"RIDER!"
I sprinted tirelessly through the lush forest, relishing the utter scream of betrayal echoing behind me. As I raced around a corner, I could hear the Palace horses galloping behind me. Oh baloney. How did they get here so fast? Leaping through a clump of branches, I grinned as all the horses halted immediately. It was a piece of cake from here. Get to the next kingdom, sell this overprized party hat and Rider Island was all mi…
"We got him now, Maximus!"
What the? How did that idiot get through? Seeing a vine in front of me, I grabbed at it and swung around back behind the Captain, kicking him off the saddle and gaining control of his darling Maximus. The idiotic horse didn't even notice. Satchel in hand, I raced out of the forest, to Rider Island.
Ah. Seventy years and I'm still used to it. The view was so beautiful; the crystal white beach, the lapping waves, Rider Island was a sight to behold, especially when it was filled with enormous piles of money. I still remember that fateful day, where I stole the Lost Princess's Crown and took off with the Captain's horse. That Crown was worth a lot more than I thought. The horse wasn't too bad either. The money I got from both of them was more than enough to fulfill my dream: Being on an island that I owned, unarrested and alone, surrounded by enormous piles of money.
But, for some reason, I wasn't satisfied. There is something missing. I don't know what it is. I have everything. Money, Rider Island, freedom, babes. But still, I cannot put my finger on that one missing thing. Like I had taken a wrong path somewhere in my successful life.
Maybe I should have killed that Captain. After all, he did cause me so much trouble before I scored the Crown.
No, that wasn't it. I would never murder anyone, no matter how much of a mustached prick they were.
Maybe I should have kept the horse. Nah. I got so much money from selling it, I could build my own army.
Oh wait, I did. Or at least, a bunch of stealthy burglars who got me the rest of my fortune.
Maybe I shouldn't have stolen the crown. The King and Queen were kind of upset that they lost their only child. The crown was their last piece of her. They did find her eventually, sobbing in a hidden tower somewhere in a forest.
Come to think of it, that forest was the same one where I made my getaway. Maybe I was meant to save the princ…
Nah, being the knight in shining armor wasn't my thing.
What was it? What was missing from my perfect life? Then, it hit me.
True love.
I had never experienced true love.
Every woman I'd met before the Crown sneered when I used the Smoulder on them. Every woman I met after was just after my fortune.
But then again, true love can't put money on the table.
I guess I'll never know what I don't have. Anyway, you can't miss what you never had.