Once Enchanted

by Marie Higgins

  Grumbling under his breath, he lay on the cot and stared at the other wall. He’d hoped for some kind of rescue, but it was obvious that wouldn’t happen anytime soon.

  Through the stillness came the cry for help. Not once. Not twice, but three times.

  Perhaps he would get out of this prison soon.

  ELEVEN

  Clarissa tiptoed down the stairs in the main hallway, heading toward the kitchen. Ryder was probably hungry, and she was slacking in her duty as his prison guard if she didn’t get food and water to him quickly. However, she couldn’t alert her parents of her plans. They would ask too many questions, and she didn’t want to answer them. She hated lying, but telling them the truth wasn’t wise, either.

  She made it to the kitchen and cracked the door open just enough to peek in. Three cooks were busily preparing the morning meal. All Clarissa wanted to do was grab some fruits and vegetables, and maybe even a loaf of bread and some cheese. She hoped that would satisfy Ryder until she could sneak more food for him this evening.

  She stepped away from the door and frowned. How could she convince the cooks to give her the food without questioning her?

  Suddenly, an idea occurred to her, giving her the encouragement needed. She hurried and entered the room before she changed her mind.

  When all three ladies looked at her, Clarissa grinned. “Good morning. I hope you don’t mind if I make a request.”

  All three curtsied. The oldest cook, Beatrice, scratched her neck with her flour-dusted fingers. “What kind of request, Princess?”

  “I’ll be going on an outing today with some friends, and I would like you to pack me an assortment of fruits and vegetables, a loaf of bread, and some cheese.”

  “Yes, Princess,” they mumbled with a smile.

  “Splendid. I shall return in a few minutes to collect it.”

  “As you wish.” They curtsied again.

  Clarissa left the room before she sighed with relief. She didn’t exactly lie. She was going on an outing...and she’d be with friends. Well, at least one friend.

  Although she had locked Ryder in the tower, she still considered him a dear friend. In fact, this morning while she dressed, guilt weighed heavily on her chest. Her heart argued with her mind, urging her to return and release the poor man. But then she remembered Ryder needed to be locked away so he couldn’t stop her from marrying Ormond.

  And for certain, Ryder would stop her. She’d seen his determined expression before, and he wouldn’t quit pushing her until she had doubts about Ormond. Truly, it was best to keep Ryder away. All she could do was hope he’d still forgive her after she was married.

  Unfortunately, she still held a segment of doubt in her mind. She had been very attracted to Ryder the other day. She had enjoyed kissing him very much. For heaven’s sake, she’d even considered marrying him before Prince Ormond arrived. And then everything had changed.

  Most of her confusion stemmed from knowing she’d never been like this before. When she made up her mind, she stuck to it. Yet, ever since returning from her cousin’s house, Clarissa had not been able to think straight.

  She quickly found the footman and asked him to prepare her horse. She still had a few minutes before returning to the kitchen to collect the food, so she cautiously walked back up the stairs to her bed-chamber to fetch her cloak instead of having the maid do it. Clarissa realized the less people who knew about her activities today, the better.

  The floor was quiet as she carefully moved toward her room. She couldn’t even hear the chatter from the maids. Then again, lately her mother had been scolding them so often, perhaps the servants were too afraid to even whisper.

  As she placed her hand on the doorknob, a creak sounded on the floor behind her. She jumped and swung around. Her mother stood not too far from her, with her arms folded. The arch of her mother’s eyebrow and the way the woman glared let Clarissa know the words that would soon come from her mother wouldn’t be a pleasant at all.

  “Good morning, Mother. You are looking pretty today.” Clarissa forced herself to smile, trying to smooth things over before the situation became worse.

  One side of her mother’s mouth lifted higher than the other in a smirk. “You don’t say.”

  “Indeed, I do say, Mother.” Clarissa tried to keep a faux pleasant expression on her face.

  “May I ask what you are doing awake so early? Usually you don’t awaken until mid-morning.”

  “Well, you see,” Clarissa wrung her hands against her middle, “I’ll be meeting some friends this morning for a ride through the countryside.”

  The look on the queen’s face didn’t change. “Who are you going with?”

  She shrugged. “Just some friends.”

  “Won’t you need one of your father’s guards to accompany you? After all, you know your father won’t allow you to go out unescorted.”

  “Not to worry, Mother. Ryder Grey is one of Father’s guards, and I went to school with him. Don’t you remember? He was one of my best friends. He’ll be with me.”

  The queen’s tight face relaxed, and she nodded. “Indeed, I do remember Ryder. What a nice boy. From what I’ve heard, he’s also one of your father’s best guards.”

  Clarissa didn’t dare breathe a sigh of relief just yet, even though her mother didn’t appear as angry. “Yes. Father says he’s very impressed with Ryder’s abilities.”

  “Well, have a pleasant outing.” The queen smiled before turning and strolling up the hallway.

  Finally, Clarissa let out a relieved sigh and hurried into her room to retrieve her cloak. By the time she entered the kitchen again, her heart was thumping with anticipation. The sooner she could get this to Ryder, the sooner she could return and have a normal day.

  Thankfully, the cooks had her basket ready, so Clarissa took it and headed out to her horse. A guard stood nearby, looking straight at her. She groaned. Had her mother assigned a guard to her anyway?

  “Princess,” he bowed as she approached. “I assume you need an escort this morning.”

  “Actually, no.” She allowed him to help her mount before he tied the basket of food to the saddle. “Ryder Grey will be my escort today.”

  His head snapped up and his gaze narrowed on her. “Ryder? You’ve seen him this morning?”

  Clarissa’s heart dropped. Did this man already realize Ryder was missing? She needed to do some quick thinking or he’d catch her in a lie. If her father found out...she’d be in serious trouble!

  “Um... no, but I asked him to meet me out by the front gate.” The panic pulsing through her made her voice shake. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll ride out to see if he’s there.”

  She didn’t give the guard any time to speak. She pushed her heels into the horse’s belly, urging the animal into a run. She hoped the man didn’t try to follow her, or he’d discover the truth. And that, Clarissa determined, was something she’d never allow.

  CLARISSA MADE IT TO the tower without any more distractions. Thankfully, the guard was easy to convince that she was meeting Ryder. Hopefully, telling that little white lie wouldn’t complicate things later on. For certain, the guards would wonder where Ryder was. Unfortunately, she couldn’t release her friend until after the wedding.

  She untied the basket of food from the saddle, collected two blankets she’d brought for him, and hurried inside the tower and up the several flights of stairs. When she reached the top floor and entered, Ryder was sitting on the cot with his back and head resting against the rock wall as he looked her way. For a moment, she was disappointed to see he wasn’t overjoyed to see her. Remembering, she was the one who locked him in this dismal place, she realized if roles were reversed, she wouldn’t be too happy, either.

  “So you decided not to let me starve.” Ryder’s voice held no emotion.

  “But of course. I told you I would bring you some food.” She held up the basket. “I had the cooks pack enough food to last you throughout the day.”

  She didn’t dare get
too close, in case he grabbed her and tried to bring harm to her as a way of forcing his release. She placed the blankets and the basket on the ground. As she bent to open the basket, she raised her gaze to him. Still wearing a frown, his attention was on the basket of food.

  “I thank you for thinking of my appetite, Princess, and for my warmth.”

  Clarissa wished his tone didn’t sound so forlorn. It was bad enough she felt guilty for what she’d done. She didn’t need him to remind her. If only Ryder could understand her reasons for wanting him locked up...

  “Tell me, Princess,” Ryder asked in a mocked tone, “when is your wedding with Prince Ormond? I would hate to miss it, being locked up in the tower and all.”

  Embarrassment—and a bigger niggle of guilt—washed over her. She lowered her gaze on the floor and muttered, “He hasn’t really asked as of yet. I’ve only seen him once.”

  “And yet, here you are, thinking of marriage?” He tsked. “That doesn’t sound like the Clarissa I remember from school.”

  Irritation shot through her and she snapped her gaze to meet his. “It will happen. I assure you, Mr. Grey!”

  He shrugged and glanced back down at the basket of food, studying what was inside. “Princess, may I ask what you have brought me to drink?” He looked at her, arching his eyebrow. “I appreciate the food, however, I will die without water. Had you thought of that?”

  She grumbled under her breath. So she’d forgotten about that particular issue with providing nutrition for him. “Forgive me, but I did not remember.” She pointed toward the window. “There is a lake not far from here, and I’m sure I could get water there.”

  Slowly, he crossed his arms over his wide chest and cocked his head. “And pray tell, what would you store the water in? This room is bare of any type of bowls or cups.”

  Inwardly, she boiled. He’d proven her wrong again. “I shall find one.”

  “How? If I recall, the other floors in this tower seemed as bare as this one. Unless, of course, there is a kitchen underground.”

  “Ryder, cease your taunting. It’s not becoming.”

  Finally, a resemblance of a grin touched his mouth. Unfortunately, it didn’t touch his sad, brown eyes.

  He scooted to the edge of the cot, but still remained sitting. “I hope you know this area better than I because if not, you shall have to ride all the way back to the palace just to fetch a container to hold the water.” He shook his head. “I get the impression you don’t want to stay around the tower for very long.”

  “Well, if you must know, I cannot stay and keep you company. I don’t need people to wonder about my outings. Especially, when I don’t take along one of my father’s guards as an escort.”

  “So how were you able to sneak away this morning?”

  She moved toward the window and peered out. “I convinced the guard who’d taken it upon himself to be my shadow, that I was meeting you and some other friends for a ride through the country.”

  “And he believed you?”

  She glanced at Ryder over her shoulder. “But of course. He had no reason to doubt me.”

  “I fear, Princess, that your lies will only get you so far in this tangled web you’ve spun. Eventually, the captain of the guard will notice I’m missing. Because you were the last to see me, they will ask you where you saw me last.”

  She shrugged. “Then I shall tell a fib again.”

  “One fib will turn into another, and then another, until you cannot decipher the truth from lies.” Tsking, he shook his head. “Princess, I must say how disappointed I am in you. Never in my life would I have imagined you would turn out this way.”

  Clarissa scowled and slapped her palm against the rock wall. “What way are you referring to, Sir?”

  “Deceitful.”

  The insult cut deep into her heart. She wasn’t normally like this, and sometimes she couldn’t understand her own mind, either. But to have him—the one person she’d trusted as a young girl and shared so much with—actually tell her that she was a bad person, made her heart ache. She’d tried to convince herself that he would eventually understand her actions of late. However, now she seriously doubted it. Would he hate her when this was over? She didn’t think her heart—or her conscience—would be able to bear such pain and guilt.

  “What happened to the wonderful, exciting, and intelligent woman I used to know?” he continued. “Tell me please, what could make you change so drastically, because I’ve been so confused these past couple of days. I fear my mind is going everywhere at once trying to figure you out.”

  She opened her mouth to reply, but no words came. Surprisingly enough, she didn’t know what had caused the change, either. “Ryder, you must understand, I’m still the same girl you remember from school. It’s just that...uh, that...”

  “Go on,” he urged, rising to his feet.

  A pounding started in her forehead. She rubbed her temples as the pain grew. “You have been getting in the way of my plans lately. Don’t take it personally. I still consider you my friend. I pray you shall see my reasons behind my actions. If not now, then later.”

  As he sauntered toward her, Clarissa’s first reaction was to move, but then she remembered the chain didn’t reach all the way. She’d be safe to stay at this spot.

  “I’m happy to know you have confidence in the future, because at this moment, I can assure you, your actions of late have made me extremely irritable.”

  “I’m sure you don’t see it now, but when everything is over, I’m certain you’ll look back on this moment and laugh.” She smiled brightly, even though it hurt her to pretend to be this joyful.

  “I hope you’re right, Princess, because knowing you were the one who had brought me so much heartache, just might stay with me for a lifetime.”

  She stared into his desolate brown eyes, trying to think of something to say that would cheer him up. But nothing came to mind. Once again, the small voice in her head tried to tell her how wrong this was. Ryder was her friend. She didn’t have many of them, and she especially didn’t have many friends who she felt so close to. Did she really want to ruin their relationship?

  The pounding in her head became worse. Turning away from him, she rubbed her forehead. “Ryder, I’m going to find something for your water now,” she muttered before leaving him to rush down the stairs. By the time she reached the bottom level of the tower, tears had filled her eyes. Perhaps she hadn’t thought this through very well. She never figured guilt would eat inside of her until she couldn’t stand it.

  She hurried out of the tower and toward her horse. As she reached the animal, she stopped and looked back at the tall structure looming over her. She frowned. If she couldn’t convince Ormond to have a quick wedding, she would have to figure out how to keep Ryder away from her, because she definitely couldn’t allow him to stay a prisoner for much longer. The ache in her heart would be the death of her, she just knew it!

  Once she climbed on her horse, she rode around the area. There must be something out there where she could find a bucket to keep the water. What if she found nothing? Then for certain, she’d have to let him go. A person couldn’t survive without water.

  Through the trees, something caught her attention. She narrowed her gaze on the object as she rode closer. Good fortune smiled upon her. It was an abandoned cottage!

  She urged the horse faster until she reached the place, and then stopped. She swung down from the animal and hurried to the door. The door wasn’t locked but it wouldn’t open, either. She pressed her shoulder against the warped piece of wood and pushed. Her feet slipped on the dirty porch, but she kept trying.

  Grumbling under her breath, she slammed her shoulder against it. Finally, the door opened, and she literally fell into the cottage. Not only did her shoulder ache, but now her knees hurt. Slowly, she stood as she ran her gaze around the room. From the thin dust coating everything, she gathered the people who owned this place hadn’t been gone very long. Little more than a few days perhap
s? Perhaps a week? Yet, they left their furniture, so they must be returning soon.

  “Hello? Is anyone here?” she called. All she heard was her voice echoing back at her.

  Cautiously, she stepped into the next room. Just as the front room, the kitchen was coated with a thin layer of dust. But, at least there were buckets for her to use for Ryder’s water—along with a tin cup.

  She snatched the items, and decided to continue her self-made tour. There was only one other room. The bedroom. Yet, the second she stepped inside, the hairs on the back of her neck rose as something eerie hung in the air. She didn’t know why she felt this way, but something evil had been here. The quilts on the bed were bunched together on the mattress. Two wooden chairs had been tipped over, one with a leg broken off, and even the small armoire was lying on the floor with one of the doors ripped off. The glass on the window was shattered.

  Goose pimples ran amuck on her arms, and she rubbed them. Her stomach twisted from an unknown feeling. She wasn’t certain what had happened here, but it wasn’t good. Indeed, there had been some kind of a struggle, and yet she couldn’t see any blood.

  She shivered. Her curious mind tried to piece things together, and yet, the odd feelings that something wasn’t right grew inside of her. Whatever had happened was in the past. Nobody was here now.

  Something that was tangled in the quilts drew her attention, and she took cautious steps closer until she could see clearly what it was. A doll lay on its side. The pink dress was torn and frayed. The blonde hair was ratted, and on the face were smudges of dirt.

  From the back recesses of her memory, she recalled having a doll just like that. She was very young, but she couldn’t remember the age. Soon, other memories tried breaking through, and she could picture herself in this room...crying.

  Shivers ran up her arms as bile gathered in her throat. She closed her mind quickly, trying to forget the memories that made her so afraid.

  A sound from the other room startled her. She sucked in a quick breath and swung toward the kitchen. Footsteps? Was that the sound she heard?