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The palace was in mourning and traces of tears could be seen on almost everyone's face as they went about the palace. The queen died in the night while coughing violently.

But Sarah was not crying because of the queens death. Instead she cried for her parents, she cried for the life she lived as servant without the love and care of a parent, she cried for the unknown future that awaited her. She cried for many reasons but none of them had anything to do with the queen

She still went about her normal duties since the queens confession had not yet been announced publicly. Isaac had requested for two weeks to mourn his mother first and Sarah could not refuse. She was still their servant

As she moved from chamber to chamber cleaning she could feel Isaac's hateful glare on her whenever their paths crossed. She reminded herself to be on the alert. It pained her to think that she had no friend to turn to for help if something happened. She was literally at their mercy.

After her days chores she retired to her room as usual. Few minutes later there was a knock on the door. She stood up afraid. So many possibility were running through her mind. What if Isaac had come to finish her off quietly?

She searched her room for a weapon and opened the door placing her body behind it.

"i mean no harm" Daniel raised his hands

Seeing it was Daniel she relaxed slightly but not entirely. Just in case..

"can i come in?" he was still standing outside her room

"yes..come in" she stepped aside and closed the door after him

"i came here to apologize on behalf of my mother. I know she did you wrong but please find a place in your heart to forgive her even though she dose'nt deserve it" Daniel pleaded

Sarah said nothing. The nod of her head was the only sign that she was listening. She wasn't angry at Daniel he did nothing wrong. All the anger was at his mother

Daniel continued "i also came to offer a hand of support and friendship to you. If you will take it..." he looked at the wall behind her too nervous to meet her eye

Sarah was surprised that he still wanted to have anything to do with her. He was supposed to consider her the enemy like Isaac did and not be here apologizing for mistakes that were not his. But she wasn't going to turn him away. Heaven knew she needed a friend now more than ever and just maybe she could find that friend in Daniel. She didn't dare think of anything further than that. She motioned for him to sit down and sat at the other side of the bed.

Daniel watched all kinds of emotions pass through Sarah's face as he talked to her... Anger, surprise, relief, weariness. He knew the exact moment she accepted him as a friend.

How he wished she knew he was ready to offer more than just friendship. He wanted her to lean on him, he wanted to be her hero, he wanted to protect her, most importantly he wanted to... He shook his head.. He shouldn't be thinking about that now

His brother was not someone to be trifled with and he needed to make sure Sarah was safe until the council knew of her existence. Which was even why he was in her room.

"Sarah please don't let your guard down no matter where you are. Avoid quiet and lonely places and make sure to know who is knocking before you open the door" he looked at her "Isaac is dangerous.. But don't worry i will do my best to protect you. If you notice anything fishy don't hesitate to tell me" his face was serious

Fear gripped Sarah as she nodded quickly " thank you. You dont know how much i needed a friend. Thank you for offering yourself" she told him in a small voice

To Daniel she looked so fragile and afraid. He wanted to do nothing more than hold her and assure her she was safe.. Hold her until he erased the fear in her eyes replacing it with his love. But he restrained himself. He just made a little progress with her. He didn't want to ruin it by being too forward so he simply nodded and left her room.

A week had gone since the queens death but everyone still spoke in hushed whispers. Immediately Sarah returned to her room after the days task the summoning bell rang. She looked closely to check who was calling her.

When she saw it her blood ran cold... Isaac. What did he want? She couldn't disobey the call. She thought of telling Daniel first before going and be punished for coming late. On a second thought she decided to just go straight to his room. It could be an innocent call after all.