The Banished Prince

Chapter 33

Cassia

     Cassia had never felt more lost. As she replayed what happened with Hunter again and again in her mind - as she thought about Liana, who she thought she hated, but now pitied, Cassia felt like she didn't know who she was or what she'd do anymore. Because she was supposed to destroy her enemies. But what happened when her enemies became people she understood?

     Cassia strolled down the hallways of her castle, her legs striding across the dim hallway until she reached her father's bedroom. She didn't know what led her there, but she had to say something.

     Cassia threw open her father's bedroom door and her father jumped, sitting up on his bed. It was growing late and her father looked like he was about to fall asleep.

     "Cassia?" her father said, eyes wide. "What in the world? Why have you stormed in here."

     "You may have given the kingdom free healthcare, but you still failed the poor."

     The words had flown out of Cassia - tumbling out as if they'd been settled there, ready to leap for ages now. Her father looked horrified, but Cassia stood her ground.

     "Excuse me?" her father said, moving to stand. "Where is this coming from?"

     Her father strolled over, dressed in nothing but his night clothes. Cassia kept her eyes on him, thinking about the people he'd hurt. He may not be anywhere close to Kain, but her father had still been capable of cruelty. And as a result, people like Liana, Chase and Hunter came to be - people who were broken from the lives they never deserved.

     "For free healthcare you had to tax your citizens more heavily," Cassia said. "Sure, you have helped the ill, but you have left the poor to struggle more. So many people live with barely enough to feed themselves and you never thought to help them. I admire you for some of the things you've done, but it isn't enough."

     Cassia's father's eyes searched her face, seeming conflicted. He looked utterly lost and Cassia knew this came out of nowhere. But, her realization had only dawned on her when she realized that Liana, Chase and Hunter were products of her kingdom failing them and their family.

     "I wish I could help everyone, but I can't Cassia," her father whispered, his voice struggling to find words. "You don't understand how hard it is to please everyone."

     "I do know how hard it is to please others," Cassia said. "I spent my entire life trying to please you, so I know."

     Her father opened his mouth, but it fell shut.

     "I don't think you're the bad guy in this tale, but we need a new hero," Cassia said. "I know I will do more to help everyone and one day I will be a better ruler."

     Her father's eyebrows shot up, but he still didn't say anything. A part of Cassia wished he would tell her she was foolish - that she would never be a good ruler like she believed for so many years, but he said nothing. He just stared at her, his dark brown eyes seeping it all in.

     Better. That was what Cassia would be.

*****

     Cassia snuck through the window, her feel landing onto the wooden floor as she crouched there for a moment. It was nearly midnight and Cassia had traversed the nearly pitch black forest. Even in the room she moved to stand in, it was dark, other than the lamp that stood on the nightstand next to the bed.

     And on that bed lay Hunter, his eyes shut and his body rising and falling soothingly as he slept. Cassia's heart lurched forward at the sight of him, but she strode forward, knowing she had to do this.