Thirty-One

Tatiana When I learned that the whole Castle knew of my pregnancy, I knew it was only a matter of time before Breena would come out. When she did not come out the first week, I was keeping myself tense, this was nothing except the calm before the storm. The whole Castle knew that.

The Storm came when Breena came for breakfast one morning, she had stopped eating her meals with us a while ago and seeing her in the dining room where it was just me usually eating alone, or with Garnet whenever I could force her to sit beside me instead of standing at my back.

“My lady.” Garnet greeted, jumped from the chair which I had just convince… more like commanded her to sit on less than a minute ago.

Breena stared at her and did not respond to the greeting just like she did not greet me like she was supposed to.

“Good day to you, Breena,” I said, first willing to live in peace with this woman.

And Breena, being the annoyance she is, stared at me without saying a word even as she helped herself into a chair and massaged her stomach. It was not only visibly showing, but she was also looking bigger than usual.

“How dare you?” She started and I raised her eyes to look at her in confusion. I had turned back to my meal since she wanted to be silent, she could remain silent all by herself with no help from me.

“What did I dare to do?” I asked in response and her glare went icier.

“You know what I hate more than people who pretend like they are the best and their own brand of lies does not stink?” Breena started and as usual, she did not wait for her questions to be answered before adding to it. “It is the liars and pretenders who are also betrayals and traitors.”

My hands stilled and even though I had returned my eyes back to my meal, something about my body language must have alerted Breena to the fact that she was right.

“I am right am I not?” She asked and when I composed myself, I lifted my eyes to Breena.

“I have no idea what you mean or what you are trying to say,” I responded, and she threw a cup at me.

It clattered to the floor as the maids screamed while Garnet pressed herself closer to me like she would become a shield for me the moment I wanted one.

“You are a bloody liar. I hate it when people betray King Chandler especially a worthless piece of excuse whom some people would refer to as their father.” She yelled and my heart stilled.

She knew.

I did not know how she knew but she knew that I sent letters to my father.

I turned my fearful gaze to her eyes to see the malicious light in them. “Even as much as I hate that.” She continued. “I do not hate it as much as the king does.”

“Get out…” I ordered and within seconds, the maids who were milling around ran out of the door, closing the door behind them. When Garnet chose to leave too, Breena called back.

“Stay. This affects you too because there is no way that what is happening to your mistress will not be your fate too.”

Garnet looked at me with uncertainty before she moved slowly back to me.

“What do you know Breena and what do you want?”

“I want you, your maid, and your spawn to leave and never return. The minute you do, I will open my mouth and tell the king all that I have learned, and then we will see who will be the queen.”

“You are bluffing, you know nothing.” I tried to sound braver than I felt but Breena laughed at me.

“Okay, let us take it that I know nothing, or I know that contents of the letters which you have been sending your father once a month until last month when you stopped, would you like me to say the contents out loud too, they did say the walls have ears, the news might get back to Chandler before you leave and then, you will be hanged,” Breena suggested and I paled even more while Garnet squeezed my hand.

“The choice is yours anyway, whatever you want to do, you are allowed to do. But you have until this weekend, when I tell the king the due date of my child, to write a letter to leave, else I will also mention what I had discovered over the time that was not around.” Breena shrugged. “It is your choice. I believe breakfast is over, good day, and have a wonderful week ahead.” Breena concluded just as she bowed to me and walked away, leaving my life in shambles and my brain in a state where I could not think but I did know then and there that she was right. I needed to leave.

And true to her words, I left the night before Breena wrote her letter and I left with the hope that she will keep her blackmail and not tell Chandler of my deception.

***************

We traded the first horse when we were still in the kingdom but as we entered my father's kingdom, we traded the second one.

“My queen, the palace is just a day ride from here, we can be breaking it down the way have been doing but we can be home by the third day. It is time that you stretch your legs.

“No,” I responded. “Garnet, I do not want to go home, My father will not welcome me with open arms.”

“But my queen, you are his daughter, and you are in trouble because of him. We cannot keep changing horses’ and galloping around,” Garnet suggested, and I shook my head.

“Although you are right, we cannot keep doing what we are doing but I believe that with time we will know what to do. Besides, it is time to change horses.”

Garnet sighed but she dismounted her horse and helped me to dismount mine.

“I will wait behind the stones here so that people passing by will not see me quickly while you go, and you exchange some of the jewelry for money and get some horses and food.” I offered and Garnet nodded. She fretted over me until I said I was okay before she left. I had to reassure her plenty of times that nobody was going to recognize me not with my servant drab I had on.

When she was gone, I decided to close my eyes and rest a little bit just before our journey started up again and that was how I slept off.

By the time I woke up, it was the pouring of cold water on my face and when I was gasping, opening my eyes, and coughing a man's loud voice spoke gruffly.

“Wake up and come and serve the meals, what kind of servant are you to be sleeping while your mates are working.” He yelled.

I was still disoriented, not understating what happened while I was sleeping. It looked like I was in the middle of a camp and not just any camp but a warrior’s camp.

“Stat moving, do not allow me to whip you.” The man’s nose flared, and I quickly stood up and moved in the direction he wanted.

Here nobody knew who I was or my name, all they see is the type of clothes I was wearing which showed that I was a servant.

I was scared witless for my life.