Chapter 4
Those three days felt like a dream. A dream watched by countless people, but only I was awake in it.
The Queen sent a senior lady-in-waiting to teach me the rites for a marriage alliance.
From manners and conduct to the customs of the Torgun tribe in the far West.
I learned fast and took it seriously.
The lady praised me. "Your Highness, you are exceptionally gifted. You will be a blessing to the tribe."
I smiled and didn't say a word.
A blessing or a sacrifice? Who could tell?
My mother spent her days crying.
My father seemed to have aged ten years overnight.
Oliver locked himself in his room and refused to come out.
I knew they were all saying goodbye to me in their own way.
I didn't try to comfort them.
Because any words would feel empty and powerless against such a cruel truth.
I just went through the motions, packing my final bags.
Besides the gifts from the palace, I brought all my embroidery threads and hoops.
They had been my only comfort for the past ten years.
Now, they would walk the rest of the road with me.
*****
The day we set out was sunny. The sky was blue without a single cloud. The sunlight was blinding.
The long wedding procession stretched from our gate all the way to the city gates.
Wedding gifts stretched for miles, magnificent and endless.
Anyone who didn't know better might have thought some noble lady in the city was marrying in great splendor.
I wore the gown the Queen had given me when she made me a princess.
It was elaborate, beautiful, and heavy.
It pressed down on me so much that I could barely breathe.
I hugged my parents tightly to say goodbye.
I did not cry. I just stepped back and bowed solemnly and deeply to them with all my strength.
The weight of that moment pressed down on me like a stone on my chest.
I said, "Father, Mother, I am unworthy as your daughter.
"From now on, with mountains and rivers between us, I won't be able to stay by your side and take care of you anymore.
"Please take care of yourselves."
My mother was already sobbing too hard to speak. A maid held her up.
My father's eyes were terribly red. He turned his face away and could not bear to look at me.
"Go," he said. The word came through clenched teeth. His voice was hoarse, like sandpaper on wood.
I stood up. Oliver rushed out of the house.
His eyes were red. He stared at me fixedly.
"Bella," he said. "I'm here."
I smiled at him. "Oliver, take care of Mother and Father."
He didn't answer and just gave a firm nod.
Tears fell from the corners of his eyes.
I turned around and didn't look back.
I was afraid that one more look would break down the walls I had built.
I got into the huge, lavish carriage.
The curtains fell, shutting out everything I had ever known and my past as Isabelle.
The procession slowly moved forward. The wheels rolled over the cobblestone road, clacking like they were rolling over my heart.
I could hear people outside, gossiping and whispering.
"So this is the princess who's marrying for peace. She truly puts the kingdom first."
"Yes, she sacrificed herself for our peace. A true heroine."
A heroine.
I smiled bitterly.
I was just a poor soul who had no say in her own destiny.
The carriage turned onto Aurelia Avenue.
It was the busiest street in the capital.
Without even realizing it, I lifted the edge of the curtain.
I wanted one last look at the city where I had lived for 18 years.
And then I saw him. Joseph.
He was on horseback, stopped at the corner. He wore silver armor and sat as straight as a ramrod.
Through the moving crowd, his eyes went straight to my carriage.
Was he seeing me off?
The thought crossed my mind, and I crushed it at once.
No. He wasn't.
He was just doing his duty as the Marquis of Northhold.
Keeping the wedding procession safe was his job. Nothing more.
For a moment, our eyes met above the crowd.
His gaze was still so calm, so cold, like the snow in the northern frontier. No warmth at all.
I saw his thin lips move.
I read the two words. "Take care."
How ridiculous.
He had pushed me into hell, and now he told me to take care.
Slowly, I let the curtain fall.
But just before it closed, I saw the second floor of a tavern not far behind him.
The window was open. A slender figure stood, leaning against the railing.
I could not see her clearly from so far away. But I knew. It was Evelyn.
She was the most gifted and most beautiful woman in the capital. The one Joseph held dearest in his heart.
She must be there, watching me, the woman taking her place to sacrifice, as I walked step by step into my fate.
And the man she loved was waiting downstairs, guarding this transaction to its perfect end.
What a perfect pair.
I closed my eyes and leaned back against the carriage wall.
My chest felt like it had a gaping hole in it. Cold wind poured in, howling.
Goodbye, capital.
Goodbye, Joseph.
After today, we were truly even.