knew I existed in that case. What was he going to do, torture his own children for information?
/> Shuddering at the memory that yes, in a way the king already had tortured a child, I licked my lips and squeezed my vial for dear life. By some miracle, it was firmly ensconced in my hands despite my deep sleep.
Father would have to lie low. Our entire family would. We had to keep him under house-arrest for the rest of his life, so no one found out he was cured.
Seeing the terror in my gaze, Princess Isabella giggled, and she gave my shoulder a firm, reassuring squeeze that sent trembles down my spine that reminded me of red ants and spiders.
“Don’t worry, Beatrice,” she said with melodic casualness I could only pray I could feel within the next seventy years. “We’ll protect you.”
“You sure did a fine job protecting Shao,” I spat out in the addle-brained haze of my fear; I clamped my mouth shut, my hands flying to my lips.
Princess Isabella’s expression twisted into a deeper, faker smile, and I was terrified once more of her because she had the birthright and power to destroy my entire family.
Her facial muscles soon relaxed again, but her hands gave a squeak of a shiver as they gripped the top layer of her dress, and my heart almost popped out my chest.
“To Father, a cure matters infinitely less than Mother’s life,” she said at last, her voice distant but firm. “Sol and I will protect you, because heavens help me, I just made up with Shao and can’t have him hate me again.”
She looked back at me. Her eyes steadied. “Thank you, Beatrice, for helping us make up.”
I twisted away. “I did nothing. You know that. The two of you made up by yourselves.”
Isabella shook her head. “Without you, I wouldn’t have found the courage—your insults, believe it or not, reinforced in my heart that apologizing directly was the only course of action, and that I was a pampered, stupid little idiot for shying away from my responsibility.”
I bit my lip and didn’t respond. How could I? She was giving me far too much credit, and she should have known that, considering I was running away from Shao—forever.
A Kiss like Roses: Fairy Tale Synergy Book 1 Page 17
