Slave Or King (A Twisted Fairytale)

Chapter 21: Forbidden Confession

Tiara's POV

I'm walking next to the lake at the north of the palace. True to his words, he didn't let me go to the garden anymore.

I didn't see Arzhan for a month now. I touched my neck. The red collar is still there. I hate it so much. It is an electric collar. Alexander never used it on me until now but the possibility of him using it in the near future is high. I begged him every night just to be rid of this collar but he never pays any heed to my pleads.

I still remember when I first saw his damn gift.

"You can't do this to me, Alexander." I screamed.

"You are so naive, my love. I can do this and even more so don't provoke me more than this. Do you understand?"

"It's not fair. How could you punish me this way for something I said when I was angry?"

"Everything has consequences and besides, this world was never fair to begin with. Now let me put it on you."

I tried to run away but he grabbed me harshly.

"Don't make me hit you. I'm trying my hardest to be nice to you."

"Nice to me? Don't make me laugh bastard. How could putting a collar on someone consider being nice?" I shouted.

"If you knew what I could do to you, you wouldn't say this."

I struggled to free myself but despite all my struggles, he put that damn collar on my neck. He let me go and I ran to the mirror. When I saw my neck, I gasped.

"Alexander, please. I'm sorry okay. I will be more careful in the future. I won't say things you don't like anymore. So, please take this damn thing off."

I was crying so hard again. I don't remember how many times I cried since I came to this damn kingdom but I'm sure it was more than the times I cried in my twenty-four years of living.

"Don't cry, love. It's okay. You are beautiful even with that. Don't cry. I feel my heart hurts when you cry." He said ignoring me and the real problem.

"I'm begging you. Didn't you say you care about me? Didn't you say you will make me your queen? How could you let others see your queen like this? Walking with a collar like a dog." I tried to reason with him.

"Don't worry love. That collar won't make you lose face. It's just showing my ownership of you. No one will dare even look at you anyway let alone comment on your prestige. That collar remains on your neck and that's final."

"For how long?" I asked, hoping that at least he will remove it soon.
"Until I say you can remove it." He said and got ready to leave.

I knew from his tone that this collar won't be removed from my neck any time soon.

Isn't it funny?

I was the one who removed the collar of his neck seven years ago but he put a collar on me now. The world really works strangely.

My coronation ceremony is in the evening in the central church. I know nothing can stop it now. We will get married at the church and then the ceremony will begin.

"Long time no see my queen." I heard a familiar voice from behind.
I turned and called him with an obvious shock evident in my voice.

"Arzhan."

"Have you been well dear Tiara?" He has a dark shadow on his face. His eyes are bloodshed. And his whole face is bruised.

He smiled and it made his face looks hideous with bruises on his lips.

"Oh, my good Lord. What has happened to you?" I wanted to go near him but I remembered Alexander's threat and retreated.

"It was what I deserved for crossing my boundaries."

"He did this. Oh, God. He did this because of me. You shouldn't be here. He will kill you. Please go from here. Don't get near me in the future. Please." I'm crying. It is too much to bear.

"Don't cry. It's not your fault. I knew this will happen. I even expected things to become worse."

"Then why? If you knew the result already why did you approach me?"

"You know Tiara. My father was a soldier. He loved this kingdom more than anything.

My mother told me that he always said that people can make a better kingdom together.

He died while fighting for this kingdom. I inherited his love and passion.

When Alexander found me and told me that he will build this kingdom again and bring its former glory back, I helped him to rise to the throne without thinking.

He is a great king despite his brutality. From the moment he became the king, the living situation of people and peasants became better and better and the greedy nobles were punished.

This was the kind of kingdom I wanted with a king without any weakness.

But there was a problem. Alexander had a big weakness. The weakness that he did everything for. You.

Even becoming the king was because of owning you. I wanted to kill you at first. It was the best solution in my opinion. I thought if you die, he will be sad for a short time and then forget you completely.

But one night when we were both drunk, he told me something that changed my mind. He said that he didn't care a shit about his people or this country. He said he is doing all this because you hate a ruler who can't rule his people properly. He forbade slavery, not because of his experience but because you freed all of your slaves.

I knew at that moment that if I kill you he will destroy this kingdom along with you. So I decided to know you. To make sure you deserve to rule alongside him."

"So that's why you approached me?" I asked trying to understand him better.

"At first yes, but Tiara you know it better than anyone that I'm no fool. I found out about your personality at our first few meetings. You were kind. You were brave and responsible for your actions just as he described you. Brave, kind, and pure. There was no reason for me to see you anymore. I should have stopped." He said.

"Then why didn't you? Why did you make yourself like this? You fucking knew this would happen." I shouted at him. I was so frustrated. What reason he can have that is more important than his life?

"Because I understood what Alexander feels. I fell just like him. I fell so deep that I could not save myself no matter what I did. I'm in a deep swamp Tiara and the more I struggle I sink even more."

I'm confused. What is he saying?

"I love you, Tiara." He confessed.