Phina swore she had brought the cloth back while Audrey was sleeping, and there was no reason for her to lie. She was working for her; if she failed, it would only lead to her dismissal. She would have to work as one of the lowest staff in the palace.
Audrey wouldn't blame an innocent for a crime she didn't commit. "You ought to have been careful. You know this people didn't like me."
Phina nodded; other maids avoided her because she worked for Audrey. They used to be friends before the ladies came, but now they were segregating her. She saw it as baseless, but Phina had more important responsibility to think of.
Her family depended on the little she earned as a maid in the palace. If she lost her position, she would be subjecting her family to a lower standard of living.
"I'm sorry, my lady." She had no excuse.
Audrey sat on the bed, all traces of sleep gone; it was a few minutes left to the dinner, and she couldn't find her dress. Ms. Peep strictly forbade them from coming if they weren't wearing the clothes. Mia and her maid were also missing, and no one else could have come into their room.
Phina eyes were red from crying, but Audrey wasn't, she refused to be pulled down by a stupid trick some of the maidens were performing because they weren't invited. Yet, she couldn't accuse anyone falsely without knowing the truth.
Just then, Mia came in with a wide smile. She glanced at Audrey and frowned, "Why aren't you dressed up, yet?"
Audrey's mood sank more; was this how she would miss the opportunity of seeing the crown prince before the selection? She needed to ensure she secured her position as the future crown princess.
She already thought of questions to ask the crown prince. She had thought of ways to convince him that she was the most suitable princess for him. Now, she had missed that opportunity because of a missing dress.
"I can't find my cloth; the one given to us by Ms. Peep."
Mia's brow furrowed, "How? You can't dine with the royals without that cloth."
"I know."
"What do we do now?" Mia asked. Her maid stood beside Phina. "Should I also forfeit it, so none of us will go?"
Audrey shook her head, "No. You don't have to miss this opportunity because of me. You deserve to go."
Mia paused and then shook her head, "I'm not going. We won the contest together. We both deserved to go. How can I go alone? It doesn't speak well of me."
Audrey found it hard to believe she had a friend like Mia. She had never been in a close friendship like this. "Thank you, but you've to go. Whoever sabotaged me will be happy if none of us went. One of us has to be there to let them know we are a winner. And one of us has to learn things about the crown prince that can help us. You can't miss it because of me.
Mia heaved a sigh, "Okay. But be rest assured, I will inform the royals about you. I promise. I'll bring details of what the crown prince likes and hate. trust me"
Audrey smiled at her, clenching their hands together. "Thank you, Audrey. You're the best thing that happened to me at this competition."
Mia smiled back. "Same here. I'm glad to with you."
Mia prepared to dine while Audrey stared at her with envy, but she was happy for Mia. She wished she was in that royal blue dress. She glared at Phina, who hid behind Lisa.
Soon, Mia left with her maid. Most of the maiden stared at her in envy.
On her way, Mia smiled at herself. It was smart of her to have thrown Audrey's dress in the river while she was asleep. Audrey's beauty might captured the crown prince's attention; it was a gamble she wasn't ready to play in any way. Sitting at the royal table alone would give her more opportunity to make an impression on the royal family.
Audrey hardly gives up. Although she was late for the dinner, she wanted to know what had happened to her dress. If Phina had truly placed it on her bed, then someone wanted her to miss the dinner. Someone had taken her dress. She couldn't trust anyone other than Mia. They had all shown their hatred from the first day, only Mia was willing to help her. She moved out of the room, ordering Phina to stay back.
She moved around the middle wing to check if the cloth was anywhere. She wished she had access to the remaining maiden room but had no excuse for wanting to enter their room. It didn't help that they already hated her.
As she left the middle wing and moved aimlessly, she saw a garden. Audrey loved flowers. Enticed, she moved towards the garden, touching some of its flowers, slowly. It smelled so beautiful that she plucked one. She wondered who could have been tending to those flowers; they had been paying extra attention to the flowers.
As she picked more flowers to place in her room, a deep voice that sent shivers through her body stopped her. "What do you think you are doing?"
Audrey turned to see someone she assumed must be the gardener from the way he was dressed. He wore a commoner top and shorts covered with a green overtop to avoid the dirt the flowers would leave on his clothes. He wore a hat too, but she could see his face, and damn, he was beautiful. Audrey hadn't seen such beauty before. It was a pity that he was just a commoner. If he wasn't, she did say the crown prince couldn't hold a candlelight beside him. He was that beautiful.
She cleared her throat, assuming the role of someone in authority, "What does it look like I am doing?"
The gardener's lips twirl up in amusement. "Except spoiling my good work, I don't see what else you are doing?"
She frowned. How dare he? "What? How could you say that? I was just getting some for my room."
Damien smiled at the expression on her face, "You didn't ask for permission before taking them. This garden belongs to someone and no one else is allowed in here."
She frowned. It only made her look cute. He hadn't expected to encounter her this way, but when the queen tried to force him to attend dinner with some of the maidens that had come for the contest, he had refused.
The garden belonged to his mother; she loved to tend to them, and he had assumed the role from the time he could tend to flowers. He doesn't allow anyone near them, and everyone knows that. Well, except her and those maidens. He didn't care for the whole crown princess competition, but he had felt a strange attraction to her from the first day he saw her.
An attraction he made no plan to work on. After all, he wouldn't be in the palace forever. He was going to find a role that would take him out of the palace where he would be able to fulfill his mother's dream of helping the commoners.
Audrey scrunched her nose up, "How could this belong to someone? Why won't anyone be allowed in here? That's unfair."
Damien picked up his hose and continued watering the flowers, "You can tell that to the owner, young lady. I'm busy right now."
As he tried to dismiss her to kill whatever feeling was arising from staring at her, Audrey refused to move a step. She stayed rooted there. "I'm participating in the crown princess selection. I might be the future queen, and I have the right to explore the palace."
Damien chuckled. He couldn't imagine his womanizer brother, who loved submissive women, marrying this one, who seemed to question everything she saw.
The sound alone seemed to annoy Audrey. Was he mocking her right now? Did he believe she couldn't win the competition? It reminded her of her missing dress, which soiled her mood further.
"You'll see, peasant. I'll become the crown princess, and I will own this garden." She gazed at the beautiful flower again. It was the only thing that could put her in a good mood at the moment.
Damien nodded. "Aren't you getting ahead of yourself, young lady? Why don't you become the crown princess before you think of owning this garden. Well, I give those to you as a gift. Remember, my first gift to you."
Fuck the fact that he's handsome, Audrey wanted to throw the flowers on his face, but she wouldn't put these beautiful flowers through such suffering. She held the flower tight and glared at him. "The next time we meet, I'll be teaching you a lesson."
Damien responded, "If we meet again, we'll be doing something interesting."