You should apologize to Dory

Chapter 9

"Well ..." Esther hesitated a little.

"I know I'm not allowed to appear on such occasions, but there will be a performance later, and I'd love to see it. Esther, please!" I begged her pitifully.

Esther nodded, "Okay!"

I could have kissed her with joy. I was taken to change into the servant's clothes: a black dress with white trim and a white half-apron.

Soon the guests arrived, and they were all elegant and dressed lavishly.

I glimpsed Theo. He was surrounded by several women and looked like a dazzling movie star in a navy tailored suit, upstaging his lush surroundings. The women's eyes were full of admiration and adoration for Theo, and they were giggling like schoolgirls in his presence.

I felt tinges of jealousy and cursed these coquettish bitches! When I thought of myself as only a rogue who slept at the Palace, I felt upset. I had no real identity and couldn't come out into the sun; I was lower than the lowest maid.

I found a secluded tree under which to rest. The sound of gentle music floating through the air made me emotional and I bowed my head: why had I bothered to come, I might as well go back to sleep!

"You look like a hot chick in a maid's dress! Why don't you go and serve the guests?" I looked up and saw Theo standing front me.

"I'm tired, I'm just taking a break," I replied sulkily and rolled my eyes. "What are you doing here with me? Those women will be sad when they can't find you."

"Are you jealous?" he asked me. raising an eyebrow.

"I don't care about you! Why should I be jealous?" I felt that he had read my mind, and I blushed as I rebuked him.

My words had obviously provoked him, as he then reached out and held my chin, and I saw a golden glint in his eyes. Soon his lips were pressed against mine, his tongue thrust between my lips.

My heart was pounding wildly with a mixture of embarrassment and anger. I tried to jerk away from him, but he held my waist tightly.

"Your Majesty!" A pleasant female voice came, and Theo let go of me as I scrambled to straighten my clothes. The girl approaching, and she exuded a graceful and regal aura in her pale pink floral dress and fascinator, with her hair swept back to showcase her beautiful face.

I quickly picked up the tray at my feet and made to leave.

"Wait a minute, bring us over two Lychee Martinis," she commanded me, looking me up and down.

"It'll be my pleasure, please wait a moment, I'll be right back." I walked away quickly with my head bowed.

I returned with the Lychee Martinis with some sweet appetizers on a tray. The girl glanced at the tray, then reached for the martini and threw it in my face.

"How can you be a servant here; don't you know that the King doesn't like almonds?" she scolded me in a shrilling voice.

I was stunned to realize that the desserts I brought included two almond tarts. No one had told me that Theo didn't like almonds!

"Your Majesty, I'm so sorry, I'll go and get something else for you," I apologized before wiping my face dry.

"Who says I don't eat it?" Theo said as he popped a piece of the almond tart into his mouth.

The girl's face was red by now, and she pouted at Theo. "Your Majesty, I remember you've hated the taste of almonds from childhood, haven't you?"

"Emily, I don't like women who have no manners. You should apologize to Dory." I felt a chill come over me just as Theo finished speaking.

Emily must have also sensed Theo's displeasure at this point, and she turned to me and said reluctantly, "Dory, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have spilled my drink on you."

I accepted Emily's apology and I left them to continue with my work.

While I was working, I learned from the other servants that Emily was the daughter of Elder Paul. I had heard that Paul was the chief Elder when I was in Night-fall pack, and was the second in command in GIAPABNTA kingdom and very powerful.

No wonder Emily was so arrogant! But thinking about her grovelling apology to me just now, I couldn't help but feel a little smug.

Soon, the biggest event of the day had begun - the hunting competition. I ran over to watch it. There were ten warriors with blindfolds over their eyes and ten sharp darts their hands. On the sound of a whistle, a crowd of squirrels appeared in a big cage in front of them.

The warriors threw darts at the scurrying squirrels. The crowd cheered every tie a squirrel was hit, and the prize went to the warrior who had killed the most squirrels.

After the warriors' competition, the crowd excitedly joined in. I saw Emily join the competition as well. With a flick of her wrist, she effortlessly and precisely found her target with every dart. She looked as proud as a peacock receiving the crowd's applause.

I stood in the crowd and couldn't help but admire Emily's exceptional skills. When Emily finished the game and removed the cloth from over her eyes, she exclaimed to the crowd, "Now I want to play something really exciting."

Without hesitating, she marched up to me and dragged me onto the gaming field. "I'd like to ask this lady to be my target," she said haughtily. "I'll be blindfolded and I'll knock her ruffled headpiece when she's still walking, just like the squirrels." She let out a sarcastic laugh.

The crowd laughed along with her, and everyone's eyes turned to us.

I thought to myself that this was Emily's way of getting back at me! With her skills, she could easily throw the darts at my eyes or my ears if she wanted. A cold sweat broke out on the back of my neck, I was like a lamb to the slaughter. I desperately looked around and met Theo's gaze, and he winked at me with no expression on his face.

I was a bit disappointed that he had allowed me to be in danger. Emily was already blindfolded and shouted at me, "Run faster, my darts don't have eyes!"

I remembered when that Theo and I had played with the stones and I was blindfolded, so now that I could see, shouldn't I have a better chance of dodging?

A whistle blew, signifying the start of the game. I focused my mind and tried to get my ears to feel where she was throwing the darts, so that I could avoid their flight.

The first dart grazed my ear, the second dart flew past my neck, and the third dart hit the brim of my headpiece, but didn't knock off it. With the fourth and fifth darts Emily missed again, and by this time the crowd had become hushed; everyone was holding their breath watching this thrilling show.

When Emily missed with her sixth dart, she was clearly annoyed. With every dart she threw, she missed by a greater distance, and she couldn't get near me. Soon all ten of her darts had missed, and the ruffle was intact on my head.

At this point, Emily lost her dignity and poise: she ripped the cloth off from over her eyes, stamped her feet and screamed like a shrew.

The crowd fell silent, and no-one dared make a sound because of who Emily was. Then, I heard someone in the throng starting to clap their hands, and when I looked over it was Theo!

He clapped his hands and walked up to me, took a ring off his finger and tossed it to me. "Well done! Here's your reward."

I took the ring he threw at me and put it on my own finger. I proudly held my hand up to show it to the admiring crowd. It was a ring from the King's own hand! I had won by the seat of my pants and was the object of both rapturous applause and envious glances.

After the party had finished, I helped Esther clear up. "Dory, I was so proud of you today! The King seldom gives his personal belongings as a reward for others. He must have been really happy today."

I opened up and related to Esther about Emily humiliating me at the party earlier in the day. She listened, and a worried look came over her face.

"It's no secret that Emily likes the King, she often visits him here. She has many eyes and ears in the Court. The last time she heard that that the King had complimented a maid on her beauty, the poor girl had half her nose cut off. Another time, the King had the last dance with a lady at a party, and soon afterwards the beautiful lady had her leg broken in a car accident.

I got goosebumps listening to this. What would Emily do to me as I had made a public spectacle of her?

"She behaves like a gangster, won't anyone punish her?" I asked with a trembling voice.

"You know her father Paul has a lot of power, it was he who persuaded the old King to pass the throne to Theo, and it can be said that without Paul's support, there would not be a King Theo today. When the King was a child, Paul was the one who decided all matters of our kingdom, but now that the King is in control, Paul feels his power has been diminished. He hopes to consolidate his power one day through a marriage," Esther sighed as she answered me.

I was silent for a while. I could only pray to the Moon Goddess that I would escape Emily's revenge.

In the evening, I entered the bedroom and saw Theo already in the room. I was a little surprised, as he was usually late to bed. As soon as he saw me come in, he took me into his arms and gave me a peck on my forehead.

"Baby, why are you moping? You were so feisty at the party just now."

I told him about my concerns.

"Emily will be dicing with death if she dares to get into trouble with you!" He stroked my head and smirked. Then he pulled me to the window and pointed at the moon in the distance as he said, "See, it's a full moon tonight."

My heart leapt with excitement and my voice trembled as I said, "Your Majesty, you can help me remove the poison in my body today, can't you?"