CRYSTAL'S POV He was pretty muscular, and he was clad in armour like he was preparing for battle."Miss Crystal Thorne, I believe?" He quizzed, eyeing me curiously from head to toe.I gulped. I was uncomfortable with the way he was seizing me up.Emily tugged my dress to get my attention and drew closer to whisper in my ears:"Why are the guards here?"It was not only the muscular guard. There were seven more men clad in armour, and they encircled us.I sucked in several deep breaths and puffed out a deep sigh. These must be the guards sent to escort me, but did they really have to go the extra mile getting all geared up like this? What's out there? Was it that dangerous? From what I heard, outside the walls of the well secured royal palace may be dangerous because of the presence of rogues loitering in the woods.But we weren't going too far off. The Victoria Lake was only a couple of miles away. Nevertheless, my safety was paramount. That's why Xavier had insisted that eight men
CRYSTAL'S POV Dear Moon goddess... is this the end for me? Would I die without Xavier in my arms, professing his love for me? Would I just die without experiencing true love?Well, at least he has been nice to me for the past few days. I could use that as a parting gift. Thank you, Xavier! What of my best friend, Emily? I couldn't afford to leave her in this dark world all alone.Okay, maybe I don't want to die after all!Please, save me. Xavier!!! Anyone!!My heart pounded relentlessly against my chest like a hailstorm underneath my ribcage as I clenched my eyes shut and shielded my head in fear.Was I really going to die? Before Lucas made it here, I would have already been dead because the speed at which the assailant was charging towards me was fueled with rage. I didn't make any enemies, I've never been outside the walls in all of my life, so why the hell would anyone want to make me their enemy? Or want me dead? Or were they mistaking me for Luna Rachael or Alicia? I have a
ALICIA'S POVMy plan was going very smoothly. One step at a time, and I will attain my goals in no time. So far, so good she accepted my peace offering, and now we are very good friends as I had described it. But alas, I hadn't the foggiest idea what being good friends was. Good friends? The words rolling out of my mouth nearly caused me to puke. I felt like spitting on her face, and my blood boiled as I touched her shoulders. I was simply trying to demonstrate my changed status. But oh boy, I tried to fight the tempting urge to bash her head in and pierce the dagger right into her heart. But that would be a total disaster, wouldn't it?As much as I wanted to speed things up and get rid of the girl, I should try as much as possible to exercise some patience or it would gravely cost me and I may end up losing Xavier forever and the throne as well.I might just have to try and put up with her for a while and see how it plays out."I think we should return to the royal palace, ma'am,
ALICIA'S POV "See to it that she's well taken care of!" Xavier barked out orders to the nurses on standby. They nodded frantically and bowed their heads."Yes, sir!" They answered in unison.He drew close to Crystal and pulled her into his arms, kissing her hair again."You need to be taken care of in case of any internal bleeding or anything. " He whispered to her, loud enough for me to hear him.I scoffed and looked away, my blood spiking in annoyance and green with envy."I told you, Xavier, I'm fine. I'm unscathed. There's nothing to worry about." Crystal assured him.But he shook his head."I insist, Crystal. Please go with the nurses and let them attend to you. I'm right behind you if you need anything. Let's just be sure you're alright for health reasons, okay?" He rubbed her shoulders gently as he made her look into his eyes.She breathed in deeply, puffing out a deep sigh in resignation and nodded slowly in the affirmative."Okay, fine. I will go." She muttered."Now that's
CRYSTAL'S POV It's been a rough day for me. It started great; I was bubbling with excitement and anticipation about seeing Victoria Lake for the first time; Xavier was so sweet and obliged to my demands. Sadly, he couldn't come along because he had an important appointment with his uncle, Elder Ivan Hawkings. What seemed to be an amazing day suddenly morphed into something sinister and dangerous. My whole life flashed right before my eyes as one of the bad men charged towards me brandishing a dagger at me. My heart was literally in my throat as I was glued to the ground, unable to move. I had accepted my fate and bid my silent goodbyes to my best friend and Xavier. I wondered if I would be greatly missed if I had died. But why would I think of something like that? I should be grateful for the fact that I'm alive and nothing terrible has happened. Miraculously, I didn't sustain any injuries or scratches.Surprisingly, I was rescued by my worst enemy, Alicia Evans. I thought she
CRYSTAL'S POV "She saved my life, Xavier. At least show her your genuine gratitude." I said, tipping my chin at him."What if it's a setup? What if it's a trap, Crystal?" He countered.I puffed out an exasperated groan."Oh, for crying out loud. Why can't you both accept the fact that my life has just been spared because of Alicia!?" I glided my gaze from my best friend, Emily, to Xavier.He shook his head firmly."No , Crystal. I will not accept until I find out it is authentic. Nothing good comes from Alicia. You have to believe me. She's like a snake, ready to strike at every given opportunity. You can't trust her."I rolled my eyes."She's my friend now, okay guys? I will be the judge of that. It's all up to me to decide whether I want this friendship to continue or not. Are we clear?" I arched my eyes at the two of them.Emily heaved out a deep sigh."You're hardheaded, Crystal. Once you make up your mind on something, it's hard to convince you otherwise. Either way, I hope
ALICIA'S POV One step at a time, Alicia, and soon everything will fall into place. But when? At each passing minute, my patience wanes. The mere thought that right now, she must be in Xavier arms made my stomach turn in disgust. What if they already made love?! Arghhhhhh!! I used to be in his arms, and Xavier used to decorate my body with his kisses. He said, he loved every inch and curve of my body. He said he worshipped my body like he would worship a goddess. He said he couldn't do or breathe without me, that I complete him. He said I was the best thing that had ever happened in his life. He said that I was worth more than the throne to him. He said he'd go to war for me, risk everything for me. He loved me and was so obsessed about me that we had made almost everyday.What had happened to us?! Now, everything's changed. And it all started after he returned to the royal palace. He wouldn't look me in the eyes like he used to. It became worse when Crystal Thorne came into the
ALICIA'S POV "Of course, Alicia! What are friends for?"A self-satisfied smile curled up my lips at her response. Great! She was willing to have an open conversation with me, which also meant that I could ask her anything. Well, I hope so. I didn't want to sound so desperate or persistent. I don't want to do anything that might push her away.I cleared my throat and forced a tight-lipped smile at her."That's a relief, Crystal. Thank you."She furrowed her brows at me."Why would you think that, Alicia?"I clamped my lips together briefly before I responded."I've hurt you and spoke ill of you, Crystal. I thought you wouldn't accept me as your friend after everything that has happened between us."She smiled warmly at me, and to my surprise, she reached for my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze."Let bygones be bygones, Alicia. We are now friends, aren't we? Let's start acting like one."I returned her smile reluctantly. She's an easy catch. She fell right into my trap and even de