Chapter 10
[ 973 words ]
Arabella:
I gasped and shot upright when a bucket of ice-cold water crashed over my body.
“Wake up, you bitch! You’re not a princess anymore, you whore!”
I wiped water from my face as the insults continued, “Get moving. Your duty is to serve the royals breakfast.”
I had slept enough, but my entire body still ached. The thin mattress did nothing to ease the pain in my back. My knees were still raw from yesterday.
After being shoved to the servants’ bathroom, I managed a quick bath without soap. After wearing my plain black servant’s uniform, I was ready, trying to ignore my protesting knees.
But did I have a choice?
They gave me a heavy breakfast tray that I tried to balance while moving on my knees. They were doing it intentionally, just trying to follow the Royals’ orders.
When I reached the royal dining hall, sweat was already running down my neck. Every pair of eyes turned to me.
They were gathered around the massive dining table, waiting for the king to arrive before starting breakfast.
They simply watched me as I lowered my gaze and tried to focus on the tray, which was filled with freshly baked croissants, butter rolls, cheese pastries, and warm fruit-filled buns.
It was meant to be placed in the middle of the table, but unfortunately, the table was too high. I looked around for another servant to get help, but no one seemed interested.
I tried lifting the tray higher, and my arms ached violently.
The royal princess Aliya Volkov sat nearby. I didn’t know what got into her. She wrinkled her nose and then, using a single finger, pushed the edge of the tray. The movement was small, but it was enough.
I lost my balance.
The silver platter slipped from my hands and crashed onto the floor. The noise echoed in the dining hall, making my heart beat faster in fear.
Heat rushed to my face as I began gathering the scattered food.
“I’m… I’m sorry…” I mumbled, ignoring their teasing laughter.
Come on. You’re used to all this . I told myself while cleaning the floor.
“What is this mess, slave?” Helena walked to me; her face was dark in fury, “You worthless slave! Are you blind?”
I raised my eyes for a moment and found Aliya staring at me with a mocking grin.
“I’m sorry…” I muttered, keeping my gaze on the floor. By now, my knees were wobbling in pain.
“Sorry?” Aliya spoke from her seat, “Honestly. We should have asked your brother instead to serve us. At least he knows how to kneel.”
I remained silent. But then my body tensed when a chair scraped against the floor. The queen was getting up. She started walking slowly towards me.
I didn’t dare look up when she stopped beside me. Without warning, her fingers tangled in my hair, causing pain to shoot through my scalp.
I cried when my head was yanked backward, “Tell me, slave!” the queen asked softly, “How do you intend to pay for all this wasted food?”
“My queen!” I whispered, trying to endure the pain she was inflicting upon me, “I’m… sorry…”
Her grip tightened, and a few tears escaped my eyes, “Tsk. A Beta princess… who doesn’t know how to serve the royals.”
My face burned with humiliation. I tried to keep my eyes fixed on the floor, wishing it would swallow me whole.
The queen tilted her head thoughtfully, “Umm…maybe a parade around the training grounds… all naked… under the sun…”
My heart nearly stopped.
“Let everyone see what happens to slaves who waste royal food… who are clumsy and don’t know how to serve simple meals. We don’t have any place for incompetent slaves in our palace.”
She was still holding my hair, and I wanted to ask her if she could carry her everyday tasks on her knees.
The queen was still gripping my hair when she suddenly paused. Her eyes narrowed as she yanked my head to the side.
Pain shot through my neck, “What. Is. That?” She sounded a little startled.
Everyone in the room was now focusing on my neck when a young woman rose to her feet, pointing at me, “It seems… like a …” Her eyes widened, “Goddess. It’s a mate mark.”
Her words echoed through the dining hall.
The queen’s grip loosened, and I saw pure rage on her face, “You… you have a mate?”
The slap was so quick that my head snapped to the side, “How dare you hide this from me!”
I crashed onto the floor, and her heel slammed into my side, making me curl instinctively. Pain exploded through my ribs.
“Did you do this to humiliate me? To make me look like a fool?”
I remained silent, not knowing what to say, what to do. The king marked me in the presence of my family. Why did he hide it from his mother?
My ears were ringing due to the constant slaps, and the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth, trickling from the corner of my lip.
She was a royal woman, and I was a wolfless girl who was no match for her.
“Who marked you?” She asked me before slapping me again.
The family breakfast event had turned into a drama.
“Are you deaf? Answer me, dammit…” She held my hair with both hands, “WHO MARKED YOU?” She gave me a hard shove.
“I did!”
The familiar deep voice of a man rolled through the dining hall. Everything seemed to stop. The queen froze.
His terrifying aura swept across the room in powerful waves.
Dominating.
Impossible to ignore.
All the servants standing there knelt while those who were seated dropped to their knees.
Slowly, I turned my head and found King Lucien Volkov standing in the doorway.
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