"Where do you think you're going?"
The familiar young voice coming from behind me stops me in my tracks, interrupting the packing I had hurriedly been doing. I'd feared that the young king might confront me before I had a chance to make myself scarce following my outing as a traitor to the newly-established kingdom of Evermore. However, I know I must keep up the act—the eyes are forever watching. As much as I want to tell him that this is all part of an act, I can't do so without the risk of ruining the illusion of loyalty to the mousekin that I've worked so hard to build.
"What concern is that of yours?" I ask indifferently as I finish shoving the last few essentials into my suitcase and closing the lid. I turn to head toward the door only to find the feline-eared sovereign standing directly in my way, refusing to budge.
"No! I won't let you leave until you tell me what the hell's going on!" he shouts.
"Step aside," I say in the most cold voice I can muster. If there's one thing I've learned from my years of diplomacy, it's that giving your opponent an inch will only make them expect a mile.
"This isn't like you, Roland! I know you better than that! You couldn't possibly be working for them! I won't believe it!" Evan refuses to lower his steadfast gaze away from my face, even as his voice begins to crack, even in spite of the humiliation that a person of his station would undoubtedly feel from being witnessed openly crying. The tears flow rapidly from Evan's eyes, as if he has come to the harsh realization that he can't will his words to be true no matter how much conviction he says them with.
The sight of this scene stirs strong emotions within me. Evan reminds me so much of my own young child that it pains me to do something that is so obviously hurting him, even if it is for the greater good. I steel myself as much as I can before replying coldly. "You're old enough now to learn that the world isn't all sunshine and rainbows. Now step aside."
The steady tears suddenly turn into open sobs, making it difficult for Evan to even speak now. "No! You can't go, Roland! I need you! I can't run a whole kingdom by myself! Please, don't leave me! I'm all alone without you!" Evan grabs my coat and clings to it, sobbing into the fabric.
I find myself fighting against the urge to wrap my arms around him and comfort him for the pain I never intended to cause. His father was assassinated by the very person who he believes me to have pledged allegiance to and he apparently has no other surviving family. Understandably, at his age, he would project familial relationships onto the people he meets to cope with the loss of everyone he's ever known. It must feel like he's losing a father for the second time.
I remind myself that there will be time for apologies and explanations later, but for now, I can't afford to lose all that I've worked so hard for. I must do what the eyes watching me expect in this situation, so I brusquely push Evan aside. Unfortunately, it's more rough than I had intended. Evan loses his balance and falls with a thud to the hard floor below.
No matter how much I want to go to his aid, I know I mustn't even look in his direction. I soldier forward, stoic as can be, toward my destination—the castle at Ding Dong Dell. Mausinger must never suspect that my loyalties are still entirely with Evan and his burgeoning kingdom—not until the time is right, after I've reclaimed Evan's treasured family heirloom.
As I struggle to hold back a few tears of my own, I find myself wishing that doing the right thing didn't have to hurt so much.