-Jade-

"Why wasn't she given food when she asked for it?" Elizabeth screamed at the tailors as she ran over to Jade. "WHY IS SHE STILL ON THE FLOOR?"

The loud noise of Elizabeth screaming made Jade flinch. Even though she was barely conscious she noticed that this was the governess' highest level of anger. She was practically spitting out each word. Jade heard the sound of a very hard slap and it was clear that one of the tailors were going to have a very red mark across their powdered face later.

"Get Thomas." Elizabeth told the girl next to Jade in a hissing way. "Jade! Child, look at me!" Elizabeth pleaded. Jade opened her eyes slowly. Elizabeth slapped her cheek rapidly in an attempt to wake her up.

"Please... No more people." Jade asked in a whisper. "I don't want anyone else to see me like this..."

"Hush, child." Elizabeth said and stroked her face gently.

"What is the meaning of this ruckus?" A dark voice appeared in the room. It sounded like a large man's voice.

Damn it... Why don't they just call on everyone in this forsaken place and humiliate me completely. I know! Call on the Queen as well!

"Shut your mouth and get this poor thing off the floor!" Elizabeth ordered the man. "Carry her to her chamber. The man cleared his throat to express his discontent with her words.

"Fine." He muttered and picked Jade up carefully. "She doesn't have a real chamber anymore. That cupboard he has her sleeping in, is not even a room." He hissed at Elizabeth. "There are hundreds of rooms in this place and he puts her in the old potato storage..." He continued. "All because the queen-"

"That is enough, Thomas!" Elizabeth growled.

The short walk to Jade's room felt longer than ever while she was carried to it. Every step the man took made it feel like Jade hit the floor all over.
Images from when her body had slammed into the floor flashed before her eyes. She put her hands around her head when it throbbed and ached with pain.

"Lay her down in her bed. I need to fetch more pillows." Elizabeth mumbled. Jade didn't say anything, not even a moan left her lips. She kept rubbing her head in pain and when her hands arrived at the back of her neck she felt how her fingers became wet, and warm.

"I think a bucket of water and some rags will do you more good." The man said and Jade thought he sounded worried. "She is bleeding." He said and grabbed Jade's bloody hand and showed must have showed it to Elizabeth.

"What?" Elizabeth whispered in panic. Jade cried when the woman's hands examined her closely. She gasped when she discovered that the man was telling the truth. "Just what we need..."

"What do you mean?" He muttered and carefully placed Jade's hand on her abdomen.

"This is going to make him furious..." Elizabeth sighed. Jade opened her eyes a little and looked at both of them.

"Jade, can you hear me?" Elizabeth's voice was very concerned.

"Yes." Jade whispered back. Her governess lips didn't seem to be able to form a smile right now. They remained in the worried open state they were in.

"What am I going to tell him...?" Elizabeth muttered to herself and dabbed Jade were she bled with a piece of cloth and hushed her when she whimpered in pain.

"This wasn't your fault, Elizabeth." The man stated in a low voice. "He can't possibly blame you for this."

"I didn't say that it was, but you know how he gets when he is mad." She mumbled back at him. "And this... Something tells me that this will make him angrier than I have ever seen him..."

"Then don't tell him!" The man urged her quietly. "Just lie and say that she tripped! You don't have to-"

"I will not lie to that boy!" Elizabeth interrupted him. "Leave now!"

Later that same day...

Jade turned in her bed, covered in all of the blankets Elizabeth could possibly have found in the castle. Her head was pounding and she felt sore all over. Frustrated she pressed her hands against her face to try to keep the throbbing headache away. It didn't work. Nothing worked. She hadn't slept at all and she didn't know for how long she had been in here. The room was gloomy and the only light was a pair of dying candles on the table with the mirror. A faint light crept out from underneath the door as well. It must be the torches outside hanging on the cold stone walls.

Something felt odd as her fingers pressed swept over her face. There was something around Jade's head. Her fingers crawled up from her face and she discovered that Elizabeth had bandaged her head.

"She's bleeding" The man's voice echoed in her head when she remembered what had happened.

Jade sat up quickly when she remembered what Elizabeth had said about William's anger. It wasn't fair if he was going to punish her for this. It had been the tailors' fault! Not Elizabeth's!

As soon as Jade sat up her head and ribs screamed at her with a shooting pain. An uncontrollable scream escaped from her lips and she felt her eyes fill with tears instantly. How could her ribs hurt like this? She had no memory of hurting them. Only her head, knees and... Her vision turned blurry. Whimpers left her lips every time she tried to move. After a couple of tries to change position Jade gave up and let her body fall down into the bed again.

Suddenly the sound of a key entering the lock reached Jade. It turned and unlocked the door. Jade opened her eyes in the same moment Elizabeth entered. In her hand she held a rag, in the other, she held a key. Jade guessed it was the one to the room. Had William given it to her or was he waiting outside? Or did Elizabeth have her own key that William does not know about?

"How are you, child?" Elizabeth asked. She was out of breath, like she had been running from the opposite end of the castle. She sat down carefully next to Jade and dabbed her forehead with the rag. With a puzzled look Jade studied the rag that was supposed to remove sweat or something else from her skin, but there was no traces of anything on it. It was very clear on the look on Elizabeth's face that something was wrong. Something was making her very nervous.

"I'm in pain." Jade whispered and put her left arm over her stomach. "It hurts everywhere..." she said.

"That is understandable." Elizabeth mumbled in a breath. "The girl and the tailors have been punished for not listening to you." There was agony in her voice as she spoke.

"What?" Jade asked. "The girl didn't do anything wrong!" she exclaimed and tried to sit up again. A hand against her chest forced her to stay down. "It was those damn tailors! They are the ones that should be punished! She was getting me food!" Jade continued. Elizabeth hushed her and tried to make Jade relax. "What do you mean by punished?" Jade asked when she had caught her breath.

"They didn't bring you food when you asked for it, they admitted it." Elizabeth answered Jade and deliberately ignored her question about the punishment.

"Who gave the order about punishing them?" Jade asked. Elizabeth gave her a very confused look.

"The prince, my dear. Who else?" She asked. "As soon as he got word of-"

"You told him about this?" Jade felt the throbbing in her head get worse as she got more and more upset. "Why would you do that?"

"I had to tell him. It is not like he hadn't noticed your absence at dinner. It is easier to just tell the truth when it comes to him."

"Or you lie and don't get other people into trouble." Jade hissed. "You could have just told him that I was sick!" she breathed and started to feel lightheaded. Elizabeth lowered her gaze when she seemed to understand her mistake. "I would never tell him, or the king, if you accidentally pricked me with those god damn hairpins!"

"Well. I am allowed to make mistakes as well, Jade." Elizabeth sighed. Jade reacted at the use of her name. Elizabeth almost always called her child or dear. She must have hurt her feelings...

They didn't speak after that. Elizabeth made sure that Jade had everything she needed and then left the room.

The next day Jade awoke from the sound of two voices. They were coming from outside the door and she recognized them. It was Elizabeth and William. Quiet, she stayed in bed but listened carefully.

"Is she awake?" It was William's voice. It was almost so low that she could barely able to hear him.

"No. She hasn't slept well the last two nights... I gave her something last night to make her fall asleep... It took a while but now she is finally asleep." Elizabeth explained in a whisper. Jade could hear anxiousness in her voice. Was she worried about something?

"Good. Keep her there until she is better. As soon as that happens you return the key to me." He said. There were no more words. Just the sound of his steps walking away slowly.

Was that it? Did he not care about her more? Did it suffice to simply know that she was sleeping?

"Yes, your grace." Elizabeth said and it was easy to hear, even from where Jade was, that she was glad the conversation was over.

Jade was bedridden for two days.

Her headache didn't go away like she had hoped. She must have hit her head very hard when she fainted.

Elizabeth visited her very often to check on her and make sure that Jade was eating her food. The noise outside the room had almost disappeared completely. It felt like the staff had been told not to take this route to the kitchen or to tread very lightly while passing. Jade thought all of this was very unnecessary. The staff shouldn't suffer because of her and be forced to take longer routes in order to do their chores. It bothered her immensely that she was an inconvenience to the staff. In Jade's opinion she should be moved to another room, with a more comfortable bed and natural light in it... She hadn't seen the sun for almost three days and it was starting to be quite tiresome. She adored how the rays of the sun used to shine into her chamber. Now she was either left in complete darkness or surrounded by a yellow shade cascade of color from the torches.

On the third day, Jade sat up when Elizabeth entered.

"Good morning, child." She greeted Jade with a warm smile. "How did you sleep?"

"Fine." Jade replied.

"How is your head?"

"Sore."

"Are you only going to answer me with one simple word every time I ask you something?" The warmth from her face disappeared. She thought Jade was being rude.

"No. I feel fine and I would very much like it if I could leave this room today." Jade answered and tried to sound as polite she possibly could. Elizabeth's eyes narrowed, like she was trying to figure out if Jade was lying or being facetious.

"Well... You cannot move around in the castle as usual. The preparations are still being made..." Elizabeth mumbled.

"Preparations?" Jade wondered. "Preparations for what?"

Elizabeth's face lit up to Jade's surprise. It seemed that whatever she was going to tell Jade brought her great joy.

"The ball!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "The
king is throwing a ball! Oh, it is going to be so wonderful!"

"A ball?" Jade asked. "Is it the queen's birthday or something?" Jade asked. She couldn't find any other reason to why the king would throw a ball.

"It is for you." Elizabeth said and motioned Jade to stand up. Slowly, Jade but her legs outside the bed and shuddered when her feet touched the cold floor.

"Me?"

Why would the king throw a ball for me?

"Yes, well actually it is for you and the prince." She explained and grabbed Jade's hands and helped her up on her feet.

Was William behind this? No... why would he be? Why on earth would the king throw a ball? It made absolutely no sense to Jade. Elizabeth seemed to notice and pinched her cheek softly.

"The prince is going to announce your engagement." Jade closed her eyes when Elizabeth's words hit her. "Is something wrong, child?"

"I don't want to marry him." Jade whispered and crossed her arms. "I don't know him and I am not even sure that I want to."

"He is..." Elizabeth didn't finish her sentence. The woman seemed to be searching for words.

"What is the meaning of the ball? Doesn't every living soul already know about me?" Jade asked and walked over to the mirror and sat down.

"No!" Elizabeth said and placed her hands on Jade's shoulders. "There are going to be other nobles and royals attending." Elizabeth said. "The prince is going to present you to them."

"Why? Does he need their approval?" Jade asked even though she already knew the answer. If William ignored his own mother's objections concerning their marriage, it was unlikely that he would care about what other royals would have to say about it.

"No, but it is tradition." Elizabeth answered and carefully combed Jade's hair. She quickly stopped. Jade looked at herself in the mirror and noticed why she had stopped. Her hair was so greasy that it was no use in trying to fix it. The only thing that would do the trick was a bath. And Jade needed one, badly. She could barely stand the stench from her sheets from laying in them for days. The hot air down here had made her sweat and it was not something that she preferred smelling of.

"Can I please have a bath?" Jade asked and kept her arms down to her sides in an attempt to spare her governess from her odor.

"Of course!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "I will have the girls prepare it for you right away. Then when you are done and dressed, we will pick out what you will were to the ball."

"When is it?" Jade asked just as Elizabeth was leaving the room.

"Tomorrow."

-William-

"I am not liking that Jade is somewhere in the castle and not in a proper chamber." William's father complained.

He was very upset that Jade was sleeping in a room that didn't have a proper bed.

"I need to keep her safe. The place she is in only has one door and I am the only one with the key." He lied.

Elizabeth still had the key. Jade was still not better and it had him very worried.

Three days had passed since the incident and he couldn't go in to see her for himself. There were too many servants passing by. He had hoped to get a chance to talk to her in private but there had been no time for that.

"We will have to leave soon again." Father stated suddenly while studying the map in front of them on the table. William awoke from his thoughts. His father moved a pawn that represented a part of their army but then put it back to where it had been. The move hadn't improved their advantage.

A dangerous group of raiders, with a small army behind them, were becoming a real nuisance. There had been word of them crossing over to their kingdom and it now became their problem.

"I will not leave Jade alone here." He said sternly.

"Well, you cannot bring the girl." His father replied equally sternly. "You are coming."

"You cannot be serious. What if mother tries to kill her again?" he whispered and clenched his fists. His father gave him a warning look and raised a warning finger towards him.

"You cannot prove that it was your mother's doing. All we know is that one of her servants did it. I wouldn't go around blaming your mother before you are completely sure." His father said.

"I confronted her but she denied it." William muttered.

"There you go. She did-"

"She is obviously lying, father." William interrupted him. "You know this as well I as do. Mother hates Jade and resents me for marrying a girl of low birth against her will. It is clear as day that she was behind the attack!" William growled and threw a glance at the map to calm down. He was going to say something very inappropriate if he didn't rid his thoughts of his mother.

His father sensed his anger and didn't say anything that would escalate into something worse.

The enemy was going to cross the border in the southeast. William's father had troops there but they needed a better way to reach the enemy. From where their troops were placed right now, the enemy could get away easily by fleeing into the woods. As much as he wanted to stay here with Jade, he couldn't. He had to go with his father. He needed to be there so that he could learn from him.

Someone knocked on the door and was granted access by William's father.

"My king."

William looked up. It was Elizabeth. She curtsied at them quickly and threw a glance at William and then his father. Her presence had to be related to Jade.

"What is it?" he asked before his father had even addressed her. "Is she awake?"

"Yes." Elizabeth answered him but then looked at his father. William felt calmer. These last days had been pure agony.

"Where is she?" he asked and, before Elizabeth could answer, his father cleared his throat. He was annoyed because William kept interrupting and not giving him the chance to speak. William and Elizabeth lowered their gazes momentarily.

"Elizabeth, please. Come in." His father said patiently but gave William a grumpy look. It was fortunate that it was only the three of them. Otherwise William's behavior would have been a problem. It wasn't good manners to speak before his father had had his say, no matter how trivial it was. "How is the girl?"

"Better, your grace. She wants to go outside but I think it would be unwise." Elizabeth said. "The girl needs all the rest she can get if she is to have any strength for the ball."

"I agree." William's father answered.

William, however, did not agree.

Jade had been locked in that little room for days. Even though he didn't know her that well yet, he knew that she would want to go outside and get some fresh air. She would appreciate the freedom. Be it momentarily.

"Father." William said in a low voice and motioned him with a nod to stand closer to him.

His father placed himself next to William but with his back to Elizabeth.

"Yes?" he asked.

"I don't agree." William said politely, still keeping his voice in a low volume.

"And?"

"Jade has been locked in that room for days. I think it would be good for her to get some fresh air."

"What do you suggest?" His father asked him. "I think that her governess would know better since she spends a lot more time with the girl than you do." He added. William gave him an irritable look.

"Just let her take a walk in the gardens. I will send Loren to accompany her." William said and tried his best not to reciprocate his father's snide comment about Jade. He would rather do it himself but he worried about how it would look.

"Fine." His father said. "But don't interrupt me again." He warned William. "Elizabeth."

"Yes, your grace?"

"Let the girl take a walk through the gardens. My son thinks she needs some fresh air. Loren will meet you outside." He said and then excused himself and left them.

William could see that Elizabeth had something on her mind.

"What is it, Liz?" he asked and she reacted to him using his very informal nickname for her. He almost never used it.

When he was a child he had called her Liz all the time. But as he got older it became inappropriate and he had to call her by her full name.

"Nothing, your grace." She said and clasped her hands in front of herself. "I will go and get the girl dressed..."

"Don't lie, Liz. I can tell that you have something to say." William said and crossed his arms.

"It's not my place." She answered him. What she wanted to say was about him.

She has something on her mind and I can bet that it concerns Jade. He thought.

"It's just us and I can tell that you're going to say it in one way or another." He muttered.

Elizabeth's eyes searched the room quickly and she then crossed her arms as well.

"I would like to suggest that you join her." She said. William wanted nothing else but he wasn't so sure that Jade would appreciate his company. Even though wanted to escort her. "You need to spend more time with her."

"I will spend plenty of time with her tomorrow at the ball." He answered and exhaled.

"Alone." Elizabeth enunciated. "She doesn't understand what you want, your grace. She will never know unless you tell her how you feel about her." She continued.

William swallowed. How did Elizabeth know how he felt about Jade? He had never told anyone about just how much he wanted her, or exactly how he felt.

"You are pushing her away and that is why she doesn't want to be here. I know that you're worried about it." Elizabeth said.

It was very annoying how well this woman knew him. She could sense what he was thinking or feeling at almost any time. But Elizabeth didn't know about the kiss... So how could Jade think that he was pushing her away?

"I'm not pushing her away." William objected.

"Yes. You are. You haven't visited her once and I can tell that she wonders about it. She is questioning why you brought her here in the first place. I would too."

"The reason to why I brought her here is quite clear to everyone else. Jade is not stupid."

William could tell from the look on Elizabeth's face that she didn't fall for his poor excuse.

"The cold way you speak to her would drive any girl insane."

"Leave, Liz." He mumbled when she got to close to the matter. He didn't want to talk about it with her. He only wanted Jade to know how he felt. It didn't concern anyone else...

"As you wish, your grace." Elizabeth mumbled and sighed. "Take my advice and show the girl some kindness..."

Those were the last words she spoke before she exited.

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I have been superbusy this week so I haven't had the time to revise this chapter until today! Hoped you liked it!

Love Jenny ♡