“Yes, that is him,” he replied, looking angrily at Nicholas. “I want him escorted to the dungeons immediately.”
“No! Please do not take him!” she begged the knights. “He has not done anything wrong!”
Nicholas didn’t try to fight the knights and let them arrest him. He knew he would not stand a chance against them unarmed and that fighting would only make things worse.
She desperately tried to help free Nicholas as she cried and screamed at them. The knights looked stunned by her reaction and felt awkward, knowing they were not allowed to lay a hand on the princess. They could only hold onto Nicholas and try to prevent her from attacking them.
Jonathon pulled her away from them impatiently. She tried her best to get free but he had a very strong grip on her arm. She was determined not to give up and struggled even though it hurt her.
Leonardo appeared and rushed over to her, “Your Highness, please do not cause a scene,” he tried to reason with her. “It will only make things worse.”
“I do not care. I will not let them imprison him!” she struggled more and looked over at Nicholas with tears. “I am sorry, Nicholas. I love you.”
He looked just as heartbroken, “I love you too.”
The knights forced him out of the room and along the corridor. She screamed after them and Jonathon held on tighter to retain her. She sobbed out loud in pain.
“Stop it, you are hurting her,” Leonardo snapped at Jonathon, hating to see her being so viciously handled.
“You should do your job and restrain her yourself,” he ordered and pushed Rosanna towards him.
She stumbled and nearly fell but Leonardo caught her.
“I know you are very upset, but please try to calm down,” he told her gently. “I do not want to restrain you properly.”
“Can you do anything to stop them?” she pleaded with him quietly.
“I have to follow orders,” he replied.
She didn’t struggle away from Leonardo and instead cried on his chest feeling devastated.
“Take her to her bedchamber,” Jonathon ordered him. “She will stay there until she can behave appropriately.”
Leonardo escorted her out of the music room and up the stairway while she continued to weep. Jonathon followed them angrily until they reached her bedchamber. She entered and Leonardo stayed outside the door respectfully. Jonathon followed her inside and slammed the door shut behind him.
“What the hell do you think you are doing, consorting with a peasant and embarrassing us like this?” he barked at her furiously.
“I do not care. I am in love with Nicholas whether you or my father approve of him or not,” she answered tearfully.
“Has he taken advantage of you?” he asked, raging with anger.
“No! He is not like that,” she protested.
She was upset that he would accuse Nicholas and felt embarrassed that her brother was talking to her about sex.
“You are lucky he did not or I would have his head for it!” he continued angrily. “How dare you act so carelessly and disappoint us this way. You are supposed to act like a future queen, not an insolent child.”
She hated how he was acting as if she had done something wrong, “It is my life and I can make my own choices. I do not care what anyone else thinks of me.”
“You are forbidden from seeing him! If you had any sense you would not have got involved with him in the first place.”
“You cannot stop us from seeing each other,” she sobbed, feeling awful that they might try to.
“Believe me, I will make sure of it. You will start obeying our father and accept his decision,” he hollered at her. “You are not allowed to leave this castle and you will be escorted whenever you leave this room. Is that understood?”
She felt so mad at how unfair she was being treated that she didn’t care what she said to him anymore.
“I hate you!” she screamed. “You are so arrogant and rude, believing you are better than everyone else and looking down on others. Nicholas is a much better man than you will ever be.”
He was so enraged by her words that he lost his temper and struck her. She gasped in shock and touched her stinging cheek. She couldn’t believe her brother would hit her and stared at him in horror. She expected him to apologise and say that it was a mistake and he should have kept control of his temper. However, he just stared back at her angrily not regretting his action at all.
They both looked over in surprise as Leonardo charged in through the door. He had never once entered her bedchamber before, but this time was an exception and he needed to go against the rules. His suspicions were confirmed as he saw Rosanna cover her face with watering eyes and he turned on Jonathon furiously.
“How dare you attack your sister!”
Jonathon was taken aback that anyone would speak to him like that. The only people allowed to challenge him were his father or Rosanna. Everyone else had to be respectful of his title; even the knights would never say a word against him. He was angered that Leonardo was now choosing to stand up to him.
“This is none of your business,” Jonathon snapped at him. “Leave at once.”
He expected Leonardo to remember his place and apologise for his behaviour. However, he stood his ground and refused to follow the order.
“My duty is to defend her from harm so I am staying,” he insisted and stood in front of Rosanna protectively.
“You may think you have power being a knight, but you forget that I have a higher authority over you,” Jonathon growled at him. “If I tell you to do something then you follow my orders.”
“I will not stand by and let you attack a lady, no matter what status you have,” he retorted. “I will make sure an incident like this never happens again.”
“Are you threatening me?” Jonathon asked in fury.
“No, I am warning you that actions like this will have consequences.”
“I am not afraid of you,” Jonathon sneered and pulled his sword out of the sheath, ready to fight with him.
Leonardo reached for his in reflex to protect himself from attack. Rosanna felt anxious at the risk of a sword fight breaking out in her bedchamber and knew she had to put an end to it before one of them got hurt. Her brother was just overreacting and there was no need for violence.
“Stop fighting!” she yelled at them.
Leonardo backed down immediately at her order. Jonathon stared him down and decided against a fight, returning his sword.
“Rosanna stays here until she is allowed to leave,” Jonathon told him sternly. “I expect you to follow this order, unless you want me to inform the king of your disobedience.”
Leonardo tried to keep his anger down, “I will guard her door,” he agreed.
Jonathon felt smug that he was finally able to boss him around. He gave Rosanna one last look of contempt before leaving.
Leonardo turned to her, “Are you hurt?” he asked in concern.
“I am fine,” she reassured him. “Thank you, Leonardo.”
She felt grateful and knew it was a big risk for him to stand up to Jonathon for her. She hoped her brother wouldn’t run off to tell her father about it. The last thing she wanted was for Leonardo to be punished for defending her and being a good friend.
He gave her a comforting smile, “you know I would do anything to keep you safe. I promise I will not let him attack you again.”
She smiled a little and felt touched, “Do not worry, if Jonathon is silly enough to report you then I will tell my father what happened. I doubt you will be disciplined for protecting me.”
“Thank you,” he felt relieved that he at least had Rosanna’s help if Jonathon tried to cause trouble for him.
“I am sorry I almost got you into trouble with my father earlier,” she apologised, still feeling guilty about it. “I would not have forgiven myself if you were dismissed for my actions.”
“I forgive you, since you did help clear my name.”
She thought of how
Nicholas was the one in trouble now and started crying again, worrying about him being imprisoned in the dungeons. Leonardo knew it would be inappropriate to give her a friendly hug, so he just stood beside her feeling awkward. He didn’t know what to say to make her feel better and there was nothing he could do to help.
“Do you want me to send for Isabelle?” he offered, knowing she probably needed her best friend here to comfort her.
She nodded gratefully.
He asked a passing maid to bring Isabelle and waited with Rosanna until she arrived. Isabelle entered, looking worried and concerned. He left the room to guard the door and gave them privacy to talk alone.
“Your Highness, what is wrong?” she asked anxiously when she found Rosanna in floods of tears. She gasped when she noticed the red mark on her face and widened her eyes in shock. “Who attacked you?”
“It was Jonathon, we had an argument and he got cross with me.”
Isabelle looked sympathetic and rushed over to hug her, “I am sorry, your brother should not have been so mean to you.”
“I am fine,” she assured her. “Leonardo told him off.”
They both smiled a little, finding it amusing how her spoilt brother had finally been put in his place.
“I suppose he did not take it well,” Isabelle guessed, and admired how brave Leonardo was to challenge him.
“He threatened to tell my father as usual,” she replied, rolling her eyes at his famous tantrums, “but I doubt it. He will not risk getting himself into trouble.”
“What happened to cause all of this?”
“I told my father about Nicholas,” she explained to Isabelle. “I was hoping he might cancel the wedding and accept our relationship, but instead they took Nicholas to the dungeons. My father and Jonathon are very angry and disappointed with me.”
“I am very sorry,” Isabelle empathised. “I heard the maids gossiping about someone being arrested, but I did not know it was Nicholas. I would have been here sooner if I knew.”
“What am I going to do?” she cried, desperate for some help or advice. “They want to make sure I never see Nicholas again, but I cannot live without him.”
“I wish I could help, but I will do my best to support you,” she let Rosanna cry on her shoulder for a while and comforted her softly.
Isabelle had to eventually leave to continue her duties, even though she was reluctant because Rosanna was so upset. Yet, they both knew she would be in trouble and dismissed if she fell behind with her work, so Rosanna assured her that she would manage, and Isabelle hesitantly left.
Rosanna spent the rest of the day in bed worrying and feeling miserable. There was not much else she could do if her family wouldn’t let her leave her bedchamber; and she felt frustrated and annoyed with them for punishing her. The thought of them keeping her away from Nicholas made her heart ache, especially with the belief that she might never see him again. She constantly thought about Nicholas and how much worse the situation must be for him.
Chapter 14
Her father felt concerned when Rosanna didn’t make an appearance to dine with them at noon or that evening. He had given permission for her to eat with them as normal, so he sent Isabelle to bring her down but she returned alone. She nervously told him that Rosanna refused and wanted to stay in her bedchamber without food.
“She will calm down eventually,” Jonathon said dismissively.
“I know, but I cannot bear to see her so upset. I thought she would be thrilled about the wedding, but I have never seen her act this way. Do you think I am being too harsh on her?” he asked sadly. “If she is truly upset about the wedding then perhaps I should not be agreeing to it.”
“You are doing what is best for her,” Jonathon reassured him. “The only reason she is acting out is because of him. Now that we have put a stop to that, I am sure she will start to accept our decision more. After all, we could never let her marry a peasant. It would bring shame to our kingdom.”
“Yes, you are right,” he agreed. “I will talk with her tomorrow once she has had time to calm down.”
Jonathon nodded in agreement and wished that Nicholas had never met Rosanna. He thought about how to deal with him, determined to stop him from ruining his sister’s future.
Rosanna could barely sleep at all that night. She lay in bed holding the wooden squirrel ornament that Nicholas had carved for her. It was the only thing she had to remind herself of him, since the flowers from her birthday had wilted and been thrown out. It gave her some comfort to hold the ornament and feel the carvings. She spent most of the night crying into her pillow and longing for Nicholas to be there beside her.
It was early morning when she finally drifted off to sleep in exhaustion. She awoke two hours later and immediately remembered what had happened yesterday. The feelings of devastation and anxiety hit her all over again like a tidal wave. She wished it had all been a terrible nightmare, but she knew it was real from the aching of her heart.
She was too depressed to get washed and changed and couldn’t be bothered to get out of bed. She just lay there unable to stop thinking of Nicholas and how much she wanted to see him. It made things worse being treated like a prisoner herself, having to stay in her bedchamber with Leonardo guarding the door. She was only given permission to leave for meal times, but she still refused to go to the dining room for breakfast.
She longed to go out into the garden and sit under the weeping willow tree, remembering the night her and Nicholas first kissed and their wonderful memories together.
She hated not being able to visit any of her friends from the village and that made her feel even more lonely and trapped. She wanted to ask Bernadette for advice, but she was grateful that she had Isabelle and Leonardo to talk to. She didn’t know what she would do without their support and companionship.
She heard her door open and felt relieved to see that it was Isabelle and not her brother or father. She was still angry and upset with them and wouldn’t welcome their visit if they came.
“Good morning, your Highness. How are you feeling?” Isabelle asked sympathetically. “I have been worrying about you and Nicholas all night.”
“I am still upset and I hate that Nicholas is being punished because of me. It must be horrible for him being imprisoned in a dungeon cell and treated like a criminal,” her eyes watered at imagining him there.
“I am sure he will get through it,” Isabelle reassured her and tried to stay positive.
“But what if I never see him again?” she asked tearfully. “My father will make it impossible.”
“They cannot keep you and Nicholas locked away in the castle for long. They will release him eventually and maybe once you can go out again, you could meet up somehow.”
“It does not matter even if I could,” she replied hopelessly. “They will force me to marry Prince Ethan soon and then I could never see Nicholas again, even though it will break my heart.”
Isabelle felt very sympathetic for her. She hated to think of her best friend being pressured into marriage and wished there was something she could do to change it.
“Your father has asked you to join them for breakfast,” Isabelle informed her. “What should I tell them?”
“I will not be attending. I would rather starve than see them again,” she replied miserably.
She still had no appetite so it would be a waste of time going down for breakfast anyway.
Isabelle felt uneasy that she was still being distant from her family and dreaded to tell the king she wouldn’t be joining them again.
“You still need to get washed and dressed,” Isabelle reminded her gently.
She sighed and reluctantly started to, even though it seemed pointless if she was going to stay in her bedchamber all day.
Isabelle left and returned carrying a tray of food and water.
“You will feel a little better once you eat something,” she offered.
“Thank you, Isabelle, but I still do not feel like eating at all. I m
iss Nicholas too much.”
“Please try,” Isabelle encouraged her. “I do not want you to become ill.”
“I feel ill already,” she replied sadly. Her heartbreak and depression felt like a horrible condition that she might suffer with for a long time.
“I will leave it on the table in case you change your mind,” said Isabelle, hoping she would eventually start to eat again.
* * * * *
Nicholas hated being locked up in the dark and bleak surroundings of the dungeon cell. He was sitting with his back against the wall and felt rigid after last night’s sleep. There was only a thin layer of hay to rest on over the cold stone floor and he missed the comfort of his own bed.
He was greatly missing Rosanna and felt miserable without her. It was frustrating knowing they were in the same building but unable to see each other. He knew that Rosanna would be feeling just as heartbroken and depressed as he was and wished he could be there to take care of her.
He looked up at the sound of footsteps, expecting it to be one of the knights checking on him. He was surprised to see Jonathon appear at the barred cell door. He wondered why he was here and knew it wouldn’t be a friendly visit.
“I have an offer you might be interested in,” Jonathon told him, getting straight to the point.
He was determined to sort out the problem and get Nicholas out of their lives so he wasn’t interfering with his sister anymore.
Nicholas got up and walked over to the cell door, “why would you offer me anything?” he asked suspiciously.
“The king does not want you to see Rosanna again. If you agree to never return here or attempt to visit my sister, I will let you go free and reward you.”
He produced a satchel of coins, thinking money would persuade him, “It is a very generous price and you will have your freedom. Do you accept the deal?”
“Do not insult me with your bribes,” Nicholas replied, disgusted by his offer. “I was honest about having no interest in your money. I love Rosanna and there is no price that will keep me away from her.”
Love Letters Page 9