AMITY

Chapter 10

When Vivienne walked into the queen's throne room, everyone that looked at her had different expressions.

The queen looked smug, the prince looked astounded, the princess seemed to be trying to figure out who the maiden that was being ushered in was and Amity's facial expression did not really change. Not like it ever did.

"You-" the prince started and Vivienne flinched. Then the queen spoke, looking as smug as anybody could ever look.

"This is my witness". The queen beckoned Vivienne forward to where she stood before the throne. As Vivienne shuffled toward Amity, she had the decency to look sorry as their eyes met.

"Now, tell us what you saw".

"I had finished working on the room assigned to me per the queen's orders and was returning some jewellery I found to the queen's jewellery room where I saw Amity come out of that same room"

Well that much was true. Amity had been to that room to also put jewellery she had found there.

"She looked somewhat breathless, so I was about to run up to her to ask what was wrong when I saw her tuck a necklace into her pockets ".

A normal Amity would have laughed at such a blatant lie but this certainly was not the time to. The lie was as incredulous as it was preposterous.

The queen turned to the other two royals where they stood and Amity knelt. She looked at them with a triumphant smile. As if to say "see".

The prince was not done though, it seemed. "Mother, you are basing this accusation on a maid on the word of another maid, I'm sure you can see how preposterous that is?"

The queen scoffed " That is not all and I did in fact realise one of my necklaces had gone missing . How about we ask Amity here if she really went to my room that day"

Obviously, the queen was aware that Amity had gone to the room that day, all she needed to do was question Mistress Devine or one of her assistants .

So the queen turned to fully face Amity finally, and asked "Well did you?" and Amity nodded.

"See!" the queen exclaimed. "You are hearing thus from the heathen herself".

Obviously with the way the queen was framing the question, if the right ones were not asked, Amity would really be concluded as the thief and it seemed that was what was going to happen.

However, the prince was not done. He turned to Vivienne "You say you saw Amity here put a necklace in your pocket, can you describe it?"
And Vivienne nodded.

"It-it was made with green stones and encased with gold" when Vivienne looked at the Prince, he looked like he was not yet convinced, so she continued "it had a fish hook clasp and is- looked heav-heavy".

Both Amity and the Prince raised their eyebrows. Such description for something she might have only seen for seconds. And the prince said exactly that " Such accurate descriptions from something you may have seen from far away and for only seconds?"

He did not wait for Vivienne to respond and turned to his mother.
"Does that fit the description of your missing necklace mother?"

And the queen, as dramatic as ever said "That is the exact description. I love that emerald necklace so much that I noticed immediately that it was missing "

Amity did not like anything but red stones but she certainly could not say that in this situation.

The prince turned to Vivienne again,
"And you say Amity held that necklace as she got out of the queen's jewellery room?"

"Y-yes your highness "

The prince nodded at that response and finally turned to Amity "How many times have you been to the queen's jewellery room?"

"Once " Amity responded, voice low.

"Just one time?" He continued and Amity nodded.

"Alright" then he turned to his mother,

"Amity was not the person that stole your necklace, Mother"
How could he say that with such certainty?

"And you are sure of this because?!"
The queen's voice that had been rising steadily throughout the whole evening had turned into a scream or shriek.

The prince unperturbed by his mother's tone continued "I was with Amity that night, she did not take anything "

Again the queen screamed "And you are sure of this because?!"

"Mother, you know nothing gets past me. I was in that room and I know the necklace you speak of. It was still there when she left!"

"Then what?! Are you accusing my witness of lying?!"

"I do not know mother".

"You" he said to Vivienne.

"That was when we first met was it not?"

And Vivienne nodded.
"So you do know that I am in fact telling the truth about being there that night?"

And Vivienne nodded again.
"And mother ,you know I'm not lying. Do you not?"
And the queen was speechless for once.

She could either acknowledge that she was wrong or her son was lying
"Alright, maybe I should have looked further into the issue. My son's word is more important than anyone else's " she finally conceded .

"Then Amity can leave right mother??" the princess pressed.
The queen hesitantly nodded and the princess helped Amity up, supporting her as they turned their backs to the throne room and walked out, leaving the queen, the prince and Vivienne behind.

The princess helped Amity to her and her mother's cottage and left Amity with her mother who had been standing by the door, frantic.

Before she left though, the princess told Amity that she did not need to come attend to her the next morning. But Amity declined "I'll be fine after a night's rest and some food. I promise ' dropping the formality she would have normally used at the end of the sentence.

After the princess had left, Amity' mother as usual asked no questions. She readied Amity's things for a bath and had food laid out when Amity was done bathing.

Amity knew that her mother's lack of questions did not mean that she did not care but rather that she did not want to force Amity to talk. That if Amity wanted to talk, she was going to listen.

***
The next morning Amity made her way to the princess's room earlier than she normally did .
That was because if she knew the princess, with everything that had happened the previous night she would not sleep a wink.

As Amity made her way towards the princess's door she saw a piece of paper laying outside the door.
The paper was white and with ink that was still drying. When Amity stood right outside the princess's door, she was able to decipher what was written on the paper .

It read "begin" . And Amity immediately knew it was meant for her.

She folded and tucked the paper into her bodice with a huge grin on her face.
Finally.