Chapter Ten-
Ella burst into her chambers, where the servant from before was waiting, speaking with Alicia, who looked cross. Both jumped when the door was flung open.
"Ella!" Alicia cried and hurried towards the door and shut it swiftly.
"You'll never guess what I saw, Alicia," Ella said excitedly, taking off the servant's clothes and taking out an evening gown from her wardrobe.
"Stop," Alicia put a hand on Ella's shoulder, frowning. "Are you insane? What could possibly possess you to do something like that? Imagine if you had been caught!"
"Alicia, it was John's Pact I saw!" Ella protested. "You'll never believe what they do - "
"Are you even listening?" Alicia cried. "You nearly cost Abigail her job! And you, of all people are not supposed to see the Pacts! That's incredibly personal, and private...and - "
"You would have wanted to see one if it was Vincent's," Ella's smile fell. "And I promised Abigail I'd vouch for her if the need presented itself. I said I would take the blame for it all. Alright?" Alicia pursed her lips and breathed out heavily through her nose.
"It was a stupid thing to do," She muttered weakly, suppressing a smile.
"See?" Ella said confidently. "You want to know!"
"I'll leave you," Abigail said politely, and Ella saw she'd changed back into her servant's clothes. The sisters curtsied, and Abigail shut the door behind her.
"It started in the temple," Ella began, and replayed the entire story, not skipping a bit, even the ones where she blushed madly and giggled with Alicia like little girls. Alicia listened wide-eyed, reluctantly admitting that she was interested in the ceremony.
The following evening, the remaining five suitors were called in for a banquet. Three had refused to take the Pact, and the fourth was Vincent, whom the King announced would be withdrawing from the competition. He sat next to Alicia at the banquet, and Ella could have sworn they were holding hands under the table.
Ella found she couldn't look at John after the previous nights events, feeling nervous and jittery every time she did. In fact, imagining every young man in the room in John's...situation made her feel like the room was too small, too hot, and too crowded.
Still, she tried to make conversation with the others, getting to meet the three other suitors - Isaac, Daniel, and Mark - in a more intimate setting. Mark was an Earl who was passionate about hunting, and he was in the middle of a story of how he had tracked down a bear when the doors were shoved open, knocking over a vase of flowers.
"Nobody move!" Men dressed in servant's attire, but wielding swords and crossbows entered the room. Their faces were covered by masks, with messily cut out holes for the eyes and mouth. Alicia let out a shriek of fear, and Ella saw Vincent pull her towards him, shielding her with his body. Ella's heart kick-started, and instinctively, she got to her feet.
Suddenly, there was a massive crash, and Ella saw her table topple over in one swift motion as Anthony and John soared over it. John pulled Ella down from her seat, and she saw he had a dinner knife gripped in his fist. "I won't let them hurt you, I promise," He said earnestly, and an arrow went whizzing by their heads, burying itself into the wall.
"Surrender immediately!" One of the intruders shouted, and Ella turned to her father, still in shock.
"Father, what is going on?" She asked, her heart racing. Was this real? Was this happening? "Shouldn't we try and negotiate with them?"
"I don't know..." The King shook his head. Ella peeked over the side of the table and saw one of the masked men had Isaac pressed up against the wall, a blade to his throat. Isaac's back was pressed up against the wall, his eyes wide and his chest heaving as he stared at the blade.
"Put it down; just put it down," Isaac raised both his hands in surrender, his voice even and calm, despite how afraid he looked. "No one will hurt you."
"Stop!" Ella shouted, standing up, and the whole room went silent. John popped up next to her, standing protectively beside her. Ella had been told how to act in hostage situations, but her heart was ramming against her ribs in fear. Beside her, John took her hand, and Ella was grateful. "Put the sword down. Now!"
The man holding Isaac hostage stared at her, and moved the blade so it lay flat against Isaac's chest, still pressing into his skin. "I know it's not them you want, it's me, right? Let everyone go." Ella swallowed, gripping John's hand tighter, leaning on him slightly. She was scared, definitely, but her face was composed and stern.
"If this is a surrender, then come here," One of the men said coolly.
"Not over my dead body," John snarled, standing in front of Ella protectively.
"Nor mine," Anthony stepped up to Ella's left, and they locked eyes. Anthony nodded, and Ella swallowed, a silent conversation passing between them. "You'll have to kill us first.
"I cannot ask you to do this," Ella whispered, looking at both John and Anthony in turn. "For you to lay down your lives...that is too much to ask for."
"I am ready," John gripped Ella's hand tightly.
"As am I," Anthony said earnestly.
"Wait!" The King stood up, and a smile slowly crept across his face. Ella frowned, now thoroughly puzzled. The king began to chuckle, and turned to the attackers. "You can take off your masks."
"Father, what are you doing?" Alicia called out, Vincent still shielding her. "You must get down!"
"I staged the whole thing," The King said, and the assailants stepped away, taking off their masks and relaxing. "These are guards from the palace."
"Staged?" The Queen cried, and Ella saw Daniel and Isaac standing next to her. Daniel offered his arm. "What on Earth are you talking about?" Ella was grateful to see she wasn't the only one confused. Whatever his plan was, the king had kept it a secret from his own wife.
"The Loyalty Trial wasn't over," The King explained. "This was a test to see how one would react in a situation such as this. I am impressed with all of you, in your poise and quick reaction to all of this, but Ella..." The King turned to her, and spread his arms wide. "I am so proud of you, the way you carried yourself and the selfless way you offered yourself up." Her father's eyes were crinkled at the edges as he embraced Ella, and she reluctantly hugged her father back, frowning as she let this stew over her brain.
"Father, that was a cruel trick," She said, pulling away and looking her father in the eye. She kept her unamused expression diplomatic but enough to keep her point. "You had a lot of people very upset and scared."
"Oh, my sweet, did I frighten you?" Her father cooed, and Ella hated how he spoke so patronizingly. "You conducted yourself so very well, I would have never known! But I promise, my dear, I will not make you go through this again."
"Very well," Ella muttered, but she was still displeased. She turned to face the room, as Daniel and Anthony were placing the table back upright again. "Is everyone all right? Is nobody hurt?"
There were various responses of affirmation, and Ella allowed herself to release the tension in her shoulders and sit down again. The banquet was resumed, but the atmosphere was still tense and strained, and Ella ate in silence, although she was no longer hungry.
After the meal, Ella went for a walk around the castle, enjoying the summer air. The early evening sun warmed her skin, and her full stomach in addition to this placidity made for a very content mood.
She strolled through the hallways of the castle, through the white-marbled, shaded balconies that looked out into the garden. She was still shaken from today's events and thought of Anthony and John jumping up instantly to protect her. Ella smiled softly, remembering warmly how they had stood to protect her. And as serious as the situation had been, she was happy that they had done so.
Ella heard a conversation being carried by the wind through the halls and walked towards it, ever curious. It came from one of the guest suites, built on the sides of the wall. Even though she knew she shouldn't, Ella stopped before the open door, listening in from the hallway.
"You did as you should though, that's all that matters," An older man's voice said.
"Uncle, that's not really the point - " Ella stood up straighter, recognizing John's hushed murmur instantly.
"What do you mean, that's not the point?" The Uncle's voice sounded reproachful. "Do you not understand what a marriage with the future Queen would mean for us? For our people? For me?"
"Uncle, please listen - "
"No, you listen, John! Your job is to stand out, to be the best, the most charming, and to get her to fall in love with you - "
"I know! And I have been!" John interrupted, sounding annoyed.
"So that our people can prosper! Do you not understand? You have done everything I have told you so far, John, and done it well, but you're losing focus! These last few days are critical if you want to win!"
"Win?" Ella spat, stepping into the doorframe. All the blood drained from John's face when he saw her, and he opened and closed his mouth, trying to form words, but unable too. "No, don't even try to speak, you vile, deceitful liar. My hand is not a contest, and I am not a prize."
"Ella, it's not what it sounded like, I swear to God," John pleaded, his eyes begging her. Ella's heart was fluttering in her chest, and a thousand tiny butterflies had taken flight in her stomach, dancing around. She clenched her fists tightly at her sides, not quite sure if this was all real. Was this too, staged like the attack in the banquet? It felt too real to actually be fake, and would have been impossibly hard to plan.
"I don't want to hear it," Ella's voice was thick, choked up with the threat of tears. Do not cry...not for him... "And I don't want to hear you - I don't want to see you - ever again. You are to leave, John, and never, ever come back. Am I perfectly clear?"
"Ella, please listen to me - " John's eyes were swimming with tears; Ella could see, and she was several feet away.
"Shut up!" She cried, an angry tear streaking down her cheek. She didn't wipe it away. "Just shut up! You lying scum!" Another tear shot down Ella's face and she turned away, running down the hall. This wasn't real, this wasn't real...
"Ella, please!" She heard John cry, and the sounds of his Uncle trying to hold him back.
"Don't!" He tried. "She's too upset now - "
"This is all your fault!" John roared, and Ella flew down a flight of stairs, tears blinding her vision. With a crushing realization, she knew this had all been a lie, that John too, was like all the rest. Reaching the grounds, she sunk against the wall, burying her head in her arms and let the tears fall.
Fighting them was useless, and Ella was too sick, too tired to try and compose herself. She was done, done being deceived and lied too. Everyone she knew was a fake, a liar, only trying to deceive her. If being Queen meant this, she didn't want it.
"Your Highness, what's wrong?!" She heard a voice amongst her sobs, and felt Anthony place his hand gently on her shoulder. Ella flinched at his touch, and tried to dry her eyes. "Ella," He spoke softly and gently, and she turned around to face him. "Who hurt you? Who did this to you?"
"It's nothing, it's alright, Anthony - " Ella tried, but even as the words came shakily from her lips, she knew they were lies.
"It clearly isn't," He said gently, putting his arms around her and holding her close, letting her cry into his shoulder. "I'm here."
"I trusted him..." Ella wept, and Anthony rubbed small, slow circles into her back, not saying a word. "And he lied to me. He lied to me like everyone else in the entire world! There's nobody, Anthony, nobody..."
"I would never lie to you Ella," He said gently. "And I know you can't believe anyone right now, but know that I will never, ever hurt you."
"Alright," She said quietly, wanting more than anything to be able to trust Anthony, to let him comfort her without being afraid of him becoming traitorous later on. But it was so hard, after feeling like John had torn her heart from her chest and crushed it into his fist. If John had initially seemed so flawless, and then turned out to be untrue, why shouldn't everyone else be the same way?
"Come on," Anthony said softly, helping Ella to her feet. She felt weak now, her energy spent from yelling at John and crying, and gripped Anthony's arm tightly.
"Anthony, I don't feel like walking," Ella dried her eyes, hating how whiny and childish she sounded. She added, in a soft whisper, "I don't think I can." Truthfully, she didn't want to face John again. She didn't want to look at him, or hear his excuses. Ella just didn't have the strength.
"Then I'll carry you," Anthony offered, and Ella didn't try to protest. He lifted her effortlessly into his arms and she wrapped hers around his neck, hiding her face into his neck as he carried her away, so that if John was watching, he wouldn't see her cry.
Well anyway, that was Chapter Ten! I won't update in a while 'cause I'm on vacation~ but I hope you're enjoying it so far! Don't forget to leave a review! Xoxo