“Sam!” JC called softly before pulling her along with him around the corner, a space out of sight. Sam smiled when she saw it was JC and leaned in for a kiss, JC however stopped her before she reached his lips. She pulled back slowly and looked shocked.

“What’s wrong?” she asked concerned.

“We can’t see each other anymore” he stated trying to sound convinced, trying to ignore his heart which was protesting with his statement.

“What do you mean?” she asked hurt by his words.

“It’s not that I don’t want to, I swear. I just… I just can’t” he offered.

“Is this about the slave thing? I already told you that I don’t care about…” she said thinking she knew why he couldn’t see her anymore but he cut her off.

“It’s not about me being a slave… well actually it is but not in the way you think”

“Then in what way?” she asked curiously.

“In the way that… that… that I’m not allowed!” he blurted, irritated by his own stuttering.

“What do you mean you’re not allowed? You already knew you’re not allowed, didn’t stop us before” she said naughty, wiggling her eyebrow at him.

“Sam!” he whined. “You’re not making this easy”

“Well am I supposed to make it easy when you tell me out of the blue you can’t see me anymore?”

“Yes! I mean no… I mean...” he stuttered, he sighed heavily his explanation not working with him and neither was Sam. It was maybe a good thing she didn’t agree immediately letting him know she really cared about him, but actually he already knew she really loved him. But still it wasn’t what he needed right now. This was already hard enough as it was.

“JC,” she addressed him gently while cupping his cheek in her hand. “Just tell me” he closed his eyes for a moment enjoying the feeling of her touch.

“Alright,” he started, taking a deep breath. “Your sister Katherine saw us that night of the ball. When we were by the lake, she um… she ordered me to stop seeing you” he said giving her the short version of what had happened the last few days.

“She ordered you?” Sam asked incredulously.

“Yeah, she can do that remember?” JC said holding up his hands to show her his shackles as a reminder.

“But… but how did you end up with her?” Sam asked still not taking in the news.

“She um… asked her father for someone to um…. have fun with” he said ducking his head when he got to the last part.

“She asked for you?!” she asked angrily.

“I guess” JC shrugged.

“I’m sorry that didn’t came out the way I wanted to” Sam apologized when she realized she let it sound like she thought her sister was nuts for asking for JC when she could have chosen every man on the planet.

“It’s ok, I know what you meant” he smiled reassuringly. She smiled back a little amazed by the fact he knew what she was thinking.

“Why would she pick you AFTER she saw us together?” JC shrugged in response but then it dawned to Sam.

“I bet I know….” Sam trailed off, not seeing the impatient and anxious look JC was giving her.

“Katie always wants what I have,” she started explaining when she caught the look on JC’s face. “She always has and she’ll probably always will” she said sadly.

“And now she wants to have you”

“Too bad for her, I want you! Not her” he said determined.

“JC you know that’s not possible”

“You said it yourself we did it before”

“Yes but now Katie knows about it and she’ll tell someone definitely if you don’t give her what she wants”

“I just have to take this? NO!”

“I don’t think you have a choice,” Sam said sadly. “Not unless you want to stay alive”

“What?” JC’s eyes bulged out.

“She would do that?”

“She wouldn’t kill you herself but she would definitely make sure you’ll be punished for disobeying her”

“But… what do we do then?” JC asked defeated and shocked by what he just heard.

“I don’t know, I guess we should stop seeing each other” Sam said with tears in her eyes.

“No!” JC said still determined not to give Katherine her way.

“JC please” Sam slumped.

“I…” JC started but the lump in his throat stopped him from continuing. The look in his eyes however said it all and Sam fell into his arms. They rocked back and forth trying to comfort each other but it wasn’t working.

“I’m sorry Sam” JC said sadly through his tears once he pulled away.

“I love you” he said looking her in the eye.

“I love you too”

“It will be ok, she’ll get sick of me and I’ll come back to you, to the person I ever truly loved” he said sincerely trying to smile through his tears. He kissed her once more on the lips and then slowly disappeared around the corner, leaving Sam alone in the small corner of the hallway. She slumped down against the wall and cried.

For the next few weeks JC often wondered how Sam was doing. He saw her sometimes when he was on his way to Katie which made it hurt even more. It was hard enough to go to Katie but every time he saw Sam it was even harder to enter Katie’s wing instead of Sam’s. How could Katie be so different from her sister? He often thought. As gentle as Sam is so cruel is Katie. She acted like she owned him and actually she did. The King ordered him to her, everything the princess wanted. Damn spoiled brat! JC cursed, he knew he couldn’t keep doing this for very long. Sooner of later he would want to see Sam again and the more Katie yelled at him, commanded him and punished him, the more he craved for Sam. And sooner came closer…

“JC?” Sam asked incredulously.

“What are you doing here?”

“I’m sorry I just couldn’t wait any longer” he apologized before he planted a kiss on her lips, pushing her inside and closing the door behind them with his foot. It had been over 2 weeks since they last spoke to each other, since he had been forced to break it off with her, and every time he was with Katherine the only person he could think about was Sam and it had finally gotten the better of him. He couldn’t wait any longer; he HAD to see Sam even if it killed him, because it would kill him if he didn’t see her.

They stumbled towards the bed holding each other closely while they kissed every place they could reach. They sank on the bed and got startled several moments later when the door flew open followed by an angry,

“What the hell is going on here?”

“Katherine?” JC gasped.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t yell for the guards right now?” she said while crossing her arms over her chest, waiting for an explanation but also not.

“I… I… because…” JC tried but he couldn’t give her one. She opened her mouth ready to yell but he interfered.

“Please Katherine, don’t. I’m sorry, please don’t” he begged but she was not impressed, startling the two people on the bed once again when she started to scream for the guards.

She screamed at the top of her lungs. The guards were alarmed by the shrieking and fled to the source of the screams. JC still too shocked to move looked wide-eyed at the girl in the doorway who was still screaming when the guards burst through the door.

“What’s the matter you’re highness?” one of them asked as they took in the scene in front of them. JC was now lying on his back, bare chest and with his pants button open. While Samantha was lying beside him breathing hard, her dress ripped fully revealing her right leg. The upper body of her dress was unbuttoned as well.

“He was trying to rape her!” Katherine said accusingly pointing her finger at JC.

“What?!” JC blurted.

“Shut up slave!” a guard hissed quickly moving towards him. He jerked JC off the bed and shoved him to his knees a few feet away. Katherine moved around JC towards the bed and so called comforted her older sister.

“Chains” a guard commanded one of his men. The man he’d commanded ran out of the room complying with the order.

“Don’t move!” the guard next to JC warned, a firm hand on JC’s shoulder making it impossible to move even if he wanted to.

“Here put this on!” the guard instructed throwing the shirt on the bed at JC. He pulled the shirt over his head and buttoned his trousers. The whole time Samantha didn’t say anything which surprised JC the most. Katherine always drew attention to herself but Samantha didn’t correct her sister’s accusations.

“Sir” the man said bowing slightly to hand the head-guard the chains he requested. The man nodded and took the chains. He grabbed one of JC’s wrists and fastened the chain to the hook on his shackle, then the other. When he secured them he ordered two of his men to grab JC. JC threw frantic looks at his lover who had no intention to stop them from taking him away. They hauled JC out of the room while Sam tried desperately not to cry.

“Your Highness?” Arthur, the King’s right hand addressed his King, bowing slightly.

“Yes, Arthur” the King said a little distracted, raising his head to focus his attention on the man in front of him.

“I’m sorry but I’ll have to inform you that one of the slaves tried to rape your daughter today” Arthur said calmly informing the King of the events earlier that day.

“Katherine?” the King asked fearfully.

“No Samantha, your highness” Arthur corrected.

“Ooh my God” the King exclaimed clasping his hand over his mouth in shock.

“Where is she? I want to see my daughter” he stated firmly.

“She’s in her room, your highness”

“And the slave?”

“He has been brought to the dungeon” he informed his King.

“Alright I’ll deal with him later, bring me to my daughter” the King ordered quickly getting up and following Arthur as he led the way to his daughter.

“Sam, sweetie? Are you alright?” the King asked concerned once he entered the room, commanding Arthur to stay outside so he could have a private talk with his daughter. Sam was lying on her bed crying, but not for the reason her father assumed. She was crying because of the fact that JC had been taken away from her by her sister.

After JC had been hauled out of the room and the guards all left, she’d angrily pushed her sister out of the door. She was pretending to comfort her while she was the reason this had happened and JC was innocent, Katie knew that but she didn’t care to ruin his life by falsely accusing him just because he hadn’t done what she wanted him to do. Just because Katie was jealous, the love of her life was no longer in her life.

“I’m here” her dad comforted reassuringly. Sam fell into her father’s arms crying for loosing JC while the King got more furious with every tear that fell from his daughter’s eye thinking she was crying because someone had tried to rape her. He got more and more convinced to get the guy who did this to her not knowing she was crying for a different reason but she couldn’t tell her father that. There was no way.

“Get the prisoner” the King commanded when he entered the dungeon. He’d been with his daughter for a few hours when she finally calmed down a bit. He’d left her in the good care of the governess before he made his exit, deciding to visit the bastard that had tried to rape his daughter. He couldn’t wait any longer when he’d seen how devastated his daughter had been and he hurried towards the dungeons.

“Your highness what are you doing here?” the head-guard asked surprised, getting on one knee in front of him.

“I want to see the bastard that tried to rape my daughter” he stated firmly.

“Yes, your majesty. Follow me” the guard said while he rose to his feet and led the way to JC’s prison cell.

The King entered the small prison cell with his head held up high. When JC saw who entered, he was shocked but he quickly scrambled to his feet and kneeled in front of the King.

“Leave us” the King commanded.

“But…”

“Leave,” the King repeated a little fiercer this time.

“I’d like to have a word with him, alone” the King explained putting emphasis on his last word. The people shuffled out of the room and closed the door behind them. JC didn’t move, fearfully he waited for the King to say what he had to say, where he’d came for.

“You raped my daughter” he accused.

“I didn’t rape her sir” he blurted. He got kicked in the ribs as soon as the defensive words emerged from his mouth. He cringed, shocked that the King could do this. Of course! He’s the King he can do everything he wants but he never thought he’d kick someone.

“Shut up! You have no right to speak to me” the King hissed after he kicked JC in the ribs. He was outrages, this… slave! Tried to rape his daughter and he denied it!

“You will get your trial, I’ll make sure you’ll get convicted though, don’t you worry about that” the King stated fuming, JC cringed again at his harsh words but couldn’t really blame him. If anyone had really tried to hurt Sam he would have done the same thing. His breathing was harsh as he tried to ease the pain.

“I’ll see you soon, prepare for the worst slave!” the King hissed before he made his exit. JC breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the door close and being locked.