awkwardness, which in turn made my father laugh.
“I’m sorry, Father, to hear of his passing, but also glad I will not be married to him, as I barely knew him.”
He laughed a deeper laugh, and I couldn’t help but join in with him. We may have been father and daughter, but he was my
most trusted friend, and I would have done anything for him.
“So, why does this make Mother worry?”
“She fears you will become an unwed spinster and never bless us with grandchildren.”
I laughed even harder then. A spinster, and I wasn’t even near the age to become one. I had at least five more years until
that happened. My twenty-first birthday wasn’t due for another six months, and only then would I have been allowed to marry.
“Father, what will happen now? May I be granted the same freedom as Norok, where I may choose my husband? Just as
you did with Mother.”
His face dropped, and his laughter stopped. And with that, I already knew his answer, which broke my heart a little. I
wanted to marry for love, not because it was expected of me.
“I’m afraid, my dear, as a princess and heir to our throne, we must marry you to someone we can trust and to help guide you
into the next stages of your life. I was very lucky with your mother.”
“And male. That’s why you were allowed.”
My eyes began to sting as I held back the tears and the lump in my throat. If I were a man, I would be able to do anything
without question. And yet, because I was a female, I was looked at like a breeding mare and a wife to do as she was told. I
was neither of those things.
“May I be excused, Father? This conversation has seemed to have gone sour.”
His eyes dropped as my voice changed to something more formal and no longer playful. The sun was nowhere near setting,
and as much as he had ordered myself and my siblings to stay within the grounds, I was not going to do so. I needed to go find
my peace away from this place.
“Yes, we will discuss more later.”
He waved his hand and nodded as if to give me permission and once I was out the door, Hector stood from his seat, looking
at me confused. I just continued on my way.
Chapter 5
ORNELLA
The rush of the water as it hit the spring water pool soothed me and gave me some form of peace. I hadn’t planned on
walking this far when I managed to slip past the guards in the garden and cut through the rose bushes and into the tree line.
Maybe they did spot me but didn’t want to chase me. In my haste to leave, I didn’t grab a shawl and the temperature