C2 Chapter 02

When Lieutenant Stanton approached and touched her, all of a sudden, her anxiety began to fade. He wasn’t particularly handsome, just plain looking with light brown hair and an oval-shaped face. He had a beard, and Cindy preferred her gentlemen clean-shaven. His eyes were intense, and for a moment, it was as if he knew this whole operation had been organised by her stepmother. Heat rose in the pit of her stomach. Cindy shuddered when he wrapped his hand around her wrists.

“We need to leave,” he told her. His voice was deep and filled with compassion. Cindy shivered, and that didn’t happen often—she wasn’t normally affected by men.

Then, in the distance, Cindy could see Lord Gerard talking to the other two officers of the king’s guard, pointing and shouting at her. Cindy suspected that the prostitute must have been paid to be there.

Stanton walked her to his horse. Cindy wasn’t entirely sure how she was supposed to climb on the horse with her hands tied behind her back. A moment later, he wrapped his arms around her and lifted her onto the saddle. Her heart pounded in her chest as his touch was captivating. Another wave of desire rushed through her core.

After that, he mounted the horse behind her, and leaned over, taking the reins, and, at the same time, wrapping his body around hers. Cindy had no idea what was going on inside of her body. She was rattled and slightly aroused. She felt his warm breath on the back of her neck as they began riding. The castle wasn’t far, but her stomach was growling with hunger, and, after a while, she thought she might faint. Everything had gone terribly wrong tonight, but at least Lieutenant Stanton was keeping her somewhat sane.

He didn’t say anything during the entire gallop, but Cindy was inhaling his incredible scent, trying to forget about her bound wrists and uncertain future. In the distance, she began seeing the silhouette of the castle towers. She suddenly felt a sense of relief when they reached the outbuilding where most of the guards were stationed. General Davies and the other lieutenant arrived shortly after. Gerard appeared when Cindy was inside. She smiled inwardly upon seeing him—he looked so horrendous with his broken nose and bloodied face.

“You’re going to rot in prison for breaking into my residence,” the lord snarled at her.

“Kenneth, show her where she’s going to sleep tonight,” Davies barked at his subordinate.

Cindy was taken to the basement straight away—torches lit the long, dank corridor. Once Kenneth stopped in front of the cell, he finally removed the rope from her wrists. She had been so absorbed in thoughts of retrieving the medals that she’d forgotten about supper, and now she was paying the price. She knew General Davies wouldn’t care in the slightest if she starved.

Cindy knew she was going to be in prison for a while. It was likely that her stepmother reported her father’s medals stolen. She must have paid Gerard a generous sum—an elaborate scheme, knowing Cindy would disobey her, getting caught by the king’s guards. Cindy hated her with every fiber of her being.

She resented her father, too. She didn’t understand why he had to put that clause in the will. The truth was, she didn’t care about his money. From an early age, she wanted to work and gain her independence, but at the same time, she couldn’t allow a stranger to take over the estate, the wealth her father had built from nothing. Before him, Ida had been no one, just an ordinary divorcee who had never worked an honest day in her life.

The cell was cold, and its lone furnishing was a wooden bed with a thin, filthy blanket that had undoubtedly never seen a washing. Cindy had no choice, she had to sleep on it tonight. She shook out the dust as best she could and laid down, dreaming of a hot meal. She knew it was going to be a difficult night.

Eventually she managed to drift off, and several hours must have passed. She awoke to the sound of laughing and shouting upstairs. She suspected that the guards carried on drinking along with Lord Gerard. She was blaming herself for being so naïve and reckless. Her stepmother knew that if Cindy continued to ruin her reputation, and failed to fulfil the clause within her father’s will, the estate would finally be hers. At least in her dreams, she was seeing the face of Lieutenant Stanton who made her feel like she was a woman again.

***

The next day, Cindy was awakened by a guard who brought her something that resembled a meal. He threw it on the floor and barked at her, saying she had a visitor waiting to see her upstairs. Once he was gone, she grabbed the bowl and smelled the food. She was starving, and, assuming it was probably porridge, she ate every last bit of it, even licking the bowl.

Cindy felt miserable, knowing she was to be stuck in here for who knew how long. She’d forgotten to ask the guard about the visitor, but at least now she was no longer hungry. Her mind was racing away. She knew she didn’t have many options.

She started pacing around the cell, wanting to speak to Davies. Cindy studied the laws of the kingdom, so she knew he couldn’t keep her in here without a proper hearing.

Several minutes later, the same guard who’d brought her food showed up with another man. Cindy didn’t recognise him at all, but he was dressed in a sharp suit with a waistcoat, and he had a thick moustache. The guard opened the cell and muttered something under his breath.

“Good Morning, Cinderella. My name is Sir Roger, and I’m here to take you back to your stepmother,” he said in a serious tone of voice. Cindy’s old brown dress was covered in stains. Her hair was tangled, and she hadn’t brushed it in ages, so she felt a little ashamed of the way she looked.

“Take me back? I thought I was being charged with theft,” she said, wondering that perhaps her stepmother had nothing to do with what had happened last night. Surely, that wasn’t the case. Too many things pointed straight toward her involvement. A wayward thought, perhaps…

“Well, Lord Gerard pressed charges for assault, but we will deal with it somehow. I managed to convince General Davies to drop the charges for theft. The medals did belong to your father, after all. Your stepmother had no authority to sell them. Lord Gerard has been generously compensated for his loss,” Sir Roger explained, stroking his chin.

Cindy was baffled and still didn’t understand why she was being released. This all sounded too good to be true. “Why are you helping me? My stepmother is in charge of my father’s fortune right now, so there is no way I can repay you,” Cindy said, wanting to straighten things out before they went any further. She didn’t have many friends in Farrington, and her stepmother claimed that the entire kingdom hated her, so she needed to remain cautious.

“Your father was well acquainted with the king, and someone reported to him that you were in trouble. You’ve had dealings with the guards in the past,” he pointed out. “I have studied your papers at length; your stepmother’s counsellors have gained a great deal of an advantage. It seems you haven’t fulfilled any of your father’s clauses of the will.”

Cindy needed to sit down, because she was suddenly overwhelmed with everything that Sir Roger had told her. It was her own fault if she’d ruined her chances of getting the estate turned over to her. When she was eighteen, she got involved with a highwayman named Tom. She was in love. She became sucked into his world quickly enough. She didn’t even know when she’d become a fugitive. Together, along with his men, she was robbing local villages, stealing from tradesmen on the road. Cindy wasn’t proud of it, but it had been two years after her father had died. Her stepmother had begun to insist that she needed to get married, so she rebelled.

She knew her father had some kind of business with King Caspian in the past, but she’d never asked him about it. She had been young at the time. Now she regretted that she hadn’t been more involved in his life.

“I don’t know why my father put that clause in the will. He never should have married that woman. She never loved him. I have my own aspirations, and I’m not ready to get married just yet, but my stepmother is making my life extremely difficult. She had no right to sell my father’s medals; besides, I prevented the fat lord from raping that poor girl. It doesn’t matter that she was from the brothel. I just did what I felt was right,” Cindy stated, staring at Sir Roger with a mixture of anger and hope.

The kingdom was ruled by King Caspian, but everyone knew his guards, especially General Davies, were corrupt. Ida had access to her father’s wealth, and she must have been paying him regularly. Cindy knew she had to get married to a wealthy and respectable man, but with her reputation, no one was interested in her. She had one more year to fulfil the clause; otherwise the entire estate would go to Ida.

“There is no point dwelling on your father’s decisions. Right now, I’m here to tell you that you’re free to go. We will deal with Lord Gerard’s accusations in a timely manner. Let’s go, Cindy. My carriage awaits,” Sir Roger stated, lifting his hand.

Cindy took it, although she couldn’t be certain that this wasn’t some kind of trick. They finally left the horrible cell. Upstairs, Davies gave her a furious look, and when Sir Roger turned around, he indicated that he was going to be watching her from now on. Cindy wasn’t scared of him. She was tired and wanted to sleep in her own bed.

She searched the room for Lieutenant Stanton, but he wasn’t around. She was a bit disappointed, because she was hoping to speak to him. There was something about him that made her heart flutter uncontrollably. His touch made her feel as if she could get lost in the sensation. She had loved Tom, well, she thought she did, but later on, she learnt he was only using her, hoping to get his hands on her estate. Apparently, he was a regular at the brothel, so Cindy’s heart had been broken just after she turned eighteen.

“Have you spoken to my stepmother?” Cindy asked, getting into the carriage. She really needed to have a bath—she stunk, but she suspected her stepmother was already waiting for her in the house with a long list of chores.

“Briefly. She wasn’t happy that I interfered, but I advised her that the medals belong to you, so she cannot freely sell them on a whim.”

Cindy wasn’t sure how to react. Her stepmother was intelligent and manipulative. She hated Cindy, and her stepsisters were both dumb as a box of rocks.

Sir Roger didn’t insist on conversation in the carriage and Cindy was glad for it. She was too tired to talk, but she was hoping she could catch up with him in a few days. She wanted to discuss her situation and the estate.

Half an hour later, the carriage stopped outside the entrance to her father’s estate, and Cindy’s stomach made a funny jolt. She didn’t want to go home because she knew what to expect. This place hadn’t felt like home since her stepmother had moved in.

“Thank you for getting me out of there. I have a year to find a respectable husband and to find a job; otherwise my stepmother becomes the official owner of my father’s estate,” she said, thinking that, in her situation, this task seemed almost impossible. Sir Roger smiled, and Cindy felt he genuinely wanted to help her.

“We can discuss everything during our next meeting, Cinderella,” he said. “For now, try not to disobey your stepmother until I figure out how I can best help you.”

Cindy nodded, and then disembarked the carriage. She wasn’t sure if she could keep her cool temperament when it came to her stepmother.

Luckily for her, Ida wasn’t home. Even her stepsisters were out, so she headed to her room straight away and then had a bath. The maid in the kitchen was making dinner. Elvira liked her, so when Cindy began telling her what happened, she made her a big portion of chicken with some roasted potatoes. Cindy thought that perhaps this day wasn’t going to end badly after all, well, unless Ida returned home earlier than Cindy wanted.

She knew over the next few weeks, Ida was going to treat her worse than usual because her plan had failed. Cindy was still ready to fight for what was rightfully hers.