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I watched him race around the little room and stuff as many things as he could into a bag in his hand. I didn’t have much. The evil bitch of a Queen made sure of that when she banished me to this Goddess-forsaken room.

Room?

More like a closet. Big enough to hold a mattress on a wooden table, a small sink and a bucket for my other needs. I had a small dresser that held a few changes of clothes and a secret compartment that held my mother’s necklace- the only thing I had left from her. One of the staff had found it and swiped it away for me when I was little.

“Why in the hell do I have to leave?” I stood up and grabbed his arm. “Dad. I’m talking to you.”

“Snow, we don’t have time.” He lightly reprimanded.

I shook my head in disbelief. “I have nowhere to go.”

“You must go.”

“Where?” I yelled.

He slapped his hand over my mouth and looked around, panicked. I pushed him off, but didn’t speak.

“I’ve called a friend to help guide you out of the castle grounds.”

I snatched the bag from him and dumped all the contents on the bed. None of them meant anything to me. I refilled the bag with two outfits, my toothbrush and brush. I popped the secret bottom out of the drawer and pulled out my mother’s necklace and quickly slipped it on, tucking it under my gown and jacket.

I caught my father looking at the necklace longingly.

“Don’t. You don’t get to miss her. You let that bitch lock me away in this fucking closet and didn’t do a goddam thing to stop her. She is evil- a disease taking over everything.”

“You’re right Snow. But I’m trying to save you now. You turn eighteen at midnight and you can’t be on property when you do. She’ll…” His words trailed off.

“What? What will she do?” What more could she do? She left me completely isolated in this room. I barely saw my father and had no one else, except my horse and the few birds or mice that came to visit occasionally.

He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. You need to go!”

I heard a dog howl outside.

“It’s time. Let’s go.” My father nearly pushed me out of the room, looking both ways before he shoved me into the spiral stairwell. “Let’s go Snow, let’s go.”

“I’m going as fast as I can.” I seethed in frustration.

I stepped outside and felt a bag thrown over my head.

“No!” my father shouted.

Obviously, this wasn’t part of the plan.

I swung my arms around, catching a man in the face because I heard him let out a grunt and my fist stung like it had touched fire.

“Stop her!” I heard a woman’s voice command off in the distance.

It was her.

The evil bitch and cause for all this misery.

I suddenly remembered my necklace and reached up to grab it, yanking it off, the metal burning against my skin as the clasp broke.

“Please don’t hurt her.” My father pleaded.

I quickly pulled the chain into my hand, balling my fist around it. I only hoped the distraction of my father and the Queen was enough to pull their attention away from me.

“What do we have here?” The Queen queried, walking up. I could hear the gravel parting under her feet the closer she got.