Dedicated to NitaYoung6 thanks for the follow... 😊

Recap:

"Have you opened the box?"

I shake my head. No.

"Show it to me then."

We had barely crossed to the other side of the room when the first set of explosions rocked me on my feet.

↭↭↭

The guards jump immediately to action, leading the Prince and I out to safety through a secret door I never knew existed.

The tunnels are lit dimly by torches that cast a depressing glow over the places we manoeuvred.

I didn't realise Finnegan's hands were wrapped around mine until I stumbled and his grip on my fist tightened.

Not much was said until we reach a door.

Ushered in, I see the faces of the Royal Family. King, Queen, Princess and Prince.

Alek's green eyes watch me enter the large bunker.

Queen Stella rushes towards me while the King speaks to his younger son. "Are you alright?" She inquires.

I nod, still shaken from the explosion. "No, Your Majesty."

She takes me to a chair and I accept the comfort it offers while searching out the box I concealed in my dress.

Finnegan seeing this draws close. Everyone's curiosity heighten.

"What's in there?" Princess Eleanor asks.

"The reason for all the attacks on the Palace."

The Princess gasps, eyes filling with rage. "I knew you were not to be trusted."

"Eleanor, be quiet!" Queen Stella hisses. Eleanor rolls her eyes and with folded arms shifts to a chair further away from all of us.

Then, the focus is on me once more.

"So, why don't we see what's in this box?" The Queen says, urging me to open it.

Breathing in deeply, I hold Finnegan's gaze for a moment. He nods. The only encouragement I need.

So, with a click, I unlock the box.

There's only a key that's attached to a necklace and a piece of paper.

"On this day, 17th July, Alanna Iris Ruttherford, Heir to the Ruttherford Fortune, was born to Duke George Ruttherford and his beloved wife, Eunice Ruttherford."

The paper falls from my hand. A sort of blankness overshadows me. No reactions, it's just like I've been doused with ice cold water.

The paper passes around the room until the knowledge reaches everyone.

Suddenly, I didn't feel comfortable sitting with them. I'm the reason why Reik is attacking their home, because of a fortune apportioned to me.

But why?

Did he have a quarrel with my... parents? On what?

Parents?

I can't believe that the people I call my parents aren't my real progenitors. What a dramatic turn of events.

"We'll sort this out once the attack subsides." The King assures me, clenching his fist.

"Reik is not going to leave until he gets what he came for. Me."

"There's no way I'm letting you out of here." Finnegan replies, frowning.

"I don't see why not. She goes, problem solved."

I glare at Alek for that comment of his. He raises a brow as if daring me to act further. Ignoring him, I look at the Queen who placed a hand on my right thigh.

"Finnegan is right, Alanna. You will not be a sacrifice for anybody." She states.

"And we all will, right? That's it? This girl has been nothing but trouble from the first day she came here. Right now, all I see is an opportunity to get rid-"

"Silence, Eleanor! " The King growls, scaring her lips shut.

Sensing an impending argument, I hug my self.

↭↭↭

True to my suspicions, neither the King or Queen were willing to let me face Reik out there.

But I had to.

So, while they were engrossed in a serious discussion, I broke out in a run, racing through the door I hastily flung open.

Even the guards were too stunned to react as I breezed past them.

Tracing my steps to the corridor, my heart breaks at how much blood is on the floor, broken concrete blocks, gaping holes in the wall.

Screams.

Ignoring all fear of danger, I rush towards the screams, hoping it'd...

I froze, seeing a man dragging one of the girls along. Not just any girl, Harriet.

No, no, no.

"Stop!" I yell.

The man halts and turns to me. Harriet squirms in his hand but his grip on her arm is too strong.

The man grins. "Look who we have here. Isn't it the lost heiress? Reik would throw a banquet tonight for you princess."

I ignore his words. "Just let her go and I'll come with you."

"What are you doing, Alanna?" Harriet hisses. She's obviously displeased because of my recklessness.

Two arms grab me from behind and a damp cloth is pressed against my nose. In a couple of minutes, I willingly surrender to my fears.

↭↭↭

When next my eyes open, I realise I'm in a poorly lit room and my entire body is numb. I realise why. My hands and legs are tied in a painful posture.

Wincing, I manage to raise my head, eyes scanning the environment.

I'm not the only one in the small room that looks like a drinking parlour. There are bottles upon bottles of wine lined on shelves, a transparent glass partition separates them from my part of the room.

However, that's the least of my worries. It's the man staring at me from his seated position, left leg crossed over his right.

He smiles. "Welcome back, Iris."

Iris. The name sounds foreign to my ears. It's hard to believe that all my life I have been living a lie, a lie which has finally caught up with me.

"You've got me now. What do you want?" I ask, unfazed by the smile on his quite handsome face. Handsome but deep within lies a lot of rottenness.

"We need to talk about quite a lot of things." He states, picking a lock of his long brown hair and toying with it.

"How about you let my limbs free and then we can talk." I offer.

He snaps his fingers and almost immediately, I feel a pair of calloused hands around me.

It belongs to a scary looking female, blonde haired with a small scar on her forehead.

She frees my limbs rather roughly.

"Easy, Tina, we need to keep our pretty heiress in perfect shape." The man says.

Tina eyes me like I'm some insect before moving away. Glaring at her, I rub my sore wrists, sitting properly on the carpeted floor.

"What do you people want with me?"

The man chuckles, rubbing his nonexistent moustache. "Isn't it obvious?"

"Still having problems growing out a beard, Reik?"

A low growl sounds in his throat. "Be careful or I might cut out your tongue. Don't test me."

"Oh, I'm so scared." I shudder, smiling at his anger.

See, I can't give him what he wants. Fear.

"You're intolerable." He mutters, then to Tina. "Show her to where she'll be staying until I figure out what to do next."

These people must have a thing for dim lights because the corridor Tina pulled me into was not illuminated properly.

I could barely see my own feet as they moved along the bare concrete floor.

"Where are we?" I ask Tina, although unsure if I'd get a response seeing how a frown is plastered on her face.

"A long way from home. No one's going to look for you here."

Finnegan would.

Would he? Or would he be glad to know that I had gone missing?

What about my family? How would they take my kidnap?

So long as Reik didn't go near them, I could handle anything.

Hopefully.

                                                
☜☜☜

Oh no, Reik has our Main character.

What do you think will happen next?