Kamara was desperate. She could no longer sleep in peace, nor could she eat without indigestion—especially since she had no appetite at all. Not since she overhead her father's conversation with his general about Callan.
It had been two months since Callan was put in that godforsaken dungeon. Her father only ordered that he shouldn't be fed, but he had not ordered any torture session or any verdict about what would happen to Callan. That had got her worried as hell because Kamara knew her father. His feigned ignorance didn't mean he forgot at all, it only meant he was planning something much more worse.
Her worries were confirmed last week when she overhead his conversation with his general when he was angrily telling the general that he'd been waiting for King Lucien to come calling for Kamara, but the king was determined to shame him after ruining his daughter. He proceeded to state that he plans to order Callan's execution.
It was devastating to hear her father planning to execute Callan. It had taken everything in Kamara to stop herself from letting out an alarmed scream at the door of his study, but she'd been able to control herself, determined to hear more details.
More came when he also told the general that the reason he hasn't touched Callan was because he was planning something much more for him. He was planning to hand him over to her future husband, King Lucien, to punish Callan if he'd come calling. Then he'd angrily hissed and spat out that he was losing hope that King Lucien would come and was starting to consider declaring war with the kingdom of Salem.
After she'd overheard all that, Princess Kamara was overwhelmed. She'd reached a desperate decision to write to King Lucien to come for her hand in marriage—to save her. But all her letters sent to Salem remained unanswered. Indeed, King Lucien had no plans to come for her hand in marriage.
As days went by, her unanswered messages were making her more desperate and agitated, since she had no idea when her father would declare his decision in court. She always made sure to send food to Callan in jail, and she used every means possible, including bribing the jail guards. But just feeding Callan to keep him alive wouldn't work for long. Not when her father was planning to kill him. It made Kamara send more messages that remained unanswered.
Now, one week of overhearing the conversation, she was at her wit's end. She finally decided that just sending a message to the king to plead with him to come and save her would not cut it—he had no care at all what happened to her.
It was time she narrated it all to King Lucien in her letter; time to be more detailed.
“Henna!” she called after thinking for hours in her bedroom.
A few seconds later, the door opened, and her personal maid hurried inside. “You called me, my princess.”
“Get me a new scroll, two fresh feathers, and a box of ink.”
The maid stared at her pitifully. “Can't you see it's not working, my princess? You've sent letters countless times. The king declines.”
Kamara sprang up from the bed and paced in agitation. “I can't just do nothing! Get me what I asked for. This time around, I will be more detailed and explain everything. That king might be so powerful and scary and looks dangerous, but he has a good heart, Henna. I have to believe that he will help me. I have to!” She enunciated desperately. “If not, I'm doomed. And he's doomed, too, because my father will declare a war.”
“You'll tell him?” Henna asked, wide-eyed.
“I will. I have no choice. At this rate, I don't mind marrying him at all. I just want to save Callan's life!” she cried in intense despair.
“Alright, my princess. I'll get scrolls, feathers and ink! I hope it works this time around!” She hurried out of the room.
Alone, Kamara hoped the same thing. She hoped it would work. If he married her, Callan would be sent to him by her father (she hoped) then she would beg King Lucien to spare his life. She stood more of a chance pleading with him than her father.
The door opened and Henna hurried in with everything she asked for. Kamara murmured her thanks, took them all from her maid, and sent the girl off. Alone, she sat on her reading chair, placed everything on the table before her. Taking one fresh feathers, she dipped it in ink. Then she began writing.
In this letter, she wrote about her love for a 'peasant' called Callan. How her father wanted to marry her off to him so she would stop loving Callan. How her relationship with Callan improved after she came back from courting week. How they got caught and captured. And how Callan's life was in danger.
She wrote about the conversation she overhead. How her father felt about her 'ruined' virtue and what he plans to do. His plans for Callan. Then she began pleading with him to come and ask for her hand in marriage.
She knew he had no marital or lover's feelings towards her, she wrote, but she pleads with him to come to her rescue by marrying her to help save her lover's life and also prevent a war from happening between the two kingdoms.
Having casualties from such war would be devastating because none of the people deserved to be a victim of such circumstances.
Princess Kamara ended her letter with more desperate pleas. Then she walked out of her bedroom and secretly called the royal messenger.
No way was she using the messenger birds again. This time, she will be sure that her message really does get into King Lucien's hands.