"Please have a seat, Prince Marcus," I said as I gestured to the seat opposite me.
"How are you feeling? Are you sure you would like to have this discussion here?" Prince Marcus asked as he lifted a brow in suspicion. His tired eyes followed Linda's movement as she placed two cups of hot tea and a layout of pastries.
"I am fine, thank you for asking your majesty. I'm certain this is the ideal place to have our long-overdue discussion." I replied as I realized he was indicating that Linda should leave.
"Is that so..." he drawled.
"Yes, your majesty. We will have the privacy we need to discuss sensitive matters without being disturbed while being surrounded by the calming scents of the plants her majesty has taken such great care of." I said.
"And will your maid be joining this discussion as well?" He inquired as my body stiffened at his question.
With a gentle smile, I said, "No your majesty she will not be joining us. Once we are ready to begin Linda will be taking her while my guards keep watch until we are finished."
Glancing in Linda's direction I felt a sudden pang of guilt in my chest as I remembered the secret, I could not tell her. Keeping her in the dark about the threat my sister made towards her mother. Whereas I would have preferred to have her remain at my side at this moment there were some things she was not prepared to hear. I hoped with all my heart that she would never have to know the truth and that aunt Helen would be safe while receiving her treatment. And my mother's accomplices remained in the shadows, never carrying out their plans. A wishful thought.
"Linda?"
"Yes, Lady Rebekah. How may I be of assistance?"
"Thank you for helping me with the snacks and tea. You may take the rest of the day to relax until I return." I politely said.
"Thank you, Lady Rebekah. Your generosity is much appreciated." Linda said as she bowed before leaving.
The instant she had exited the room I turned my full attention to the man before me as he leaned back into his chair, loosening the tie around his neck.
"Now that we are alone what is it you wish to know?" he asked while gesturing with his hand for me to begin.
I opened and closed my mouth as I tried to decide what question I should ask first. A wide range of questions swarmed my mind all at once.
"Rebekah?" he called.
I awkwardly cleared my throat as I finally decided what was the first thing, I needed him to do.
"Before I ask you the questions, I need answers to, there is one matter you must fix before I begin."
"And what may that be?"
"An apology," I said. The seriousness in the tone of my voice caught him off guard as his brows creased in the middle.
"It seems I have yet to offer you a proper apology for all that has happened, haven't I?" He grimaced at the thought. His expression softened.
Standing from his seat he dropped to his knees infront of me. My eyes widened in surprise at his behavior. The proud Prince Marcus knelt before me as he spoke, "Therefore let me sincerely apologize for my previous actions, my dear Rebekah."
Raising his head to look me in the eyes he continued. "I, Prince Marcus, crown prince of the great kingdom of Awa apologize for all the pain and suffering I have unintentionally caused you over the past month. I ask that you forgive me for being reckless in my endeavor to end my engagement with your sister. Forgive me for being selfish and wanting you to myself. Forgive me for keeping you in the dark. I do not hope to be forgiven but I promise you from this day forth I will give you no chance to worry or fret. There will be no secrets between us. You will never be kept in the dark. I ask that you trust me and let me carry your burdens. To be your closest confidant and your shoulder to cry on when you are sad."
The sincerity in his eyes as he apologized amazed me. His words were as sweet as honey and as genuine as they could come.
When I asked for an apology, I never expected he would go to such extreme lengths to do so. All I wanted was a simple sorry.
"Thank you for the apology, your majesty. Please stand." I said while trying to help him stand. The blush on my cheeks darkened as my eyes darted across the room, unable to hold his gaze.
Chuckling at my discomfort he gave my hand a small squeeze. "I meant every word I said. I am truly sorry for all that has happened." I nodded in understanding before I released my hand from his hold and returned to my seat.
-----
Releasing a shaky breath, I grabbed the table to stop myself from falling over. His words left me stunned at the reason it all began. The truth of that day shook me to the core of my being. What I had thought was an impulsive decision made recently had been in motion long before I knew it was happening.
A bitter laugh escaped my lips as I refused to accept his version of the truth.
"You're lying." I gritted out. Hiding the broken and pathetic pieces of me that wanted to defend the sister locked away in a prison cell. A useless act to convince me that the humiliation I faced as the kingdom dragged my name through the ground had not been part of my sister's plan. That she was not aware I would face the heat of her past actions. That she was forced into being the villain.
"Please tell me it is a lie," I whispered more to myself. A part of me still desperately wanted to believe she was innocent. That they both were.
"Sadly, it is the truth. Your sister had made an attempt on my life during our return to the kingdom." He tiredly sighed.
"I know this information is hard for you to believe. But there is no easy way for me to explain what happened. The truth no matter how cruel and painful it may be will remain the same. It can't be changed
"I knew the moment I saw the crazed look in her eyes that she was not fine. But to want to kill you before you're married seems a bit unbelievable. Why would she kill you if she wanted to be Queen? Wouldn't it have been better to carry out her plans after she was crowned queen and gained better access to the kingdom? Leaving her as the sole ruler." I said.
"I believe only your sister can answer that question."
"You said she attempted to take your life. How did she manage that without being caught?"
"I do not know when it happened. It was until I was laying against the seat of the car losing consciousness that I knew the symptoms were like that of poisoning. Realizing that I was poison I tilted my head to your sister to get her help when I discovered the pleasing smile on her lips as she watched me struggle to breathe. Seeing my eyes begin to close I felt her lean in and whispered in my ear 'The poison is taking effect faster than I anticipated. What a pleasant surprise.' Before she pretended to call for help. And the next time I opened my eyes we had made it back to the palace and Scarlet was crying in my mother's arms while I pretended, I knew nothing of what happened." His jaw tightened. Angry eyes bore into mine. His anger was directed at the memory of what happened.
I shook my head at the thought of prince Marcus's sitting in his car struggling to stay awake as Scarlet enjoyed each moment of his suffering.
The stream of fake tears slid down her cheeks as she gave a convincing performance.
"If she gave you a lethal poison, how did you survive?"
"Luckily, I was given the antidote in time and the fact that my body has a high tolerance for poison. This was because heirs to the throne have been trained to build their body's resistance to poison from an early age." He said.
Pressing my lips into a thin line I felt my blood boil at what my sister had done.
"So, because of that, you chose to humiliate my family as revenge for what she had done?"
"Yes." He bluntly replied.
"But if I'm, to be honest, I had no intentions of ending our engagement, but I was forced to make that choice when I was reminded, that I could not abandon my duties as the crown prince to fulfill my desires. Therefore, I consulted your father on the matter and he provided me with the information I needed to carry out my plans without my father being able to alter my decision. And once it was all in place Arthur offered to help deliver the mask to you because he thought I was gifting his future sister-in-law a present and that I was going to have you take part in a show to surprise Scarlet. It wasn't until after the ball he knew why I took such a drastic step. I tried on the day you moved into the palace to give you an explanation, but you had refused to listen to a word I had to say."
With the mention of my father I paled. Hearing that he knew what was happening and didn't tell me felt like I was betrayed. Like the wind was knocked out of my lungs as I remembered his suspicious behavior the afternoon, I visited him in his library. How could he have done that to me?
"My father knew. He knew you intended for me to be yours and he didn't tell me. He should have told me." I wheezed out as the world felt like it was moving. The sound of my heart pounding in my ears as I felt myself hyperventilating.
"Shhh... you're fine." Prince Marcus rubbed soothing circles on my back as I tried to calm down. When he reached next to me, I do not know.
"Breathe, Rebekah, breathe. Everything is going to be fine." He cooed as I held my face in his hand forcing me to look at him. "You're fine."
"Your father did not betray your trust. He did what he thought was best for the kingdom even if meant a blow to his honor as the Lord of the Northwest manor. He didn't tell you the truth because I asked him not to. He was protecting his youngest daughter. It was my fault." He said. His eyes bore into mine.
As my erratic breathing calmed down, I slowly nodded my head as he removed his hands.
"The reason your father was helping me was that I wanted to find a loophole in the agreement made between our families. One that my father could not deny. And he had done just that when he revealed that I did not have to marry Scarlet and that the agreement made was that the son of the king would wed the daughter of the Northwest manor. At the time when it was agreed upon the two families were expecting Lord Edward to have sons and the king to only have sons which meant Scarlet was expected to be the only daughter of the family. But as luck would have it Lord Edward was blessed with three daughters and the king's two sons. Which meant any of the three daughters could wed the crown prince. Not necessarily the eldest alone. That in turn provided me with the perfect reason for ending it and having Scarlet's pride wounded by her crime. A lenient punishment."
"But that makes no sense. If you could have chosen one of us, why choose me? Why not Lizzy?" I questioned. Looking at the palms of my hand trying to be strong and hating myself for being weak. For breaking down at every little incident. Hoping I could be better.
"Do you not know?" He gently asked. His hand covered mine as I kept my head down. Shaking my head from side to side.
Lifting my chin I looked into the blazing dark blue filled with admiration. His smile was as bright as the sun. I sank into the warmth of his hand. For a moment forgetting the things that made me angry and sad.
"It's because I love you."