Chapter 41: Game on

Francine

"The beginning of the end,"

"You ready?" Charlie mouthed.

Darlene smiled from the distance, flipping her hair in the air. "Always,"

Darlene walked out of the dungeons and within a moment, we turned on our earpieces. Did I mention that Darlene had connections outside the kingdom who brought earpieces for her? No? Then, now you know.

I sat at one corner of the cell, scrolling through the photographs. Never in a billion years did I think that my life would turn into a literal roller-coaster ride. You have happiness, sadness, heartbreaks, and romance, struggles and fights, heroes and villains (not literally! However, you do realize what I'm exactly talking about!)

There were photographs of me and Nicole in the mall - I still remember how she once said that she just needed an excuse to shop. Charlie's favorite place was the mall only because she came to the food court, and I went shopping - the only difference between the two.

Although, that wasn't the only one.

Even if we looked like we were twins (we weren't), we were poles apart. We were just once two strangers living our lives, dealing with what life threw at us in our own ways. However, the day we both met was the day everything changed.

Everything.

And why do I have that feeling that I tell this in almost every chapter?! Is it bad to reminisce? I did not think so.

As I closed my eyes for a second, my mind took me back in time. Everything that had happened until now came flashing in front of me. Until it showed me the day I met Jeremiah. Every single memory of him flashed in front of my eyes and my heart filled itself with guilt. His mother had asked me to not break his heart and that was exactly what I did. A part of me broke down every time I remembered Jeremiah's heart-broken face.

That was when I realized - I really liked him.

I closed my eyes for a minute and took a deep breath. This was not the time to think back on what happened and what could've happened. Our focus should now be on how to take Mackey - I mean, McCrae down.

Brother sat beside me. "Hey, you okay?"

I shook my head. "This is not the time, brother."

He sighed. "I understand. If you shall not talk about it now, I shall not ask you further."

I smiled. "Thank you,"

He nodded with a smile before sitting beside his new girlfriend. Jamie was staring at the ceiling while Charlie paced back and forth, one finger on the earpiece.

Suddenly, Darlene's voice cracked through the earpiece.

Guys, 'tis really bad in here. His Majesty is very sure of the fact that he does not want Francine to rule, neither does he want Samuel to take over. McCrae has convinced him and is grinning evilly. His Majesty has decided to crown McCrae on the day of Francine's coronation and invitations have been sent. It seems like this is over. He won.

"Nope! Absolutely not, Darlene!" Charlie spoke with a hint of determination in her voice. "He has not become the King yet,"

The Coronation is in ten days, Charlie! How are we supposed to stop him by then?

"We fight," Nicole said. All eyes were on her now.

She tried to sit upright, with a little help from my brother. "We fight, Darlene. We are the kind of people who don't give up without a fight! We've come so far now - we can't give up! Francine shouldn't be punished for wishing to live a life of her own, to spread her wings. Charlie shouldn't be punished for helping her, neither should we be punished."

"That's one hell of a speech from someone who can barely open her mouth," Charlie said.

"Wait till I get healed fully, Charles! You would pray for mercy -OW!" Nicole said but then quickly flinched in pain.

"I'll hold you to that, but for now, we gotta figure out what to do," Charlie said.

"Ten days. One person. Think we can pull it off?" Jamie asked.

Charlie and I shared a look and smiled. For the first time, we were thinking the exact thing.

"Fingers crossed."

---

"Darlene, any news?"

Before I could hear Darlene's words, Phobias showed up with our food. It was night now, we were in the dungeons for almost a day! If I were alone in here, it would've been worse than living in Hell. Right now, there wasn't any Hellish feeling - I believe it was because of the people I was surrounded with. All my life the only people I knew were my brother, and my cousins. They were the only people I'd call family. However now, we had two new additions.

Charlie and Nicole.

I couldn't remember what I had done to ever be blessed with such amazing friends! No matter what happened, they never left my side for a single second - always loyal from the very start! One thing I admired about Charlie - she was fiercely loyal to the people she cared about and I was glad that I was now a part of that list.

"Princess Francine, things have become very serious now." Phobias informed with an urgent tone. "Sir James McCrae has convinced Your Majesty to crown him King. You have to do something before 'tis too late."

I stood up from my place and walked over to him with a smile. "I know, Phobias. Thank you for informing us. Please keep informing us further about McCrae's intentions."

Phobias nodded. "'Tis my duty, Princess. You are the rightful heiress to the throne and no one should have the right to seize it from you,"

I smiled. "I completely agree with you,"

Phobias further said. "If you have any wish, I shall fulfill it, Princess."

My mind went back to Jeremiah. Should I tell him that? Should I tell him to Inform Jeremiah that I was fine?

Yes, I should.

Jeremiah deserves to know this.

I cannot let Jeremiah hate me before he knew the whole story.

So, if he hated me even after knowing the story - I'd respect his wishes.

"Yes, Phobias. I do have one wish."

Phobias smiled. "Go ahead, m'lady. Anything you wish for shall be granted."

Brother whined from his seat. "Why is she getting a special wish and I'm not?!"

I smirked, turning my head to face him. "'Tis because you have everything you want right there beside you."

Before my brother could speak, I turned my attention towards Phobias.

"Jeremiah Dominique. I want you to tell him that I am doing fine here and to not worry about me,"

"Anything else you wish to add?"

I hesitated for a second. That could've been the last time I got to meet him. With our future so uncertain, I couldn't risk anything. I shall not die thinking about the possibilities. Now was my chance to tell him what I wanted to tell him.

"Please tell him that everything I said wasn't a lie."

---

Okay, McCrae has not suspected me until now. He was busy flying in the ninth skies and his own fairy-tale kingdom. I cannot wait to slap the grin out of his face! Now that everyone shall be retiring to bed, 'tis your chance to get out of the dungeons! Phobias shall be at the door and he shall escort you all to the Lair. In the lair, you shall be safe and out of everyone's reach.

"Not McCrae's," Jamie interrupted. "He has already been in the lair, we need to find another hiding spot until the coronation,"

"We can stay here," Charlie suggested. "That way the other guards won't get suspicious and we can get our work done from here. We shall get out the very day of Francine's coronation."

"Well, someone has to get out! We need evidence against McCrae! Someone has to go out and find evidence against him. No one shall believe without evidence."

"Who's gonna get out then?" Charlie asked.

Every one of us looked at her, knowingly. Of course, it had to be Charlie! If anyone knew the States (especially the area she grew up in)like the palm of her hand - it was Charlie. Obviously, one couldn't know The States like the palm of their hands - given how big it was, however, I believe that was obvious enough.

Sorry for the babbling.

Anyways, the point is - Charlie was the best fit for this role. She knew the area and also the people from where she could get evidence of McCrae's doings. After the evidence was exposed - McCrae would never be crowned King!

And this would finally be over!

Finally.

However, until then, we had to be patient enough.

"Oh come on, guys! You cannot be serious!" Charlie whined. "Why me?"

"Whynot you?" Brother asked back. "Cherie, if anyone could do this it would be you. You've known that bastard for a pretty long time, seen what he's done, and know the people he's surrounded with. You can get the evidence easily, unlike the rest of us. Plus, do you not want to give McCrae HELL one last time, before he is finally out of our lives?"

Charlie thought for a second. Possibly thinking about everything that had happened in the past.

After a quick few seconds, she took a deep breath and huffed. "Fine. I'll do it!"

Everyone chuckled at Charlie's childish behavior.

I smiled. "That's like a good girl,"

Nicole and Charlie said in unison. "I like it bad," and then quickly shared a look with a laugh.

I laughed along, thinking back on the conversation I once had with Nicole on the phone after I came back from the 'not-date' with Jeremiah. The boys shared a look and shrugged not understanding the inside joke the three of us shared.

Brother raised an eyebrow. "When did you three start having inside jokes?"

Nicole smiled from beside him, a strained smile actually. "Since the day we became friends."

Charlie leaned against the jail bars, correcting Nicole in the process. "Best Friends,"

Brother continued, pointing from Charlie to Nicole and back to Charlie, "You two were already best friends!"

Charlie smirked. "We were talking about Fancy here, Sam."

Jamie and Samuel in unison. "Ooooo"

"Remember how you freaked out when you heard you were going to be engaged to my sister?" Jamie asked Brother with a raised eyebrow.

Nicole's eyes widened. "YOU WERE? WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THAT?! HOW FOOLISH I WAS TO EVER HAVE BELIEVED YOU!"

Charlie quickly intervened. "Relax, Nic. That never happened! He was supposed to, I admit, but then a lot of things happened - so it might have slipped The King's mind."

Jamie added. "Plus, I do not think someone would give their daughter to a man who is involved in this mess," He pointed to all of us.

Suddenly, the atmosphere was transformed from intense to light-hearted. I stood back, taking it all in. Charlie and Brother had their usual banter (that they always had when we were at their apartment), Jamie was getting to know Nicole more, as now she was unofficially a part of the Maxwell family.

I stared at the walls ahead of me, reliving every memory I had made with my new and also my old best friends. The day father announced that I'd be engaged to Prince Augustus, Brother finding a plan to get me out of the palace, us meeting Charlie and Nicole and teaching Charlie the basic etiquettes, meeting Jeremiah and having the best days of my life, meeting his amazing family, and then finally - coming back here.

Everything flashed in front of my eyes like a movie was being played. I replayed every good memory that I wanted to cherish - especially the 'not date'!

My mind wandered to my conversation with Phobias regarding Jeremiah. Could he manage to tell him? How did he react? Was he okay? Did he believe Phobias? Most importantly,

Did he listen to Phobias?

I didn't know.

Phobias were yet to arrive.

Soon, my eyes drifted to the gates and of course, the running figure. When it came close, I realized it was Phobias. My lips curved into a smile.

You would live a thousand years, Phobias.

With a grave expression, he spoke. "I am truly sorry, Princess. I could not get through to Mr. Dominique. His family would not simply allow me to speak with me,"

Just what I thought.

I sighed. "'Tis okay, Phobias. You did what you could."

He gave me a dry smile. "Is there anything else that you would like me to do?"

That was when the light bulb (as the commoners would call it) lit up.

I smiled. "Yes, there is."

---

"You know, Fancy? When I tell you that I HATE you from the bottom of my heart, I literally mean that I hate you with every cell in my body!" Charlie said, trying to be as calm as possible.

Nicole, on the other hand, waved her hand dismissively. "Oh Liz, don't take her THAT seriously! She's just kidding, she doesn't hate you!"

Charlie glared at her. "I hate you too, you're not my friend!"

Nicole gasped. "Oh, you take that back, young lady!"

Charlie argued. "MAKE ME!"

Brother quickly stepped in between them and pushed them apart before things got serious.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, ladies. Calm down! No fighting in here," He looked at Nicole. "And darling, fighting doesn't look good on a princess."

That was when I smacked his head.

"HEY!" He whined. "Why did you hit me?!"

And then, Nicole and Charlie smacked him. "Because you said, fighting doesn't look good on a princess!"

Brother thought for a second and then his eyes lit up in realization.

"Ah, so I hurt your ego. I am sorry, ladies. I should have realized it before I said those very words. Let me rephrase: Darling, fighting like a bitch doesn't look good on a princess. You are the love of my life, you have standards. You fight like a beautiful and elegant woman!"

Okay, I understand. My brother never talks like that. He doesn't just get the right words when he's talking to Nicole. Not his fault, though. It shows that he is so head over heels for her, that he is at a loss for words!

Nicole and Charlie shared a look.

"I don't know if I should feel flattered because he thinks I have standards or I should feel insulted because he called me a bitch." Nicole wondered out loud.

I expected Charlie to say that she should feel insulted, given that she wasn't ready at first to accept their relationship and would do anything to get Brother out of her life. Also, the fact that she was - I cannot stress this enough- HELLA UNROMANTIC! However, she said something that I hadn't expected in a million years!

"Flattered." She said, with a smile.

Time really changes people, without a doubt!

Nicole smiled. "I'll be flattered because you said it so, Charles. I was rather focusing on the 'bitch' part,"

Brother pouted. "You're my girlfriend! You should understand what I meant by that, darling!"

"Of course, I know what you meant! I was just teasing,"

Everyone laughed again, except Brother, who just sighed and shook his head while muttering, 'you're impossible' under his breath.

Well, brother, you signed up for this!

Jamie shouted, pointing Charlie. "Guys! We have an important thing at hand!"

Charlie raised an eyebrow. "Thing?"

Jamie sighed. "Charlie, don't."

Charlie chuckled, punching Jamie in the arm. "Relax! I was just teasing ya!"

Jamie sighed again. "Seriously, guys?"

"Okay, okay. Charlie, you have to do this. This is the only way you can get out of this dungeon without anyone spotting you, Phobias shall make sure of that." I said to which Phobias nodded.

"Yes, miss Charlie. I shall guard this area while you search for evidence."

Charlie sighed. "Now I realize the true meaning of Karma, should've been nice to people when I had the chance too. This is God punishing me for my deeds!"

Nicole smacked Charlie.

"OW! Why on earth did you hit me?!"

"Stop acting like a kid and get this over with! I cannot stay in such a place any longer! It's sooo disgusting!"

"Alright, alright," Charlie said, holding her arm to ease the pain. "I'm doing it."

Jamie and Brother opened the tunnel that was connected directly to one of the warehouses outside the kingdom. Father once told me that once a prisoner had made a tunnel and escaped out of the kingdom during the war. This was the only cell that had the tunnel and after the 'runaway', this cell was never assigned to anyone in fear that someone else might find it out. Never had we both thought that after so many years, this tunnel would come in handy!

Also, this tunnel was connected to the sewers, so yeah, all the best Charlie.

The smell from the sewers hit our noses and in reflex, we almost puked! Charlie took a deep breath from the clean air (if there was any left after the opening) and steeled herself before jumping.

"See you guys in ten days, if I survive the smell, that is," Charlie said with a mix of optimism and realism.

Brother smiled. "You shall survive this, Cherie. The future of the Kingdom rests in your hands now,"

Jamie agreed. "Couldn't have agreed more, it all depends on you now."

"Actually, more appropriate motivation will be, the future of McCrae rests on your hands! Find some juicy evidence that will give that asshole of a person a taste of Hell! Or, better yet, a full-fledged living hell on Earth!" Nicole grinned.

Charlie turned to me. "Nothing to add, Fancy Pants?"

I smirked.

"Break a leg."