Chapter 1
Alice Sandoval stood in the centre of the ballroom, clad in an elegant blue sleeveless gown that ran down to her ankles but did not restrict movement, blond hair carefully plaited and decorated with a floral ornament. The capital’s nobles stood at a safe distance; far enough away that they couldn’t be accused of association, but close enough to ensure they would have no difficulty hearing what was to come. Before her stood Raymond Slandhaile, the crown prince of the kingdom of Slandhaile and, unfortunately, her fiance. Wearing a face of thunder, he seemed to be the only one in the room who wasn’t infected by the air of anticipation.
“Alice Sandoval. For many years I have tolerated your jealousy towards Emily, and your pathetic attempts at bullying. But to think you would actually send an assassin against her!”
The girl in question, Emily Crawford, stood closely behind the prince, a vindictive smile on her face. Alice glanced at her, keeping her expression carefully neutral.
“I have done no such thing, nor have I ever engaged in bullying. What would I stand to gain from such behaviour? For what reason would I be jealous? You know as well as I that our engagement was decided by our families, and not of our own will. If you are to be taken from me by another, I would be only thankful, not jealous.”
There were some muted gasps from the spectators, surprised not at the accusations or denials, but only at the obvious insult towards royalty. Alice couldn’t care less; everything she had said was true. Raymond frowned even further, to an extent that Alice was concerned his forehead would tear.
“Whatever your opinion of me, you are still aiming for the position of queen. All of your tutors remark how diligently you study. Isn’t it natural for someone like you to want to do away with the competition? In any case, your guilt is not in question here. I am simply declaring your punishment in front of these witnesses.”
The ball was being held by Raymond in the royal castle, and all the nobles residing in the capital had been invited. An invitation from royalty is not easily declined, so the ball was well attended, but being the summer, many nobles were dwelling in their own territories. Alice was in the capital to attend the royal academy, but no other members of her family were present. The large number of nobles present to witness these events, none of which were close acquaintances of Alice, was likely planned for precisely this moment. Alice found that amusing, although she made very sure to keep any expression off her face. Organising a ball out of season, just to gather nobles to watch her be humiliated. How veryRaymondof him.
“I have never desired the position of queen. However, since it was to be forced upon me, of course I took my education seriously. My honour as the first daughter of House Sandoval demands that I exceed any expectations held of me. Furthermore, you dare to declare my guilt without even a trial? Is the crown prince so ignorant of the law of his own country?”
There was some murmuring from the surrounding nobles. The disrespect for royalty continued, but Prince Raymond was not exactly coming off well in this exchange. It was certainly true that Alice had a right to a trial and that Prince Raymond had no rights to unilaterally inflict a punishment.
“How dare you. A would-be murderer like you demands rights? But no matter. This decree does not come from me, but from King Edward himself.”
That got the largest collection of gasps yet, which only doubled when Raymond held up a sheet of parchment, clearly bearing the king’s seal. Alice grabbed it from him and read in silence. Raymond smirked.
“As you can see, you are hereby banished from the kingdom of Slandhaile, for the remainder of your worldly life. You are to be out of the capital by dawn tomorrow. You should be thankful for the leniency of my father; if it were up to me, I would have your head for the crimes you have committed. But I will have to take my comfort in knowing that you will probably end up spending the rest of your life in some whorehouse, while Emily takes your place as queen.”
The room was stunned into silence. Alice was the first daughter of Duke Denis, one of the highest ranking nobles of the kingdom, and possessed both beauty and talent in abundance. Emily was only the third daughter of a lower noble, and while beautiful, did poorly in her studies. Combined with the lack of relevant training she had received, it was obvious who was the better choice for queen. Even if Alice had tried to have her assassinated, this situation was strange. The royal family should have preferred to sweep the incident under the rug, perhaps secretly holding Alice under house arrest with the excuse of illness or something. To not only openly declare it in such a grandiose manner, but to banish Alice from the kingdom without even holding a trial was... odd. Furthermore, to be blunt about it, had Alice wanted Emily dead, Emily would be dead. Despite her youth, Alice was not known for failure.
“Very well. I continue to declare my innocence, and I swear an oath here and now before these noble witnesses that I made no attempt on Emily’s life. But I will not deny the will of the king.”
So Alice turned and left the room. The murmuring picked back up, a range of expressions from shock and worry to amusement and outright gloating visible on the faces of the assembled audience. And distracted as they were, nobody saw the faint smile that played on Alice’s lips.
“Nat, why do I have to dress up today? I hate these stuffy clothes.”
“Because today you will be meeting your fiance. You need to look your best.”
A six-year-old Alice cutely tilted her head at her maid.
“What’s a fiance?”
“The person who you will marry when you’re grown up.”
“But how do we know who I’ll marry when I grow up if I’m not grown up yet? Do we have magic that can see the future?”
Natalie blinked as she struggled to come up with an answer to that one. Questions from small children were often a bit... blunt. On top of which, being a commoner herself, her own situation would be very different from that of Alice. She certainly had no-one telling her who she must marry when she was only six. She was in fact looking forward to drinks with William the gardener in the evening. Her hope that today would finally be the day he took the hint was faint at best, but that wasn’t going to stop her from trying.
“Because the person you will marry is decided ahead of time by your parents. Now that they’ve decided on someone, you need to introduce yourself.”
Alice considered this. If that was where husbands came from, then she couldn’t really object. It did raise some more questions though.
“But what if I don’t like him?”
Natalie paused again. Another question that could be stated in a few words, but needed an essay to answer or no answer at all. Natalie chickened out and went for the second option.
“I’m sure the two of you will get on fine. Your parents know you well, after all. They wouldn’t pick someone who was not a good match.”
“But I hardly ever see my parents. I do see you all the time, though, so I think you know me far better than my parents do. I think you should be the one to pick my husband.”
Natalie didn’t even try with that one, surrendering before Alice had even finished her sentence.
“Come on, you’re all ready now. Lets get you downstairs.”
Alice pouted, but plodded out in front of Natalie regardless. Her parents, Denis and Lucy Sandoval, stood in front of the grand staircase, her older brother Charles to their right. Alice was glad to see that he was equally dressed up. Suffering should be shared! She stepped carefully down the staircase and took up her position to the left of her parents. Her etiquette teacher had drilled in to her the correct position and posture for receiving guests, but had never adequately explainedwhy. What difference did it make where she stood? But it didn’t do any harm, unlike these stupid clothes that made it so hard to walk, so she was happy to oblige.
The grand staircase was positioned directly opposite the front door, a luxurious red carpet the width of the staircase running the intervening length. The house staff were lined up on either side of the carpet, all impeccably dressed in their respective uniforms. Alice did not have to wait long before a pair of butlers pulled open the double doors in perfect synchronisation, and a third announced clearly.
“Her Majesty, Queen Isabelle Slandhaile. His Royal Highness, Prince Raymond Slandhaile”
A lady entered wearing a dress so wide that Alice was glad they’d opened both doors. She wouldn’t have fit through just one! She suddenly felt a little better about her own marginally less impractical clothing. She was followed closely by a small boy of about the same age as Alice. Behind them were several large knights in shiny armour, swords sheathed in their belts. Alice assumed they were there to try to roll the lady back upright in case she fell over. And apparently this was the queen, one of the most important people of the country! Alice glanced at Natalie in her highly practical uniform, who had taken up position alongside the carpet. She considered that all the house staff were commoners. Taking in her own clothes, and what she’d seen other nobles of various ranks wearing, and now the queen in front of her, realisation dawned. It was so obvious! The stupidity of clothing was directly proportional to social rank! Alice was glad she wasn’t a princess, or heaven forbid, the queen. She wouldn’t know how to cope.
Alice carefully trod the tightrope of etiquette, getting her greetings spot on, and keeping her movements graceful and controlled. She felt quite proud of not making a single mistake. Something to brag about at her next lesson. The group moved to a reception room, where servants served refreshments, and her parents started discussing things with the queen, too quietly for her to hear. Alice inspected the small child, Prince Raymond. Presumably this was to be her fiance? It can’t be any of the knights, right? That wouldn’t make any sense. But if she married a prince, wouldn’t she become a princess? And a minute ago she had been praising the fact that she wasn’t one! Was this the thing that Nat called karma? At this point, Queen Isabelle looked towards Alice, obviously finished with whatever discussion the grown-ups were having.
“So it is decided then. We will have Alice betrothed to Raymond, and will announce Raymond as the crown prince. I’m sure Alice will make a suitable queen.”
Alice blinked. ′What?′
Raymond looked incredulous.
“Why do I have to marry someone like her? I don’t like her one bit!”
Alice blinked again. ′Don’t like me? But we’ve never met before.′
Lucy looked down at him, wearing her silly talking-to-a-child smile that Alice disliked. At least it was directed at someone else this time.
“Don’t be like that. I’m sure if you two go and play together for a bit, you’ll get along just fine.”
She motioned to a butler, but before he had even taken a step, Raymond doubled down.
“No. She’s ugly and I hate her!”
He yelled out as he ran out of the room. One of the knights followed him. Alice just stood there, stupefied. ′Thatthingis supposed to be my husband? And I have to be queen? I have to deal with that stupid boy, and even stupider clothes?′She wanted to tell her father that he’d definitely picked wrong, and should try again, but saying that while the queen was here would be a great etiquette faux pas. So she kept her mouth shut and put on her listening-to-adults smile that she hoped didn’t look as fake as her mother’s, while her parents and the queen discussed teas and flowers and next year’s harvest festival. None of them mentioned the prince’s outburst even once.
To Natalie
I’m so sorry for running away without telling you. King Edward has ordered my banishment from the kingdom, and I must flee for my life. I know that if I’d told you in advance, you would have insisted on following me, but you and William love each other very much and there’s no way I could do that to you both. I know this is a hopeless request but I will make it anyway: Do not worry over me. I was prepared for this, and will be able to live on without difficulty. I thank you for your many years of exemplary service. May you live in happiness.
Alice
Natalie stared at the letter, unable to process what she was reading. Alice was... what...banished? Why? What had she done? She had attended the royal palace, invited to a ball. That was odd, with it not being the usual social season, but Alice hadn’t questioned it. Then she’d returned home early, claimed to feel ill, and requested to rest and to be woken for the evening meal. Natalie had come to wake her as requested, only to find her missing, with this letter addressed to her that explained almost nothing.
Natalie slumped onto the bed, her hand clutching at a small pouch of gold. A second note assured her that it was only a small part of Alice’s savings, and that she had more than enough to start a new life, but to not let Lord Sandoval know about it or he would doubtless confiscate it. The separate note was in case the lord demanded to read her letter. He probably would refuse to let her keep the money if he found out about it; there was several years worth of her salary in there. Being given that much moneyhurt. It was true that the Sandoval house would very likely dismiss her after this, her mistress having fled the kingdom, but right now Alice needed the money far more than she did. The letter claimed the opposite, that Alice had plenty, but... Natalie felt betrayed by kindness. Why would the king banish such a selfless young lady?
There was another letter left behind, addressed to Lord Sandoval. With the Lord and Lady residing in their territory, along with Charles, who had already graduated from the academy and married, Alice was the only one currently using the capital residence. As such, the most senior staff had accompanied the Lord back to his territory. While there was a head maid, that was only for organisational reasons and when it came to family matters, she had very little authority. Natalie was effectively the highest ranking servant present. That meant that she needed to decide how to deal with this.
First thing, she should try to find out more information about what happened. She was acquainted with some of the maids who worked at the palace. Something like this would certainly have sent waves crashing through the palace servants, so they would be certain to have heard all about the afternoon’s events by now. Informing the staff that Alice would not be taking dinner, she set off to the first of her friends.
A couple of hours later, she was on a horse heading straight for the provincial mansion.Attempted murder of Emily? She would never!
Alice grabbed a large backpack from a wardrobe and started to fill it with prepared equipment and clothing. She would have liked to have packed it beforehand, but it was too big to hide, and would have raised questions that she wouldn’t have been able to answer had it ever been discovered. She lifted a large bag of gold and silver coins from its hiding place under the floor; it had been a long time since she had spent the entirety of her allowance, saving up the excess in preparation for today. She drafted letters to her father and to Natalie, slipping in a few pieces of gold for Nat. If Alice had one regret, it was what she was about to do to Natalie, the one person in the world who didn’t stick to her for status or influence, or in the hopes of gaining something, but simply because she was her friend. Admittedly, it was also her job, but there was no rule against liking your job. Lying like this to the poor girl almost physically hurt. Alice just hoped that she kept the gold, instead of turning it over to father, who had far too much of the stuff as it was.
She also wrote out some letters to some merchant acquaintances, unsigned and written left-handed to disguise her handwriting. Merchants loved their gossip; being behind on the news was bad for business, after all, and Alice wouldn’t be surprised if they had heard of her banishment already. But it wouldn’t hurt to give them certain... extra details. These she took with her; there were plenty of orphans and beggars on the street who would gladly deliver them for a few coppers. Not the most reliable delivery service in the city, but it was anonymous, and it didn’t matter if a few failed to reach their destinations.
Bag packed, Alice removed her makeup and changed into second hand clothing, sporting a few scuffs and patches. She took a knife to her hair, as close to the scalp as she could manage. Alice carefully caught the trimmings, packing them securely in her pack. They would be disposed of elsewhere; they must not be found here. Finally she lifted a black wig from below the floorboards, even longer than her original hair, a little dirty but not excessively so. Her plans would be spoilt if anyone knew she had this, but she had been careful and was confident that her secret was safe. Donning the wig, she took one last look in the mirror. The face that stared back belonged to a commoner, not well off but not destitute either. Perfect. All the clothing in her pack was cleaner and a little higher class, but she wouldn’t switch to it until she’d arrived at the next city. It also wouldn’t be good for a poor commoner to be seen around the noble district, so she wrapped herself in a cloak that she would discard once she left the district. She tossed her pack out of the window, climbed down after it, avoided the guards and stepped out into the streets.
She hadn’t made it out of the capital yet, but Alice was already grinning to herself. Her freedom was just a carriage ride away. Freedom from a father who thought of her as a resource instead of a daughter, from a mother who was more interested in socialising than her family. From a fiance who hated her, for reasons she’d never fully understood but suspected to be jealousy of her talent. A peaceful commoner’s life for her, and for those who had tried to keep her caged... Well, the fallout from Raymond’s idiocy wouldn’t all land fordays. Alice regretted she couldn’t stick around to watch the resulting explosion, but hopefully the result would be intensive enough that the rumours would reach the neighbouring kingdoms.
Still smiling, she paid a carriage driver the few silver needed to travel on the overnight carriage to the next city north, and hopped on.
