Heartless by Zizi Cole

Author:Zizi Cole [Cole, Zizi]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3, mobi
Publisher: Beautiful Nightmares
Published: 2018-02-24T05:00:00+00:00

Part 2: Malina

Chapter 1

I watched as they dragged Tobias away. He watched me as they pulled him along. I could feel the tears pouring down my face, as I knew that it would probably be the last time I saw him alive. After he was out of sight, my father spoke to me.

“You will leave at the break of dawn. I am sending you to Tiven, where you will wed King Luquin immediately. After that, you will no longer be my problem.”

There was talk of King Luquin. He was known to have a short temper and be quite the brute. I didn’t want to deal with it, but I wasn’t seeing any other options. I stood and curtsied. “Father, do I get to take any of my ladies with me?”

“You can take Rosa. The rest will remain here with your sister. Luquin will have ladies for his new queen.”

When he said queen, I had a chill run down my spine and had a premonition that things weren’t going to go well in the end. I escaped to my room, to try to deal with the hand that fate dealt me. I sat on my bed and placed a hand on my burning cheek. I would probably have a bruise, but honestly I wasn’t surprised. It wouldn’t be the first time he bruised me, but from the sound of it, it was going to be the last.

Rosa walked into the room and handed me a cool cloth. Placing the cloth on my face, I watched her ramble around the room. She seemed to be tidying things up, but at the same time, I wasn’t sure if she was actually moving anything.

“Rosa, have you heard the news?” I asked quietly.

She nodded, then turned to look at me. She had tears in her eyes. “Yes, Princess.”

I sighed. “I know I have told you not to call me Princess when it is just the two of us.”

“I know Lina, but I’m going to miss you.”

“Father agreed to let you go with me.”

“Good. I’d hate to see my Lina going off by herself.”

“I’m scared. Do you know if the stories are true?”

She sat on the bed beside me, wrapping her arm around my shoulders. She hugged me for a minute before answering.

“I’m afraid they are. Why else would King Cornelius send you to him? He wouldn’t send you there if he was kind and deserving of your beauty.” She wiped away the tears that I didn’t realize were rolling down my cheeks. “Now I must get us packed. We are to leave first thing in the morning.”

She helped me get ready for bed, and once I was alone in my bed chamber trying to sleep, I held on to the stuffed bear that Tobias had given me. I wasn’t sure where he had gotten it, but it was dear to my heart.

I tried to close my eyes, but the screams from the dungeon were drifting up through my window. I didn’t think I was going to be able to sleep, wondering if that was Tobias screaming in agony.

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