Aveline's POV

The next day, I go back to King Morden’s castle.  I step out of the carriage, and the guards open the castle doors for me, even though I really don’t want to go inside.  But I have no choice.

The doors slam shut behind me.  Since the guards are stationed outside, I’m alone.

It’s so dark in here, much darker than it was yesterday during the ball.  I want to go home and forget all about King Morden.  As I walk through the hallways, a bat swoops over my head.  I scream.  Just then, I hear someone run to me.  Before I can run away, the person grabs me and hugs me.

“Aveline!  What happened?” Lorand asks worriedly.

“There was a bat…”

He laughs softly.  “There are bats everywhere around here.  They like the darkness.  Don’t worry, they won’t hurt you.”

“There were never bats when your mother was queen.”

“Because she kept everything well lit.  The bats are here now because of my stepfather.”

King Morden.  The evil man who wants to marry me.

Lorand swallows.  “I’m guessing you’re here to see him?”

“Yes.”

He stops hugging me and takes my hand.  “I’ll bring you to him.”

As we walk down the corridors, I look down at our entwined fingers, and a crazy thought pops into my head.  What if Lorand and I…  No.  That can’t happen.  Not with King Morden around.

“Why did you stop?” Lorand asks.

Oh.  I hadn’t realized.  I look down at the floor.

“It’s because you’re scared, isn’t it?”

I nod.

“I promise I’ll keep you safe from him.”  He tries to pull me along, but my legs won’t move.

“I don’t want to go,” I say.

He sighs.  “I know, but…”

We stand in silence for a long time.  I look up at Lorand, and he’s looking back at me.  Slowly, his eyes move to our hands.  I blush.  His face turns scarlet as he lets go.

“Uh… this way.”

I follow him down a corridor and up a flight of stairs.  Not once does he look back at me.  Finally, we reach a door.

“Here it is,” Lorand says, then runs off before I can thank him.  Did I scare him?  I really hope not.

I knock on the door.

No reply.
However, I hear him talking, so I carefully open the door.  What I see makes me hide a gasp.

King Morden is standing in front of a mirror.  In the mirror is a ghastly female face.  I want to run away after Lorand, but I’m frozen in place.

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the best ruler of them all?”

The mirror speaks in a deep, mystifying voice.  “As much as I would like to say you, I can no longer give that response.”

The king’s face contorts in anger.  “No longer give that response?  Am I not the best?”

“There will be another very soon.  Another much better than you.”

“Who?”  King Morden is getting redder and redder.  I fear he may explode.

“King Lorand.”

All of the king’s rage disappears as he laughs.  “Lorand, the king?  You can’t be serious!  He’s nothing but my servant now!  There’s no way!”

But the face in the mirror is perfectly serious.

The king stops laughing.  “Tell me, then,” he whispers.  “How is it that that horrible boy will become king?”

“In a few months he’ll be seventeen.  According to the laws of this kingdom, he can be crowned then.”

“Only if he’s my successor.”

“He’s your wife’s son, and you have no one else to take the throne.  Lorand will be king.”

King Morden screams with rage and stomps out of the room without noticing me.  Now I fear for Lorand’s life.  After all, the only ways of stopping his coronation are imprisonment, exile, and death, and the king seems so upset that it’s almost as if the former two options don’t even exist.  I find myself running after him.  Maybe I can convince him to spare Lorand.

On his way to wherever he’s going, King Morden grabs a box and a key.  But for what?  There are tears in my eyes already.  Please don’t hurt him…

King Morden comes to a girl of around eighteen and stops.  “Harriet!”

I peer out from behind a wall.

She drops her feather duster and bows.  “Your majesty.”

He puts the box and key in her hands.

“What is this for?” she asks.

“I need you to take Lorand into the woods.”

“And?”

He pulls out a dagger.  No!  Tears stream down my face.

“Kill him, and bring me back his heart.”  The king is insane!  Why does he want to hurt Lorand so badly?  He never did anything wrong…

Harriet puts the key in her pocket, then takes the dagger and puts it in the box for safekeeping.  “I won’t fail you, your highness.”

“You better not.  Or else!”  He turns and walks away, smirking evilly.

Lorand…

I try to go to Harriet.  Maybe I can save him!  But I’m too late.  She hurries away.

When Lorand and I were children, we were always together.  We’d dance at balls and ride horses.  Sometimes we’d play in the garden.  Others we’d just sit and talk about nothing in particular, and if I had a problem, he’d always be there for me.  He was my best friend.

Now I might lose him forever.

“Excuse me, m’lady, are you looking for the king?” a man asks.  Clearly he hasn’t seen or heard anything about the plot against Lorand.

“I… I need to go,” I reply.

“Go where?”

“I need to get out of this castle!” I cry before I can stop myself, and somehow, I’m able to find an exit.

“Is that Lady Aveline?” one of the guards asks the other.

“Yes, I think so.  Should we stop her?”

I can’t hear the response since I’m already far from them.  I don’t think I’ve ever run this fast in my life.  All I can think of is getting away, away from a cruel king who’s going to murder the best friend I’ve ever had.