Cursed by Bandits (Once Upon A Curse)

27. Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

I finally reached the last step to the keep. The atmosphere that had been joyous and bright all day had melted into something messy and exhausted. Fatigue had become a palpable thing as I scurried through the stragglers and merchants until I was inside, racing down the hallway to my bedroom. As soon as I was through the door, my bed called to me. I wanted nothing more than to sleep, maybe for days. But first I had to attend dinner with my uncle and then I needed to recap with my friends. After everything that had happened today, from fighting Connor to discovering what potentially happened to my father, I was amazed. I managed to maintain my disguise and composure through the rest of the day, which had pushed me to my limits, at least mentally. Tomorrow would be physically harder because there were many more events happening. And I needed to win them all to get enough points to be crowned champion.

I ignored my bed and went to the dresses Jane and Erin had made for me. Every single one of them was stunning in their own way, but for tonight I put on a simple gown of blue-green wool with intricate knot work embroidered on the sleeves, neckline, and hem. It was easy to put on but detailed enough to satisfy my uncle while still being able to dress myself.

“Here, miss.”

I jumped. “Oh . . . You startled me,” I replied, giving her a tired smile. Winnie held out a belt for me to wear with the dress, her eyes shining with excitement and something else. “How do you move so quietly?”

“I’m sorry, miss. I can be louder.” Winnie’s expression changed from excitement to horror.

“Oh no, I’m just on edge. Please, you don’t need to do anything differently.” I tried to reassure her but wasn’t sure if it had worked.

She nodded. “Of course you’re on edge. I saw what you did today. It was inspiring to watch.” Winnie fidgeted with my clothing. “You’re such a small thing, and you beat the prince fair and all.”

“It isn’t anything really, just the use of tactics the nuns and Jane taught me.” I shrugged, embarrassed by her admiration.

“Don’t do that,” Winnie said. “You’re an inspiration, miss, whether you like it or not.”

I stood there, staring at Winnie. “I don’t know what to say, but I’m not doing this for admiration. I’m doing it because someone needs to help the people here, and I’m in a position to do so.”

“Aye, miss.” Winnie nodded. “You’d better finish getting dressed. Your uncle . . .”

“I know.”

The maid helped me finish changing from Robin to Lady Rowan. Deep down, the question of whether I was losing myself in all the roles I was playing ran through my mind, especially since none of them were truly me. The tumultuous thoughts and feelings swirled around as I walked to the dining hall. The reality of my dual identity weighed heavily on me. I needed to switch back to Lady Rowan for the evening festivities and dinner with my uncle. The clothes I was wearing were easy to change in to, but my attitude—I was having a harder time shifting into the more docile version of myself. Unfortunately, I couldn’t afford any mistakes, not with the stakes so high.

To my surprise, Jane was waiting outside the dining hall. She was supposed to be waiting for me in the woods.

“You look worn out, Rowan.” Jane took me by the shoulders and stared into my eyes, checking to see how I was doing. “Are you okay to keep going?”

“I have to be,” I replied, taking a deep breath. “My uncle is already suspicious. I was too . . .” I searched for the right word, not finding it. I settled on something close to what I was looking for. “Confident at the opening ceremonies. I need to show him that everything is normal.”

Jane nodded, but I could see the worry in her eyes. “Just be careful.”

“I will,” I promised, giving her a reassuring smile.

As I entered the grand banquet hall, my gaze instantly went to where my uncle was seated at the head of the table. He was thrumming his fingers on the table, impatience radiating off him. When he saw me, he nodded, the only acknowledgement of my existence, but I could sense his lingering suspicion. I made my way to my seat, greeting the guests with a warm smile, doing my best to play the part of the gracious lady of the house.

Dinner was another tense affair. My uncle’s gaze was constantly on me. Every word he spoke, every question he asked, felt like a test I didn’t know the answers to. Throughout the dinner I stayed polite, my eyes cast down. I answered all his questions about the day and the tournament, mostly with lies. I tried to find some truth in my answers, but it was difficult considering my role in most of the day’s events.

Despite my concern for getting caught, I couldn’t stop myself from thinking about tomorrow: all the events that were planned, who I might be up against, and what preparations I needed to help me win. And then there was the murder of my father, something I was trying to push to the back of my brain until I could do something about it. Every piece of me wanted to scream at my uncle, accuse him of his wrongdoings. However, I knew I would regret it instantly because I couldn’t act on any of those accusations, only hurl them at his face to see how he would react.

This overwhelming desire was the reason I excused myself as soon as the last dish was cleared. I claimed fatigue from the day’s events, but I was unable to sit there in his presence a moment longer. Finally, I was able to go to my room and change back into me, and for a few hours I didn’t have to worry about being anyone but my true self.

Back in the woods, Jane and Milo were waiting.

“How did it go?” Milo asked, concern written across his face.

“He’s suspicious of me, but has no idea what I’m doing. He tested me throughout the night, but somehow I managed to play the part of a modest lady the entire time, even though I wanted to accuse him of my father’s murder,” I replied, sinking to the ground. “Tomorrow is going to be extremely stressful. I have multiple competitions and my uncle is not going to let his guard down now.”

Jane handed me a flask, her expression serious. “You’re going to need this. I know you need rest, but everyone wants to check in with you. Rest will have to wait.”

I nodded, understanding how important it was for my friends to see I was holding up to all the pressure placed on me. I took a sip of the fiery drink. The liquid burned its way down to my stomach. The tension in my arms, neck, and back melted away as I took another sip from the flask.

Milo knelt beside me, taking my hands in his. Our eyes met, his filled with empathy . . . and something else. “You were unbelievable today, Rowan. I believe in you, we all do. I’m sure this feels like it’s all resting on your shoulders, but we’re all here for you, ready to do whatever we can to help.”

I pulled him down so he sat beside me and rested my head on his shoulder. “Thank you, Milo. I needed to hear that. I just . . . I just need to get through this tournament. It’s hard to focus on that knowing what I now know. I want to discover the truth.” I soaked in his warmth and the feelings behind his words.

Jane sat down on my other side, placing a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “Let me help with that. I can find out more while you focus on the tourney.”

I sat up. “Do you think you can find out more?”

“I can at least try while you’re doing everything else.”

Milo’s arm dropped to my side, creating a disconnect I wasn’t used to feeling.

“Are you okay?” I whispered.

“I’ve been working on . . .” He stopped himself from saying more. “It’s nothing to concern yourself with, Rowan. You’ve got too much pressure on you right now.”

A snap had my head popping up. What if the sheriff had followed me somehow?

“Rowan, today looked like it went splendidly!” Tuck exclaimed as he walked out from the trees with Will and Erin by his side .

I nodded. The adrenaline that had been keeping me going for so long was almost gone.

“Thanks, Tuck. At least it looked like it was going well. Switching between Lady Rowan and Master Robin was tough today,” I said, trying to muster a smile. “And tomorrow is going to be even harder. I don’t know where or when my uncle is going to demand my appearance.”

Will’s face filled with concern. “What can we do to help? The back-and-forth between the two is so much pressure. The more you can focus on the games, the better.”

Erin nodded. “With Winnie’s help, I can make sure your clothes are close and easy to change into tomorrow. That way you can focus on winning.”

I sat up straight, the support of my friends filling me with the hope I had been losing just moments before. “Let’s go through tomorrow’s plan one more time so I can get some sleep. We can’t afford any mistakes.”

We huddled together for the next hour, working out our strategies for tomorrow and ensuring everyone knew their roles for the day. I did my best to stay focused and participate until we were done, but the day finally caught up with me and I woke up to everyone moving away from the fire to sleep for the night.

“Get some sleep, Rowan,” Jane said softly. “We’ll sleep here tonight instead of walking up and down those stairs. ”

I nodded, feeling exhaustion weigh on my eyelids. “Thank you.” My voice sounded muffled. I wanted to tell them how much their support meant to me. Maybe I just thought it, or maybe I said it aloud, I wasn’t sure.

Milo helped me to my feet and led me to a small tent with a makeshift bedroll. “We all know, Rowan.”

As I settled into bed, exhaustion finally overtook me. The day had been long and grueling, but I had survived it. With thoughts of the tournament and the fate of Lockersley swirling in my mind, I drifted into a restless sleep, determined to face whatever came next with the same resolve and courage that had carried me through today.