Beautiful Rogue

Chapter 01

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B E T R A Y E D

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Throwing the mahogany doors open, the man rushed over to the young girl burrowed beneath the covers, his thoughts scattered about. He had to get her out of there now. "Princess Irina, Princess Irina. Please wake up," the eunuch urged in a hushed tone as he jolted the sleeping girl's arm, trying his best to rouse her as quickly as possible. It may be the middle of the night but, by this point in time, nobody was resting in the royal palace.

"It's too early. Let me sleep," Irina replied drowsily as she attempted to shrug his hold off. She snuggled further into her silk sheets and released a content sigh. She had a long day with her piano and ballet lessons. She deserved a break. She was seventy-five percent human after all.

"You cannot," he answered firmly. "The king has just been accused of corruption and treason. You must leave this instant, your highness."

The preposterous and disturbing news was enough to awaken the young princess as her eyes immediately snapped open. She shifted toward the messenger and plastered on her small and delicate face was a more than incredulous look of disbelief. "What do you mean? My father has never been corrupted!" In her tone a mixture of anger and bewilderment could be detected.

"We don't know what happened, princess. The high councilmen all just appeared with over a hundred troopers and declared his arrest. Some of the royal guards are stalling as we speak but it isn't looking good for us. You must flee now or you will also be captured," he advised, his voice trembling a great deal.

As Irina focused harder on listening to what was going on around her, she could hear the clinking of armor and clashing of iron swords. Then the shots of several guns going off rang in her ears. Growls, howls, hisses. She heard them all. A battle was going on just under her nose and how she had not sensed it earlier, baffled her. Nothing like this has ever happened. What was one supposed to do in such a hectic state? "What about my siblings? My parents?"

"They are being warned just as you are now. But please, we're running out of time." The man glanced over to the door, his heart pounding wildly. He was worried that they would get caught if they delayed their stay any longer. Realizing that she must act now since they did not have time to spare, Irina tossed the covers off and jumped out of bed. She did not have the luxury to change out of her nightgown, nonetheless gather anything she might need. As she slipped out of her chambers empty-handed, she stumbled into the halls and found them to be in a state of chaos.

Maids, eunuchs, guards, royal physicians and whoever else resided within the castle walls were all running amuck, like wild geese during hunting season. No one bothered to acknowledge her presence as they had always done in the past. They were all too busy heading in all sorts of directions, trying to save their own lives. This was not a good sign. Anxiety and fear finally seeped into the princess's core as the reality slammed into her like a ton of bricks. This was happening. They were under attack. Irina did not know how, why, or what led to this tragic outcome and all she could do was pray that her entire family was safe and sound. All she could do was hope they would be waiting for her arrival somewhere secure so that they might find refuge together.

Lifting her gown to avoid tripping over the fabric, Irina managed to keep up with the eunuch's rapid pace even though she was exhausted. The eunuch weaved through the rustling bodies effortlessly with the girl trailing him before an ear-piercing scream echoed in the corridor. It had definitely been a cry of pain and the sound caused Irina to skid to a halt. Slowly, she turned around and her eyes rounded as she witnessed a man, whom she was familiar with, ram his spear into a maid's chest. The poor woman screeched in agony but he ignored her pain and slammed her against the wall. Next, he placed a foot on her abdomen and then turned his head and locked eyes with Irina.