Kamara woke to the news of King Lucien’s letter, and her happiness had been unsurmountable. It skyrocketed when Henna rushed to her bedroom to tell her that the royal messenger from Salem had arrived and he was with King Valendy.
Kamara had been dancing all to herself since then, wearing a heartwarming smile as she attended to her princess duties.
She’d made out time, as usual, to take food to Callan’s dungeon. They wouldn’t let her get past the boundary because her father made sure of it, but she already had a few guards working for her to ensure that Callan got food. Karama handed the food to one of the guards before she walked back to the royal quarters. From afar, she saw Donna’s eyes pinned on her, and the mistress was frowning in thought. Obviously, she wonders why there’s a smile on Kamara’s face today. It had become a rare feature on her face since her lover was imprisoned. Princess Kamara only grinned smugly at the bitch and walked past her.
Donna remained in worry as she walked to the mistress quarters while the princess was giddy with excitement.
It did not matter if this happiness of hers was fleeting. It did not matter if she had to marry a man she did not love.
It was a small sacrifice to pay for Callan’s life.
“Are you awake, Your Highness?” came the deep voice of a guard.
Queen Danika had been awake for a few minutes but her body was hurting—from her back to her hip and her belly. Everywhere hurt.
It had been this way these past few weeks, especially when she woke in the morning. Her only hope was that there was a light at the end of her tunnel, as Baski would often tell her.
Very soon, she would be carrying her child in her arms. A bright loving smile spread across her face. She caressed her swollen belly tenderly.
“I'm awake,” she managed to groan, her eyes closed. “You can come in, Omna.”
The door open and the guard, Omna, hurried in. He bowed his head to her. “Words are moving around the kingdom, Your Majesty. It's about the king of Salem.”
Her eyes sprang open, her heart thudding. “King Lucien?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
With a groan, she managed to push herself up from the bed. Her eyes found Omna. “What about the king of Salem?”
“Words are, he has finally honored his treaty to the kingdom of Navia. He has officially asked for the hand of Princess Kamara in marriage.”
Her heart stopped.
The world tilted around her, and it was a blessing that she was sitting down on the bed, because if she was standing, she might have lost her balance.
King Lucien was marrying Princess Kamara. Lucien was marrying Kamara?
“Wh-what?” Her heart was hurting, the physical pains in her body momentarily forgotten.
The guard nodded his head. “That is the words going around, Your Majesty. I thought you might want to know, which is why I came to you with the news.”
“Thank you. You can go now,” she managed. Her mind was whirling around. He was marrying Kamara. He asked for her hand.
It was painful—so painful she grabbed her chest tightly to try and relief the pain there, but her attempt was futile.
When Baski entered the queen's bedroom, she took one look at Danika and her heart sank. She had heard the news already.
Queen Danika stood in front of the mirror in her nightdress, her face wet with tears. She whirled around when Baski entered, shaking her head miserably. “It's true, isn't it?”
Baski walked towards her and nodded sadly.
More tears left the queen's eyes, and she lowered her head. “It must be the news about my marital invitation being out. He gave up on us, Baski.”
“No.” The older woman shook her head repeatedly, taking Danika's small hands into hers. She squeezed reassuringly. “You shouldn't think like this, my queen.”
“But it's the truth. He's g-getting married...married, Baski.” Shaking her head, she added, “Kamara will be his queen. She will be beside him...be in his arms. It hurts badly.”
“Oh, queen, you must get hold of yourself. Don't forget your condition. Here, come and sit down. I'll get you water to drink.” Baski took hold of her arm and led her to the bed, urging her to sit.
Danika sat gently, looking up at Baski with sad eyes. “So much for hoping a miracle would happen and he'd come for me, right?”
“You have always been a woman of faith. You told Sally to have faith, didn’t you? You don’t have enough of that, Queen Danika. The king is an unpredictable man—no one knows what is going through in that head of his—but you have to have faith. Do you hear me?” Baski chided softly.
Just then, the door opened and Sally entered. She wasn’t looking happy either. “The ministers have assembled to make preparations for the royal banquet, my queen. They are requesting your presence.”
Baski hated any news about that godforsaken banquet. “Tell them that she is not feeling well. They can go ahead and make their prepara—”
“It is okay. I’ll be there,” Danika whispered, cutting Baski off.
Sally and Baski looked at her with surprise and sadness.
One shoulder lifted and fell in defeat, and she smiled through her tears. “If I’m going to get married, I might as well be there for the preparations and make some decisions myself. I don’t want to be saddled with a wild forest cat if I can help it.”
The words were the most miserably painful words Baski and Sally had ever heard.