Unbroken

Chapter 10

(Laura's Point of View)

"Julianne please" Laura said with a smile on her face. She could tell from the terrified expression on Julianne's face that she wasn't being very convincing. "Please just tell me where she is." She plead.

"I'm not sure where she is." Julianne said. Laura had to give her credit. Either she was very good at lying or she truly didn't know where Roslyn had gone. Laura walked around Julianne. The maid stood straight in her presence. This bothered Laura. Typically servants cowered when she was nearby.

"You're not sure." Laura repeated as she took a few more steps around the maid watching her.

"The last time I saw her was when she was going down the stairs to the dance at the night of the engagement."

"That's no good. The night of the engagement was two nights ago." Laura brought both of her hands up to cover her face. "My sweet baby has been missing for two entire days." She said with mock emotion. As hard as she tried she couldn't bring tears to her eyes. Laura was slightly disappointed with herself. Even getting her child stolen from her couldn't make her appear as a doting mother. She felt the emptiness inside. She also felt anger. Luther had threatened to abandon the engagement if Roslyn couldn't be found. He was a Duke so he could act like he had other options other than a beautiful young girl that had been thrown at him. He acted like it was a common thing for a princess to be thrown at a Duke. Laura knew that he would wait for Roslyn's return. Luther wouldn't have any choice. She was his only option.

"Perhaps you could go to some of the nearby royalty." Julianne suggested. "It's possible that they might know something."

"Of course, you're right." Laura said with a smile. "Roslyn always spoke so highly of you. I thank you for always being there for my daughter." Julianne offered a slight curtsey then walked out of the Queen's room closing the door softly behind her. Laura flopped down in the chair. How she hated Julianne. Roslyn had always loved her. She was a peasant. She didn't deserve the love of royal blood. Julianne had somehow wormed her way into Roslyn's heart. Laura of course couldn't worm her way into her daughter's heart because Laura wasn't a worm. She was a Queen.

Laura thought about what Julianne had suggested. It was possible that Roslyn had made her way through the forest. Perhaps some other royal family had kidnapped her and they were holding her for ransom. That was the only explanation. Roslyn wouldn't run away. First of all, she wasn't smart enough to evade the guards for that long. And second, she had been so excited for her engagement party with the Duke. Laura knew her daughter and she knew that she wouldn't run from something like this. She might not want to marry Luther at this moment but once she got to know him she would see that it was for the best. Luther wouldn't be able to hurt her and that was all that Laura wanted for her daughter. She wanted her to be safe from the heartbreak that she had experienced in her own marriage.

There was a knock on her bedroom door and Laura frowned. Who would dare disturb her at this time? Everyone in the house knew that she was in distress at the news of her missing daughter. Laura stood and smoothed down her skirts. She pinched her cheeks and walked towards the door. She took a deep breath before opening the door. Nothing could have prepared herself for what was waiting for her on the other side.

"Laura." Henry said with a bow.

"What do you want?" She sneered in reply.

"I heard that you lost our daughter. Did you not think that I would be interested in that news?"

"I really didn't think that you would care."

"Of course I would care. She is my daughter too. I care about her you're the one who took her away from me."

Laura barely managed to conceal her gasp of shock. How dare he come into her home and accuse her of stealing their daughter away. It was his fault. He drove them away.

"Is that so?" She asked feigning innocence.

"Yes it is so." Henry mocked. "You took our daughter away from me and now she is gone. Probably lying dead in some ditch somewhere."

This time Laura didn't manage to hide her gasp of shock. "How dare you come into my home and speak to me like that? You have no right to come here and say those things to me."

"Right?" Henry laughed as he took a step into Laura's room. She tried to close the door on him but he shoved his foot in the way. "I have every right she is my only daughter."

"I thought you would have many daughters after all this time." She said with a frown.

"Don't start." Henry said as he glared at his wife.

"No, you drove us away. You and all of your mistresses. I wouldn't raise her around that. Roslyn didn't deserve to see what you did to us."

Henry scoffed in disbelieve. "Kings all over the world have mistresses. Many of them have multiple mistresses and you don't hear stories about their wives pitching fits and acting like children. Roslyn would have seen that it was normal and that she could have expected that from her own marriage. I was trying to prepare her."

"Prepare her?" Laura looked at him and it hurt her heart. What they had once had was magical. Then Henry decided to throw it all away because she wasn't enough for him. He always wanted to have more. "Prepare her for feeling like she isn't enough? Prepare her to always wonder what you were doing when you weren't in sight? Prepare her to feel like she isn't' good enough? Prepare her to not be able to trust her husband? What were you trying to prepare her for Henry?"

He rolled his eyes at Laura and walked around her room towards her. His eyes focused on the necklace around her neck. He reached up to run his finger over the pearl necklace. "I see you got my gift." He said as he stroked the silky pearls. "I guess you're not too good to wear my necklace. You didn't throw it out like you threw me out."

"I'm practical." She said taking a step away from him so he wouldn't be able to reach her. "I know when something is of value. I know better than to throw out useless junk."