Chapter Five:
The new room is white, with cream sheets on a double bed that has a very dark wooden frame. There are two bedside tables to match.
The floors are wooden as well, and there is a carpet next to the bed.
"You will be more comfortable here." I frown when I realise something.
"How is it that there are so many corridors and so many rooms, but you are in our kingdom?" I ask and Roan stares at me for a while.
"We have our own mansion here. King Frans had worked alongside King Richard – Archer's father." My confusion doubles.
"Worked together? Then why would my father kill him?" I ask and Roan frowns too.
"That is what you are going to find out for us." He grins and closes the door as he leaves.
I look at the bed and feel my feet dragging me to it.
I only realise now how tired I am.
I plop down on the bed and sleep welcomes me with open arms.
I open my eyes, feeling a bit groggy. A yawn escapes my mouth and I stretch my arms above my head as I straiten myself.
"Very lady-like." Startled I look in the direction of the voice and my eyes meet Archer's blue ones.
"Very stalkish." I state and he grins, walking forward.
"I brought you a dress." He points to the baby blue dress hanging from the closet and I am surprised to see that it isn't some gown like I am forced to wear.
"We can clean that gown of yours. I don't like seeing you this dirty." I raise my brow at him, and he clears his throat.
"I'll wait outside your door." He leaves my room, closing the door behind and I stand up from the bed.
I touch the fabric of the dress and it feels so soft. A bucket filled with water and a cloth was laying on a small round table next to the closet. I strip from my night gown and take the cloth, starting to wash myself.
After I have cleaned myself, I get dressed in the baby blue dress and spot a window from across the room.
I walk towards it, my bare foot silent on the wooden floor.
When I look outside, I am met with a beautiful sight. Wherever this mansion it, it is certainly not near the village. The grass is very green and there are flowers everywhere.
A knock disturbs my peace and I turn to face the door again.
"I am done." I walk across the room again and pick up my night dress just as Archer steps inside.
He smiles at me, and I am once again taken back.
"You look a bit more ready for the day." He hands over a pair of black slippers. They are my size.
"Are you really a king, or a stalker in disguise?" I ask curiously and he barks a laugh.
"No need to worry, I would just like to ensure that you are more comfortable with your stay here." He frowns, his blue eyes darkening like the stormy ocean. "I don't want to keep you as a prisoner."
How strange for a man to say who kidnapped me.
"Roan told me you may have your suspicions that it was not your father who had killed mine." He starts as I try on the slippers. They fit perfectly.
I rise upright and nod my head, "That is correct. My father was in Italy when your father had been killed."
"How sure are you?" He asks, leaning against the cupboard.
"Well, to start, he brought back a gift that you can only find in Italy. He had missed my fourteenth birthday along with my mother."
At first, I do not remember the gift, mostly because I had already lost it, but when I thought about it, that is the only way I am certain he was in Italy.
The bracelet was made of fragile gold and the markings are only that of Italy. It was a beautiful gift, but at the time I was furious with my parents and had wanted nothing to do with the gift.
"Who would you think killed my father then?" He asks and I shake my head.
"I cannot tell you. Your father was also a king, and kings have a lot of enemies." I try to explain. Another thought hits me, "Where were your mother at the time?" I ask and he looks down.
"She had died giving birth to Roan." I am taken back.
They're brothers?
Of course! That explains a lot.
"Roan is your younger brother? You aren't a very good older brother." I state and he glares at me.
"I didn't ask you for your opinion on my brother skills." He mumbles and I shrug.
"My mother likes to say that I make the most irrelevant comments."
"You and your mother don't seem to get along." He comments, his eyes curious now.
"We don't. Thank you for noticing." I state sarcastically and he frowns.
"Why is that?" He asks, and I feel my irritation tickling me.
"Why are you asking so many questions?" I retort back and he smirks.
"If you can do it then I can too."
Oh, this man is going to get himself killed by me.
How ironic.
Maybe his father was also annoying like him.
"Okay, sorry. Forget I asked." He says, but in a kind way.
"Roan will bring you something to eat in a few." He says and turns away from me, taking my dirty night gown with him.
What a strange man.