In a Heartbeat

Princess Evangeline’s POV

The next morning I was awoken by my father banging on the door. He was growling at me for oversleeping and for not being ready to leave for the Zilani Kingdom. Hurriedly, I got myself prepared, Brian appearing halfway through my chaos, seemingly quite tired too, though he did not complain once, and a smile never left his face. I said my goodbyes to him, leaving him with a kiss and an embrace, then met my father outside at the barn where the royalty’s horses were kept. My horse was already dressed in her royal horsewear and was nibbling at her hay. The lead soldier took my bag from me and placed it on his back before mounting his own horse and ordering the other soldiers to do so too. Some of them also carried bags upon their backs, others had more packs on the sides of their horses, also wearing lovely horsewear, and all of them wielded weapons of all sorts. I too climbed upon my mare, wearing the lovely dress Matthew had sent me that was large enough to spread across the horse’s back, then said goodbye to my father.

“Evangeline,” he growled as the soldiers took formation around my mare. I looked down at him, wishing the day when he was no longer in charge would come soon so I could truly look down upon him. "Do not let me down.” With a nod, I squeezed my horse’s sides and she started walking, causing the other horses to begin as well. We walked away from the castle and to the trail in the forest before we sped up to a comfortable canter, the horses remaining in perfect arrangement. It took us approximately half an hour to reach the lake by the mountains, and our horses enjoyed a well-earned drink there and a quick snack of some grass as they caught their breaths before we continued on. We stuck to the path at the bottom of the mountains, trotting along for another half an hour or so until we diverted from it, heading away from the mountains, but still moving forward, finally out of the Cardolian Kingdom. We passed through the outskirts of the Miraz Kingdom, our allies and neighbours, seeing a lot of mining and farming happening as we stopped briefly for the horses again, then continued inland through the neutral Kingdom of Dagnarius, who were allies with their neighbour, the Zilani Kingdom. It did not take that long to cross this Kingdom and pass through a considerable amount of the Zilani Kingdom, and then we were arriving at Prince Matthew’s castle.

Our horses walked slowly as they heaved and puffed from exhaustion, approaching the castle with awaiting guards and a small orchestra. I noted that they did not have a wall surrounding their castle like mine did, and that the town surrounded the castle from all sides, also unlike mine which just went in one direction towards the sea. The town was gigantic, and a lot of the forest had been cleared to make way for the settlement. The horses in front of mine slowed to a halt, so I stopped my one too, noting that Matthew and his father were awaiting me in front of the door to their castle. I dismounted my mare and patted her sweaty neck, whispering a few thank you’s and compliments to her before cleaning my hand on the material draped on her and handing her reins to one of the soldiers. The lead soldier led me up to the castle, but soon slipped away behind me, kneeling to the King as a sign of respect.

“Princess Evangeline, welcome to our home,” Matthew’s father announced proudly while spreading his arms. “I hope you enjoy your stay in the Zilani Kingdom.” I smiled at him politely and curtseyed before taking a few more steps forwards, heading in Matthew’s direction.

“Evangeline, it is a pleasure to be in your presence again,” he said as he took my hands in his.

“As it is for me too, Matthew,” I said back, lying as I really wished I was back with Brian under the moon in the flowering garden, but I dismissed that thought. We shared a quick kiss before he led me inside, his father remaining in his place to speak with the head soldier. He proceeded to show me around his castle and I learned that his sleeping chambers were at the top of one of the turrets, which was peculiar but he had a stunning view of his town and the surrounding woods. In the distance, I saw the mountain range that was so close to my home, and I began to miss being there and being with Brian. But I shook the thoughts away and attempted to focus on Matthew and my task of continuing to prove that I was suitable to be his Queen.

After eating a meal with Matthew, I received a tour of his township and all of his people could not stop staring at me. I felt uncomfortable as the unfamiliar faces gazed at me, but Matthew seemed to enjoy the attention a lot. That was one trait that I had noticed about the Prince; he adored being the centre of attention. To me, it made him appear obnoxious, alongside other inferior qualities he had, and I did not want my people to be ruled by a person like him. I wished to change things and be a better leader that gave more equal standings amongst the people. If things were like that now, I would have no trouble in being with Brian, like I desired.

Just when it seemed like the day would never end, Matthew took me back to his castle and into the dining room. I met with his family and ate dinner with them, casually talking to them to keep my father happy. I knew that he would be asking for a report on my behaviour, so it was imperative that I conducted myself properly. It still appeared that they were all fond of me, which meant my father should be happy. Then, it was time for sleeping, for which I was glad because I had had barely any sleep due to Brian, but Matthew was not leading me to a guest room; he was taking me to his room. I still did not wish to share a bed with him. Even though I had shared my bed once with Brian, it was not exactly comfortable. It made me question how my parents were able to do it every night. Perhaps it was partly the strong feelings they shared for each other, which would mean sharing a bed with Brian would now be easier and better, but also that sharing one with Matthew would be horrible.

Still unable to get Brian off my mind, I sighed loudly as we climbed more stairs. Matthew gave me a slightly worried look, but I dismissed it. I was fine, though I would be a lot better once I was back at home. We reached his room to find the curtains drawn, candles lit, fresh flowers and a made bed, just like Brian would have done had it been my room. Brian! Leave my mind! We took a seat on Matthew’s bed and held hands, talking mainly about royal topics, but sometimes veering from them. A long time passed before we heard screaming coming from quite a distance from the castle. Matthew paused in mid-sentence before rushing over to a window and moving the curtains. I hurried behind him and joined his side. I could see fire. Flames were moving from the edge of the village and heading towards the castle. But it was moving very quickly… too quickly to be natural… Then, a horn sounded, as loud as ever.

“We are under attack,” Matthew said in a low voice, his brow crinkled and his hazel eyes now darkened with fury. Suddenly, he left the window and rushed over to his dressing area. “I need you to stay here. I will come and get you if anything should happen. Be prepared to leave swiftly.”

“Alright,” I whispered as he ran out from behind his divider holding a sword and wearing light armour. Then he left the room and I turned back to the window. The fires had now almost reached the castle and I could see dressed horses galloping with men on their backs in front of the fire, letting me confirm that it was all manmade. How could someone do such a thing? Why would anyone ride into a foreign town and set it ablaze? The horn that alerted everyone of the attack abruptly stopped and the men causing the damage did too, at the bottom of the turret I was in.

“Zilani Kingdom! I demand your attention!” a faint voice called out from one of the horses, a large object in his hand, probably a voice amplifier. “We are from the Tyronian Kingdom!”

“Oh no…” I whispered, recognising the name of the Kingdom that was situated a few Kingdoms below mine, and also as the name of the only Kingdom that was at war with us. They were at war with everyone, but they were also very strong. There were only approximately twenty horses, and therefore twenty men, down there, but they would have been trained to perfection as soldiers. That was why everyone feared them and never attacked them. I began to really fear for my safety. Matthew could not ask me to simply stay here and not do anything!

“We have heard word of the arranged marriage between your Prince and the Princess from Cardolian! We do not approve, and now that we have your attention, we are asking you to cancel it before we take more lives!” the voice called and I smiled a little. Perhaps I could use the Tyronian Kingdom to my advantage… Maybe, if I was lucky, they would stop the marriage and then my father would listen to my appeal with Brian. But I was not always that lucky… I spotted Matthew down on the ground, sword pointed at the leader as he slowly approached them. Please do not say that you will not back down… I desperately need to not marry you, Matthew… Unexpectedly, the door behind me opened, confusing me since Matthew was down on the ground. There stood a man wearing the Tyronian colours and amour, sword in hand.

“Princess, you must come with me,” he told me and I nodded slowly. I took one last look down at the scene on the ground, noticing Matthew appeared to be looking up at me. The fire had spread and the screams were horrible, proving the loss of lives. I left the window and approached the man. “Walk down the stairs. Do not cry out. Do not try to run. I will be right behind you with my sword and I am not afraid to kill you. Do you understand?”

“Yes…” I breathed before walking in front of him and heading down the spiralling stairs. I was being captured… The first time I leave the safety of my Kingdom in ten years and I get attacked and abducted… I hate you, Matthew. This is your entire fault. You left me alone with no protection. I hate you! We reached the bottom of the stairs and I could hear the clashing of swords clearly, coming from outside. The Tyronian man was guiding me away from the fight though, making me realise how it was a genius plan. A huge distraction out the front with fire and other men demanding a fight while one sneaks in the back and steals the Princess. They were good at their jobs…

“Out this door,” I was ordered and I obeyed. Once I was through, I noticed there were two horses awaiting us, the smaller black one tied to the larger dark brown one with a lead rope. “You will mount the black horse and stay on. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” I replied before walking over to the horse. Oh Matthew, I hate you so much! How could you let this happen? Now I will probably never get to see Brian again! Oh Brian… Tears welled in my eyes as I grabbed onto the saddle, preparing myself to get on the horse.

“Evangeline!” a familiar male voice called. I froze and turned around to see the face of my saviour.