The Hidden

Chapter 14 - [A Kiss and Three Questions]

The Mayor didn't leave until very late that evening, and at that point, Meenu was fast asleep in her bed.

     She dreamed of Blood, imagining what his real face was like.

     When she woke up, her cheeks were warm and she tried to figure out why she dreamed of him. But she imagined it was because she couldn't stop hearing him call her beautiful.

Did he really think she was beautiful?

Without the makeup and the fancy dresses and the jewelry and the crazy hairstyles?

     The thought made her heart light and her cheeks warm.

     When she came down the stairs to eat her breakfast, her father greeted her with a kiss. "Good morning, love."

     Meenu smiled at her father and hugged him. "Morning."

     He ran his fingers through his daughters hair and then sighed. "We have to talk about something. Something important."

     She looked up at him.

     The recent even with Blood made her forget what it could have possibly been. But after a moment of thinking, she remembered.

     Her engagement to the King.

     “Oh.” She smiled. “Yeah, okay.”

     He took her to his den and sat her down.

     And after a moment of hesitation, her father limped over to his chair.

     Meenu always admired the limp of her father.

     It made him prove to the world the type of knight he was.

     Her father was given a chance to retire early once he was injured. But her father chose not too. He said he would die serving his land and his people. Whether he limped or not.

     And he did a good job.

     When he sat down, he took a deep breath and looked at his daughter. "It's going to take longer to call off this engagement."

     He watched Meenu carefully, and she did all she could to hide her sadness.

     "Oh, that's alright, Papa." She said.

"But please don't worry." Her father said. "I will do everything I can to stop it."

     Meenu smiled at her father before walking over to him and hugging him once more. "Papa... You don't worry. I'll be fine... Please don't stress yourself to much." She said. "I'll be fine."

     Lord Kyrus pulled away from the hug and looked at his daughter. After a moment, he sighed and gave her a smile.

     Meenu knew immediately that it was another one of his fake smiles.

     She kissed his cheek before straightening up. "Knight and I are going to go out."

     Lord Kyrus nodded. "Stay safe, love."

     Meenu nodded. "Of course."

     With that, she turned around and rushed off, Knight chasing closely behind her.

     When she arrived at Feyran, she sat against a tree and took a deep breath.

     And without her permission, her eyes began to water. She tried to stop the tears but they wouldn't stop.