The Exchange

*Hezzlie*

I wake up to the sound of someone knocking on my door. The clock says it’s almost 8:00 in the morning. I probably should’ve been up before now, but even when I call, “Come in,” it’s hard for me to consider dragging myself out of bed.
Wilma walks in with a breakfast tray and a sorrowful look on her face. “Good morning, dear,” she says, setting it on the table. “You should probably get up, honey. You have to leave soon.”
Oh, yes. Today is the day I’m going to leave this place and meet my father for the first time. “All right,” I tell her. Despite the fact that I took a shower after Rowan left, I’m afraid she can smell what happened–and then I see the droplets of blood on the bedding and the carpet.
If she notices, she doesn’t say anything. “I’ll tell you goodbye properly before you go.” With that, she wipes at her eyes and heads off.
I drag myself out of bed and go to the bathroom to do the necessary morning things. I don’t need another shower, so I get dressed in a nice pair of slacks and a sweater that isn’t too fancy but isn’t as casual as the outfit I arrived here in. I have to keep reminding myself I’m a princess. It seems foreign to me.
After breakfast, I put on my makeup and consider whether or not I should pack anything. After all, none of this stuff is really mine. I decide it won’t hurt to take the makeup and other products I’ve already opened as well as the outfit I arrived in. I take the underwear and bras I’ve already worn and the shoes that have already been worn in. Then, I decide to pack a couple more outfits just in case. I have no idea what my life will be like in my father’s castle. For all I know, he won’t have anything for me. I’d hate to have to wear the same clothes over and over again.
The last thing I pack is my phone charger. That’s it. Everything I have fits in one small bag.
It’s 8:45 when there’s another knock at my door. This time, I open it and am surprised to see Dean standing there. The way he talked to me the other day, I didn’t expect to see him again.
He has a solemn expression on his face. “Are you ready?”
I nod, and he turns without saying anything else. I take one last look around the room that has been mine and then follow him out. There’s nothing left for me here now.
We proceed down the hall to the stairwell, and Dean says nothing as we make our way down all those stairs. I hope my next room is on a lower level–if I’m allowed to leave it. If I’m not, it doesn’t really matter.
In the entryway, I see Wilma, Natalie, and several other staff members I met at my birthday party waiting for me. Wilma is still weeping quietly as she hugs me goodbye. Natalie does the same, as do several others. I try to remember that their beloved Princess Mara will be here soon, and they will have all the reasons in the world to celebrate.
They probably won’t even think about me again after she walks through the door. I absently wonder if Rowan will. Probably not–not after that gash in his neck heals.
Dr. Bolton is standing near the door. He opens it for me, and I follow him outside where a black SUV is waiting. Dean comes with us. He takes my suitcase and puts it in the back, and then he gets in the front seat. I sit in the back with James, and a driver I don’t remember seeing before starts the engine.
That’s it.
Rowan didn’t even come to tell me goodbye.
I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised. He’s probably happy that I’m going to be gone soon.
No one speaks as we pull through the circle drive and approach the gate, but then several other vehicles meet us there, and we wait to go through, now fourth in line with even more cars behind us. I can’t even see how many there are.
“What’s all this?” I ask.
“We need to make sure King Solomon doesn’t try to double-cross us,” Dean explains without turning his head. “We’ll have plenty of warriors with us.”
“Oh.” It’s all I can say. I want to ask if Rowan is in one of those other vehicles, but I don’t. It makes sense that he’d want to be there when his sister is finally released.
We drive toward the castle. Every once in a while, I can see it in the distance, growing closer. We wind around, sometimes going uphill, but usually going down, until after what seems like about an hour, we come to a bridge. It’s closed down, with a row of what looks like soldiers to me on this side. They move aside as the lead vehicles approach, and we slowly proceed across. The bridge itself is only about two lanes across, but it's massive, with several tall arches and lots of support wires. It gleams in the early morning light, shining like gold. It looks old, and I’d like to know the story of it, but I don’t ask anyone.
The vehicles in front of us fan out and pull to a stop, and now I can see there are other, similar vehicles parked across from us. My stomach flip-flops as I realize this is it. A thousand questions flood my mind. What if my father hates me? What if his family hates me? What if they put me in a dungeon?
I see several sophisticated men standing in the middle of the bridge and a few muscular guys who look like warriors. But I don’t see anyone I think is my father–and I don’t see Mara.
“Are you ready, Hez?” Dean turns to look at me.
All I can do is nod. My tongue seems to be twice its normal size.
He takes a deep breath and unbuckles his seat belt. I do the same, as does Dr. Bolton. By the time my shaking hands allow me to open the car door, Dean has my suitcase.
A few other people from the vehicles in front of us are out and standing around, trying to look intimidating, I think. We slowly start to walk toward the middle of the bridge, Dean on one side of me, and James on the other.
And that’s when I see her.
Mara must’ve gotten out of the SUV at the same time as I did. She is also walking with two men. One of them has hair almost as dark as mine. He’s a bit older than me, probably closer to thirty, with dark eyes, and a scowl on his face. He might be handsome if he didn’t make that face–and he also has a jagged scar on his cheek. The other one looks a bit smarmy, and I don’t even give him a second glance.
Besides, the princess demands my attention–all of our attention. I hear James let out a sigh, and it has to be at the sight of her.
She’s gorgeous, with long blonde hair and sapphire eyes. She looks a bit like Rowan, but much more feminine. She’s wearing a long pink gown and silver heels, and I suddenly feel underdressed.
But something is off about her. I can tell immediately. Her posture is ramrod straight, and her eyes stare right ahead–almost unblinking. It’s like she’s in a trance or something. Maybe she’s just shocked that she’s finally going home, but I get a bad vibe about the entire situation.
I think something is wrong with her.
It doesn’t matter what I think, though, because I’m just a pawn.
“Dean,” the scar-faced man says. “James.”
Dr. Bolton nods his head as Dean says, “Zeb,” to the man in question and then, “Marcus,” to the other. Mara stands between them, but her eyes aren’t focused on… anything.
Dean sets my suitcase down near Zeb but not quite next to him, and Zeb does the same with the bag I now realize he’s holding that must be Mara’s.
“This is it then,” Zeb says. It’s not really a question. “Princess for a Princess.”
“Take care of her,” Dean warns. “Or it won’t be the end of it.”
Zeb snorts. “Pretty little thing our king created with that whore.” His eyes trace the length of me, roaming parts I wish he wouldn’t look at, and I feel my stomach turn over.
“You fucking heard me, Zeb,” Dean warns, and the other man laughs.
“She’s ours now. And this one is yours.” He gives Mara a little shove. She’s caught off guard and nearly tumbles. I instinctively lunge forward to catch her. Dean does the same, but I’m closer, and for a moment our eyes lock as the princess leans on me to keep from falling. She doesn’t even mumble a thank you as Dean takes her arm and helps her over to our side of the bridge–their side of the bridge. I trade her places and grab my own bag while Dean picks up hers.
Then, Zeb has my arm, and I am being rushed away. I turn to meet Dean’s eyes and see that he’s not happy, but there’s nothing he can do. Dr. Bolton says, “Goodbye, Hezzlie,” and I nod at him. A moment later, I’m being placed in the back of an SUV, and we are quickly turning around to head back the other direction.
I can’t help but turn my head. Behind me, I see Mara being rushed to a vehicle a few behind the one I got out of. The door opens, and Rowan rushes out. He wraps her in a tight hug, and I feel my heart begin to crumble. He’s not even watching me drive away.
I mean absolutely nothing to him.
I turn around, looking at where I’m going and not where I came from. That part of my life is over now.
Forever.