Princess Prince, Elizabeth A. Freeman [free novel reading sites TXT] 📗

other King revulsion began to well in the pit of Ophelia's stomach, unable to tear his eyes away from the approaching male. King Vladimir was tall and thickly built to the point that his tailored clothing bulged in all the wrong places, his short flame colored hair was slicked back against his skull and his hungry green eyes locked onto Ophelia like those of a wolf that had caught the scent of fresh meat.

"Your Highness Ambrosius, Princess Ophelia...." Vladimir greeted them properly and gave a slight bow of his head in recognition of their sovereignty before straightening. His eyes raked over Ophelia's body, sending a chill of disgust up the Princess' spine before they turned back to the King.

"It truly is a honor to be visiting here in your country, King Ambrosius." Vladimir spoke formally as he grinned at the King.

"It is likewise an honor to have you here." Ambrosius spoke shortly, uncomfortable with the other man's presence.

"I hate to interrupt your evening, Majesty.. But there is something of great import that I need to discuss with you in private that cannot wait." Vladimir's voice lowered to a conspiratorial tone and the King frowned as his hopes that the other noble would simply return to mingling among the other courtiers was crushed.

"Very well.." Ambrosius grumbled in annoyance and rose, gesturing for Vladimir to follow him to a private chamber adjoining the throne room. As Ophelia watched his father depart from the room a feeling of foreboding filled him though he could not place the reason why.

"King Ambrosius.. Some rather dreadful news has come to my attention thanks to some of my informants.." Vladimir spoke softly as he closed the door behind him and faced the blond man who was regarding him with a look of displeasure.

"Is that so? And this news is something that I need be made aware of with such dire urgency in the middle of a royal ball?" Ambrosius' voice was cold with annoyance as he stared down the other King. He did not appreciate having another King making such demands of him in his own palace.

"Unfortunately, yes. You see, it has come to my attention that you have been hiding a very important secret from the public." King Vladimir tip toed around what he intended to state, however the implications of Vladimir's words turned Ambrosius' face into a stony mask. When Ambrosius did not speak Vladimir saw fit to continue with the delivery of his recent revelation.

"One of my informants has alerted me to the fact that your Princess is not what she appears to be. Ophelia is truly a man..." Vladimir stopped there as he saw fear come to life in the depths of the other man's crimson eyed gaze.

"You.. How did you...?" King Ambrosius growled, knowing that there had to be some angle to Vladimir's intentions of revealing that he knew the truth.

"It doesn't matter how. The fact is I know the truth. However, I am willing to keep it a secret under several conditions." Vladimir almost purred the words, knowing that he had Ambrosius under his thumb.

"What conditions?" Ambrosius grated out through clenched teeth, his eyes narrowing as his dislike for the other King boiled over to the point of hatred.

"So you're willing to bargain with me.. Good. I will marry Ophelia, and you will give me half of Shioria.. In exchange it will remain a secret that Ophelia is a man. However, before you even ask, if you do not comply with my conditions I will make it known publicly that your daughter is really male. The citizens will be outraged and your rule will be usurped. You both will be killed for your deception." Vladimir chuckled darkly as he watched Ambrosius' hands ball into fists, barely managing to contain the King's outrage. Ambrosius could feel the fury welling up inside him, but restraint and fear kept him in place as Vladimir's words sank in.

"But why would you want to marry Ophelia, knowing the truth?" the King's voice shook with anger as he spoke, though he forced his expression back to the same stony composure he'd had before.

"For one, I do not care that Ophelia is male. He's beautiful and I want him as my Queen... And I suppose you could say I'm taking pity on your hopeless situation." Vladimir smirked, running a hand through his greased back hair. King Ambrosius ground his teeth together at the haughty statement, hardly able to believe that he was being forced into such a position.

"Fine. You can marry the Princess and take half of Shioria." Ambrosius conceded in a low voice, knowing that there was no argument he could make in response to this man's demands.

"Wonderful! I'm so happy we see eye to eye. Now, I want you to go out there and announce our engagement and that the wedding shall be three days from now." Vladimir clapped Ambrosius on the shoulder and it took everything the King had to keep from running the green eyed man through on the spot.

"Three days?! But that's unheard of! Wedding preparations normally take over two months!" Ambrosius protested as he regarded King Vladimir with a look of disbelief.

"Well then, you shall have to see to it that the preparations are made quickly then. Now, we should be getting back to the ball so that you can make the announcement." Vladimir turned his back on Ambrosius and moved to head back out into the adjoining ball room. For a moment the fleeting thought of stabbing the other King flickered through Ambrosius' mind, but the knowledge that he could not risk starting a war kept him from drawing his sword.

Ophelia looked over to the side chamber as King Vladimir and his father emerged, his golden brows furrowing in concern as he saw the look on King Ambrosius' face.

"Daddy?" Ophelia whispered, however the king raised a hand to staunch the Princess' questioning. Ambrosius' face was drawn and pale as he cast a glance at Vladimir and then stepped to the edge of the dais and clapped his hands together to get the attention of the court. The musicians fell silent and the lords and ladies turned to face the king, gazing up at him with curiosity.

"Lords and Ladies of Shioria! I am pleased to announce that three days from now Princess Ophelia Gratien XI will be wed to King Vladimir Lanval!" Ambroius spoke the words clearly, though his tone of voice was hollow and emotionless. As the crowd burst into excited cheers Ophelia's eyes widened in disbelief, a hand rising to his mouth as he gasped.

"Papa!" Ophelia began to protest but King Ambrosius turned and pinned him with a warning look that silenced the Princess on the spot. The King gave a nod for his courtiers to resume their dancing and then sank into his throne, his proud shoulders sagging with the weight of defeat. Ophelia was drawn from his shock as Vladimir knelt before him and took the Princess' hand, raising it to his lips which were uncomfortably cold.

"It will be a pleasure to be your husband, dear Ophelia.." Vladimir purred, his green eyes burning a trail down the Princess' body. Ophelia suppressed the shudder of disgust and slowly removed his hand from that of the foreign king, his own crimson eyes half lidded as he forced his face into a perfect mask.

"I appreciate your kind words, your Highness..." Ophelia's words were toneless and cold even as he affixed a pleasant smile on his lips.

"I shall join you for dinner tomorrow night, so that we might get to know each other better before our wedding." Vladimir asserted and then got to his feet with a smirk and rose to join the dancing figures below once more.

Chapter Three

"Daddy, I can't marry that man! I don't even love him!" Ophelia protested, grasping his father's arm and looking into the King's crimson eyes. Ambrosius set his jaw, knowing that whether or not he even wanted to marry Ophelia to Vladimir he had no choice but to obey the other King.

"It doesn't matter if you love him. He is a powerful man who can take care of you and the union of our two kingdoms is best for Shioria. You will marry King Vladimir three days from now." the king's words were firm and from the look in his eyes he was finished with the conversation, shaking Ophelia's hands free from his arm. Ophelia worked his jaw for several moments in silent fury before turning on one heel and storming off to his private chambers where Abigail was waiting for him with a concerned expression.

"Can you believe this!? This is outrageous!" Ophelia's voice raised to a shriek as he unclasped the diamond necklace that encircled his throat and threw it down on the dresser.

"Calm down, Ophelia... I know you're angry.." Abigail soothed and came to the Princess' side, setting a gentle hand on Ophelia's shoulder. He sighed and slumped in defeat into one of the silk upholstered chairs, curling his arms about his chest protectively as Abigail stroked his blond locks.

"Nanny, what am I supposed to do? I hate King Vladimir. That man is a filthy, disgusting, repulsive snake!" Ophelia looked up into Abigail's wise motherly eyes which were lit with a look of deep sorrow.

"I don't know, dear heart. We'll figure out something, I promise. However your father's words are final so you must behave yourself around King Vladimir." Nanny clutched Ophelia close to her bosom, tilting her face upward and praying to the goddess that there could be some other way to save Ophelia from this fate.

"I know, Nanny.. I know. I'll behave myself." Ophelia sighed in defeat, wrapping his arms around his adoptive nursemaid.

Chapter Four

"The mountain ranges in my country of Theron are rich with mineral deposits. With this wonderful new bond formed between our kingdoms perhaps in exchange for expanding our sea trade in your kingdom we could supply you with our plentiful mineral resources." King Vladimir spoke to Ambrosius with a casual smile and then raised his wine glass to his lips and cast a glance at Ophelia who had been seated next to him. Ophelia could feel Vladimir staring at him, keeping his eyes downcast at his plate to try to avoid having to make conversation with the savage brute.

"Indeed, that would be quite beneficial to both of us." King Ambrosius nodded in agreement as he meticulously