The Royal Contract

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

A series of loud noises came outside her window, jolting her awake. She never realized that she had fallen deep into sleep. She had been waking and turning all night as the scene she witnessed last night kept repeating in her head.

But maybe, her body had finally had enough as she eventually succumbed to exhaustion, rendering her unconscious. However, she was shaken by the gunshots being fired outside. Her tiredness was replaced with a renewed fear.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" Another set ensued, followed by a series of laughter. She turned to the window, trying to search for the source.

She could see that it must still be early, judging by the color of the sky. The sun must just have risen in the east. There was not much sunlight that could be seen reflecting on the trees.

She ran into the window, wondering what the raucous was all about. With fear running through her system, she looked out the glass partition, hoping that Nick had not done the unthinkable.

"Please." She pleaded to whoever might be listening to her prayers to keep Alex alive. She hoped that Nick stayed true to his word. To have a physician check on her husband.

She did not know until how long Alex could take a beating he just had yesterday. Any more of it might be fatal. She was not a doctor, but she knew a bit about some medical conditions.

When she finally saw the men on the other side of the building playing with their guns, she was slightly relieved. She did not see Alex anywhere near their location. 

Alex might still be in the barn where they had left him last night or somewhere being treated. The last part, she hoped. It was the only thing that was keeping her sane at the moment.

She was still wearing the clothes she had last night, but she was in a different room. The men who took her back to the house did not take her back to the previous room she occupied.

"Come on, there must be something I can do." She moved away from the window and turned to the massive room. 

She started checking the room, finally seeing it for the first time. It was an improvement since it had furniture besides the bed. But she noticed that there were no decorations around. 

At least it had a beautiful functioning bathroom, a walk-in closet, a table, and a couch on the side. It must be a room that was frequently used by the old occupants.

He must have all the decorations removed, not wanting her to use them as weapons against him. As if that would stop her from inflicting pain on him.

She did her business in the bathroom and then prepared herself for the morning. She still felt sleep-deprived, but she had to prepare for anything that could happen.

"Where are you, Nick?" She mumbled in front of the mirror, not wanting any surprise coming from him. 

Thankfully, Nick was a no-show last night. She was half expecting him to walk through the door and claimed that this was his room.

Fortunately, she did not see any of his things lying around. He must have slept somewhere else. But she wondered what happened to him.

After the call he took in the barn, he immediately left, just instructing his men to send her back to the house. She had not seen him again since then.

Whoever called him must have spooked him, she thought. She did see him tensed when he returned to the barn. His eyes seemed to be bothered, distracted by something else.

"Come in." She answered when a knock came on her door, watching it gradually open.

She was not scared because she knew it was not Nick. If it was him, he would not bother to knock. But she was still on guard. Fortunately, it was the security that was courteous to her last night.

"Your highness, I brought you breakfast." He smiled at her, placing the tray on the table on the other side of the room. Then, he quickly moved away, about to exit the room.

If only she could convince him to turn against his boss, maybe there was still hope for them. She could tell that he was different from the other guys he worked with. 

He seemed to still have a soft spot in his heart for kindness. A little humanity left in his conscience. She could use that to her advantage if only she could talk to him alone.

"Excuse me, but if you don't mind, can I know your name." She asked him before he could leave. "At least a name I can call you." 

She knew it was not likely he would give her his real name, but talking to a person using a name should establish a bond between them, a form of respect.

That stopped him from his track, turning around to face her. He looked at her as if he was seriously contemplating her question. Luckily, the other guy outside did not seem to care about what was going on inside.

"Samson. That is what they call me around here." He finally answered, giving her a friendly smile that was missing a tooth on the right side of his mouth.

She also smiled at him, satisfied that he responded. It was at least a start on her plan. But she agreed with his name since he did look like a Samson. He was a big man with long hair.

He could probably carry her without any effort at all, she thought, remembering the man that held her yesterday in the barn. He seemed to be a lot bigger than him.

"That is a nice name. Thank you, Samson, for the food." She returned a friendly smile at him, hoping that she could somehow get through to him.

He would use him to get her and Alex out of here. He was the only one she could think of capable of helping her escape, especially with Alex's condition.

If she could make him cooperate with her, she would promise to help him with his case. He would be given a decent judgment. A lesser punishment for his crime. 

But first, she had to gain his trust. It would not be easy and should be handled delicately. She could not alert his colleagues about her plan to use him, especially Nick.

"Just doing my job." He answered before turning around and leaving her inside the room, locking the door behind him as he exited. He remained clueless about her intentions.

Now what, she thought as she sat at the table and began to eat her breakfast. Then, her thoughts went back to last night. She began to worry again about Alex and his condition.

But for now, she had to eat. She forced the food inside her mouth, chewing it even if her appetite had abandoned her. She let the food glided down her throat into her stomach without tasting it. 

"I am going to get you out of here, Alex.." She kept repeating it in her mind, using it as her motivation to live.