At the castle the servants whispered some more.
"Have you heard?"
"Head what?"
"The prince was seen dragging a girl across town in a wheelbarrow"
"OH MY!"
"WHAT A FOOL"
"SHHHHHHHH"
"you can't say that"
"Can't I? He is a fool"
"Yes he must definitely is"
The servants giggle.
Except there was one servant that did not joke, or even smile. Joshua was frustrated he could not understand what was going on with the prince. The prince could have anyone and routinely did. His jaw clenched as he thought about it but he shook his head.
Joshua made his way down to the basement of the castle. If the prince insisted on acting like a fool, Joshua had decided to be his brain. He turned to the left and was met with the large wooden door of the record room. He took a key from his pocket and unlocked it. It took him a few tries to push the door open. He walked in, huffing a little from the mini workout he received.
The record room held not only a list of the people living in the land but also their families history. It also held documents of immigrants and anyone who had entered in the last 50 years. While she may have lived under the radar, Joshua was going to find her in here. He moved further away from the door and down a long hallway. It was dark and musty in the room. He had to cover his nose and hold a lamp close to face to see anything.
The record room was actually a section of the castle that led to more rooms. Each hallway leads to a different region in the country. With each room holding records for different groups in that region. Joshua continued to walk down to the hallway looking for a healers room. While he was uncertain he would find her there, felt the need to check either way.
He finally made it to the healers room after five minutes of walking. The key to the room was hung on the side of the door. He remembered when the prince decided to have the keys installed next to the doors. It was stupid decision but today he was grateful for the prince's stupidity. Once inside he looked around the room. It was darker than the hallway and extremely cold. Joshua sneezed and looked around for the closest floor lamp.
He managed to find one near the desk at the center of the room. He took his candle and lit the lamp. He could finally see a little better but he noticed that was the only lamp in the room. He sighed and looked about some more.
On either side of the desk were rows of bookshelves. There were labels on the side of each bookshelf going by chronological order. The bookshelf closest to Joshua was labeled 1880. He walked backwards towards the door as the bookshelves there held the most recent records. He stopped about a row before the door. While he was unsure of her name and age, he did know about the old lady who owned the inn. It seemed as though the girl was the old lady's healer. He was sure something in these books would point him in the right direction.
---
Celia sat in the bright living room, her hands traced the embroidery on the couch. Samantha was still in the carriage waiting for the prince to arrive. After Soleil left, Celia had gone in but was much too nervous and started pacing and tugging at her hair. She was scared of what the prince would do if he found out. When she saw him that morning, he let her know that Soleil was tied up and that he wanted Celia to watch her. Celia was obviously upset but she agreed. However when she got to the house she only saw the burnt ropes. She was sure Soleil had escaped and that she could simply tell the prince that Soleil was gone before she got there.
Now though. After helping Soleil she was worried that the guilt would break her. This was not what a good wife did. She tugged on her hair a final time, pulling out a few strands. She looked at the strands in her hands and tears danced in her waterline. She burst through the doors and out of the cottage. She looked at the carriage then started running down the main road. Her breathing was getting heavy with each step she took. Her chest was tightening and her vision was blurring. Still she ran through the pain. Hoping to put enough distance between her and Samantha. She had to tell the prince what she had done. She needed to beg for his forgiveness. There was still a chance to make this right.
She could hear hooves behind her now, catching up rather quickly. She drove into the trees hoping to conceal her movements and confuse the rider. She looked backwards to check and saw that no one was there. She smiled and kept running. Her dress was being ripped as she ran through the forest and her heels were being soaked in mud. She turned again, reentering the main road. To her surprise she was stopped by a horse. Samantha turned the horse sideways, stopping Celia's movement. There was a look of judgment on her face. She bent down and pulled Celia up and onto the horse. They rode back to the cottage in silence. When they arrived Samantha took Celia back inside, dropped her on the couch. Then she made her way to the kitchen and made her some tea. After she gave Celia the tea, she walked outside, reattached the horse to the carriage and got in.
Celia never drank the tea and instead sat on the couch perfectly still except for her hands tracing the embroidery. She was unsure of the time but the sun was still up, the prince would be here soon. Her heart raced and she was still having a hard time breathing.
---
The prince had gotten distracted from Samantha's outburst earlier. He was dirty and a part of his pants had ripped earlier when he had fallen. He walked towards the hotel slowly. While he disliked the place it was the only hotel in town and his queen seemed to be friendly with the owner. He was sure that if he could win the old lady over he could win her heart as well.
Once inside the prince walked up to the desk, the old lady was sitting and reading a book. He waited for her to notice him but she kept her head down the whole time. He scrunched his nose and cleared his throat. The old woman turned her page and cleared her throat as well. He frowned his brows but kept his cool.
"Hello" The woman looked up at him with a fake shocked expression.
"Oh dear I've done it again, the moment I start reading everything disappears." She chuckled and put the book down. The gave her a tight lip smile in return.
"What can I do for you?"
"I am in need of a shower, a change of clothes and your time." the old woman stared at him for a few seconds.
"Well I can give you a room and you'll just have to make due with the clothes other guests have left but my time is not something I give away so freely." The prince wanted to roll his eyes but he nodded.
The old woman came from behind the dress, key in hand and beckoned for the prince to follow her. They walk down the hallway and into a small room. It was the same room the servant had spelt in the last two times. The prince was shocked by the smallness of the room. Too small to even be a closet.
"There must be a mistake, should I not be in a suit or at least somewhere larger?"
"Do you have the money for that?"
The prince reached into his pocket and felt around. It occurred to him that Celia had his seal and the few coins he brought would not be enough. Still he was the prince, that should give him advantages. He chuckled a little and looked at the old woman.
"I am still the prince of this land, I can just send a servant to pay afterwards." The old woman shook her head.
"Sorry I only accept immediate pay, I'm guessing you are unaware but the court has decided to restrict your funds."
This was indeed news to the prince, he was not aware the courts had the rights to do such a thing. Panic and rage overcame the prince. He took down his hair and ran his fingers through it. He cursed lightly, as he thought of all the ways he would punish them when he got back to the castle. The old woman laid a steady and firm hand on his arm, commanding him to stay still. He listened at once and could feel himself calming down.
"The courts explained it was to prevent your kidnappers from using the money."
"KIDNAPPERS? MY GOD '' the prince could feel his rage rising again.
The old lady kept her hand on his arm.
"Of course everyone knows this is a lie. What I can't understand is why they would force you back to the castle when they were doing a goo-" The old woman stopped herself and shook her head.
"Anyways you should change then be on your way." The prince stared intently at the old woman. This meeting was not going as planned and it was clear to him now that the old woman disliked him. Still he came for a reason and he would not leave until had at least one answer.
"I cannot do that. I swear on my mother's life that I would not return to the castle without her."
The old woman turned her back on him and walked away. The prince signed and walked into the bathroom. In truth he had gotten used to small spaces ever since he moved into her house. However this bathroom was run down and dark. He felt like a giant but also small like an ant.
---
It was nearing the afternoon now, the prince was still at the hotel. He was now sitting in the lobby in the itches and stiffest clothes possible. He felt miserable, besides the shower and clothes the old lady gave him, she did not help and continued to ignored him. After his shower, he attempted to strike a conversation with the old woman a few times but she kept reading or would head into her office. He was getting annoyed with her. He looked to the woman from across the room and decided he would try one more time.
However he decided to get her attention in a different way. He noticed that the old woman had placed two vases on either side of the doorway. The vases held a rare shade of pink roses with yellow speckles on them. His own mother quite liked them and he was aware of how delicate they were. From what he could remember neither his queen nor the old woman had this rose in their gardens.
He got up from his seat and cleared his throat. As usually the old woman paid him no attention, he smiled and walked towards the vase on the right. He bent down and smelt the rose. It had a heavily smell that was hard to describe beside peace. He picked the vase and smashed it. There were glass shards and water everywhere. He could hear the woman pull her sit back. He grabbed the second vase as he stomped on the roses already on the ground. The old woman made her way to him and reached for the vase in his hand. He moved the vase above his head and out of the old woman's reach.
They made eye contact and he stared at her with a gleeful look. The old woman's face was blank and cold. For a second the prince thought the old woman would leave and ignored him once again. Instead the old woman slapped him. It was the type of slap that was loud enough to create an echo in the room. He could feel his brain rattle and his cheek was sore. He was sure it would swallow up and turn red. He clenched his jaw and turned to the woman who still had the same emotionless expression on her face. He wanted to smash her face with the vase in his hands but he closed his eyes and breathed in deeply.
"So you can control yourself." The prince opened his eyes and was still angry but he handed the vase over to her.
"You, my prince, have a lot to learn. You might think hurting people is the only way to get things but look at the mess you are in because you refused to respect Soleil. " The old woman placed the vase on the stand and walked back to the counter. The prince followed quietly behinder.
"Soleil? Who...wait, you mean the seamstress? What does the seamstress have to do with anything?" The old woman looked at him in shock.
"The healer you claim to be in love with -"
"It is not a lie, I am in love with her." The old woman looked to the sky in frustration. "What's her name?" The prince thought about it for a second and he realized he had never asked her.
"Exactly, you don't even know her name..." The old woman picked up her book again.
"Well then I'll ask her when I get home."
"Home? surely you don't mean that poor girl's cottage?" The prince nodded and the old woman put her book down.
"Leave her be, she has no plans to marry anytime soon."
"Why not. I cannot understand why she would choose not to."
"If I told you, can you promise to never step foot into this hotel again and replace the roses."
The prince nodded eagerly. The old woman did not believe him for a moment but she knew for a fact that telling him would give Soleil enough time to escape the prince.
"Soleil is waiting for her mother to come back home. She refuses to marry without the blessing of her mother."
The prince nodded his head, a plan was already formulating in his head.
"Well then I'll be off." The prince wave and the old woman gave him yet another emotionless expression.
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