**DAPHNE**
I don’t know what to do.
“Like I said, you have one of two choices.” Hayden's smile is lazy, his eyes heavy with lust. “You tell my father about the baby, and I claim it is my child, not his, then he has you beheaded or...”
I glare at him, seething with anger. “I have never lain with you!”
*I have never been with your father either! Idiot!*
With a smirk and a shrug, he laughs. “It won’t matter at that point. You’ve been hiding out back here for a fortnight. My father, God bless his soul, has been away from the castle on some damned witch hunt. I promise you, when he returns tomorrow, all it will take is a whispered rumor from the guards - the same guards, mind you - that have seen me enter your chamber in the middle of the night once already. You remember, don't you? That first time?” He winks and my heart begins to thump, heavy against my chest. “Add to that - my guilt-stricken face when he asks me for confirmation, and I can promise you, he will ask me. And then, he will come to that conclusion.”
“Why?” I hiss. “What have I ever done to you?”
His jaw tightens, and his fists clench. His attitude suggests something I am not aware of bothers him. Something he works tirelessly to hide. The look he gives me then is of anguish. Internal and barely acknowledged. Almost as if...he is jealous of his father.
“You chose him,” he declares. “You could have had me, but you chose him.”
I was right. He is jealous of the old king.
I want to scream that I didn’t, I want to tell him I never would, but I know I can’t, so instead I cry. Slow, steady tears fall from my eyes and for a moment, he looks affected.
Sighing, I ask him, “And the second choice?”
He smirks, “I am giving you two choices now, but keep in mind, a third may be available at a later time, should I feel so inclined.”
“The second!” I screech at him, in despair. Then, dropping my face in my hands, I lower my voice and urge him on. “Please. What is the second choice?”
He hisses at me, all his resentment spewing from clenched teeth. “Leave.”
“Leave?”
“Run,” he says. “Escape. Go from here and do not ever return.”
*Um, yes please!*
“But how? I-I don’t know where to go!”
He crosses his arms. “Contrary to what you may believe, I am not completely heartless.” His blue eyes find mine and appear to soften at the relief he must see in my gaze. “There is a cottage. North of the river. I can send you with limited supplies. Food and a horse. You can take whatever you can fit into that damned strongbox at the foot of this bed.”
“What?” I am struck stupid with disbelief.
“Candles, flint, clothes, blankets. Wine. I can assure you, there is nothing in this room that I cannot have replaced upon my father’s return. I will even furnish you with ten pounds of silver.”
*Am I hearing this correctly?*
“How will I possibly carry these things on my own?”
He loses his smile. “I would have Ash escort you, but he seems to have conveniently disappeared.”
I snap to attention at that comment, and he is fairly trembling with anger. From the hate I see burning in his eyes, and the searing look he sends my way, I have to wonder if I am mistaken in my assumptions. Perhaps, it is Ash that Hayden is jealous of.
Could Hayden possibly know that the child I carry belongs to Ash?
My eyes widen as more and more possibilities invade my thoughts. What if Ash already came back and Hayden had him killed?
*Stop it, Daphne! Ash is smarter than that.*
Schooling his features, he says, “Take that guard you are so fond of. The big dumb fool that has been falling all over himself to be at your beck and call.”
My head jerks up, as this is exactly what I have been wanting, and I have to work to keep from smiling. But then...
*What about Ash!?*
*What about my sisters!?*
Suddenly I don’t know what to do.
“Would the king not think to look for me at this cottage?” I am trembling now, both from excitement and from fear.
Running a hand through his golden locks, he shakes his head no. “He does not know of it. And he will not search for you if I tell him that you are dead.”
My eyes go wide. “Dead? But will he believe you? How will you tell him I died? I mean, won’t he want proof?”
“Of a peasant’s death? No. Of a slave’s drowning?” Throwing his hands up in exasperation, he begins to laugh. “He will simply find another slave.”
“What about my sisters?” I ask him, clutching my chest.
But even as I ask this, I am devising a plan.
Maybe I could take them with me?
At the very least, I could send for them after the news of my death has been accepted and forgotten.
His brow furrows as he glares at me, confused. “Your sisters? What do they have to do with this?”
“Won’t the king punish them?”
“What?” Hayden retorts. “Why would he? How could he? Your sisters are inconsequential.”
The bedroom door opens with a bang as Dionie and Petra enter.
The pair of us, Hayden and I, stand there staring at one another, neither of us bothering to look away.
After a long moment of strenuous silence, Hayden turns to Dionie. “Well? Speak!”
Dionie, God love him, appears completely unphased as to where Petra is glaring daggers at me. Shifting her gaze from me to Hayden then back again.
“The apothecary awaits you in the library, highness,” he states solemnly.
The apothecary. Not Ash.
*Where is Ash?*
*I cannot leave without seeing him!*
“Perfect.” Then, with a final glance my way, Hayden says, “My father is due to arrive at dusk on the morrow. You have until dawn to make your decision.”
However, my mind has already started to pack. With a quick glance at Dionie I signal for him to come in and close the door.
Looking from him to Petra, I say smoothly, “It is time for one of you to tell me where your beloved Prince Ash has gone.”