Sania walked through the hallway with a smile on her face, she was genuinely happy to see her horse again, and to have gone on a ride with Taffi to Itchalo, but as soon as she saw a young lady walking down the stairs, her smile faded.
Worried that it was a family member who also hated her, Sania kept a straight face and avoided eye contact with the young lady. But before she could approach the stairs to ascend, the lady called her name.
"Sania," his tone was rather soft, yet, Sania's heart skipped a beat, she couldn't help but wonder what sort of insult she was going to get.
"You look so beautiful and happy this morning," the lady complemented her with a smile, and Sania was stunned.
The lady looked familiar because she had seen her at the dinner the previous night, but she didn't get that compliment then.
"Thank you," she retorted also with a smile.
"My name is Ariel, I'm Taffi's sister, sorry I didn't introduce myself yesterday I ... I was compelled to...
"Ariel!" The tone of a young man who was slightly older than her yelled from behind, his furious gaze made Sania wonder what Ariel must have done wrong.
"I'm sorry," Ariel whispered to Sania and tried to hide her face from the man behind her.
Before Sania could wonder why she apologized, the man uttered,
"Why did you stop? We have important things to attend to, and not stand around speaking to people who don't matter."
Those words hit Sania like a sword in her chest, she immediately understood why Ariel apologized and said that she was compelled to behave a certain way towards her.
"Do not shout at me!" Ariel snapped and turned to the young man behind her,
"I'm not your slave, and have a right to decide where and where not to stand and do nothing." She concluded and stormed past Sania after giving her an innocent smile.
The young man also came downstairs with his eyes fixed on Sania disdainfully. Sania averted her gaze and ascended the stairs without saying a word.
Her plan to remain happy all day was ruined by one encounter, and just as she hoped not to meet another, the lady she dreaded the most stood at the top end of the stairs waiting for her.
"Dear lord," Sania mumbled, she wished to turn around and go somewhere else but remembered that she wasn't supposed to be afraid of Tehila, besides, when they first met, she didn't let the lady talk her down.
"You think we wouldn't know that you got crowned yesterday huh?" Tehila began but Sania ignored, even though Tehila's statement piqued her interest. She wanted to walk past her, but Tehila blocked her and continued.
"Getting crowned in secret, is that how much you are afraid of the King's mothers?" She asked with a sneer, but Sania shot a deadly stare at her.
"I don't want to talk," she said,
"Don't force me."
Tehila moved to the side and let Sania pass, but as soon as Sania took her first step toward the room, Tehila said,
"I know you don't like him, Sania, I see how you treat him and behave around him."
Sania paused but didn't turn around, she expected this from Tehila and it appeared that the maids were right, but she didn't expect Tehila to speak in that manner.
"I don't blame you though," Tehila continued with her eyes fixed on the staircase,
"Even I wouldn't want to stay in a marriage that I was forced into, and worse, where my husband lies to me about everything... I mean, sending his mother and me out of the castle just to get someone else to crown you Queen? Haha, such a shame."
Sania wanted to walk away, but for some reason, she was tempted to keep listening. She believed a little in what Tehila had said because she already suspected that the lady who crowned her wasn't Taffi's mother, and Taffi refused to speak to her about it.
She ought not to be worried since she only pretended to love Taffi, but Sania barely controlled the flare that built up within her.
"I may have said too much," Tehila said and began to walk down the stairs,
"Oops," she exclaimed, and turned around to face Sania,
"Perhaps I'm too loquacious, and can't keep my mouth..."
She was yet to finish her statement when Taffi's voice echoed her name from behind. Startled by the unexpected call, Tehila turned around.
Taffi's deadly gaze sent a shiver down her spine, he looked at Sania and realized that she wasn't saying anything or moving. He knew instantly that something Tehila said made her unhappy.
"Get, out!" He ordered Tehila.
Without batting an eye at him, Tehila walked down the stairs with a frown on her face, however, she was delighted to have sent the message to Sania.
He looked up and watched his wife slowly walk towards the bedroom, the smile that he had seen earlier faded, and it hurt him more than anything else.
"Sania," he mumbled and tried to catch up to her, but Sania was quick to get into the bedroom.
"What did she tell you?" Taffi asked her as soon as he walked into the room.
"Oh, nothing much," Sania lied, but her facial expression gave her away.
Taffi approached her quickly as she sat at the edge of the bed taking off the boot that she wore on the ride. He sat next to her, and gently moved her chin up to face him,
"Don't believe whatever she tells you, please, I want you to keep that smile I saw earlier," he said.
"Then be honest with me," Sania thought to herself, she averted her gaze from the man in front of her, and uttered,
"Okay," she didn't know why it affected her so much that he lied when she ought to be happy that he went as far as getting rid of his mother just to get her crown.
It only made her wonder what else he was keeping from her. As for Taffi, he could no longer contain his fury. Just one morning that he had successfully made Sania genuinely happy, Tehila ruined it.
"I've had enough," he said and stormed out of the room angrily, but this time Sania knew that she wasn't the cause, so what was he going to do then?