Chapter 15- use this

"You come late, and then you speak in riddles. Why should I not get offended?" Perry asked as she tried to contain herself.

"My crown princess, please do not get offended. It might harm your health. The whole palace already knows you sat throughout the night waiting, and waiting alone. So pitiful." Eva's voice was full of scorn. And some of the other ladies began to whisper among themselves.

Eva was glad about the effect of her words. She wanted to reduce the crown princess with more hurtful words, "but, do not worry, Crown Princess. I am late because I stopped at the temple. I prayed for your good luck. I prayed that whatever has happened to you for the past two days would not repeat itself. You need those prayers, do you not, Crown Princess?"

Perry rose to her feet in anger. The whispering among the women had increased. Perry's eyes scanned them. They were all mocking her, all questioning her status. No, she could not let this happen. She swallowed the lump in her throat and said, "Tell me why I should not punish you, Side Consort Eva?"

Eva gasped, "Punish me? You wish to punish me, my dear Crown Princess? That would be unfair. I did this all for you. I went to the temple, five miles from here, and prayed to the gods for you. And you want to punish me? It is quite sad you do not understand my good wishes."

"Have you also prayed for yourself to ward off bad luck?"

Everyone turned to the direction of the voice. It was not feminine; it was the voice of a man. Not just any man, it was the voice of Crown Prince Edward. He stepped out from the second entrance leading to the Crown Princess's bedchamber.

Eva began to shake. "The Crown Prince is here?"

"Did you expect me to be in your palace?" It sounded like a question, but it wasn't meant to be answered.

Eva understood and immediately went down on her knees.

"So tell me, Side Consort Eva," the prince continued. "You think you have good luck, right? Even more than my Crown Princess? Do you know that by insulting her, you are insulting me?"

Eva bowed, "I never meant any disrespect. May the prince forgive me. I promise, I will never do this again."

"Yeah, I thought about those words. They seem a fitting apology. But I will not take it. I will punish you. Just to teach the others a lesson. They must not learn this bad habit from you. Side Consort has disobeyed palace rules by disrespecting the Crown Princess. She should be strictly punished, but because she is new in the palace, a lighter sentence will be imposed. From tomorrow morning, at dawn, Side Consort Eva will walk to and fro from the temple to the Crown Princess's palace fifteen times. For each long trek, she will bring back a golden rose and place it at the Crown Princess's doorstep."

"Please, Your Highness!" Eva begged.

"You better accept your fate, or we will operate by the real palace punishments for disobedient women. If you think this is hard, wait until you see the real deal."

He turned to the other palace women, "The Crown Princess is the head of this harem. I will tolerate no insult to her person, as any insult aimed at her is aimed at me. Am I clear?"

The women rose and bowed, "We will abide by the rules," they said in unison.

The Crown Prince rose to his feet and stormed out.

"Is this a show or what? I want more!" Patricia screamed in her heart. She felt so good to see her bully getting bullied in front of everyone.

***

Patricia woke up early. She packed some food, walked a long distance, and positioned herself in a small building near the temple. The place had a room, so she could conveniently hide there without being seen.

By dawn, Patricia watched Side Consort Eva walking towards the temple with a maid. The servant carried an umbrella and used it to cover Side Consort Eva.

Patricia waited for Eva to make about five trips to and fro, then she grabbed her pendant necklace and began to rub on it, chanting some words.

The sky immediately turned grey, and heavy rain began pouring. Patricia watched Eva from the window. There was no shade in sight for Eva to run into. The only shade was a small building some distance away, and that was where Patricia was hiding.

Patricia also chanted an incantation for summoning the wind. If the rain did not cause enough havoc, the wind caused a lot more. The wind made it hard for Eva to walk quickly to the only existing shade in sight. As for the umbrella Eva's servant was holding, it flew away. Now, there was no way Eva could escape the ruthlessness of the wind and rain.

Patricia watched from the window and smiled. Eva kept yelling. She resembled a miserable mess.

***

Crown Prince Edward was taking a walk when he sighted dark clouds at a distance. The clouds were strange. They only gathered in one spot, and that was the temple area. He ran his hand through his hair.

These rain clouds immediately made him suspect Patricia. Was she doing this to get revenge on Eva? He wondered why she was so vengeful. He had punished Eva the previous day, especially because of Patricia's complaint. The insult to the Crown Princess was just a good excuse. But Patricia would not be satisfied until she had completely humiliated her opponent.

Edward sighed. He had to go get her. She was playing her tricks at the wrong spot. That was the temple. Someone could do divination there and find out she was responsible for this strange event. Then she would be in a lot of trouble with the king. He had to get her before she was discovered.

" What if I do not make it in time," he thought.