BUSTED

**Freda’s POV

"Wheeet... wheet... wheet."
The two guards put down their phones and cocked their heads in my direction. They tried to move with precision and discretion but I had seen these moves before, in movies.

One of them asked, his voice resonating through the tube, "Who's there for the last time you would be met with severe wrath!” He proclaimed.

“Wrath my foot,” I say sarcastically.

"Ah! Oh no, I apologize." I stumbled, purposefully making my voice tremble.

"I must have made a mistake somewhere, I didn't mean to bother... I was trying to find the kitchen, I think. I must have gotten lost when they asked me to cook something."

The guards glanced at each other, clearly suspicious, although the one who had spoken initially appeared to loosen up a little.

He inched forward and whispered, "Kitchen, you say? "So, what are you doing here? Girl, this isn't even close to the kitchens."

I trailed off, moving closer to them, "I-I know, I'm so sorry." "I don't know this castle well, and it's gloomy here... Could you please show me the way back? Would you please?"

With a grimace on his face, the second guard moved forward at this point. "Just who are you? You are don't look familiar to me."

"My name is Marissa," I blurted while attempting to maintain a calm tone of voice. "I just started last week, so I'm new. I was taken on as an assistant as they required more help in the kitchen for the feast that is being held tonight."

The first guard laughed as if he was pleased by my anxiety. "Well, Marissa, it appears that you made a mistake. This is far from the kitchens. I don't beleive you need our help back there cause you came here yourself."

"I guess I am. Both of you are so kind. I replied, this wasn't working out as I planned.

He smiled, obviously appreciative of the praise. " I'll walk you back to the main hall, I'll tell you what. You cannot be left to fend for yourself down here. These passageways make it simple to get lost."

With what I hoped was a genuine smile, I said, "Thank you, that's very kind of you." However, as he moved nearer, offering me guidance, I realized I needed to take quick action before they noticed something was off.

I blinked at the second guard, who was still observing me suspiciously, and purposefully stumbled into the first guard's arms. I gave a little gasp and looked up at him, my eyes wide as he caught me.

"Ah! I'm awkward. I tried to seem upset as I said, "Thank you," in a whisper.

He laughed once more, obviously having fun. "No harm done," he responded while supporting me. "Let’s get you out of here, eh?"

"Kindly," I said, barely raising my voice above a whisper.

However, the second guard moved forward, obstructing our way as we started to move. His eyes narrowed as he scanned me, saying, "Hold on a minute." Why haven't I seen you before if you're new? Every day, I work in the kitchens, and you're not hard to notice, I mean you're not even a vampire."

A shiver went down my spine. That was it. I had to think quickly or else everything would come to a crashing crash.

I answered quickly, trying not to sound panicked, "Oh, I'm usually kept in the back, doing prep work." They don't let me go out much because I'm still getting the hang of things. After I've established my worth, I'm confident I'll be more noticeable."

He didn't seem to be persuaded. "Preparation work? And who gave you the job?"

I was in serious trouble now. I couldn't mention names for fear of the entire tale coming to an end. However, before I could reply, there was a slight noise coming from the tunnel—footsteps were getting closer from the castle's direction. The guards exchanged a short look and tensed.

The second guard tightened his grip on his spear and screamed, "Who else is down here?"

This was my opportunity.

With trembling in my voice, I pleaded, "Please, I need to get back. I don’t want to get in trouble, and if they find me down here..."

The first guard dismissed the guard with a wave, obviously still engrossed in his ego. "Relax, it's probably just another person heading to the feast. Before she causes any more difficulty, let's get her out of here."

However, the footsteps were approaching closer, I felt like my heart was going to explode from my chest because it was thumping so strongly. I needed to divert their attention from anything at all.

I leaned closer to the first guard without thinking, my voice falling into a seductive whisper. "You realize how courageous you are. You've probably witnessed a wide variety of things down here."

He blinked, obviously taken aback by my tone shift. In an attempt to appear humble, he answered, "Well, I've seen a few things."

" Maybe you could tell me about them... after you help me get out of here?" I made a suggestion and attempted to look convincingly flirtatious by batting my eyes in a way that showed I was willing to do the act even if I knew I wasn’t.

The guard grinned more broadly and nodded, obviously appreciative of the attention. "I suppose I could.."

But the second guard cut him off before he could say anything further. "It's enough. We must return to our original post. You, young lady—move."

It wasn't another servant, much to my horror. Captain Volkov was the one.

A rush of dread passed over me as soon as his eyes met mine. I couldn't talk my way out of this now that he knew exactly who I was. This was the guard stationed in my care. He was ordered to look after me and ensure that everything I did was in line with Damien’s orders.

The second guard yelled, startling everyone into focus, "Captain!"

Volkov approached us with an unreadable look. "What's going on here?" he inquired in a stern and commanding tone.

I parted my lips to say something, but nothing came out.

The other guard added, "We found this girl wandering down here, sir," in a tense voice. "She claims to be new, working in the kitchens, but—"

Volkov interrupted, his gaze never leaving me, "That's enough. You two are dismissed. Go back to your posts right away."

The guards shared a perplexed look but refrained from arguing. Volkov and I were left alone as they quickly saluted and raced back the way they had come.

Neither of us said anything for a moment. The air was heavy with tension, nearly too much to breathe. My heart was pounding, and my head was racking trying to figure out how to get out of this.

Volkov spoke first breaking the silence.

"You ought not to be down here, Lady Freda," he remarked in a menacingly low voice. "Do you have any idea what you’re risking?"

I forcefully swallowed and looked him in the eye. "All I was doing was looking for a way out." I have to leave this Kingdom and Damien behind."

For an instant, his countenance softened somewhat. "You're not aware of the situation you're in. This is not a game. The consequences isn't light on any of us if the King discovers you're trying to flee."

I said, "I don't care," as my voice faltered. "I can’t stay here, not like this..." I muttered.

“Besides, I'm not trying to flee. I’m trying to get some fresh air,” I say with my eyes locked on his. I tried to bite my lip seductively as if to charm Volkov.

“Snap out of it.” Volkov lashed back, seeing my move. As if he knew what was in My mind. Volkov was hot and seductive. He had ocean eyes but I couldn’t have something intimate with him. First, it was very disrespectful to Damien, and not only that it would be very wrong to my esteem and privileges in the castle and also put Volkov in danger.

“What exactly were you doing down at the cave?” Volkov asked.

“I wanted to take some fresh air.” I retorted with a frown.
“There’s no fresh air in the enclosed place lady Freda. Why exactly were you trying to escape.” he Frowned back.


“I heard of the old legend queen whose paths were just as similar as mine and Damien’s father kept her captive for many months and years until she accepted to become queen. When she became queen she lived for only two days before eventually meeting her demise. "


“And who told you this legend?” Volkov asked and I became silent.