30 Returning to the bookshop (II)

"You're not who you claim to be." Anna murmured, smirking.

She had been played in Graces palm, tricked thinking Grace was someone who she could easily control. And yet, Grace was the one that manipulated Anna.

Grace humphed and raised her eyebrow as if questioning Anna. There was no use hiding now. Once out in the open, she might as well face the princess. After all, she is Godless; she has no powers over her. Her hand trailed down to her tights and dug her hand in her pockets, slowly, not to attract any suspicion.

Sadly, her opponent was Anna, whose powers could detect her movement, and she saw the potential threat, but she let it be. Grace could not win against her, not the new her.

"What other lies have you told?" Anna pressed on. Her voice became dull and low, hiding her anger beneath the surface.

"Hmpf! Why does it matter? Isn't it easier to live with a clear conscience?" Grace asked.

Anna's eyes closed slightly and pursed her lips, annoyed.

'So she did. But when?' Anna was frustrated, as she did not know what to believe anymore. There were so many things that happened that day, a lot they talked about so she could be lying about everything or just one thing.

"My conscience isn't clean, anyway." Said Anna.

"Haha! You are only a tiny kid. What would you know about this world? We, adults, are much worse than you could imagine." Grace laughed, amused by Anna's innocent statement. Her laughter filled the room, covering the dripping water noises and the fire of the lamp. Anna was not amused, and she was looking at Grace with a menacing gaze. This fuelled Grace's laughter, easing her mood and thus her guard.

Anna watched Grace but said nothing more. Anna's eyes landed on the books hiding her work. She walked closer to the books, picked one up and while Grace was still enjoying herself, Anna read through the book.

It was a record book, with sales, presumably fictive as she was selling hundreds of books for such a small shop, but she needed to show proof for the money she received thought her secret information network. At least about the information network she did not lie. She might have shared this secret with Anna to earn her trust and then play with her.

Anna flicked through the pages backwards and found a missing month sale. August. Right when she came to Grace, that was the time the sales stopped for more than a month. Her handwriting was unique and so was her ink. Anna could tell that the ink Grace used was of excellent quality, one that would not fade so easily over the years. It was a very expensive ink, that was scarce if you were not a noble or had lots of money.

'So, she hid for a month as she said.'

Did she not trust Anna with the secret? Or was it because she feared Anna would tell her father? But then why tell her this very important secret when she could have hidden it very well. She could have feigned ignorance to the princess and not get tangled with her at all. She could have closed her shop earlier that day if she really knew Anna was coming to her village.

'But I wanted to buy that book.' Anna's mind clicked.

"So that's how it was, huh?" Anna smirked and tossed the book on the table, stopping Grace from laughing. She looked at Anna confused and went to grab the book Anna had left on the table opened.

She approached the table cautiously, afraid that Anna might do something to her, but soon she realised she was dealing with a child and eased her shoulders. Grace became very wary of Anna the first time they met; sometimes around her, she forgot she was talking to a child and not an adult like herself. Anna was nothing like the rumours, and she felt anxious when she found out that her sources were not accurate about Anna.

If they were not accurate about her, who knows how many other people her network could be wrong about. That is why, over four months ago, she set her trip to the capital, where another one of her bookshops was located. Grace never told Anna about her business for a reason, and even if she owned more bookshops around the continent, she did not name them the same.

Grace's eyes landed on the bottom of the page between August and October where a line was drawn. Her shop had been closed for more than a month from the middle of August till the middle of October, but the books showed only a month, not two, as it would arouse suspicion.

"Ha! So what?" Grace's voice pitched higher than normal, obviously nervous about something. Anna's smile widened after it had confirmed her thought.

"So? You thought you could get away with this?" it was Anna's turn to laugh, making Grace even more anxious.

"What do you mean?" Grace puffed her chest and raised her head high when she asked Anna. She might just be bluffing, Grace told herself. It might just be for the show to get something out of her.

"So, you knew that I was coming to the village to seek shelter overnight, so you placed that book in the window, so I could see it." Anna was referring to the book she bought from Grace last time called 'The life of a second Princess'. No one would place such an outrageous book for display, in front of a shop window in plain sight.

Not unless you want to be hanged for treason. Or attract a certain someone.

"You used that book to get me inside the store and then tell me some secrets about your store. I give you that much, I fell for it without even knowing." Anna shrugged and smiled towards Grace, whom by now lost her smug face and looked at Anna in amazement. So, Anna continued, knowing she had found the last piece to the puzzle.

"Telling me some minor secrets was nothing to you, not when considering the benefits of making the Princess do all the dirty work for you. You made a mistake, however." Anna told Grace, pointing her finger to the open book.

"I could not recognise the writing, but the ink I did."

"Huh?" Grace lost her composure as she backed down, away from the table.

"You wrote the letter you claimed Michael did. Didn't you?" Anna asked.

"Haha." Grace chuckled; her eyes watched Anna with insane amazement.

"You figured out everything." She whispered. Her hand leaned towards her pocket once again, creeping towards her weapon.

"As I said, you made a mistake. So, what made you want him dead? Was it competition or did he discover your secrets?" Anna probed and Grace's eyes flickered in response to the second question.

"Oh? How come you made a mistake to let him find out about your secrets?"

"I did not. My husband did before he went back to the regiment." Grace replied through gritted teeth.

The story then follows as Grace's husband made a mistake, revealed her secret, putting her in danger. Grace found about it and tempted Selda with the book which would make her annoyed and demand Grace to be hanged. She would put the blame on Michael, show her a fake letter and hang him instead. Or she would do what Anna did and want to buy the book. It must have surprised Grace as well considering she had to improvise. That is why she told Anna her secret, to sound more believable and then persuade Anna to kill Michael, the merchant.

This way, Grace did not have to kill him herself, fully knowing that Michael had a way out of this. He must have had an advantage, maybe a letter stating what Grace does to save his life if she ever tried to kill him. But if Anna ordered his death, the bargaining chip would become invalid and her secrets forever hidden.

"What a grave situation." Anna faked amazement and laughed, which irritated Grace.

"You are smart. Too smart for your good." Said Grace in a gloomy voice.

"I have been told so before." Anna called Angus from his sleep and asked him to prepare.

Anna was still not apt to use the powers as she wanted. She still depended on Angus.

"That mind of yours will get you killed one day. Did they tell you that as well?" Grace took the blade out and raised it to her shoulder. She launched towards Anna with lightning speed, but Angus was way faster, and a dark blue mist appeared from behind Anna and pinned Grace to the wall.

"Impossible…" Grace whispered while struggling to free herself from the clutches of the blue mist. She knew for sure the Princess was powerless, and yet there was the proof to show her otherwise. Standing suspended in the air, Grace gasped for air as her face reddened.

Her grip on the knife lessened until it slid from her hand, landing on the ground with a bang. Grace's eyes darted towards the knife, and desperation soon engulfed her thoughts. She became more violent, wiggling her body from side to side, to no avail. She remained locked in the arms of a devil.

Anna smirked, satisfied. This day could not get any better; she now had a motive to use Grace. And not just once or twice, but forever without the need of friendship. Grace had unknowingly become Anna's first and most important tool, gained in the easiest of ways.

She now understood the greed trap most nobles fell in by using their powers to dominate people. It felt good to dominate over people, to use them to your liking…

'It is addicting.' a voice whispered inside Anna's mind. She agreed by nodding her head and her smile broadened. She had a cynical smile, scaring even Grace, who was used to the terrors of the world. Anna's shadow enlarged, staying behind her as if fighting the light of the lamps, while a hallow smile smiled towards Grace.

Anna's shadow leached slowly, covering her dirty bottom dress, and advancing upwards. Anna's eyes turned a darker shade of purple, every time Anna agreed with the voice inside her head, whispering unknown things.

'Snap out of it.' Yelled Angus letting go of his mist and retracting back inside the ring. Grace landed on the floor, choking, and holding both her arms near her bosom. With every cough, Grace felt blades scraping her throat, so her eyes teared.

Anna's eyes snapped open, its colour returning to normal. Her hands were shaking because of the adrenaline rush from before, but Anna was in a state of confusion.

'What was that?' her mind tangled in the previous events, the voice, the temptation… the feeling.

Angus was nowhere to be found, even his presence was hidden from Anna's mind. He had fully retracted into the ring, leaving Anna with a multitude of questions and none of them answered.

"What was that?" Grace screeched in panic, backing as much as possible into the wall.

"This happens when you play with fire. Are you willing to cooperate?" Anna asked, ignoring Grace's frightful gaze.

"Ye-yes… anything. What do you need?" Grace grabbed hold of the wall, pinning herself further into the wall, wanting to melt into it.

Anna smiled and approached Grace, who in turn succumbed, avoiding her gaze.

"Don't be afraid. I am here to make a proposition; both will benefit from it."

Grace raised her head; curiosity suddenly glazed her cotton pink eyes. She truly was a businesswoman, forgetting about all the traumatising experience in exchange for some money. This made things way easier for Anna, who now knew her weakness for money so she could strike straight to her business.

"I know that deep down you want your business to become recognised, but you are terrified of the Imperial Law. What if I told you I could help you? I can make your network the vastest in the country, not a single information would be missed, people from all corners of the continent would pay hefty sums just to get them."

Grace's eyes glistened, but she quickly covered her expression and resumed her normal, business face, as Anna's outrageous claims did not faze her.

"Hmpf! As if a useless person as you could. I don't intend to offend, Princess, but you lack money and influence in the capital. How are you going to persuade people from the council to approve of such a law? Do you intend to cause a revolution? Or get yourself killed?" Grace scoffed at Anna's ideas.

It truly was impossible for a princess as Anna, who momentarily was declared missing, as a pillar of the capital. She had nothing, considered useless, Anna should be happy for just being able to stay in the capital.

Anna laughed, amused by Grace's innocence.

"Who said anything about making it legal?" Anna had no intention of showing her cards. She'll be in the shadows of her great saint Aura, and while there she will carry the dirty business in the background.

"What?"

The princess took a few steps towards Grace and clasped her hands. She squeezed her hands a little, not losing eye contact with her one second.

"I never had the intention of becoming public. Do you want your life in danger?"

"I already live on the edge of a cliff." Grace replied, looking at Anna seriously.

"Yes. Yes, I know, but living in the shade protects you from the sun. What better way to make money than in secret, on a scale that not even the Imperial palace will know."

Money made in secret meant fewer taxes, more to keep and less to give. No matter how you looked at it, it is the best outcome for any business, especially one that is just barely hanging.