The Cardsdale Romance Chronicles: Breaking the Curse

CHAPTER 19: HEARTS DECLARES WAR ON DIAMONDS

A couple of days later.

When Romano heard that Ludwig and his wife had returned to the castle, he decided to take Catarina to the main house. Catarina agreed with that idea since she hadn't seen her parents in such a long time. The two went to the castle with Antonio, who also had to work with his brother, Gabriel.
Ludwig and Elena were sitting on their thrones, waiting for Catarina to return home. The king and queen were already worried about what had happened to their daughter.
When Catarina and Romano reached the room where they were, the queen raised her head and smiled to see the two together. She touched her husband's shoulder.
Ludwig, who had his head prostrated on top of his hand lifted it when he saw Romano bring Catarina toward them.
    "Here is your daughter, my queen! "Romano said, walking with Catarina. He took her hand.
    "Thank you very much to all of your family for taking care of our daughter, Romano," Elena told Romano while hugging Catita. They had not seen each other for a long time, so it was a joy for both mother and daughter to reunite.
    "No problem, did you know Roger did it again?" Romano replied.
"He dishonoured Catarina again!"
This horrible news made Elena and Ludwig look at each other, and Catarina hid her face in her mother's dress in fear.
    "No, we did not know. When did it happen?" The queen asked Romano while trying to calm her daughter, who was so afraid.
    "It happened last Saturday night after I left. I was going to check on her the next day, but she went to my house instead. she was crying because that French jerk bastard did something even more brutal and he was with his brother, King Francis Bonnefoy of Diamonds!" Romano answers the queen, a tone of sadness mixed with anger in his voice.
Ludwig raised an eyebrow when he heard that name in such a horrible phrase; how could Francis have betrayed him like that!?
    "What did that traitor do to my daughter!?" Ludwig asked Romano, an angry tone in his voice.
Romano told Ludwig the same story that Catarina told him, and Ludwig was furious with the situation in which his daughter was. Ludwig looked at his wife, who was equally angry with that situation. Catita stopped and went to her friend's side.
    "Dante healed the wounds Francis had done to me; please don't throw him out of the kingdom," she said.
Ludwig and Elena looked at each other and looked at them."We are not going to throw Romano out of the Kingdom because he was always a good friend, even though this friendship is forbidden." Elena said, "Speaking of Aurembiax, She's supposed to have been at her house with you. we have to fix what we did many years ago. We have to cancel your marriage to Alfred Jones, the prince of diamond-swords ..."
She looked at Catarina while she shivered in fear. Until now, both teenagers didn't know that Ludwig and Elena arranged Catarina's engagement to the Kingdom of Diamond-Spades. Romano could sense that Catarina was uneasy with this news and hugged her.
    "it's okay, Catita. They said they were going to cancel your engagement with Alfred..." Romano whispered into her ear, holding her while she trembled with fear. Then he looked at Ludwig and his wife. Enraged with what was happening, Romano said, "what? Alfred and Catarina? I don't get it; he never romantically mentioned her. He's in love with my half-sister, María Fernández. I'm the one who writes to him about Catarina. You have to fix this..." he stopped for a moment; his face went from shocked and angry to a determined one, as he said. "I'm willing to fight for Catarina's honour, so if you're planning to go to war with those jerk bastards, I'm willing to join the army!"
    "It was because we wanted to improve the relations of our kingdoms. We did not think that this would happen. I think it's best that we cancelled this commitment because although you seven are friends, we realized that she doesn't love him as much as she loves you, Romano." Elena said, "I know she can't go to that kingdom, not while that man is alive. That is why Catarina should not marry Alfred."
Catarina's cheeks flushed as she released Romano and told her mother, "Dante is only my best friend. I like him, but not like that..."
    "I don't know about that, Catita..." Elena said, standing up from her chair as she continued to say. "you look so cute together. I realized the special friendship you have." Elena went to where both of them were and told Romano, "I permit you to be in the army that will be in the war championship that will soon burst between Diamonds and Hearts. Since your father and uncle are in the stadium, you can accompany them."
    "Grazie, my queen. I promise you that I'll make them pay for both invasions and everything they have done to Catita." Romano told her, bowing toward the queen.
    "You're welcome, Romano," Elena said, smiling as she continued to say, "You can stand now."
He obeyed her and stood. Romano looked at Catarina, who had a face of sorrow, and said, "what happened, Catita?"
    "I just don't want to lose you, Dante. I don't want you to sacrifice your life because of me." Catarina told him with the little courage she had left as she continued saying, "I want to go with you; Let me at least tell him to stop!"
    "No, Catita. Something bad could happen to you again. You could even die in the war." Romano told her, looking into her emerald green eyes.
Elena interrupted the conversation between the two friends and said, "forgive me for interrupting, mi'jito. If Catita is training to be the queen of another kingdom, she must have experience with the army and the navy. It is her duty."
    "understood, my queen," Romano told the queen. Then he looked back at Catarina, and said "Catita, you can come with me, and we'll make sure he gets executed."
Elena looked at her husband and said, "should we send that declaration of war??"
    "Ja, I'm going to my office to write it. You are going to inform the soldiers that they are going to launch an attack against those unhappy fools !?" Ludwig ordered his wife, standing and going to his office.
    "Yes, immediately, my king." The queen replied, watching him go.
When Ludwig left, Catarina turned toward her mother, "how can you stand it, mom?" She said, "after so many years together."
    "Simple, mi'jita. I have the qualities that your father does not have, and I obey him when he asks me to do something. A queen must learn to listen to her husband, do whatever he wants her to do. She must also be capable of providing an heir to the throne and be a good mother while taking care of the kingdom. Your father's subjects respect him as a king because he is stirn in personality. He is in charge of the army and the entire Kingdom. We help each other as a couple and when we are ruling the Kingdom. You are not going to marry into Diamond-Spades. That commitment no longer makes sense." The queen told her daughter, kissing her forehead. Elena went to say to the army of the news.
Catarina looked at Romano tenderly and walked over to him. She hugged him, saying, "Thank you for telling my mother what happened to me, Dante."
    " I will keep the promise that I made to you." Romano said, hugging her.
    "What scares me is that in the Kingdom of diamonds, they will accuse you of treason," Catarina said, her eyes filling with tears as she said, "They could even..."
Romano let go of his best friend from the hug and took her hands. He looked at her reassuringly, saying, "We can do this together; I promise I won't give up until he pays."
     "Hopefully, nothing bad happens to us, Dante," Catarina said, looking at him. "What happens if something happens to us, and we separate?"
    "I got something for you the other day, just in case we split up," Romano said, extending his hand in his pocket and taking out a small box. "Open it, Catita," he said, handing her the box.
Catarina received it and opened it: inside was a necklace made of a gold chain that had a crystalline rose-quartz heart.
    "oh, it's beautiful," Catarina said, looking at it and then at Romano giving him the box as she continued to say, "I love it, Dante."
    "You know when we were kids, and I used to say that you had a heart of gold?" walking behind her with the necklace in his hand, he moved her long hair to the side and put the necklace around her neck as he continued to say, "I thought of that when I bought this."
    "I don't know what to say, Dante.." Catarina told him, still holding hands with Romano. She kissed her best friend's cheek and hugged him. "I'll always keep it on."
Romano hugged her back, showing that he cared a lot about the situation. "It doesn't matter what they think because I think I have the greatest best friend ever." Romano whispered, still hugging her. He felt Catarina let out a small sigh, and there he knew she was happy again.
She released him from the hug, smiling at him and said, "I agree Dante, "
    "Catarina, Romano, come here!" Ludwig shouted in his German accent. Romano took Catarina by the hand and led her to her father.
When they got to the balcony where Ludwig was, Catarina asked him, "Yes, Dad?"
    "I wanted to talk to you," Ludwig said, turning around.
they walked towards him, and Catarina said, "did you send the letter?"
    "Ja, I just sent it," Ludwig said, opening the door to the balcony. The three walked outside, and they saw the whole Kingdom.
    "Wow!" Both Catarina and Romano shouted, surprised by the sight. The view from that place looked beautiful, and the sun was shining radiantly in the Kingdom.
Catarina looked at her dad and said, "it's so beautiful."
    "Ja! If something happens to me, Fernando, and Jordi, you will be the governor of all of this meine Tochter." Ludwig said in German, looking at his daughter. "We have already sent the notice that there is no marriage between you and the prince, Alfred Jones. All they need to do is respond, and we will cancel the commitment."
Just then, the carrier pigeon arrived with a letter that belonged to Ludwig. Catarina and Romano looked at him, and Catarina asked, "Dad, what does the letter say?"
    "The truth is that this isn't good because although we are officially in the war, they won't leave my daughter alone until she gets married." Ludwig said, looking at his daughter. "Not with your friend, that marriage will no longer happen."
Romano already knew what the king was going to say, and he said in an angry tone, "That French jerk bastard heard from me for the last time! He can't do this!"
He turned around and left when Catarina asked him, "Dante...?"
    "He thought he could groom you and then force you to marry him... I have to do something about this injustice!" Romano said, turning to look at her.
    "I'll go with you, Dante." Catarina said, going after her friend. Ludwig was about to protest, but he decided to tell his wife to watch them, Elena obeyed him.