Epiphany

⇞ lavish prisoner ⇞

"Who are you?" I asked my heart thudding in chest loudly.

"You don't know me?" He asked frowning a little and looking confused.

 I have seen you in my dream would have been slightly absurd.

"No, I don't," I said carefully.

Ciara came next to me in a defensive mode.

He pointed at the crest on his overcoat and I frowned still not sure what I should understand. But then I realized after few seconds, "You are from the Earth Kingdom."

His head titled slightly as if I only said the half correct answer, "And?"

"And?"

I blinked and he blinked back.

A slow smile spread across his face, "You have mesmerizing eyes. Who are you?"

I stopped breathing at his question thinking of a perfect lie.

"You seem scared. What are you scared of?" He asked his eyes boring into mine.

They were warm, really comfortable kind of warm.

And a truth stumbles from my lips, "Life."

My reply surprised both him and me.

"I need to leave," I said trying to walk away.

"When you are ready to accept freedom, let me know." He said as he meant it.

He was offering me one thing I wanted most in my life but this was unreal, this was a trap. Why would a person who was friends with the cruel King offer me freedom, this was a test for me.

And yet I stopped and stared at him for a moment, "How?"

I asked him a tone softer than a whisper and yet he heard it.

"If you come and buy five flower petal cakes from here I would know." He said and his smile seemed genuine and kind.

I nodded and before I could give in to the temptation of a complete stranger I rushed from there.

After that, I was too scared to step out in the market, afraid that maybe that day I could have been caught.

Another month passed and I started feeling like home. I was happy at times but at night I could feel someone following me, a presence that was not bad but yet a constant shadow-like presence. I would spend my days, talking with the maids and manservants, few soldiers and others who earlier detested me. I would help around the palace and learned to make flower petal biscuits on my own.

I would read and sometimes I would even sing in the large empty library. I was not a very good singer but the princess said my voice was soothing and helped her sleep. So I would sing and that would help me forget everything bad.

Even though my days became better, my nights got worse. I started having recurring dreams where I would be running from death and death would change forms every time but each time it ended as I died and I would wake up screaming my heart out.

Ciara was getting worried reduced my poison portion to alternate days. According to Myron, the poison shall take a whole year for me to die but with the months without Nazereth in the palace, it didn't seem so bad.

Almost after two months, a letter came for me from Udairis.

And it said, is everything okay? Your brother is fine.

That was all but it was a sense of relief. It was King's way of saying if I blew my cover or if Nazereth was planning anything.

I sat down in the library and tried to write an answer. I contemplated between writing the truth that Nazereth was brutal and that he is gathering armies of rebel or that he has killed all the men sent with me from Udairies and ask how the princess was but I didn't do that.