-19-

[First Failed Attempt]

ZAIDEN

My eyes glowed red with anger at my disability to capture the princess. I failed. I had one objective and I failed. How could I have allowed that to happen?

I stormed through the walls of the Tudor-styled three-story castle, the clump of my footsteps echoing on the tiled flooring and bouncing off the wall-papered walls. As soon as I was inside, floor-to-ceiling doors slammed shut behind me, caging me inside a dark entryway—sophisticated and decorated in intricately designed woodwork. Priceless artifacts and paintings of those gone on before adorned the walls. For centuries, brick walls and sections of decorative siding made from wooden beams and white stucco held the structure together, while narrow, multi-paned windows grouped to reflect the castle’s medieval roots and allow enough light to enter the home.

I stalked toward my father’s quarters. As I neared the door, a guard stepped in front of me, blocking my path from going further. His face remaine