Ambition and Destiny

👑 Chapter Twenty-two 👑

Her thin fingers with nails like claws honed on shadows ripped at the air and yanked a black wig from Annie's head, unveiling her golden hair. It cascaded down her shoulders like a river of molten sunlight. Each strand seemed to shimmer. It was a waterfall of gold that danced in the dark.

And then, the old woman spoke. Her voice, although still raspy, had lost its sharpness. "Golden hair," she whispered, grabbing the candle to get a better look at Annie's face. "This golden, silky hair has those lapis-lazuli blue eyes."

Annie felt a surge of confusion as she stared at the face of the old woman, which had been a mask of rage just moments ago, suddenly twisted into a completely different expression. There was a fleeting glimpse of something that appeared to be amazement.

With a swift motion, the elderly lady effortlessly snapped her fingers, restoring everything to its initial state. Promptly thereafter, the door gracefully swung open, while the curtains gracefully separated to welcome the warm glow of sunlight into the room.

She swung her hand, ordering Annie," You had better clean up the mess you made... The broom is behind the door.

Annie remained silent, blinking at the unexpected turn of events. The old woman replayed, as she noticed Annie did not lift a finger, "Do you want me to use my magic on you?"

"No, no, no... It's okay!" Annie replied, refusing her suggestion.

Unsure of what had just transpired, she cautiously proceeded to clean the shards of the crystal ball, her mind swirling with questions about the mysterious old woman and her strange reaction.

"I did not ask you about your name, young lady. My name is Juliet. What about you?" The old woman, Juliet, asked

"Annie, my name is Annie." Annie paused to smile at her.

"Well, Annie! If I were you, I wouldn't smile", Annie's face hardened at her sentence, and then Juliet added, pointing at the shattered ball, "You prevented me from making a living. I used to use my crystal ball to see the future of my customers. But don't worry, no one comes here very often; they don't distinguish us from the charlatans," she sighed as she said the last part.

"I'm not sure what reaction I should show in this situation... Listening to her story like stupid is the worst; I need to get out of here as soon as possible" , Annie wondered.

"I'm truly sorry about the crystal ball," she said, each word measured and careful. "I'll leave you to your work now." She bent to retrieve her black wig, clutching it like a shield against Juliet's piercing scrutiny.

"Not so fast!" Juliet commanded, but it was too late since Annie had already escaped.

Annie ran as fast as she could, and she didn't dare look back. Once she sensed that the eyes observing her were no longer present, she paused to catch her breath. And Juliet's words echoed in her mind, a haunting whisper that refused to fade.

"Golden hair...and those lapis-lazuli blue eyes."

"Who cares about the nonsense? ... I won't meet Juliet in any way; why should I overthink it? "She was talking to herself in an attempt to calm her pounding heart.

Looking around, she could not recognise the surrounding buildings and exclaimed in denial, "Don't tell me I'm lost?!" She nagged, " No way!"

A faint sobbing sound reached her ears. Turning towards the source, she noticed a young girl sitting by herself, tears streaking her face. Concern etched on her features, Annie approached the girl cautiously.

"Are you okay?" Annie asked gently, crouching down beside her.

The little girl looked up, her big hazel eyes filled with tears. "I lost my mommy," she sobbed.

Annie brushed the little girl's tears away. "It's going to be okay... I'm Annie; what's your name?"

"Lily," the girl whimpered.

Annie reassured Lily, saying, "What a beautiful name, Lily! Let's search for your mom together, okay?"

Despite feeling a knot of worry in her stomach, Annie tried to sound confident. Holding Lily's hand, she began scanning the crowd, relying on the description given by the little girl of her mother for any indication.

After searching for a while, Annie spotted a woman in the distance, frantically calling out Lily's name. "There, Lily! Your mom is over there!" Annie exclaimed, relieved.

But as Lily rushed towards her mother, a fast-moving carriage thundered towards them, the oblivious driver not seeing the little girl darting across the street. Without a second's thought, Annie lunged forward, pushing Lily out of harm's way.

However, the horse pulling the carriage reared up, startled by the sudden movement. Annie found herself directly in the path of the panicked animal. Before the situation escalated, a figure leapt into action.

Fortunately, Lord William, the eldest son of Duke Philip, cleverly concealed his noble status behind the humble attire of a commoner. For hours, he had been observing the festivities from a distance.

Lord William acted quickly and confidently as he approached the untamed horse. His agile movements were a remarkable sight as he swiftly mounted the horse with a single leap. His calming presence immediately halted the horse's movement and prevented any harm that could have occurred from its attempted escape.

As William dismounted, his eyes met Annie's. There was a shared moment of profound silence that enveloped them, contrasting with the astonished gasps reverberating throughout the surrounding crowd.