The thought of being cramped in the carriage box with him for hours was enough to send shivers down her spine, she thought as she pounded up the stairway.

Aurora was in the room, staring out the window.

Since their clothing was damaged, they had nothing to pack.

"You seem upset. Did you fight with the King again?"

Fight with the King? For once she did not. She was struggling to hold on to her anger for her dear life - it was the only thing that had stopped her from laying at his feet and begging him to believe her innocence.

And even despite her anger and resolve, she had given in to his touch.

How foolish could she be? She wondered.

Claire grunted and plopped down on the edge of the bed, wincing when it creaked loudly.

He had seen her give away the necklace... and if she were to judge by the look she had seen in his eyes, he wasn’t happy about it.

But why did it matter so much to her if he saw her? After all, the man had to be paid for his services and she wasn’t going to pluck the coin from the trees, was she?

Besides, he had only given it to her because he didn’t want her to wear the one Aldrich had given to her... not because he truly wanted to gift her something special.

Yet she had to admit that it was a very beautiful necklace.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"Lady Stenly, the Kings requests that you make haste." Came the gruff voice of Aurora’s guard.

Make haste... the last thing she wanted to do was to join him in his cubicle of travel comfort.

"We will be along soon, tell him we have to pack all our things." She said, a smirk on her face.

For a moment, everything was silent. Then she heard footsteps retreating from the doorway.

"We should head down to the carriage, Claire. We clearly have nothing to pack."

Claire just sat down there, staring at her hands carefully folded in her lap.

"I lost a baby." She blurted, tears clouding her vision.

She desperately needed someone to understand her - to understand that being in the same carriage with him was unbearable for her.

He was just... too much for her.

First he accuses her, then he takes complete charge of her life even when she no longer has any ties with him.

Rory rushed to her side and crouched down to look into her eyes.

"I suspected as much, but everyone told me you were just severely ill. So I was right? You were pregnant?"

Claire nodded, too overwhelmed to speak.

"And he thinks I killed the baby." She began to cry.

She covered her face with her hands, shaking with the force of her sobs. Claire hadn’t realized how painful it was until she had admitted it aloud to someone.

"Who? The King?" Aurora took on an indignant tone. "But why would he ever think such a thing?" She asked, gently stroking Claire’s back.

"You can’t even hurt a fly, much less kill anything. That’s a very terrible thing for him to say."

Claire nodded in agreement despite her sobs.

"I can’t stand him, Rory. I don’t want to ride in his carriage. Haven’t I suffered enough?"

Aurora just continued to stroke her back ever so gently.

"I don’t think you can’t stand him. You just don’t trust yourself to be around him."

Claire’s head snapped up at her sister’s words. They were matured beyond her years, almost as if an adult had been speaking to her instead of a girl who would soon be turning eleven.

"Don’t grow up too fast, Rory." She pulled her sister into her embrace. "Please remain a child forever, you’re the only one that makes me feel truly needed and useful. If you rush ahead of your years, I would lose even that."

Her sister shrugged out of her grip. "I would still have to grow up eventually, Claire. I cannot be a child forever and ever." Then she wiped Claire’s tears with her small hands. "These days, you have been crying more than I have seen you cry since I was born. Even the sight of rain would make you cry as it is." Rory teased.

Claire swatted her playfully.

"When you do grow up, you will understand my melancholy." 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"But why do you bother with someone that makes you cry all the time? Zach always told me that when you love someone, you’ll feel like you’re floating on clouds."

She patted her sister’s hand.

"Zach should not be telling you such things - those are fairy tales, Rory. Love means sacrifices, sacrifices, sacrifices until you drop dead one day."

Her sister’s eyes widened in shock. Then she backed away.

"That’s very cruel of you, Claire. Zach loves you, loves us, and he hasn’t dropped dead."

Claire instantly regretted her words but couldn’t bring herself to apologise for them. However, one thing Aurora said caught her attention.

"Did he tell you that he loves me or you just assumed that?"

A guilty flood of colour rushed into Aurora’s pale and round face.

"I heard him whisper it to you while you were asleep back when we still lived at Loodswood."

Oh.

Suddenly she felt years older than him and whatever romance that could have ever bloomed between them.

There had been a time when someone like him was all she ever wanted. How long ago was that?

"So you keep things from me as well?"

Rory shrugged, casting her gaze to the ground. "I just forgot."

The door to their room suddenly burst open, banging roughly against the wall.

The loud sound made both of them start.

Yeren’s guard, Maurius stood there, heaving from the exertion.

The he stood to the side and Yeren came into view.

Behind him was the plump inn lady who looked like she would faint at the sight of his good looks.

"It is very like you to keep me waiting till dusk, Lady Stenly."

Aurora had a sheepish smile pasted on her face but kept her head down.

Then he entered the room, leaned down and swept her into his arms like one would carry a bride.

In her shock, she wasn’t quick enough to protest his actions.

But wasn’t he aware gossip about them would spread? Or was he known for barging into women’s rooms and carrying them out in his arms?