Chapter 221: Ruined
Rose stood with her back pressed against the closed doors and her hands over her mouth. The bouquet fell to the floor, one of the flowers coming loose. It didn’t make a single sound as it dropped to the floor, just as Rose did her best to keep her screams in.
She couldn’t believe the sight in front of her, and she just stood unmoving by the door as her eyes scanned the room. Who could have done this? But as soon as she mentally asked the question, Rose already knew the answer.
She pulled her hand away from her lips when she was confident that she wouldn’t scream. Rose took a shaky step forward, kicking the bouquet out of the way, but she was too dazed to pay attention to it. She staggered forward, one step at a time.
She stopped and bent to pick up a piece that was just at the edge of the bed. She could easily recognize the wine garment anywhere. Rose moved around the room gathering several pieces; she lost count by the tenth one.
The pieces varied in size from very small to large. It looked like someone had viciously ripped it. She doubted they had used any kind of cutting instrument. It looked like the dress had been attacked by a pair of strong hands.
The pieces led her to the front of her wardrobe—it had been flung open and remained so. At the foot of the wardrobe was the largest part of her dress. She couldn’t call it that anymore; it was nothing but a rag. It was beyond fixing.
The dress she wore to the ball had been ripped to shreds and the pieces were scattered around the room. Rose gathered all of them in her hands. She knew this was the handiwork of the Queen, but the fear and horror she felt weren’t because of the dress she saw. Rather, it was because the Queen now knew it was her—and this had been done to the dress. Who knew what the Queen would do to her?
Rose gripped tightly onto the fabric and immediately jerked her head towards the dresser. The pieces fell from her hands as she walked toward it, her heart nearly beating out of her chest.
She didn’t know if whoever had come into her room had just destroyed the dress or perhaps destroyed something else. Rose turned the key and pulled open the drawer; the relief she felt was enough to make her legs give out.
They were still there—her father’s gifts. Rose shut the drawer and walked back toward the dress. Someone had come into her room and done this. Her heart squeezed, and it suddenly felt hard to breathe as she recalled the time when she had been kidnapped.
The stranger had invaded her space just like this and taken her away. If it weren’t for Lady Delphine, she couldn’t imagine where she would be right now. She wasn’t safe—and now that she had pissed off the Queen even more, Rose didn’t know what might happen to her.
Rose heard a knock, but she was too lost in thought to react, sitting right next to the ruined dress. The door burst open and a worried Chelsy rushed into the room. She didn’t look surprised as she saw the torn dress; rather, she ran straight toward Rose, who was hunched on the floor.