I stand in front of my mirror wearing my best dress. It's a floor length, white, satin gown with a beaded neckline. I'm not sure if people typically go shopping in fancy dresses, but this day is special to me. Delmi knocked on my door twenty minutes ago telling me to get ready. After slipping on a pair of matching heals, I head out of my room. The guards immediately surround me, forming a protective circle. Delmi leads us to the princess's room and she appears dressed in jeans and a simple, green blouse.
She looks at me with her soft smile and sympathetic eyes. "I may be a bit over dressed," I say.
Her laugh is light, "You look beautiful, let's go."
Four of my guards leave and three stay. We head to Sahil's office to inform him that I am leaving the palace. The thought makes me smile. I am leaving the palace; for the first time in years I will be breathing in the outside air.
Sahil sits at his office riffling through the same papers he was yesterday; they must be important. He looks up at us and pushes his glasses up higher on the bridge of his nose. "Leaving so soon?"
"Yes, your daughter has invited me to go shopping."
"Has she now?" His confusion is evident and I look down in embarrassment. I nod and look to Anahi who is also nodding her head.
"Well, alright. General Kai will accompany you and I want a call every hour."
"Of course, thank you." I smile, eager to leave his office and this palace.
Before I leave though, Sahil stops me, "Salvare, keep your head down and don't look anyone in the eyes."
"I won't, I promise." To be honest, I haven't even thought of my eyes. Obviously people will think them strange, but will they hurt me for them? I turn slightly, but freeze when Sahil's voice rings out after me, "And Salvare..." he says, "enjoy your day."
"Thank you, Sahil. I most definitely will."
"You were right, you deserve to live, and I'm sorry I've never given you the chance to." He sounds as if he cares for me, so unlike him.
"You have given me seventeen years and I can't thank you enough for that. When everyone wanted me dead, you gave them a reason to for me to live."
"Well, you are The Salvare. You will save us all one day." I smile at him and finally leave his office. Anahi stays behind to say a few words to her father, but is quick to join me.
"Are you ready?"
"Yes, I am." As we walk through the palace in search for the front door, the silence between us soon becomes awkward. I rack my brain for something to say and settle on a simple question. "Why did you ask me to come with you?"
Anahi looks at me and her eyes lighten even more, I never knew a person could pity someone so much. "Well, I know you don't have many friends-" more like no friends- "and you finally get to leave the palace. I figured I could show you around the society and bring to a couple of my favorite places."
I try to find words that will make her understand I don't want her pity, but she has a point. I don't have anywhere to go and with her help, I can explore the society without getting lost. "Thank you, for thinking of me. I really appreciate it."
"No problem, this will be fun." Yes, I want to say, it will be fun and awkward and scary and new and amazing and everything in between. "Do you have any money with you?" Anahi asks me.
"Money? No, I've never had the need for it." I feel my cheeks blush; I should've thought to bring money. Anahi probably thinks I'm stupid.
"Hmmm, I didn't see it that way, but it's not an issue. I have more money then I'll ever need. If you see something you want just grab it and I'll pay for it."
"I couldn't possibly-" I start to refuse her offer, but she waves it away with a flick of her hand.
"Honestly, money is not an issue. You want something, you get it."
"Okay, thank you, Princess."
"You can call me Anahi. We're friends now." Her smile widens and she hooks her arm through mine.
We have reached the front door. Delmi reaches out a hand to grab the knob, but I use my voice to stop her. "Can I open it?" Everyone turns to me with the same expression on their face.
"It's just...I've passed this door thousands of times and I've always wanted to open it, but never could. This time I can." Delmi steps aside and she puts a hand on my shoulder. Perhaps I shouldn't have been so honest; I don't want people to feel sorry for me. I don't look behind me and look back at Anahi; I definitely shouldn't have said anything.
I decide to ignore them and place my hand on the glass knob and twist it. With a slight pull the door effortlessly opens to reveal the palace gardens. It's beautiful, not even the dull brown-green grass could diminish its beauty. A stone pathway leads to the palace gates that lead into the heart of the society. People linger around outside the gates, probably hoping for a glimpse of their ruler.
As we walk across the stone path, to the gates, Delmi talks to the guards. "Stay on high alert. We not only have The Salvare, but we also have the Princess to look out for." Her voice is sharp and commanding, as it should be. She is in charge of my life, it is up to her to bring me back alive.
When the gates open, flashes of lights, fill the area. I cover my eyes and hide behind Delmi. Princess Anahi looks at me and takes my hand, "Ignore them, they're just photographers." It's not long before we lose them and enter the city. My eyes widen as they take in the sight before me. Row after row are shops filled with an array of people. The people laugh and smile and talk excitedly. They all wear simple clothes similar to Anahi's and I suddenly feel mortified. "I should've changed into simpler clothes."
"Nonsense, you'll stand out." Anahi says this as if standing out is a good thing.
"I think I was supposed to blend in."
"We have three guards surrounding us and a highly praised general walking with us, we weren't meant to blend in Salvare. We are meant to stand out." My chest tightens as I realize we have an audience. Anahi was right, our entourage has alerted people of our presence. I look at each of my guards to see if they are as unnerved by the attention as much as I am, but they all stare straight ahead, ignoring everyone. I take a closer look at them and realize I'm wrong. Every single guard has their hand on their weapon and their eyes take in everything.
Anahi seems clueless to the guard's tension and pulls me excitedly to one of the shops. The shopkeeper is an elderly lady with fraying white hair. Her toothless smile greets us and she spreads an arm to show off her merchandise.
"Hello, Princess. How are you today?" Her voice is crackled with age.
"I am doing well, thank you. I want to introduce my friend, Salvare."
The elderly lady looks at me, "Hello, it is a pleasure to meet any friend of the Princess. I'm Tulsa." She holds out a hand for me to shake and I take it. I lock eyes with her before remembering what Sahil said. I lower them quickly and snatch my hand away from hers.
"Prices remain the same, as always, but we have some special products out today. Take a look around." Anahi leads me away from Tulsa and towards the products.
Lined up on a long table are rows and rows of jewelry. I look at all the handmade jewels with wonder. The rings and bracelets sparkle and gleam when the sun shines on them. I touch my neck and walk over to the necklaces. My eyes latch onto a simple silver necklace with a tiny square shaped jewel. I lift up the jewel and take a sharp breath, it's the same color as my eyes, pure gold. I lift the necklace off of the rack and hold it close. I look at Anahi, who has four bracelets in her hand, and walk up to her.
"Do you mind if I get this?" I ask in a quiet voice.
She looks down at the necklace in my hands, "Of course not. It's perfect for you, it matches your eyes."
"Thank you."
She pushes her hand forward and asks me, "Which one should I get?" Hanging off her fingers are four bracelets. Two are diamond and the other two are plain silver. They all look very similar to me, but she is obviously having a hard time with this decision. "Why don't you buy one diamond and one silver?"
She twirls her fingers and looks intently at each one. "I think that's a great idea." She places two bracelets back on the shelf, "Ready to checkout?" I nod and we both look to where Tulsa was standing before, but she's not there. Anahi walks up to Delmi, "Where did Tulsa go?"
I go to tell Anahi that Delmi isn't big on answering questions, but to my surprise Delmi speaks up. "She said she had to check on something in the back."
"You'll answer her questions?" I ask, a little offended. Delmi glances at me, but quickly looks away. It's as if she's afraid to talk to me. "Would you like me to go get her?" Delmi asks the princess.
"No, no. I'm sure she'll be back any minute." Anahi is right as Tulsa reappears seconds later.
"I apologize for keeping you waiting."
"It's no problem."
"Did you find anything you like?"
"Actually, we both did."
"That's great. Bring them here and I'll ring them up for you." I hand my necklace to Anahi and she places all three items on the counter in front of Tulsa.
"This is one of our special items, I'm glad you picked it out," Tulsa says as she holds up the necklace I picked out.
"Am I ringing up all three together?"
"Yes, please." Anahi answers. "Total is 110 dollars." Tulsa says.
I look at Anahi, "That sounds expensive."
"It's nothing, I promise." Tulsa inclines her head slightly, but I ignore her and focus on Anahi. She said it was nothing so I decide to believe her. When we leave Tulsa's shop I grab one of the bags from Delmi's hand. I tug the necklace out and slip it over my head. I turn back to Tulsa and hold out the bag , "Keep the bag."
She grabs it from me with a strange look on her face, "Thank you." I nod and rejoin my group. We stop at several other shops, but I don't buy anything else. The sky eventually grows darker and Anahi decides that it is time to return to the palace.
"Thank you for bringing me along. I had a great day."
The Princess opens her mouth to respond, but a scream in the distance cuts her off. The city grows eerie and more screams follow the first. My guards surround us and General Kai pulls out his weapon. Delmi shouts out a set of orders, "Remain calm and stay in the circle." She directs her voice to the guards next, "Stay on the lookout and be ready for anything."
Every guard has their weapon out as panic fills the city. People run in fear, shoving others aside to get to their homes faster. Someone knocks into one of my guards and I stumble into the Princess. I feel she is shaking and grab her hand for comfort. She holds on tight as we take in the panic.
Delmi is shouting again, but the crowd is so loud now, that I can't hear what she is saying. That is when the first gunshot goes off. I flinch at the sound and let go of Anahi's hand. I cover my ears as more shots are fired into the night. I scream when a guard to my right goes down. A needle has pierced his neck, not a bullet. With the guard down I have a full view of what is actually going on. Men or women-I can't tell which-crowd the roads wearing ski masks. Those in the masks are running straight towards us. General Kai shifts to cover the open spot and I lose my view. As one, we move forward, shuffling closer and closer to the palace. Beside me, Anahi is crying. Tears travel down her face, making her look younger than her eighteen years. I remember the day her eighteenth birthday was celebrated. I was jealous of her and a little angry. I remember thinking, she gets cake on her eighteenth birthday and I'll get a noose.
Technically, I'm not sure how I'll die. Whether it will be a hanging or a shooting party. Maybe they'll poison me or bury me alive. I don't know, but I'm hoping for a gun to the heart. As another shot is fired I rethink my last thought. I definitely don't want to die from a bullet.
We're a football field away from the palace gates before the next guard goes down. Me, Anahi, Delmi, and General Kai are the last ones left standing. Delmi ushers me and the Princess forward and they stay, blocking us from behind. We dash ahead for the palace gates, but a scream stops me in my tracks. Princess Anahi goes down and her swollen eyes are wide with fear. I crouch down to the ground, quietly noting that the gunfire has stopped.
My hand finds her cheek and travels down to her neck where the needle is. I pluck it out of her neck and press my finger down to feel her pulse. It lightly thumps against my fingertips and I breathe a sigh of relief. Whatever is inside of the needles doesn't kill, at least not right away. I look up to see people behind the gate running towards us. Hopefully they'll get to us before whatever was in the needle takes full effect. I hesitate, not wanting to leave Anahi and wanting to get behind the gates to safety. A hand grabs my arm, pulling me up. I look up at who grabbed me and turns out, it's not up to me-leaving or staying-that is. I try to yank my arm out of my attacker's grip, but it's no use. Whoever this person is, they are too strong. I feel something prick the back of my neck and I gasp in fear. My head starts to feel light and dizzy. I look back at the person who has hold of my arm.
My eyes lock onto the only part of him not covered by his ski mask, his eyes. The world shift beneath me and my jaw drops in surprise. His eyes are the color of the palace walls; ruby red.