Trapped with a Way Out

by Jeffery Martinez

  She quickly bent down to avoid the swipe and felt her hair whipped by the horizontal arc of his blade. In her crouched position, she used all of her force to swipe her own sword directly at his feet, causing him to leap into the air to avoid it.

  "Clever girl," he muttered under his breath and slammed his rapier down to the ground.

  Richard somersaulted to the side and into another crouched position. She bounced to her feet and scoffed.

  "It was my mistake then, for thinking that you could keep up with me," she stated with false sincerity as she placed one hand over her heart in 'sympathy', "I know it is sometimes a little difficult to comprehend my power and what I'm capable of doing."

  "Take care with what you say, my Lady, for only I know those words jest," he politely warned.

  Richard chuckled, "How should I say it then? Softer?" She batted her sultry and beckoning eyes.

  He paused for a moment, and that was when she noticed that he was truly looking at her. Perhaps for the first time, he was looking her in the face and actually seeing her. He stepped back for a moment, as if to mentally save the picture, and she stopped to look at him with a confused expression on her face.

  "Do you really even know the power you hold within your words, my Lady?" he asked, no malice within them.

  Richard smugly beamed back at him, "I do."

  Vincent rolled a hay bale on its side and stepped on top of it. He then launched himself off of it and whaled down with his sword. Richard, taken off guard at his sudden and hostile motion, leaped backwards and gasped in anger, her eyes returning to their ardent fury once more.

  "Your deception with your womanly wiles has no affect on me," Vincent relentlessly clashed swords with her.

  Richard pulled her sword up quickly to block the first blow and the second, "Then you truly are mistaken, because the light that was awoken in your eyes tells a different tale."

  His face was close to hers as he leaned into the swing; but on her comment he reflexively glanced away from Richard for a moment, concealing the portal into his soul as his eyes seemed to darken, "Such guile."

  The pair continued to bash each other both physically and verbally once more.

  Pip and William, a few paces away, looked at each other in confusion.

  "So…tell me, Pip," William cocked her head as she watched the progression of the duel that was transforming into an all out fight, "Are they…?"

  "Flirting?" Pip finished, "Yes." He chuckled openly and rolled his eyes, "Through wit, sharp tongues, and quick jutting motions, it's as good as intercourse to Vincent."

  William felt her cheeks rise in temperature at his blunt language, "Oh…"

  He instantly caught on and apologized, though a part of him wished desperately to desensitize her, "I'm sorry, princess. I foolishly forgot that I'm in the presence of a woman, and more importantly, a Lady." He mentally chided himself. "Do you not think that The Regent is happy for you, that you have a relatively secure future. I could think up worse scenarios than marrying a knight," he said acerbically -not the original intent he meant to put into it.

  William refrained from shifting her eyes in his direction, "I try not to trouble myself with what others think. I take after my sister in that way."

  He nodded in agreement and added sarcastically, "Yes, who would ever care about what your subjects think, what the ruler thinks, what your advisors think, or even what the common people think? Their opinions are completely unimportant."

  William shook her head and moaned, "When it comes to my mental health, yes, unimportant. When it comes to ruling a country, no. But since I will not be ruling the country, I needn't worry."

  "Ah, yes. The freedom of men to be rulers is also what binds them. Their actions must be well thought out, their choices wise, and their manner gracious. Do you not enjoy watching their little dance to please everyone in the kingdom as well as fight wars while also maintaining the solidification of their country? Do you not envy it?" Pip asked, mockery laced within his voice.

  William played along, "Ah, but I have the intense pleasure of observing it so closely to the side!"

  Pip laughed and William giggled as the jokes continued to pour out of his mouth. The slander with which he tied each one to was worse than sucking on a lemon, but the zing that accompanied every ending was worth listening to and had truth woven into it, even if Pip did have a mouth on him.

  "Has anyone ever told you that you have too much cheek?" she laughed again, and this time held onto her stomach to remind herself to breathe.

  Pip paused, "Only the refined people such as yourself. Everyone else simply knows it's me talking."

  She controlled herself once more, "I know. It's just if you spoke like that to my father or to Lord Rodriguez…you could get into a right bad mess."

  "Of course I know," he chuckled carelessly, "I'm an ass, not an idiot."

  "One does not preclude the other!" she exclaimed, half shocked he should say such an outrageous statement. He must have been only half sober.

  Pip looked at her pleasingly, "Perhaps I trust you,"

  What happened next completely threw off his mental compass.

  She giggled, "You're brazen words may be a little…offensive…to some, but I find it a nice, refreshing breeze compared to all of the dressed up and sickly sweet mannerisms I have to face each day."

  He playfully bumped shoulders with her and looked down, knowing and accepting that his next words would damn him, "Beneath my filthy words, there is truth to it, I promise. Or," Pip bore into her eyes, "I could just be attempting to make you blush," he stated with a seductive voice.

  William paused and felt her breath catch in her throat. She wanted desperately to say something, anything to counter him, with a quick remark like Richard always could. But every muscle in her body froze as she watched him inch closer to her, reading what she wanted on the expression of her face. William began to feel the warmth emanate from his body as she began to inch closer and closer herself.

  All of the small moments when seeing him in the hallway, the little grins and winks here and there, they were like teasers compared to what she knew was about to happen. He tilted his head to the side in anticipation for her lips and found his hands slowly take hold of her shoulders. Lifting herself up to her toes, William closed her eyes and felt his arms wrap around her in a comfortable embrace. Just as his lips brushed past hers, a loud grunt and laugh from Vincent caused both of them to jerk back.

  "Are we really becoming that boring?" Vincent asked, a little annoyed that his audience's attention was driven elsewhere, "Perhaps we need to increase the stakes."

  Richard paused, not hearing a word Vincent had said to look at William, her mouth open in a silent and horrified cry, her eyes fixed in a look of incredulous betrayal.

  Vincent pounced on the opportunity gladly and slammed his rapier down, causing the elder princess to jump anywhere away from the noise. She fixed her gaze on Vincent, but he could still see the burning confusion in her face at what she had just seen. Richard suddenly roared in anger and lunged for Vincent, concentrating all of her rage and frustration, clearly fueled at what William did, straight into her opponent.

  The soldier jerked back and lifted his sword to deflect any attack that she was going to throw at him; but instead of her weapon smacking against his, she twirled it by the blade in a circular motion with her own sword. As centrifugal force caused it to constrain itself to the circular path she was making, it slipped out of his hands and twirling straight up into the air.

  Richard jumped up to grab the hilt and barely managed to do so when their feet twined together and caused her to slip on his boot. Accidentally tripping on her other foot, he instantly let off pressure so as to not crush her toes, but in the process found himself unbalanced by the fact that her other foot tripped on his own. They both fell, tumbling to the ground.

  Vincent instinctively held his arms out to break his fall, and it was a good thing too, for he landed right on top of Richard with his
elbows propped to the sides of her shoulders. She landed with a thud on her back, instantly feeling the itchy hay rub her backside. Richard heard William gasp, but it was a faint whisper compared to what her mind was screaming at her that moment.

  The soldier, a few seconds before, right in front of her, now seemed completely comfortable where he was, and, by the satisfaction in his expression, Richard knew he had no inclination to move any time soon. Instead, Vincent inched his way up to get a good look at her face, and as he smiled she tried to drive her back further into the ground to gain some semblance of space, though there was none.

  "Well now," Vincent murmured triumphantly, his black locks spilling over his shoulder and tickling Richard's nose, "Look at the dilemma we have here."

  Richard froze for a second, almost trying to comprehend just what had happened, and when all Vincent did to help was grin and glance at her lips that were inches away from his, she felt butterflies erupt in a mountainous swarm within her stomach.

  His body was heavy against hers, like a wall of iron that trapped her from moving. She felt it harder and harder to breathe, but not because of the weight of the matter; because of the proximity. Vincent expected her to say something; anything. To his surprise, she lay there, in silent terror and anticipation for what he was going to do to her next. Vincent inhaled her scent again, something he liked to do, and sighed happily.

  "You are so beautiful," he said, tone covered in reverence that Richard thought couldn't possibly be there. The comment clearly caught Richard off guard from his usual carnal-related remarks about her.

  "Remove yourself, or regret it," Richard warned, trying to keep her voice steady, and remembered her two weapons. She lifted both swords and crossed them into an 'x' right at the base of his throat along with hardening her expression into a fierce glare.

  He merely deigned to glance at it, "Armed and commanding me around. Delicious," there was a ragged edge to his voice she did tried to ignore, but his ravenous eyes she had to face.

  "Get off of me!" she spat in his eye and struggled once more.

  Pip raced over, but then realized that he could not do much in the way of moving either of them, and he wasn't about to push Vincent off of her -his head would be rolling within minutes. The guard nervously glanced around at the watch towers and was thanking God that he saw no one looking down at the target range.

  "Wallachian!" Pip barked, "You should relocate!"

  Vincent waved his hand at Pip nonchalantly as he continued to rest on top of Richard. She squirmed under his gaze until she suddenly felt his hand brush aside one of her curls with his index finger and gently run it back through her hair, all the while Richard promising him that his throat would be slashed any second. As his hand dropped, it didn't miss the delicate curves of her cheeks and the dip in her neck, all the way down to her protruding collar bone. He closed his eyes, as if concentrating all of his senses on touch as he traced her soft skin. Richard paused from her rant as she felt goose-bumps flare up her spine and her breath catch.

  "Stop, you oaf," she ordered. He paused and blinked, awakening from a daydream.

  "I'd take the Lady's advice," a voice startled Richard.

  She craned her neck at an awkward angle on the ground to see familiar boots walking towards them. Her eyes wandered up the person when she began to recognize the familiar attire. The man's brown hair was carefully combed behind his ears, his blue eyes darting between Richard and Vincent with blatant disgust, and he placed both hands on his hips.

  "Walter," Richard croaked, "It…it is not what it looks like," she said the same sentence she told Vincent, still wondering how in the world it would work.

  Walter shook his head, "No, this time, you cannot pull the wool over my eyes. It's almost funny," he said bitterly, "I just returned from a discussion with Ladislaus. He asked me if I was with you when you first spoke with the Ottoman. Naturally, I knew you were trying to use me as your safeguard. I happily obliged, assuring him that you were, in no way, harboring any affection or attraction to this man," he nodded to Vincent, to enraged to even say his name, "Was I wrong to put so much faith in you?"

  With each word, Richard felt her heart sinking lower and lower, until it finally splashed around in her stomach. The betrayal in his eyes broke every nerve in her body as she lay there, completely numb. She did not deserve to answer him. Vincent, sensing a possible brawl arising, slowly lifted himself from her body. He was careful not to step on or pull on anything. Once he was up and righted himself, he offered his hand to lift her up as well.

  "If I ever see you near her again," Walter fixed his glare onto Vincent, "I will kill you myself." He opened his hand as another offer to Richard.

  Richard sat up on her bottom and glanced at both hands, then at the expectant looks of each man. She angrily shunned Vincent's offered hand in an instant, first and foremost completely furious with him, but also knowing that if she did choose his hand, it would have communicated that she was alright with all of his previous, scandalous actions, which she was not. She slipped her hands into Walter's eagerly and felt him pull her up gently. William was already at his side, a mournful expression adorning her face.

  William shot Vincent an accusing glare as the two women passed him, Richard refusing to look. Vincent, slightly annoyed, shrugged his shoulders and turned to Pip. His expression was a mixture of frustration, hate, and anguish -all of them known quite well to Vincent. Once Walter and his ladies rounded the corner and were showered with greenery once more, Pip turned to Vincent.

  "Do you have any idea as to how close I was in kissing her?" he asked irately.

  Vincent closed his eyes and sighed, his arms gesturing to his imaginary audience, "Yes, yes, we all know of your infatuation with the girl, but ultimately, you're too inexperienced. You should have grabbed her by the waist and kissed her, not all this anticipation. You have to grasp what you want, and quickly."

  "What, like you did? Such gracefulness, yes, it worked flawlessly," Pip retorted.

  Vincent chuckled, "Yes, it would have been, were it not for her manservant's appearance. I haven't seen that look of hatred in a man's eye for a long while. Even the Regent's glare was softer."

  "Perhaps it is because Walter is with her nearly every hour of every day," Pip suggested obviously, "He's played the role of 'big brother' when Ladislaus was absent, and 'father' when The Regent was away as well. He cherishes Richard and William like blood…more than blood, so do not get any ideas of seeing her again. Walter is known for keeping his promises."

  "My dear man-at-arms," Vincent pivoted to Pip, a smirk on his lips and the devil's mischief in his eyes, "I survived the Ottoman Empire's wrath; what is one man to me from obtaining that which I want?"

  Pip rolled his eyes and raised his hands to cradle his head, "Savior, preserve us."

  "Preparations, tell me they were made!" Rodriguez opened his arms in exasperation, "I am telling you all, servants, that this grand hall must be filled by this afternoon. Guests will be arriving very shortly!"

  Men and women scurried around the premises with flowers, dishes, furniture, sheets, and even props all to their places. Hallways were cramped and packed with bodies rushing this way and that, parts being collected and relocated. All the while, Rodriguez felt himself the composer of this chaos and desperately tried to rein it in. He had servants form a line with all manner of things in their hands, watching as they raised their arms in confusion as to where it went, and finding himself pointing all over to places in the castle. It was beginning to exhaust Rodriguez, who now frantically tried to find Walter.

  "Yes, that goes in the Knights Hall…No, that must be placed in the kitchen…What are you doing, ya daft idiot? That is fragile, set it down over there…Yes, put that on the table…No, do not touch that; it's worth more than you! That stays where it is," Rodriguez groaned.

  The Regent abruptly opened the doors and nearly ran over to Rodriguez –The Regent, a man not easily rushed. He paused to catch his breath briefly before be
ginning.

  "I have…I have…well, news!" he clapped his hands together.

  "What is it, my lord?" Rodriguez asked in fright that he had probably ordered someone to the incorrect station.

  "Victor," The Regent started, " It's been rumored that Victor, against the will of his father, George, whom we all know, snuck out of their encampment on the journey over here. He left a note stating that he could wait no longer in setting his eyes upon the "Fair Maiden of Hungary", as Richard has been charged with," he grinned.

  Rodriguez paused, "My lord, I do not know what to make of it, whether I should call him keen, or the fool. It is a dangerous road to get here."

  "Yes, it is at that. Perhaps I only saw his blinding affection for her already," The Regent considered what Rodriguez said, "I suppose I was just…concerned that he would not care for her. The Lord knows that respecting your spouse and truly caring for one another is the key to longevity."

  Rodriguez cleared his throat, "Yes…" he stated a little awkwardly.

  The Regent snapped from his dream-like trance back to reality, "How foolish of me to say such things in front of you."

  "My lord," Rodriguez paused to direct a few more servants to their posts, "It is not that I have never felt affection for another, I just chose to follow the life of the book," he held up the bible gently and pressed it to his chest, "There is no greater love than that of our Lord," but then his face slightly changed, "However, I will gladly exterminate the infestation of Islam within the castle, if you so wish."

  His ruler ignored the last comment and chuckled for a moment and shook his head when Rodriguez waited for his input, "Silence that nagging voice in your head that worries about Islam. There is no infection or infestation; calm down. Vincent is of no concern to you. I do not believe he will be present for the feast tomorrow, and if he is I expect him to be civil. And speaking of which, where is he?" The Regent questioned.

  Rodriguez shrugged, "I'd sooner assume that he left to join the Ottomans before planning a party for you. I haven't seen him for a day or two, and he made me do this by myself," he increasingly raised his voice in irritation.