Elsa- even later
It was late at night. I was just getting ready to go to bed when Adam walked in. He came and crashed on to his side of our bed. I carefully sat down next to him.
"Good evening, dear. How was your day?" I asked softly. He groaned, throwing his arm over his face. He could be a very extreme drama king at times like this. He just wanted some attention.
"Long day. Lots of papers. Got a headache. Very tired. Sore muscles." I smiled and rolled my eyes.
"Perhaps I could help. Where are you sore?"
"Shoulders," he mumbled. I caught his quick smirk as he sat up. There wasn't anything wrong with him, save the desire for attention. Nonetheless, I moved behind him and began to carefully massage his shoulders. "Thank you, darling. Is Ella in bed yet?"
"She was waiting for you to tuck her in. It is "your turn" as she put it." He sighed happily and nodded.
"That's Ella for you. How was your day?"
"Well," I began, contemplating wether or not to tell him about the stakeout Kristoff was holding, or about my argument with Anna. I decided against it. "It was a pretty good day. The girls were well behaved."
"Good." I finished rubbing his shoulders, so I leaned over and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek.
"Does that feel better?"
"Yes it does. Thank you sweetheart." He stood up and turned around, cupping my cheek and kissing my lips softly. He pulled away after a few seconds. "I'll be back in a few minutes. I love you, Snowflake." I rolled my eyes. He knew I couldn't stand that nickname. Fortunately, I could get back at him.
"I love you too, Ginger." It was his turn to roll his eyes. After a second, I laughed, as did he. "I'll be here. Tell Ella I said goodnight." We exchanged smiles and he left the room.
As he left, a strange, dull pain shot up my abdomen. It began over where I had been stabbed ten years ago, right where the scar still remained. It was a dull ache, a familiar one. The last time it came was before Nathan had that allergic reaction. I brushed it off, passing it as a coincidence. Still, as I settled into bed to wait for my husband, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was very off...
️️️️️
I got a good twenty-four minutes of sleep before I heard the window shatter. My daughter started screaming bloody murder shortly after. I jumped out of bed and ran to her room. I burst through the door and was met with a sight that made my already chilled blood run even colder. I had to fight from screaming myself.
Adam was lying on the floor in a bloody, glass-covered heap, the ends of four arrows coming out of his right eye, chest, neck and stomach. He was dead, there was no mistake about that. I stood staring at him, frozen for what felt like an eternity before frightened whimpering from my daughter pulled my mind back to Earth. She was still on her bed, tangled up in the sheets as if she had used them to hide.
"Hide from the person who killed her father" I fought to expell that thought from my mind. "It's alright, baby, I'm here. Come here, sweetheart." She looked out her window, then went to glance at her father. "No! Don't look down! Just focus on me. Come on baby girl."
"Mommy, I'm scared!" She was crying hard now. I moved a couple feet closer. Adam was at the foot of the bed, out of the way of her coming to me, but she was still plenty spooked, and like heck was I getting any closer to a corpse, my husband or not.
"I know little one, I know. Just come to me. Come to Mommy. I'll keep you safe." I managed to keep my voice steady, even though I was just as scared as she was. Finally, Ella got out of the bed and ran into my arms. I quickly swept her out of the room and took her downstairs with me to get the royal physician. I met up with Kristoff, who had just gotten home and was in the foyer, on the way.
"What happened!? I heard a lot of screaming!"
"Adam's been murdered!"
"What!? By who!?"
"I don't know! He was shot! Can you alert the guard and see if they can catch the culprit while I get the physician?"
"Of course!" We ran off in opposite directions. Once I got to the doctor's wing, I set Ella in a chair and told her to wait. Then I went inside the office.
"Your Majesty! What brings you down here?" The doctor inquired.
"We need to have your men examine Adam's body and prepare it for burial. My husband has been murdered." I wasn't prepared for the smile on the doctor's face. I'd expected shock at the very least, but not happiness. I got a sinking feeling in my gut. I started to back out of the room. The dull ache in my stomach returned full force.
"Finally! We can begin the plans! Lenge leve revolusjonen! Long live the revolution!" I bolted for the door. I just barely managed to throw it open before the doctor grabbed my wrist. I shot a blast of ice at his head, satisfied when he let go to dodge it. I ran to where I had left my daughter.
"Ella! Ella, run! Go get Alice, pack a couple of dresses, and head for Troll Valley! There is a map in the bottom drawer of my nightstand."
"Wait, why!? What's going on!?"
"No time to explain! Just get your cousin and go!" She hopped down from her chair, but instead hugged my waist. I knelt down and hugged her back, placing a very quick kiss on her cheek. "I love you so much baby. Now go! Quickly, and don't get caught."
"Yes Mom." She choked on a sob before turning on her heel and running to find Alice. Suddenly, the doctor seized my arm. He hit me square in the eye with a left hook before I could aim another ice blast. Everything got fuzzy as I collapsed on the floor. Soon, I blacked out.
Kristoff- earlier
I dressed in a nice suit and hood and waited for Anna to leave. I hid in the library so she wouldn't recognize my costume. Soon, I heard her get into a carriage outside. I waited about four minutes before I went down the same path. By the time I got to the inn, Anna had already sat down to dinner with this Matthew guy. I got a table next to them and ordered a glass of milk. I tried to look normal as I attempted to listen inconspicuously.
"Hey babe. How's my princess?" Matthew purred. Anna smiled and giggled. She kissed him! She kissed him on the lips! I barely stopped myself from shouting.
"I think my husband and sister are on to us. Hopefully, it won't put a damper on our plans." She said.
"You mean your future ex husband?" They both laughed. I wanted to cry. "Don't worry, babe. We're going to go through with our plans no matter what that ice-for-brains buffoon and the Wicked Witch of Winter have to say." I wanted to kill that creep. I wanted to break my cover and break his neck. But, I fought to remain in control.
"True. How are we going to deal with the kids?"
"I will allow the orphanage to continue to run. Dump them there. Or better yet, send them to a school in England." I did a spit take. I passed it off as choking when the two of them looked at me. They shrugged and continued their conversation.
"Splendid. I never want another baby again." I couldn't handle this, I had to leave. I quickly paid for the drink I ordered and left for the castle.
"I don't believe it," I muttered "She's really cheating on me! She wants me out of the picture! She's going to send my baby and my niece to an orphanage! After we've done nothing but love her to pieces, she wants nothing to do with her family and our child." I wanted to cry. "I need to talk to Elsa and figure some things out."
As I walked up to the gate, lost in my own thoughts, I was jolted out of them when I heard a window shatter and a child screaming. I ran into the doors, momentarily forgetting that I had to pull them open, not push. I ripped them open in time to burst into the foyer. I nearly collided with Elsa. She was wearing a simple nightgown and was cradling a sobbing Ella to her chest. Even Elsa looked absolutely terrified.
"What happened!? I heard screaming!"
"Adam's been murdered!" She cried. I quickly decided my marital problems would have to wait.
"What!? By who!?"
"I don't know! He was shot! Can you alert the guards and see if they can catch the culprit while I get the physician?"
"Of course!" I said. I tried to give her a small smile, but she missed it. We split up and I headed to the guard's barracks. Once I arrived, I called for the captain of the guard. He didn't come. In fact, the barracks were virtually empty.
"Can I help you with something?" A guard came up from behind and startled me. I whirled around.
"I need you to capture an archer. The king has been killed and the queen wants to try the culprit." He looked shocked for a moment. Only for a moment. His expression melted into a sly grin. I began to feel very nervous.
"Oh, does she?" He said, suddenly all too confident. "Fortunately for the captain, the queen will not hold her title long enough to try him. Her days are numbered, as are yours! Get him! Lenge leve revolusjonen! Long live the revolution!"
"What!?" Suddenly, several men leapt from the shadows and tackled me to the ground. I struggled, but I wasn't strong enough to fight all of them off. I felt my wrists get pulled behind me and tied together. My feet were tied together as well. Finally, someone kicked me in the face and broke my nose, knocking me out in the process. My last thought before I blacked out was that I hoped my baby girl was safe.
Third person
Ella raced through the castle, trying desperately not to panic. She had no idea what was going on. All she knew was that her father was gone and her mother was scared enough to tell her to flee. She was confused and frightened, but she followed her mother's orders. She finally reached her cousin's room.
"Alice! Wake up and pack some dresses! We need to go!" She called, banging on the door. It opened to reveal the tired little girl staring at her, obviously confused.
"What's going on?" Alice asked.
"I don't know. All I know is that mom told me to get you and run for Troll Valley. Hurry!" Alice nodded and the girls ran to pack up a couple bags with some extra clothes (and the all-important stuffed animals) for the journey. Then they ran to Elsa's room to get the map.
"Where is it?"
"Bottom drawer of mom's nightstand."
"I got it!"
"Let's go then!" With that, the girls took off down the hall. All went well until they reached the doors. A guard stood waiting outside.
"Where do you think you're going!?" He demanded. Elsa's words came to Ella's mind.
"... don't get caught..."
"Ella, what do we do?" Alice whispered. Ella didn't answer. Instead, she threw a large snowball in the guard's face. He was caught unawares and stumbled backwards. He struggled to get the snow out of his eyes.
"Run Alice! Follow the map! I'll keep him busy!" Ella said. The younger girl nodded, took the map and ran. By the time the guard had regained his sight, and broke the ice encasing his feet, Alice was long gone and Ella was half way across the courtyard. She was running at top speed, but the guard was still faster. He grabbed her just before she reached the gate.
"Gotcha! Sorry princess, but we can't let you leave. The party hasn't even started yet!" He laughed darkly. Ella tried to hit him with a blast of ice, but she missed. He squeezed a pressure point on her neck and she went limp in his arms. He carried the child back into the castle, throwing her pack at the bottom of the stairs. The guard then took her to an empty room in the physician's hall and locked her inside.