White Rose by Gao Yang (ink book reader .TXT) 📕

"Isabella?" She turned around to see her mother. "Jack, Alison." She looked back at Isabella as Alison walked up to the doorstep and stood next to Isabella.

"Mother, we want to talk to you and Father about some things." Then their father walked down the stairs and saw what was happening. Mrs. Valet nodded her head and let them in as Mr. Valet followed them into the living room.

"Isabella, where on earth have you been?! Don't you know your mother and I have been worried sick about you?" Isabella turned around to look at her father. Her eyes were red and watery.

"Father--" Alison tried to help Isabella out but he cut her off.

"Shush, Alison. Your little sister has been missing for four days and she's in some serious trouble." Mrs. Valet closed her eyes as her head dropped over her shoulders. Jack walked up to his mother and caressed her shoulders.

"Father! Isabella has some things to talk about." He looked around and nodded.

"Good! I have some things to say as well." He looked at Isabella. "You do know--"

Isabella cut off her father, for the first time. "Was I set to save the world?" He stopped and looked at Isabella with stupidity.

"Who told you that?!" Mr. Valet scoffed and chuckled in amusement. "Is this some kind of joke?" He looked at Jack and Alison, waiting for them to say that Isabella is stupid to think that. But they didn't answer, they just stood there and stared at him. "Are you serious?"

"Tell me, Father. Was I or was I not to save the world?" She said with a firm tone. "Is there a reason why I look exactly like Maire Jeanne?" He looked at her and Mrs. Valet looked up and slowly walking up to Isabella. They were both silent as a night and didn't answer. "I've been told so many things in my life but there was always one that stood out to me; the fact that I've been told that I've always looked like Maire Jeanne Valet-Argent. Is there a reason why to hide that from me?"

"People look like other people for reasons. Just like you and your siblings." Mr. Valet denied the fact and tried to change the subject from Maire Jeanne.

"Father, you are not listening to me! You've never listened to me once. And probably, never." Isabella said that and ran out the door. Mrs. Valet looked at Jack, Alison and her husband and followed Isabella outside.

Jack looked at his father with no sympathy. "She's right." Mr. Valet looked his son, shocked. "You've never listened to her. When she told you the truth, you immediately just thought she was lying straight to your face."

Mr. Valet immediately retorted and defended himself. "When have I thought she was lying to me?! I only wanted to know the truth as well." Jack pressed his lips together and shook his head.

"I thought I told you already, she never slept with Colin and you thought she was lying to your face. You've asked me multiple times and I've been telling you the truth. You've hit her many times I could count my knowledge. In all my years of lifetime, never once have I heard you say 'I love you' to Isabella, perhaps to any of us." Jack took a step back away from him. "Trust me as your son, I don't want to go against you or anything but how you've been treating your family, I just can't even . . ." Jack then stopped and looked away. Alison was still standing in the room with her brother and father and she couldn't believe what she just heard.

"Alison, my daughter." Mr. Valet walked up to Alison as she tried to cope herself from losing everyone in her family. "You still love your father, don't you?" She couldn't look at her father without crying. She loved her father dearly but she couldn't watch her family being emotionally abused by her father.

*   *   *

How can I save the world when I don't even know what I'm supposed to do? Isabella ran all the way to fountain where her and Colin would meet. She sat down on the fountain. She placed her head on her palms and wept. Why do I feel so weak right now? Then she heard a pair of footsteps coming towards her. She lifted up her head and grabbed the spear. "Who goes there?!" She turned around to see Colin. "Colin, what are you doing here?" She said as she kept the spear pointed on him.

"Isabella, please." She didn't react. She just looked at him furiously. "Please let me explain about earlier."

"And let my heart soften and cry of sympathy for you, not a chance." He looked at her and had his hands up in the air. "Perhaps, I should let you think what you think about me because I don't give a damn what anyone thinks of me anymore. Doesn't matter who, I don't give a damn who thinks about me or what not." Colin slowly walked up to her and she pointed the spear higher to him and he stopped.

"Isabella, please don't do this to yourself." He begged her to stop torturing herself every time she was upset.

"What's there for you to ask me anything anymore, Colin? You've completely dropped my love for you." He closed his eyes and waited for her to kill him. "What are you doing now?!" She shouted as he kept walking towards her. "Stop! Colin, I'm asking you to stop right now! Colin!" She said as she pulled away the spear as soon as he was about to walk into the spear. She looked at him and took a few steps back. He opened his eyes and he was confused as to why she didn't want to hurt him.

"Why didn't you kill me?" She shook her head. "Isn't that what you want to do to me? Kill me because I've betrayed you?"

"Stop it, Colin! Stop!" She shouted as she backed up away from him even more. She looked at him one last time. "I've never wanted to kill you. I've always loved you." She turned around and ran away from him. She then vanished deep in the woods.

"Change. One of the hardest lessons in life is letting go. Whether it's guilt, anger, love, loss, etc. Change is never easy, you fight to hold on, and you fight to let go." ~ Unknown

Three years after Isabella vanished from the entire Southern Isles, the Valet family decided to pronounce her dead because of her disappearance. For three years, she never returned home. There were search parties held to look for her but nothing turned up, not even a body remain that belonged to her. Mr. David Valet became depressed in the three years and became severely ill; Mrs. Holly Valet has been taking care of her husband for the three years. Jack and Alison still haven't given up on their sister just yet.

Bryce, Percy, Charles and Colin, however, they all have given on finding her. After the last search, they already accepted that she was gone forever. Bryce had already thought she was killed by Stephen, Nate and Sebastian and have been looking for the three of them. Percy have been staying by the King's side as any loyal subject. Charles was already King of the Southern Isles after his father stepped down and let him take the throne and a year after Isabella's disappearance. He was already married to Madeline who was bearing their first child.

After Isabella's last words to Colin, he decided to move on from her because he thought that's what she wanted for him to do. He married Gwen two years after. He still felt regretful for what he's done to Isabella but even though he was married, he's never forgotten about her.

Royal Palace

Bryce was in the library and reading some books and then Charles came in. "Bryce, I need you to run some errands for me." He looked up to see Charles who gave him some contracts. "I need you to bring that to the Myers's residence." Bryce looked at Charles with confusion.

"My lord, excuse me, but that's the residence where Colin lives." Charles looked at Bryce and nodded.

"Yes, it is . . . And I know what happened after the search party between you and Colin." Charles said as he grabbed Bryce's shoulder. "Don't worry, I despise him as much as you do."

"Well, isn't that your job?" Bryce said as he scoffed. Charles shrugged his shoulders. "If Isabella were alive today, she'd be proud to see you." Charles said in words of comfort, making Bryce smile, for which he hasn't shown in the three years Isabella has been gone.

She always lived in his memories, her smile, her giggle, her words, her scent. Not a day has passed by for Bryce if he didn't think of her. Anytime he thought of her, he kept her words of comfort and knowing that she was in a better place. Everyday, he would visit the room where she was during the time she was in the palace.

"Bryce, can you bring the errands to Myers?" He looked at Charles and nodded. "I'll see you around." Charles walked out of the library and Bryce looked at the errands and zoomed out of the library. He went out to the carriage and his guard, Thomas was waiting for him by the carriage.

"Sir," Thomas greeted Bryce as he walked up to him.

"Take me to the Myers." Thomas obeyed and nodded. He stepped on the carriage and Bryce got inside the carriage. Nothing was going through his mind but how he was going to face the person who pushed his Isabella away from him. Do I have to yell at him? Do I have to do something to get his attention and get his brain to think where Isabella could possibly go? Or do I need to torture him to get him talking? Do I need to kill him? The carriage was going on the other side of the village and soon enough he was at the Myers's house. "Thomas, stay here."

He stepped out of the carriage and walked up to the house. He's never been to their house before, and it was quite bigger than he thought it would be. He knocked on the door and heard footsteps coming up the door and it opened. "May I help you?" A young woman who was dressed formally