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chapter one, the letter.
DEAREST SUBJECTS,
As you know, your Prince will be throned King next year. With that, be needs a Queen. He needs to start his search for a wife, so, we request all eligible bachelorettes to arrive at our castle in their finest attire next month, the dates will be provided soon. Out of all the ladies presented, The Royal family will pick ten. Those ten ladies will be brought to stay out the castle for a few months, until the Prince chooses his wife. Over the course of time, ladies will be eliminated.
Thank you, our dear subjects.
- Queen Victoria.
Viscountess Loring Heart was freaking out, the letter from the Queen in her hand. She practically beamed at the thought that her youngest daughter, Francesca, could have the possibility to become the future Queen of France.
The Heart siblings all walked into the room, their lovers in toe. The group had gone out to the town, searching for a nice spot for lunch. The groups laughter paused as they saw their mother's rare smile.
Francesca, who was trailing behind the group, bumped into Garret, Lissette's husband. The man looked at her, a scowl on his face. Francesca mumbled a sorry, not nothing to look at the man who she hated.
"What's got you so chipper, mother?" Maxwell asked, walking over to the couch that was in the bright room. The rest of the siblings and their husbands sat down, awaiting for Loring to answer.
"The Queen has sent out a letter! The Prince is searching for a wife, a new Queen!"
"So?" Francesca asked, not understanding why that was such a good thing. All of her siblings looked at her, a knowing look on their face.
"So, you are to be presented to the Queen and Prince as a proclamation that you would like to be considered for the title." Loring watched as Francesca, who was once sitting up straight, now slumped in her chair. Next to her, Lissette hit her shoulder, glaring at her to sit back up.
"I don't wish to do this, mother," Francesca tried to reason, causing Amouri to snort across the room. The siblings knew that their mother would never let Francesca choose her own decisions.
"What does she not wish to do?" Anthony, Francesca's father, asked while he entered the room. Immediately, Francesca jumped to her feet planning on begging her father to not go to the castle.
"Please, papa I don't want to be presented to the Queen!"
"What would you be presented to the Queen for?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. Loring immediately spoke up.
"To be considered to be married to the Prince and become the next Queen."
"Oh, yeah honey you're doing that," Anthony said shortly, patting his daughter's arm. Francesca slumped, knowing that it was now set in stone. She was to be presented to the Queen and be considered for marriage.
"Will I ever get to make my own decisions?"
"No," the entire family said, laughing at the girl as if she had said something funny. Francesca didn't understand, why wasn't she allowed to decide her life? Why must she be forced into a loveless marriage where she would suffer? Why couldn't she find love?
"I just don't get it," Francesca said, attempting to rub her headache away. This was all too much, and she just couldn't handle it. But she would probably be forced to handle it, wouldn't she?
"You're not supposed to get it," Maxwell said, walking over to his sister and kissing her head. He bid a farewell to all of his family, going off to find his wife.
"I am feeling unwell, can I go to bed?" Francesca asked her parents, silently begging them to let her go. The two nodded their heads, Loring giving a noticeable roll of the eyes, sending the girl off to her room.
Francesca quickly walked to her room, changing into her nightgown before laying down on her bed. How was she supposed to get out of this? This would surely prove to be difficult.
Yes, the Prince had been rumored to be handsome, but also as cold as can be. Francesca knew she wouldn't last long there, she wouldn't put up with him being rude to her or to any sweet girls. But then again, maybe he wasn't as cold as people said. She didn't know, she had never been to one of the Royal balls the family had hosted.
Maybe if she stayed quiet, he wouldn't pick her. Oh, who was she kidding. That all men wanted, and maybe that's what would make her the perfect Queen too; She would have no room to mess up any plans the Prince had once he was crowned King.
She didn't know how, but Francesca was determined to make sure she was the first to go home. She wasn't there to stay, no matter how badly her family wanted her to. She wasn't going to marry the Prince nor was she going to be Queen.
DELLA SPEAKS ! this is a tad short but that's okay I have a lot of chapters in this book so
