Page 3 of The Lost Princess

I stared at it. No man at court had ever touched me, not even casually. They weren’t allowed.

Sighing dramatically, he straightened and seized my upper arm. I jumped badly, unused to being handled thusly, let alone by a stranger. I glanced over at my father, terror blooming in the pit of my stomach. It didn’t even occur to me to fight or pull away. The man’s penetrating gaze was sad, yet determined.

He tugged me down my small dais and through the hall. Selena’s shocked face grew further and further away, and that’s when my panic set it. Reality hit me like a sack of flour. “Wait! No!Father!”

I tried to rip my grip away from the man, but he simply grabbed each of my wrists and in short order had my hands bound behind my back.

And no one stopped him.

“I apologize, but it is safer this way,” he muttered.

My jaw dropped in incredulity at being handled like a prisoner. My father vibrated with fury, but said nothing; did nothing.

“FATHER!” I screamed, my head jerking around wildly to beg any of the nobles here to help. I planted my feet and refused to move, but this man was stronger than me, his grip tight, and unyielding. Every eye of the court watched me get dragged out of the audience chamber with shocked, frozen faces and looks of pity. Yet they did nothing.

“Someone help!” I cried out, but for the first time in my life, no one came running. The guards at the door twitched, but stood firm at their posts. No maids rushed forward to see what I needed. Nobles didn’t bow or offer their apologies. My father didn’t reach for me to wipe my tears away, or soothe my worries as his fingers ghosted along my shoulders.

It was just me and the strange man from another kingdom.

I cried, so desperately afraid.

He dragged me down the steps toward the entrance hall, the eyes of the servants peering around corners to watch. Then we were out through the door, quickly approaching the massive gates that separated the castle from the town. For a moment I had an insane hope that someone would help me, perhaps an archer hidden in a building or a guard who would throw caution to the wind and jump forward to save my life. He would be a true hero, and my father would reward him handsomely.

I opened my eyes, but nothing had changed. That dream was the stupid fantasy of a frightened princess. This was reality: a filthy, dirty thing where nothing happened the way it was supposed to, and where everyone I had known since birth kept their eyes on the ground, refusing to look at me.

Hot tears kept flowing, so I let them.

The stable boys readied the man’s horse, handing over the reins. It didn’t occur to me to fight or refuse when he lifted me onto the saddle, both legs hanging over the side of the animal’s smooth flank, sidesaddle. My hands tightened around the horn of the saddle automatically, gripping the worn leather with my palms. A different panic set in. Was I not allowed to take anything with me? My jewels, my dresses, my little white dog Petra? Perhaps they would simply send for my things later. Yes, that had to be it.

No one would simply abduct me with only the clothes on my back, would they?

The man grabbed my left leg and threw it over the other side of the horse, forcing me to ride astride. I flinched as the fabric of my dress tore, the long, indecent rip exposing my calves and upper thighs. The man swore, and hurriedly unhooked his riding cloak and covered my lap and legs.

“My apologies,” he muttered as he settled into the saddle behind me. “We need to make good time. I can’t do that if you can’t ride properly.”

I blinked. I thought riding a horse sidesaddlewasproper. All thoughts of propriety were apparently out the window, though. His arms came around me, and I flinched. I kept my spine as straight as I could, refusing to rest against him. He made a clicking sound with his mouth, and we were off. Past the gates and through the hubbub of town where we passed the crowded houses and faces so quickly that I barely registered any of them. We flew toward the outskirts of town, racing toward the woods.

And still, no one helped me.

I fantasized once more that the heavy wooden gate of the castle would open, and guards would pour out on horseback behind me. They’d chase us down, and in the end one of them would grab me away from this man, and take me back to my father and my home.

But I heard only one set of hooves, and it belonged to the horse we rode. My heart ached as I looked ahead into the woods and the unknown.

Life isn’t a fairytale, Kaida.

My body shook, but it wasn’t from the cool air as night descended around us. A strange man had simply walked into my home while everyone important to me simply watched, like it all had been a very convincing play. I’d been stolen like I was no more important than a bag of beans. I couldn’t squelch the rising anxiety, and suddenly, I couldn’t breathe. I tried to take in air, but only quick, pained gasps left me.

The man slowed the horse, and leaned forward to brush against my ear.

“I am sorry, princess,” the man offered. “If there was another way, please be assured my king would have taken it.”

That piqued my interest, and at least distracted my mind enough that I was able to calm down. My breathing leveled out, and my body relaxed. Well, somewhat.

He made that clicking sound again, and we were off.

“Elaborate,” I demanded over the pounding of hooves.

His muscles tightened behind me. “That isn’t for me to tell,” he intoned. “Just know that this was the only way. I’m sorry.”

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