Deception

Chapter 72

- Chapter 72 -

A knock came to my door as I was currently braiding my long hair down my back. I froze slightly and pulled my hood up around my face but giving out a harsh grunt as it quickly opened and closed to reveal my maid Lucinda. Chuckling to myself I lowered my hood and fixed up my hair before placing over a black leather mask that sat over my eyes and nose. Adjusting it correctly I smiled, wearing my usual leather attire and fixing my hood over my face to ensure that you could only see my mouth below.

"Prince John has summoned you, he says Jasper has returned from Nottingham" She reported rolling her eyes as my ears perked up at the sound of my old home town. I had been living in London for the past two and a half months. I had earned my position as being Prince John's lieutenant after I had saved his life; he felt indebted and was in awe of my love and loyalty to him. I spun the lies of informing him I had been one of King Richard's personal assassins but realized his wasn't the true power. The Prince ate it up perfectly and simply refused to do anything without my presence as it makes him feel 'safer'.

Everyone in the castle thought I was a soldier returned from the Holy Land with a scared face, which was why Prince John had commanded for no one to look under my hood or attempt to reveal my face. To him and everyone else I was a man of few words and only gave words of wisdom when I saw fit, which sometimes angers John. Lucinda however is the only one who is aware that I am a woman as I saved her from making a terrible mistake and saving her life.

"MUSIC! I want music!" John laughed as the nobles around him did also, before the musicians began to play. I stood beside him at his throne with one hand resting on my sword at my hip the other leaning against the throne chair. I saw Lucinda from the other side of the room with a tray full of goblets of wine; she had a dagger clutched tightly in her hand and a vial of poison not well hidden in her blouse.

"Lucinda! Stop messing around and serve the wine!" another maid hissed at her as I left my post from the beside the Prince knowing he was watching me as I walked over towards her. Placing the tray in the other maid's hands I could see them both pale as I took hold of Lucinda's forearm and dragged her all the way to my room beside the Prince's chambers.

She squirmed and kicked as I threw her into my room before locking the door behind me. I heard her let out a defensive scream as I turned to see her raising her dagger to strike only to have my quickly catch her wrist and pull it out from her weak grip making her gasp and shake petrified.

"You tried to kill Prince John" I stated my voice automatically going husky and gruff as she began to take several steps backwards.

"He is a tyrant and murderer and I will die before I see him on the throne. Richard is King not him! I will die trying to defend that!" She bravely spoke as I smiled. Finally an ally.

"Then help me"

"What?" She questioned. Slowly removing my hood and untying the leather strap holding the mask to my face she gasped and was in awe as I smiled.

"Help me destroy Prince John"

That was exactly what we had been doing. I was slowly turning John against his loyal supporters of Lords and leaning his loyalty towards those who were siding with Richard. His courts outmatched his supporters three to one.

"I guess I shouldn't keep him waiting" I chuckle as she snorted before leaving my chambers to return back to her duties around the castle. Prince John had sent Jasper to Nottingham to send warning to the Sheriff after they made a pig's breakfast of their mission to kill the King in the Holy Land.

As a result of their blundering, the Prince is hurting and has passed on that hurt to the Sheriff by creating an extra little tax just for him. He demanded that they pay a thousand crowns a month. Which is truly impossible to complete but Prince John demands that the Sheriff shows his loyalty after protecting the Sheriff against him, who wants his head on a spike. To be honest I agree with King Richard.