The Maiden of Monaco - Episode 7

Novella Thursdays

CHAPTER V

ANOTHER night of self-doubt had cost Christophe, for after only a few hours of sleep he woke up to the challenge of stamina.

Between blissful thoughts of the magical kiss he had shared with the maiden and dreadful ones that had begun to form following the king’s announcement that the next day’s challenge would involve the remaining four contestants standing in place until one fell over from exhaustion, Christophe once again found himself questioning how in the world his weaker muscles were going to compete with the much stronger ones he was up against. Such tormenting thoughts had prevented him from enjoying the triumph over Denmark, and in his heart, the other three as well, since the princess had only fully opened her mouth to his.

But oddly enough, just as what had happened the night before, during his most desperate of hours when all hope seemed lost, the gift of solution had entered his mind.

By no means was it a full-proof idea, and in fact it was one that he indeed did not look forward to using, but at this stage he was willing to do anything to return to the euphoric union that was he and Angelique.

By the sixth hour the muscles in Christophe’s legs felt as though they had walked the month’s journey to his hometown, nonstop. Soreness had turned to aching and the pain was now starting to cause slight trembling. Were the stronger men at his back having similar difficulties?

He wanted to believe in the adage Father Ramsey had passed along to him, but as he stood there in fear that his fatigue would cause the collapse of his body, the thought that the bigger the man the harder he falls seemed less likely to be true and more realistically to be a delusion. In what state they were actually in he had no idea, since each had been positioned to where their backs were to one another and facing each of the four directions.

And so the time had arrived for Christophe to put his plan into action.