The Bridge Not Taken: Choosing Myself Over You1
I'm the disregarded bastard daughter of the Hayes Clan.
Abandoned in the back annex by the Principal Wife for a long sixteen years!
That fateful day, a group of governesses stormed in, knocking my dear brother unconscious and dragging him away.
I was utterly beside myself, screaming and pleading on my knees before the Principal Wife.
She pinched her nose as if I stank, cruelly stepping on my slender fingers.
"Just play nice and bear an heir for the queen, and I'll ensure your brother is listed as a rightful heir in the main lineage! Otherwise... his survival through this winter is on you!"
The agony was so sharp I could barely catch my breath; all I could do was nod in desperation.
Yes, my mother too never saw the end of that harsh winter.
This deep-seated hatred is all that sustains me...
***
My legitimate sister, the Queen, summoned me to the palace ostensibly as her companion but quickly showed her true colors behind closed doors.
"Get this straight, Jennifer— you're just a surrogate. Step out of line, and you'll wish you hadn't," she threatened with a venomous tone.
Facing her daunting presence, I meekly complied.
That night, Nanny Adams scrubbed me in the tub until my skin turned a painful red before she let me out.
Nanny Adams, a loyal servant to my sister, covers all her sinister deeds.
Post-scrubbing, I was left in a simple slip, hidden behind a screen adjacent to the royal bed.
As she left, Nanny Adams hissed a stern warning: no sounds, no marks—make sure the king suspects nothing.
Tucked away behind the screen, I watched moon shadows dance on the glass, wondering about my brother-in-law, the king.
Samuel Tully, although the eldest, was never King Robb's favored son. My sister had been smitten with him long before her coronation, giddy with joy on the day she was chosen for the palace, even tossing me and my brother a bone.
It baffled me, her desperation to ascend to queen yet requiring me to carry her child.
Such treason could doom us all to the gallows.
If not for my brother, I'd be tempted to take her and the entire household down to hell with me tonight!
I stretched out a hand towards the screen, but at that moment, the chamber door swung open.
The sound of steady footsteps and subdued chuckles filled the air; I quickly withdrew my hand, holding my breath.