Page 68 of A Kingdom's Heart
I bowed once more, the motion stiff and empty. “As you command.”
When I turned, the sound of my boots against the stone echoed faintly through the chamber. The great doors closed behind me, their weight ringing through the hall like a final order.
The air outside was cool, and I breathed it in slowly, trying to steady myself. I already knew where she had gone. She always went there. The same place she’d gone when she needed to breathe or feel something.
The forest was quiet as I made my way through it, only the sound of my boots against the dirt path breaking the stillness. Theevening light sifted through the trees, painting the ground with patches of gold. My hand rested near the hilt of my sword, though I wasn’t sure if I needed it.
I didn’t know what I would say when I found her. I didn’t know what she would say to me. None of that mattered. The king had given his order, and I had sworn to obey.
When I reached the riverbank, I stopped.
She was there.
Beneath the same tree that held the swings, folded in on herself, small and still. Her gown was wrinkled, her hair tangled, and the light caught on the tear tracks staining her cheeks. Her knees were drawn close to her chest, her face buried in her arms. Her shoulders trembled with every quiet sob.
The sound of it cut through the air.
For a long moment, I couldn’t move. The sight of her like that twisted something deep inside me. I had imagined finding her angry, defiant. Anything but this. Seeing her broken instead made my chest tighten until breathing felt wrong.
The breeze stirred the leaves overhead, the faint sound of the river threading through her soft, uneven breaths. It was the same place where she had laughed. The same tree where she had looked at me like the world had stilled.
Now, she looked so far from that girl it almost hurt to believe she was the same.
I cleared my throat quietly. “Your Highness.”
She lifted her head at once, startled. Her eyes were red, her lashes wet. For a second, she looked lost. Then she saw me.
“William?”
I nodded once, my jaw set.
She wiped her face quickly with the back of her hand, trying to compose herself. Her fingers shook. The sight was harder to bear than I wanted it to be.
“I should have known,” she said quietly, her voice rough from crying. “Of course he sent someone.”
“He did,” I said, keeping my tone even. “He wants you back at
the castle.”
She looked at the river for a long moment, then turned her gaze back to me. “How did you know where I’d be?”
I hesitated, glancing toward the water before meeting her eyes again. “Because you always come here.”
Her lips trembled. For a moment, I thought she might speak again, but instead she turned away, her gaze dropping back to the water. “Please,” she whispered. “Can I stay here a moment longer?”
I nodded once, slow and careful. “Of course.”
Silence stretched between us, broken only by the rush of the river. She tried to breathe evenly, but it came out shaky, unsteady. More tears slipped down her cheeks, catching the dying light.
“He’s marrying me off tomorrow,” she said finally. Her voice cracked on the last word. “To a man I’ve never met. A man I don’t even love.”
The words settled heavy in the air.
I took a slow breath, trying to keep it steady. “I’m sorry.”
It wasn’t enough, and I knew it. Still, it was all I could manage without my voice betraying me.
She shook her head weakly. “He doesn’t care about me. Not as his daughter. Only as the princess who can give him what he wants.”
