☆cronzel☆

亞美利佳現入熱戀時，瑪琳的故事...... ​

Chapter.2

I rushed to the small gated window of my cell. I watched as the door to the cell across the hallway—Carter’s cell—was opened, and Maxon was escorted in. I strained to hear what was said, but though I could make out Maxon’s voice, I couldn’t decipher any words. I also heard weak mutters in reply and knew they were from Carter. He was awake. And alive.

I simultaneously sighed and shivered, then lifted the tulle back over my shoulders.

After a few minutes Carter’s cell door opened again, and I watched as Maxon approached my cell. The guards let him in and shut the door behind him. He took one look at me and gasped.

“Good Lord, what have they done to you?” Maxon walked over, unbuttoning his suit coat as he did.

“Maxon, I’m so sorry,” I cried.

He slid off his coat and wrapped it around me. “Did the guards tear your costume? Did they harm you?”

“I never meant to be unfaithful to you. I never wanted to hurt you.”

He lifted his hands to my cheeks. “Marlee, listen to me. Did the guards hit you?”

I shook my head. “One ripped my wings off when he was pushing me in the door, but they haven’t done anything else.”

He sighed, clearly relieved. What a good man he was, still caring about my well-being even after he’d found out about me and Carter.

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered again.

Maxon’s hands dropped to my shoulders. “I’m only just starting to understand how pointless it is to fight being in love. I certainly don’t blame you for it.”

I stared into his kind eyes. “We tried to stop ourselves. I promise we did. But I love him. I’d marry him tomorrow . . . if we wouldn’t be dead by then.” I dropped my head, sobbing uncontrollably. I wanted to be more of a lady about this, to accept my punishment with grace. But it felt so unfair, like everything was being taken away from me before it had even truly been mine in the first place.

Maxon began rubbing my back gently. “You’re not going to die.”

I stared at him in disbelief. “What?”

“You haven’t been sentenced to death.”

I let out a rush of air and embraced him. “Thank you! Thank you so much! It’s more than we deserve!”

“Stop! Stop!” he insisted, tugging at my arms.

I stepped back, embarrassed for breaking protocol after everything else I’d done.

“You haven’t been sentenced to death,” he repeated, “but you still have to be punished.” He looked at the ground and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Marlee, but you’re both going to be publicly caned in the morning.”

He seemed to be having trouble maintaining eye contact with me; if I hadn’t known better, I would have thought he understood the pain we were in for. “I’m sorry,” he repeated. “I tried to prevent this, but my father is insistent that the palace needs to save face; and since the footage of you two together has already been circulated, there’s nothing I can do to change his mind.”

I cleared my throat. “How many times?”

“Fifteen. I think the plan is to make it much worse for Carter than you, but either way, it’s going to be incredibly painful. I know it sometimes causes people to black out. I’m so, so sorry, Marlee.” He looked disappointed in himself. And all I could think of was how good he was.
“They’re going to make you Eights,” he said. “Everyone is going to watch it.”

“But Carter and I will be together, right?”

He nodded.

“Then what else can I ask for? I’ll take a caning for that. I’d take his as well if that was possible.”

Maxon smiled sadly. “Carter literally just pleaded to take yours for you.”

I smiled, too, as more tears—happier tears—filled my eyes. “I’m not surprised.”

Maxon shook his head again. “I keep thinking that I have a grasp on what it means to be in love, and then I see you two, each asking to spare the other, and I wonder if I understand anything at all.”

I gripped his coat tighter around me. “You do. I know you do.” I stared at him. “Her, on the other hand . . . she might need time.”

He chuckled quietly. “She’s going to miss you. She used to encourage me to pursue you.”

“Only a true friend would try to get someone she cared about to become princess over herself. But I was never meant for you, or for the crown. I found my person.”

“She said something to me once,” he said slowly, “that I’ll never forget. She said, ‘True love is usually the most inconvenient kind.’”

I looked around my cell. “She was right.”

We were silent for a few moments before I spoke again. “I’m scared.”

He embraced me. “It will be over rather quickly. The buildup to the caning will be the worst part, but take your mind somewhere else while they’re talking. And I will try to get you the best medicines, the ones they save for me, so that you heal faster.” I started crying, frightened and thankful and a thousand other things. “For now, you need to get what sleep you can. I told Carter to rest as well. It will help.” I nodded into his shoulder, and he pulled me tight.

“What did he say? Is he all right?”

“He’s been beaten, but he’s doing okay for now. He told me to tell you he loved you and to do whatever I asked.”

I sighed, comforted by the words. “I’m in your debt forever.”

Maxon didn’t reply. He simply held me until I relaxed. Finally, he kissed my forehead and turned to leave.

“Good-bye,” I whispered.

He smiled at me and knocked twice on the door, and a guard escorted him away.

I went back to my place by the wall and curled my legs up under my dress while I turned Maxon’s coat into a makeshift blanket. I let myself drift back into my memories. . . .

我跑到小囚房裡裝有鐵條的窗邊。我看對面的囚房----卡特的囚房---被打開，然後麥克森被護送到裡頭。即便我可以認出麥克森的聲音。我依然聽不到任何字句。我也聽到微弱的回應，我知道那回應那自卡特。他醒了。而且活得好好的。

我忍不住地在鬆了口氣的同時顫抖，我把薄紗披在肩上。

幾分鐘後卡特的囚房再次打開，我看著麥克森朝我的囚房逼近。侍衛為他打開門，他走進來後門在他身後關上。他看到我時倒抽了一口氣。

「老天阿，他們到底對你做了甚麼?」麥克森走過來，還開始解開西裝外套的釦子。

「麥克森，我很抱歉。」我說道。

他脫下了外套後用外套包住我。「有沒有任何一個侍衛撕毀你的衣服?他們有沒有傷害妳?」。

「我從來沒有過要背叛你。我不想傷害你。」

他舉手碰了碰我的臉頰。「瑪琳，聽伍說。侍衛們有沒有動手?」

我搖頭。「有一個在推我進來時把我的把我的袖子撕破了，除此之外，他們沒做甚麼。」

他嘆氣，明顯的放鬆下來。他人就是這麼好，即便在發現我跟卡特後還是關心我過得好不好。

「我很抱歉，」我低聲的說道。

他的手從臉頰移到我的肩上。「我只是開始在了解為愛奮鬥是多麼不顧一切的。我真的不怪你。」

我望進他真摯的說演。「我們有試過不要見面。我發誓我們有，但我愛他，我願意明天就嫁給他......如果我們那時候還沒被處決。」

我低下頭，無法克制的啜泣。在這件事裡我想要比較淑女伊甸，很優雅的接受我的懲罰。但一切都是那麼的不公平，一切事物在真的成為我的之前就被奪走。

麥克森溫柔的揉著我的背。「你不會被處決。」

我不敢置信的瞪著他。「甚麼?」

「你沒有被判決死刑。」

我顫抖的吐了口氣後上前擁抱它。「謝謝你!謝謝你!這比我們應得的還要好!」

「等一下!等一下!」他堅持，戳著我的手臂。

我後退一步，因為沒有該有的禮節還有所有我不該做得事而感到丟臉。

「你沒有被判決死刑，」他重覆，「但你還是要被處罰。」他的視線飄向必板後搖了搖頭。「我很抱歉，瑪琳，但你們兩個人都要公開的在早上接受鞭刑。」

他似乎在跟我在眼神接觸上有困難，要不是我認識他，我就不會認為他知道我們現在承受的痛苦。「我很抱歉，」他又重覆。「我試過要阻止鞭刑，但我父親堅持皇宮需要留點面子；既然你們兩個在一起的畫面一起在傳出去了，我做的任何事都無法讓他改變心意。

我清了清。「幾下?」

「十五下。我想他們的計畫是要讓卡特的狀況變得更糟，但無論如何還是會帶來劇痛。我知道這會讓一些人昏厥。「我非常，非常抱歉，瑪琳。」他看你來對自己很失望。而我所能想到的是他人有多好。

我站得更挺，想要他知道我能承受這個。「你來到這裡給了我跟我所愛之人重生的機會，你還要道歉?麥克森，我從來沒有這麼感激過。」

「他們會讓你便第八階級，」他說「所有人都會看著。」

「但我跟卡特會在一起，對吧?」

他點頭。

「那我還能要求甚麼?我會接受鞭刑。如果可以我也願意接受他的份。」

麥克森悲傷的微笑。「卡特剛剛也要求要接收你的份。」

我笑了，同時眼匡充滿了眼淚---喜悅的眼淚。「我不驚訝。」

麥克森再次搖搖頭。「我一直任何我對墜入愛河有些了解，然後我看見你們兩個，都要求著對方的赦免，我在想我是否真正懂。」

我用力拉僅披在我身上的外套。「你懂，我知道你懂。」我看著他。「她，在另一方面，她會需要時間適應」

他無聲的笑了。「她會想你的。她以前會鼓勵我追求妳。」

「只有真正的朋友才會試圖讓她在乎的人成為公主。但我從來就不應該跟你在一起，亦或是王冠，我找到了我要的人。」

「她跟我說過一句話，」他緩慢的說，「我永遠忘不了。她說:「真愛通常是最令人為難的殷切。」

我看了看我四周的小囚房。「她是對的。」。

在我開口之前我們有著片刻的靜默。「我好怕。」

他抱住我。「很快就會過去的。在鞭刑時一旁集結的人民，當他們在講話時把你的心思放到別處。我想辦法給你最好的藥。他們留給我的，這樣你的傷勢就能恢復的比較快。」我開始落淚，嚇壞了卻也很感激，還有數千個其他事物。「現在，多休息。我也會叫卡特休息。會有幫助的。」我在他懷中點點頭，她抱緊我。

「他說了甚麼?他還好嗎?」

「他被毒打了一頓，但他現在還好。他要我告訴妳他愛妳，還有要做我要求的事。」

我嘆氣，被他所說的話安撫。「我永遠欠你一個人情。」

麥克森沒有回應。他一直抱著我直到我放鬆下來。最終，他在我額頭上烙下一個吻後轉身離去。

「再見，」我低聲說道。

他對我微笑，然後敲了敲門兩下，一名侍衛出現把他護送走。

我回到我在牆邊的位置，把麥克森的外套當成棉被的同時蜷縮起來。我讓我自己的意識溜回回億裡。

過不久應該就會稍微把翻譯過的章節做總整理囉~對於龜速的翻譯還請大家見諒

延伸閱讀:

Chapter.1