26 Leigboury II

"The head maid has just barely turned seventeen, and has worked here since she was twelve," Guinevere informed Calluna while she helped wash the prince's hair.

Calluna felt her blood boil, and her entire body tensed at Guin's words. "Was she the oldest?"

"From what I could tell, yes," the handmaid responded sadly, moving to gently massage Calluna's muscles. "Most of the girls were fourteen or fifteen."

"And there's no male help?"

"Not even a cook."

Though the bath had initially started as a relaxing activity, the warmth of the water mixed with her rising anger only served to make the crown prince feel as though she were burning alive. Her chest was swelling with a mix of negative emotions, all of which pooled together to create a sense of unquenchable frustration and anger.

"I'd like to get out now," Calluna stated abruptly, standing from the basin.

Guinevere nodded and quickly grabbed a towel to help the prince dry herself. The handmaid's careful hands dabbed Calluna's sensitive, still-recovering skin. Her burn scars were clear as day, decorating the woman's tan skin in formations as wild as fire itself.

She observed herself in the mirror as Guin tended to her and sighed softly. It was still strange to see someone different in her reflection, but she'd grown mostly accustomed to it. Her chest ached slightly at the sight of her scars, though. It was a difficult experience; one that she'd never be able to forget, as it lived on in her mind and on her skin.

"Let's go, Calluna. We can get you dressed in something warm for your meetup."

Calluna took apprehensive steps out into the rear gardens. The hedge maze was visible from her bedroom so it was easy to locate, and she assumed that Flora would already be waiting for her. Vincenzo followed a decent way behind, taking cover behind various yard decorations and shrubbery so as not to scare the young maid.

The prince inhaled to steady her nerves, knowing that she had to do her best to reassure Flora that things would turn out okay. She couldn't very well do that if she appeared angry or anxious during their meeting.

As soon as she stood at the entrance to the hedge maze, she heard a small voice calling to her from within.

"Miss, over here," Flora said, peeking her head out from the end of the short path inward.

Calluna nodded and followed the girl, who quickly took her hand and began to navigate through the maze with ease. It only took a few minutes before they came upon a circular space presumably in the middle of the maze. There was a large willow tree swaying in the chilling breeze surrounded by a wide variety of different flowers. If it weren't the dark of night, the crown prince would have loved to stop and admire the roses that grew at the foot of the tree.

Flora moved to the willow and sat at its foot, Calluna following and doing the sasame. Once they were sitting beneath the tree comfortably, Calluna allowed a comfortable silence to blanket them. She gazed upward at the three pale crescent moons, her eye softening as she observed.

"I want to t-tell you everything but I'm afraid," Flora whispered after some time.

The crown prince looked at her with a sad smile and leaned her back against the trunk of the willow. "I understand your worries, but I promise I will do everything in my power to help you and your friend. I'm the future king, too, so I have a lot of power to use."

Flora's brown eyes shot wide open at Calluna's statement. "King? But…"

"I'm a woman? Yes, but I'm still becoming king."

"That's so impressive, miss…" the young maid mused. "Okay, that does make me feel better."

Calluna served another patient smile and waited for the girl to speak. The prince was nervous about the severity of the situation but decided to wait until she received details to start stressing.

"Master Allen…" Flora began, fiddling her hands together anxiously, "Ah. Well, he does a lot of illegal things. All of us maids are bought from various… groups in the black market."

The prince's jaw clenched. She had been suspicious that many of the girls were purchased through illegitimate means, but all of them? That was just absurd.

"Myself and six other girls were bought around the same time six months ago, and among us there was one other girl around my age named Scarlet." Flora's gaze turned downcast at the mention of her friend's name. "She was very beautiful and nice, and she was always helping everyone… but when Master Allen got us, he took her away from all of us. I had been looking for her for ages, but a month ago I finally found that he was hiding something in the attic.

None of us are allowed to tend to or clean the attic whatsoever, and it is locked with a key. He goes up every night around ten for an hour. I think that he might have Scarlet locked away in there, and I hate… I hate thinking of all the things he might be doing to her.

When word of your tour reached our ears, I was hopeful that you might be able to help… but I had heard from the townspeople that you weren't very nice, so I grew worried again. As soon as I saw you, though, I just knew that you were someone I could trust."

Flora scooted closer to Calluna and grabbed both of the woman's hands in her own. "Will you please save my friend?"

Calluna wasn't sure how things were going to go considering she was meant to try and get on this man's good side, but after hearing Flora's story all the way to its end, she knew something needed to be done. So, with all of the courage and confidence she could muster, she lowered her upper body to eye level with the girl and pressed her forehead against the maid's.

"Yes. I will save her."

Tears began to well in the girl's eyes and it only took a moment for her to break out into sobs. Calluna wrapped her arms around the frail, bony young maid and hugged her tightly. She caressed her whimpering form and held her reassuringly through each scared heave.

"Thank you, miss. Thank you so much… I'm so scared, we all are so scared," Flora cried.

"I know, I'm sorry this has had to happen to all of you."

"He beats us and does things he shouldn't do even to the youngest of us," the girl continued, burying her face into Calluna's chest.

The crown prince's brow lowered and she closed her eye in frustration. "Don't worry, Flora. I'm going to take care of him, I promise you. You'll all be safe soon."

Flora nodded weakly into Calluna's shoulder, and continued to cry for a while longer.

Calluna knew that the promise she had made was a great one. As soon as her meeting with the girl was done, it felt as though a huge weight was placed directly onto her shoulders. Her heart ached with empathy for all of the maids, and because of this she had set another lofty and near impossible goal for herself.

She was lying alone in the guest bedroom once more with her head buried deep into the down pillow. Her entire body screamed with anxiety as she racked her brain for ideas or at least some semblance of a plan for what to do about the governor and missing girl.

"Why isolate this one girl?" Calluna wondered aloud, frowning with frustration. "And why only this one time?"

None of it made sense.

As much as she desired to solve the issue immediately, there was nothing that could be done right that moment. The only thing she could do was wait for the morning meeting.

She heaved a deep sigh and forced her eye shut once again in the hopes of falling asleep.

'I can't believe what Flora told me. What the hell is this guy up to? I dealt with my fair share of awful people in my previous life, but none of them come even close to this bastard I'm dealing with this time.

I keep wanting to ask, "Well why the hell did he get elected?" only to remember that he cheated his way to this position as well. Is there nothing he has achieved legitimately? What a sad life one must lead to do such disgusting and greedy things.

I have been lying in this bed for hours after my meeting with Flora, just seething. That is it. I can't muster any other emotion other than anger.

I can't wait to wake up in the morning to meet this scumbag face to face, and decide what sort of fate I am going to condemn him with.'

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