18
Jza was dying.
It was slow but the pain radiating within her bones was spreading.
She broke her vow to protect her sisters and now she was facing the consequences. But if the kingdom needed to be saved then the vow had to be broken. She had no choice.
She pressed herself against the stone balcony and looked down from the highest point in the castle. She wondered if throwing herself off the balcony would make the end easier and the girl nearly roared in pain as her body betrayed her just for her vow breaking thoughts.
Every other time she had fainted her vow had been punishing her but unlike the other times she was awake and aware to suffer the consequences. Perhaps this time it was because she knew the pain was coming.
She had known it the moment she had decided to break into the study. The pain in the body had grown and grown as her actions led to exposing her sister. The vow did not like that Jza was going to reveal her sister's treachery.
A stray pigeon flew around her scattering the pages in the wind. She had read them as fast as she could and dispatched the ones most important ones on the various pigeons that sat in their little perches on the roof. Tarquin may have unravelled so much of the castle's working but he had failed to realise the importance of the pigeons. They did not just take mail from one place to the other. They could also reach King Samuel where ever he was. Some peddler had given her father command over his livestock once upon a time.
The princess had dispatched all the important strategic enemy documents along with her own note briefing her father of current events and her own observations. If the pigeons found her father he would know the locket was around her captor's throat. That was probably why her death at betraying her sisters was not instant. The powers that be were deciding what consequences her actions were going to have keeping her in a strange sort of limbo.
She looked down at the rustle at her feet and sat down to examine another one of her sister's love letters to Lord Tarquin. It seemed ridiculous calling the traitorous notes anything else but the Princesses were wooing the man. They were flattering and evocative, begging him to conquer the land and make them his queen.
Not all of the girls were involved. At least she hoped not. But the five of them who embarked on the ridiculous journey to compete for the throne had jeopardised all of them. They were a miserable reminder what her sisters had done to annihilate her kingdom for their own selfish gain. The Princess had with a heavy heart sent her father samples of those letters. He needed to know the truth no matter how harsh.
"...My Beloved.... We must snatch... Father is a fool.... the only worthy heir.... Come after winter when the reserves of food are low...." Jza's eyes teared up once again seeing how poorly her eldest sister had behaved. She noticed a pair of feet in the periphery. For someone caught in the act of treason she felt quite calm.
Tarquin watched her lean against the wall in pure silence. He was still in his military uniform but everything was subtly out of place. It looked he had run himself ragged searching for her. After finding his upturned study be must have grown even more frantic.
"You have been busy," His eyes wandered over the remnants of the parchments she had stolen from his study.
"Your guards were imbeciles. They left their posts or showed up utterly intoxicated," Jza tried to hide the pain in her voice. It had been ridiculously easy to smash the lock outside the study with the potted plant next to it. That was when the steady hum of pain had heightened, leaving her on her knees. she had known for sure she was choosing death by giving up her own safety.
Tarquin picked another errant letter touching his shiny shoe and examined it carelessly. There was no mistaking the disdain on his face.
"So, you found out the truth about King Samuel's ridiculous daughters."
"Those stupid girls. Proclaiming love for a man they had never met. It seems they led you here. Is that not the truth?" Jza growled.
"The Princesses were hardly an enticement. I have no interest in associating with foolish girls with no pride or honour. I only seek vengeance because of my heritage. You know who I am; a half breed. It's a shame I do not know who you are.." He trailed off without the anger she had expected from him. He was far too calm.
"You will never know my name. Not until I am your captive.." She trailed off blinking back tears.
"You have his eyes. King Samuel's. You have noble blood in you. Of course the discovery of your room confirmed my hypothesis. I am sure I was will discern everything in no time."
"Are you trying to convince yourself that killing me would be mistake? That I am important enough to keep even after what I did," She breathed heavily.
"I like your resolve. I admire it. You are a puzzle I need to solve but perhaps I should have heeded the advice. Perhaps you are too dangerous to keep alive."
"No, I have no resolve; none. I am failing tonight. I have broken the vow I made," She inhaled noisily and collapsed very suddenly on the floor. She idly noticed the blue in the sky was losing the fight against the reds and the purples.
"What is it? What ails you?" He was at her side before she could exhale. The man lost all composure as he watched her take shallow breaths. She was impressed her slow death filled his eyes with genuine fear. She had hoped revealing her truth about the vow would hasten her demise but it seemed she was stuck dragging out this painful moment for as long as possible.
He cradled her head in his hands and lay it in his lap. His face looked over hers as he searched it to understand the situation.
"The moment I decided to break into your desk in the study I knew I was making a choice. I knew I would be caught, and I would be hanged. And the promise I made my father, the vow I made for him I could not fulfil when I chose death." She rambled incoherently. The tips of her nerves were losing feeling. She did not know it but her lips were turning blue.
She closed her eyes and faintly heard the last words she would thought to hear again.
"I promise thee, as I have promised heaven above that I shall fulfill my duty...." Tarquin's voice followed her to the darkness.
