Rozmarie & Josiah

Rozmarie

I've written this for you, my wonderful reader.

It's time you went on an adventure.

-CG

It started the night I left.

Dean, my bodyguard, was off-duty for once, helping my father with last minute arrangements for the wedding the next day. I was to stay in my bedchamber and prepare. Like always. Because like always, I made the wrong decision and there was no way my father would let me fuck this one up too. It was too important to him. He'd planned entirely too long that I, Rozmarie of house Reynolsh, would be wed to Isaac of house Thornbolsh, son of the high general, and the event would be cast across the six districts for the entire Quantara realm to witness. So I needed to stay in my bedchamber and get my lines right. My father, the king, insisted on it.

He'd announced the engagement two weeks beforehand and after a meeting with the counsel, I was called into his office for the news.

"When?" It was all I could say.

"Fourteen days. It will be done publically and the audio will be played throughout Quantara," he narrowed his dark eyes at me. "This will be the next great step for my kingdom and I will not have you fucking anything up."

It'd come. The news I'd been dreading for years: more power for Isaac and permission for him to do whatever he wanted. Which meant bad things for me. Very bad things. At least I'd had Dean before. My bodyguard would intervene when Isaac lost control and got too hotheaded. But now nothing and no one would be able to do a damn thing to stop him.

"Am I to call him my King?"

"Not until I am dead. You will, however, be obedient to him," my father tucked his arms behind his back as he began pacing the blue and brown study, "as he will be the heir to the Quantara throne... until you produce a son."

I'd closed my eyes and did my best to suppress a shudder. Like usual, my father had given me no choice in the matter. That baby had been as anticipated as our engagement because the realm had been eagerly awaiting the next male heir since my mother made the attempt and failed miserably with me. "When are you hoping?"

"As soon as possible. Your son will need to be groomed as Isaac was, so the earlier the better. I'd prefer a pregnancy by the end of this year. Latest."

I bit my lip, but let it go again. "I will do my best, father."

"Your best is not good enough. You will lay with him every night until he puts a baby in your belly. And not a daughter, either. I need the future ruler of this realm."

I inhaled. "Anything to serve Quantara."

My comment would either be ignored or I was in for a slap. It all depended on his mood and how much sarcasm I'd allowed into the sentiment.

"You will do to remember that in the next few months," he'd moved for his desk. "You will be watched intently and often and will need to decorate Isaac nicely," he'd looked over at me, considering with a warning scowl. "You're dismissed."

Two weeks.

I had two weeks to do the thing I'd been planning my entire life.

Escape.

Past the outer Wall and into the White Wastelands. I looked at it often from my bedchamber window. The solid barrier between us, the Quantara realm, and everything beyond it, everything waiting in the misted desert-like plains of the White Wastelands. No one knew what was out there other than the monsters-great horned beasts that ate anything daring to survive the deadly terrain. So no one had. For years. For centuries even and the horrors of what laid beyond the outer Wall trickled down with time, cementing our fear and keeping anyone from ever wanting to leave again.