Tangled Love ┇ᴍᴀʜᴀʙʜᴀʀᴀᴛᴀ ᴛɪᴍᴇ ᴛʀᴀᴠᴇʟ

✯BODYGUARD✯

I woke up to screams and shouting. I thought there were just my nightmares, but no. There was an entire army in my room.

"What's going on?" I ask, scrambling to my feet. I pull the covers high enough to cover myself.

"There's nothing to worry. You can all leave her chamber for now.," my dad commanded in a stern voice. I could feel the power of the king fill my room. The soldiers resisted shuddering under his power.

"What's happening?" I question him again. He marches up to my bed with an arrow in his hand.

"They shot this thing at your bedroom window this morning," he revealed. I eye the arrow, which now lies motionless in my dad's palm. I picked it up to inspect it.

Not because it was lovely or dangerous, it's because I had never seen one before.

"It must belong to some hunter," I reason out. I look up, expecting him to agree with me, but he gives me a no.

"How can you be so sure?" I challenge him. I could never shut my mouth. Each lesson has always been easy to me, but I struggle with following the rules. Blame it on my royal blood or the fact that I'm too stubborn, but I can follow the rules I make.

"Read this," he says, handing me a parchment. I reluctantly take the paper. The look on his face said it must be something serious.

"Save her if you can,

Save her before I make her mine,

Yet I warn you, you will fail,

So give no try,

Hand her to me."

The letter slips from my sweaty hands. My eyes met his brown eyes; I try to keep my head up, just as Shikandini had told me to, but I fail.

"What do we do now?" I said. My stomach dropped, my hands wouldn't stop shaking.

"You are in safe hands. I'll go to any length to keep you safe," he insisted. I lean into my father's outstretched hands.

"Trust me," he whispered. "I do," I said, removing myself from his embrace.

"I will station guards in and around your chamber. This will be only until I find a suitable bodyguard," his last sentence took me off guard.

"Bodyguard?" I shutter to confirm if I heard it right. "Yes. Now I must leave". He sighed, running his fingers through his salt and pepper hair.

"Dad, wait. I got a similar letter when I was at the Pandava's palace," I muttered. My stomach clenched at the thought of someone kidnapping me.

"Why didn't you inform me before. Did anyone harm you?" he shouted. I resisted the urge to cringe under his voice.

"I'm fine. Karna saved me," I told, wrapping my arms around myself. I didn't know where Karna came from, but it left my mouth before I could think twice.

"Karna," he asked, raising an eyebrow. "Y-yes," I shuttered, fiddling with my hands.

"I think I have found the one," he affirmed. Before I could ask him what he meant, he left the room.

◤ ━━━━ ❀ ⋅◈⚜◈⋅ ❀ ━━━━◥

It's not been a day since we left the Indraprastha, so soon there in our palace.

"Princess, the king requests your presence in the courtroom," the guard informed and left with a bow.

There was no other choice than going there. I pass through the bustling kitchen, familiar halls with paintings of previous kings and queens.

I finally reached the courtroom. They pushed the oak doors open to reveal several men seated to right and left side, my dad in the center.

I drew a deep breath in and walked with my head held above. I will not let a letter scare me like a pussy.

"You called me father?" I ask my dad in the most ladylike manner.

I always dreamed to be a man. As I grew, my imagination of myself as a man enlarged, especially after seeing the horrors of this world against woman.

"Yes. Your future in law's wanted to see if you 're safe," he said with a sympathetic smile. Clearly, he was still not over the matter.

"I'm perfectly alright," I said, turning towards where my father was gesturing. Only when I pull myself up, I see a pair of ancient eyes throwing death glare at me.

KARNA!!!

So he accompanied his brothers this time. I remove my eyes from his; the truth has finally come out.

"That's good to hear. We panicked when we heard from your messenger," yudhisthira said. "Yes, we don't have to worry. Especially when brother is looking after her," Bheem told, joining his brother.

Which brother does he mean?

"Yes, Karna. I'll forever be grateful to you," my dad said, answering my question and breaking me at the same time.

"He's my bodyguard?" I should seriously learn how to shut my mouth. "Yes," my dad said without missing a beat.

I turn to Kärna and see there a small smirk playing on his lips. I bet it's small because there many witnesses here, or else it would've been as big as his-

Scurb that image. That's not helping the situation.

"Is he my bodyguard?" Petrified, I inquire. I can't have him lurking me around all day. There is no way I will resist my cravings.

"Yes, princess. It's me, you need not worry," I expected my dad to answer, but it was Karna. With the tone of his voice and his expression, I could interpret he was beyond mad at me.

"Can I leave now?" I ask, unable to bear the guilt for any longer. "I'm afraid you'll have to stay here for a couple of hours longer or you can go anywhere you want except your chamber," my dad answers, his face turning an interesting shade of red.

I frown at him. "And why is that?" I grumbled, raising an eyebrow at him. "You'll be sharing an adjoining room with Karna," I held back my groan. I huffed and kept my gaze trained on the floor. There was no way I planned on staying with him, not while what little freedom I had way being taken away.

Authors Note

Hello lovelies,

As I promised, I posted the next chapter as soon as I could.

Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter.

Question:

• Will Karna be blinded by anger and punish Jyothi?

• What's your favourite month of the year?

VOTE, SHARE AND COMMENT.