Chapter 87: His Blossoming Beauty
Anastasia felt like her life was falling apart, reaching a level of despair that surpassed anything she had experienced before.
Every piece of news that reached her ears offered no benefit and instead led her towards the life she despised. She had seen from afar how her sister had been broken and then put back together, but not in the way she had originally been, but rather how the people of the palace wanted her to be.
"Aiden, let us go find Grandmother. Anna, you should rest today. I will have food sent to your room," Princess Emily said, hooking her arm around Prince Aiden’s.
Prince Aiden wanted to talk with Anna, but it seemed like there were other pressing matters he had to attend to. As he was pulled towards the exit of the room, he said, "I will see you tomorrow, Anna," and raised his hand with a smile before he and his sister disappeared from the royal courtroom.
As Anastasia turned to gaze at the door, she heard Prince Dante’s words coming from behind her, "I will walk you back to the room. Come." When he walked past her and reached the door, he noticed she hadn’t started moving and stood there frozen on the spot.
Anastasia’s lips trembled, and she pleaded, "I don’t want to be a courtesan. Please help me." She was terrified by the thought of it, acutely aware that she had just become a prized possession of the royal family.
The cold look in Dante’s eyes softened, and he patiently offered, "Accept my proposal to be exclusively mine. You won’t have to go through anything that you fear by my side."
Anastasia’s hands clenched, and she wanted to cry again, but her eyes remained dry, as if she had run out of tears. She said to him, "You told me I had a choice. That I had time to decide. I don’t need a life of luxury," she shook her head. "I want a simple life, not a life in a palace."
Dante touched his still-wet face, wiping away the blood, before looking down at his fingers stained with the blood of the dead servants. He walked back to where she stood and said, "You had a choice then, and you still have a choice to decide to come to me. The only difference is that the situation isn’t the same as it was an hour ago. Or would you prefer that I claim you right now?" His gaze captured the fearful expression on her face.
"What about letting me go from here, considering you are aware of the injustice?" Anastasia asked him, even though she already knew the answer. "I don’t want to walk in my sister’s footsteps. Help me leave the palace."
But Anastasia was knocking on a door that wouldn’t let her out.