My heat was beating so fast that I very well thought it would burst right through my chest. I followed the guard down the corridor, my eyes burning into the back of his head.
"In here," the guard said, no emotion leaking from his voice. He pulled a key from his pocket and inserted it roughly into the lock.
I stepped into the room, my feet hesitating as I spun around to face the guard. His face was still blank, but he nodded at me to advance. He turned to leave. "Wait," I blurted. He stopped, the emotion of shock finally unveiling in his facial features. "Why me?" I whispered.
He cleared his throat, nodding at me once again, "Good evening, Miss Fields." With that he disappeared down the hallway, leaving me in the doorway of my room. My breathing halted as I turned into the room, letting the heavy door click shut behind me, like it was locking me inside. I glanced around at the room, my new room. Dumbfounded by the luxury, my fingers grazed each and every expensive trinket. The extravagance was something I had never seen. Let alone live with.
The walls were a faint violet colour, the carpets a plush red that showed off the golden outlining of the room. The bed lay in the center of the room, covered with purple blankets. I strode over to the closet, swinging open the doors to reveal dozens of laced gowns and corsets to extravagant dresses and glass slippers. Mine.
I looked down at the dress I was wearing, the one that had taken Beth so long to arrange perfectly. It was my engagement dress. I yanked it over my head as if the thing itself was the reason I was brought here. I threw it down on the floor before snatching a white night gown made of soft velvet, perfect for sleeping in. Pulling it down onto my body, I let the plush material soothe my rough skin.
I flopped backwards onto the bed, pulling my knees up to my chest to curl myself up into a ball. I layed there for what seemed like hours until there was a slight knock at the door. Jumping to my feet I wandered over to the door where I had to use all my strength to yank it open. It flung open to reveal the beautiful face of Beth. My shoulders relaxed, and I whispered a thank you under my breath that it was her standing in the doorway, not a guard, not the King, but Beth.
"How are you, sweetheart?" Beth asked the question quietly as she took a step forwards.
I left the doorway, allowing entrance for Beth and walked to the middle of the room. "Terrific," I whispered. The sarcasm seeped past my lips.
"Janice," she said. Her voice was stern, but had a soft layer underneath, like she hated not being able to agree.
My name cut the air so sharply that I stopped moving. I realized in that moment that after my entire time since leaving home, not one person had called me by my first name. I was just Miss Fields. It was nice, actually, to be once again called by the name my mother had given me, not the last name she had no part of choosing.
"Why didn't you warn me?" I asked, unable to help the anger that had grown in my voice. My blood turned hot as it rushed to my face as if my frustration had heated it.
"I had no right to. It could've led to severe punishment for me and my--" she froze mid-sentence. I wondered if she thought someone might be eavesdropping. Even if they were, the rest of her sentence was obvious. Her family. I let out a very small breath. "Ma'am."
"Beth," she corrected. I wanted to smile, but I couldn't even force a fake one. I swallowed instead. "Beth," I confirmed.
Beth reached into the small pocket of her dress, pulling out what seemed to be a tiny envelope. "This is for you. They weren't planning on giving it to you. I found it in the burner room, about to be turned into ashes," she explained as she handed me the envelope.
