Chapter 15

Leaning back to let her long hair reach the floor while her body soaks up the hot water Gauri couldn't help but think about Omkara. Twirling her fingers as she plays around with the flower petals that was floating about "How to deal with him. Such an added headache indeed." A King like him should have seen and been with many beautiful women and she did not want to be one of them. At first she was hoping that as long as she cured his poison he would just simply allow her to enter Mordis for the next five years without having to sneak around at night but who would have thought that this King would become so greedy. Leaning her head back to stare blankly at the ceiling while his eyes..his touch...his voice embrace every corner of her mind driving her to sigh even more. Even though she has tried hard to blocked off her heart she couldn't deny that Omkara has made it beat uncontrollably tonight.

"It has to be this drug's doing. Get a grip Gauri...Do not become like Mother...just a pretty bird being locked up in a large cage. Men will never be satisfied with just one woman...they will always find someone else more beautiful...especially a King."

As she kept repeating those words in her mind the sting in her heart was trying to tell her something else. "I really have no time for this." Her plans never included the King of Mordis who was a person she just couldn't figure out completely. He was powerful..ruthless...charming...shameless...and very dangerous. She would be a fool to believe he came just for her. His actions during the banquet was clearly sending her father a message. She could care less that he made a fool out of her father tonight but what she was more concerned about is just how far the King of Mordis would go to send a message to not only her father but that of Gopar and Uthon.

"Would he use Ashen as an example of what happens if you cross him?"

All Gauri wanted was to deal with the list of people who had ruined her life and then make sure that Sahil would finally sit on the Throne then she would slowly disappear and live out her days gathering herbs and learn more about medicine and poison. She would travel with her pack to different places around the vast land and be free of all the troubles that comes with the title "Princess of Ashen." Everything was just going fine until the day she got caught in the crossfires between the men in black and the King of Mordis. "Why did I have to save him..." Recalling the moment of their first meet Gauri shook her head and smiled "I brought this upon myself."

It's already been 30 minutes since she swallowed the pill to expel the drug from her body. "Why isn't it working?" Her breathing was now becoming more labored as her body was heating up within and this hot bath wasn't helping either. It didn't take long for Gauri to realize something must be wrong because by swallowing this pill the drug should have been expelled 5 minutes ago. Stepping out of her large wooden water basin Gauri grabbed a light blue dress to change into. Braiding her towel dried hair to one side Gauri slowly started to walk around her room that the Queen so graciously prepared for her. "There has to be something here that is reacting in unison with this drug in my body." When Gauri started to walk closer to the table where the candles were place she heard a sudden knock on her door.

"Princess...Khanna is here."

"You may come in."

Turning her back on the candles that were still flickering about Gauri sat at a small table that she had set up in her room. Grabbing the pitcher that was now filled with cool water Gauri poured herself a glass to cool herself as Khanna and Bhavya walked inside.

Khanna who was dressed in all black kneeled down as Bhavy stood beside him and curtsied. "Princess."

"Be at ease. So tell me what is my dear mother up to."

"You were right Princess. As I waited patiently inside the Queen's courtyard her maid quickly returned."

Flashback to Queen's Courtyard

The moment Tia was excused by Gauri she ran back as quickly as she could to Svetlana who was patiently waiting in her room. The moment she heard a knock on the door she knew it had to be her trusted maid. Thinking back to the days that Tia was the late Queen's head maid Svetlana could not help but let out a laugh as she remembered how easily it was to get Tia on her side. Just a few cases of rare jewels and a pound of gold was all it took because without this maid it wouldn't have been that easy to poison the woman that was in her way of becoming Queen of Ashen.

"Come in."

As she walked in and quickly curtsied Svetlana could tell that she was quite out of breath. "So tell me...did you get her back to her room?"

"Yes your Highness. I even drew the hot bath myself and lit the candles as you have instructed."

Opening her wooden box to grab a diamond hairpin "Here. You've done really well."

Tia's eyes lit up the moment the hairpin was in her hand "Thank you your Highness!"

Curving up her lips as she pulls out a pair of ruby earrings that made Tia even more in awe of its beauty "And if you can get the Prince of Uthon to wander in the Princess Gauri's room tonight these will be yours."

Tia could not wait to get those earrings "Do not worry your Highness I will surely succeed."

"Well go on. I cannot wait for morning to come when that girl will have no choice but to leave Ashen in shame."

Khanna and Bhavya could see Gauri gripping her cup of water tightly when then quickly released it. "I see this is the Queen's plan." Gauri stood up because her body was now very hot and her cheeks under her blue feel was burning up.

Khanna who instinctively came closer "Princess are you okay?"

Holding her hand up to stop Khanna from getting closer "I am okay. Stay back."

But all of a sudden she felt Khanna grab her hand and slightly yanked her towards him.

"Khanna!"

Hearing his name being yelled at by his master Khanna quickly came back to his senses and quickly released Gauri's hand and started to kneel down "I am so sorry Princess! I don't know what happened!! I am so sorry!!...I deserve to die!!"

Bhavya who was now standing in front of Gauri to protect her "How dare you Khanna!"

When Bhavya was about to lecture Khanna some more when she felt a hand on her shoulder "Move aside Bhavya."

"Stand up Khanna."

Looking down onto the floor in shame "No Princess! I disrespected you! I deserve to die."

" I said stand up."

Khanna looks up at his master and quickly stood up.

"Now tell me...when did you feel different."

Khanna tried to recall "I was fine until I came here to report about the Queen's plan. I started to feel hot and...."

"Enough Khanna."

Gauri's sharp eyes started to scan her room and again she walked up to the candles that were still flickering. Bending down to inhale the smell "I see. I knew this drug she gave me was just too simple."

"What is it Princess..."

"Come Bhavya and smell the candles and tell me what you find."

Bhavya does what was asked but she couldn't see anything out of the ordinary.

"They smell like candles."

"Khanna come smell this and tell me what you find."

Khanna comes and the moment he bends down to inhale the smell of the candles his eyes widen "Princess! I feel...hot..and I want...."

"Blow it out."

As Khanna quickly blew it out Bhavya couldn't help but as "I don't understand Princess."

"This type of candles are hard to come by and only effects men. It causes men to loose their senses and succumb to their sexual desires."

"What?!"

"And that is not all. When paired with the slow acting aphrodisiac that the Queen has given me it will gradually make the woman fall prey to their own sexual needs. I must say the Queen sure did put a lot of thought in this."

"So what are we going to do Princess."

Gauri smiles as she turns to Bhavya "Light the candles back up of course and wait for that head maid that helped killed my mother to bring the Prince of Uthon onto by bed."

If Gauri thought she managed to shock only Khanna and Bhavya with her words she was wrong because after he heard those words Ranveer quickly jumped off the roof to run back to his King who has just finished soaking his in hot bath.

"Your Majesty!"

Letting his long black hair down to dry while putting on his night robe "What is it."

"I wasn't able to get close enough to hear everything because the Princess seem to have a very trained Guard by her side."

Sitting down to pour himself some hot tea "Oh? I am not surprised. How else has she been able to deal with the Queen of Ashen till now."

"All I heard is she will be waiting for the Prince of Uthon...."

Seeing his King shatter the jade cup in his hand Ranveer did not want to continue.

"Waiting for the Prince of Uthon to what."

"To....come..... to her bed."

With blood dripping from his hand Omkara took out a black handkerchief that was tucked away under his sleeve and as he meticulous wiped off the blood with bits of shattered jade embedded in his hand "So the Princess is trying to have fun without me tonight."

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