Chapter3

#Chapter3

ISABELLE’S POV

That day I had witnessed the king’s cruelty with my own eyes. I was separated from everyone I loved. My family. My sweet little sister, Lily. She was only five years old. I don’t even know if they are still alive or not. God knows if they are alive or dead.

Today, more than one year has passed since that day. One year and still that day’s memory is fresh in my mind. It all happened a few days after my eighteenth birthday. It has been a year since I am locked in this palace. It has been a year since I have not seen the outside world. A year has passed since I have not seen my family and my life has sunk into the deep well of darkness.

The soldiers had captured other girls from my village too. All girls except me were sent to some other palace. Only I was the one who was brought here. I wish I was with them too. If I was sent with them then I would have thought of escaping.

I wipe my tears and look around me. When I was brought into this palace, I was given space with the other slaves. At first, I used to live with other slaves but after only two days, I was shifted to this room.

This room is not small but is of average size. It is better than other rooms which are given to other slaves. Everyone calls it the room of the special slave. I got to know that this was the king’s order. After that day, everyone started treating me differently. The head maid who was quite rude to me during my first two days started caring for me.

I am not allowed to leave the harem. Even if I try to leave the harem the guards stop me immediately. I am not even allowed to leave this harem so escaping the palace is next to impossible.

I don’t do the work as other slaves do because as everyone calls me, I am a special slave. I don’t know why. I don’t know what this means.

I look towards the window. Nothing can be seen from this window except the sky. It is early in the morning. There is no point in sleeping more. The head maid will surely come to wake me up. Though they don’t give me any work still my routine is as strict as others. I have to wake up in the morning and then I have nothing to do. All the other slaves start doing their work and then I am alone.

I get up and decide to get the dress for the day. I was given many dresses. My dresses are different from the dresses of other slaves. I should say my dresses are more beautiful than others. Some other girls in the harem look at me with jealousy. Sometimes I don’t understand why they hate me so much.

Sometimes I wish I was somewhere else. I wish I was still with my family in my small village. Everything would have been so much different then. I wish I could return to my previous life.

I brush my hair with a wooden brush and then leave my room. My room is a little away from the common slave room but it is still in the harem. It is a big hall-type room in which all slaves live together.

I enter there and see my two friends Ivy and Elise are already awake. Some of the other maids are awake too. They are sitting near the fire hearth. The winter is soon going to start but the change in weather can be felt.

/"Hey! You woke up early/". Ivy says as she sees me moving towards her. I smile as I continue to walk toward them. I have only two friends here, Ivy and Elise. They were not rude to me like other slaves. Ivy and Elise are also treated like other slaves. They have to work from day to night. As it is an early morning that’s why they are free.

There is no queen here in this palace. I shake my head a little to stop thinking about these things. I look towards my only two friends.

/"Yes! What are you two doing?/" I ask them. My question does not suit the situation because I know what they are doing.

/"We are relaxing because we know we have a really busy day today/". This time it is Elise who replies. I look at them confused.

/"Why is it a busy day today?/" I ask them curiously and the reaction they gave me was not what I expected. They are looking at me with shock. I wonder why they are looking at me like this?

/"You don’t know!/" Elise says shocked. What is it that I don’t know? Am I forgetting something?

/"Well! Well! Look who is here. The special slave, Isabelle is here in this common slave room/". Before they could answer we hear a very rude voice. I look behind me at the source and find Esme with a sneering look on her face.

I narrow my eyes on her. I don’t like her. She is always rude to me.

/"I don’t want to talk with you. Leave us alone!/" I say to her in a quite normal tone. I do not like her. She hates me and does not let even a single chance of irritating me slip away. She says that I have taken her position. That’s why she hates me. She is also a slave here.

/"Of course. Why would you like to talk with a common slave like me? Especially now when the king is returning/". She says with a smirk on her face. Her words were like thunder to me. It feels like her words have created havoc inside me. My soul almost left my body.

The king is returning! This means my life is going to turn darker. I know what will happen to me when the king returns. I know what awaits me on his arrival. I wish I could die before being presented to him.

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