The Whispering Flowers

Betrayal

I open my eyes; I'm in my room, but something doesn't feel right. Everything is darker than usual like there is no moon or stars shining tonight. I look around surveying my room when the door slams open and all of my sisters flood into the room with horrified faces.

"DAPHNE! Dad found out! You have to run!" shouts Magnolia, throwing the covers off of me. Dahlia grabs my hand and pulls me up onto my feet. The six of us dash out of my room, my bare feet becoming freezing as they ran on the cold marble floors. Running through the halls, I hear my dad yelling in the distance. We pass by an open door and I just have to peek inside. My sisters whisper loudly at me to keep running but I need to look. There is my dad, throwing a glass bottle of whiskey at Peter, yelling unforgivable words and screaming like mad. Peter stands there, withstanding it all. Glass shatters onto his face and arms, causing deep cuts and bruises. He keeps looking at my father with a straight face until he looks at me, fear in his eyes, begging me to help him. My father stops yelling and sees Peter staring through the open door, following his gaze until he sees me. His face turns red with fury and starts bounding after me. Even though my father is very plump he is quite fast.

"RUN!" I shout as my sisters, and we start to run down the hall, my father chasing after us. My sisters are a bit ahead of me and I see them turn a corner. I follow behind but when I turn the corner I don't see them at all. I run into the nearest room and catch my breath for a moment. Then I realize that I'm not alone. I turn around and see Peter, still bloody and bruised. "Thank the lord, Peter! Are you ok?" I cry, running up to him and holding him tight. "No, no thanks to you." he says angrily. I look up at him and he glares down at me in disgust.

He pushes me off him violently and drags me into the hallway. Peter grabs my arms and forces me down onto my knees, pulling my hair to show my neck. I try to break free but it is no use. I can't break free from his grip. He steps in front of me, his hands still holding my hands behind my back, and puts his face too close for comfort. "Everything was going well till you decided to mess it up for me!" he yells, staring deep into my eyes, "I had big plans but you ruined them."

"Please let me go!" I cry out, "I never meant for this to happen, you have to help me>' He stares at me considering a change of heart but his anger beats him. "Trying to beg for mercy, your highness? Look what a mess you've become." he says, tearing down the last of my hope. I try pulling my head down to break free from our locked eyes but he holds me tighter. I wince from the pain but I won't back down. "King Arnold! Come quick, I've got her!" Peters says arrogantly.

My father comes around the corner with 4 armed guards, two on each side of him. "Father don't do this. Please let me go!" I scream, rivers of tears pour from my eyes. "I'm afraid I can't do that sweetheart. I hope this teaches you a lesson." he says with no remorse in his voice. "Guard, give me that," orders my father, taking a large axe from the guard's hand. Then, Peter aggressively thrust me forwards, letting my hair cover my face. I can't see anything, but I hear my father's footsteps.

"Just think of it this way, you can finally be with your mother." he says standing right next to me, his breathing growing rapidly. I hear him grunt, pulling up the axe and letting it swing down onto my neck.

I open my eyes. I was in a deep sweat, everything around me is now hot and wet. I push the covers off of me to get some fresh air and I notice that it is already morning. I feel my hair and head, and everything seems alright. It was just a dream. I hop out of the sheets and sit down at my vanity mirror. I look at myself in the mirror staring into my own eyes. "Why did Peter do that," I say out loud looking at myself. I know it was a dream but fury starts to rise in me. His betrayal felt real. I run my hands through my knotted hair aggressively and put my head in my hands.

Then Rosemary bursts through the door and shouts "DAPHNE! Did you hear? Dad is throwing a ball tonight and we all have matching dresses! I AM SO EXCITED!" She slams the door shut and stomps away. I sigh and grab my hairbrush. As I am brushing my hair the door creaks open and there is Peter holding a tray of food.

"Good morrow," he says standing in the doorway. I look at him through the mirror and sneer. He was smiling so happily. How could he do that to me? "What do you want," I say, looking down at my hands as I brush my hair. "Well, I saw the butler coming to bring you breakfast and I asked if I could deliver it to you myself." he says smugly.

He starts to walk in but I stand up fast startling him. "You shouldn't come in here," I say in a cold tone, not making eye contact. He's taken aback and I can tell that that is not how he expected me to respond. "I'm sorry, your highness." he says combatively. I walk up to him to take the tray, all the while not looking into his eyes. I am furious and disappointed at the same time. He thrusts the tray into my chest and it hurts but I won't show signs of weakness. Peter looks down at me and we make eye contact for the first time. His eyes searching for a reason for why I was acting like this. I furrow my brow and shove him off. He closes his eyes and walks away, closing the door behind him.

Note:

Hey everyone, sorry we haven't posted in a minute. We hope this chapter kept you at the edge of your seat. We're gonna post soon so stay tuned.

- S & S