Chapter 5
Seeing his confusion, Ana decided to take the initiative and continued speaking with a serene but forceful tone of voice:
"Well, I see you are. In the first place, I invited you for a stroll through the garden with the sole purpose of evaluating what kind of relationship we actually had, but I believe it has been made clear that I was never to your liking. In the second place, I want to make it clear that I do not intend anything with this whole situation. My only intention was to observe your attitude and your behavior away from the influence of your family and mine. Just like you, I also did not believe that forced face of concern you showed at the beginning. And in the third place, from this precise moment, Prince Diego, I inform you that you do not have to worry about me anymore. That is all I have to say. With your permission, I am going to return to my family."
After pronouncing these words with unwavering determination, Ana turned around with the intention of returning to the side of her parents and the emperors. However, before she could take even a single step, she felt a firm hand that gripped her arm with strength. Surprised, she turned to face whoever had stopped her and met the face of Prince Diego, whose expression reflected a mixture of confusion and incredulity. With a tone of voice that denoted his bewilderment, the prince asked her:
"What do you mean by that I do not have to worry about you anymore, Miss Valeria? Are you perhaps insinuating that you intend to break our engagement?"
Ana, maintaining her composure and serenity in her gaze, responded with an enigmatic smile and a hint of irony in her voice:
"You will see, Prince Diego. Time will tell everything. Now, if you permit me, I must retire. With your permission."
Having said this, Ana gently freed herself from the prince's grip and, without giving him time to reply, headed with a firm and elegant step toward the place where their families were. Inside, she felt a mixture of satisfaction and relief at having planted the seed of doubt in the prince's mind and at having made it clear that she was not willing to tolerate his slights and his arrogance. She was determined to take the reins of her destiny and to not allow anyone to treat her like the naive and submissive original Valeria.
Meanwhile, Prince Diego remained standing in the middle of the garden, observing how Ana moved away with an elegance and a security that he had never before seen in her. He could not understand what was happening nor the meaning of her words, but he sensed that something important had changed and that things would no longer be as before.
Valeria returned together with her family, followed closely by Prince Diego, whose face reflected evident confusion and a growing unease. He did not manage to understand Valeria's words nor the meaning of her sudden change of attitude, but he sensed that they were not at all flattering and that this young woman only knew how to cause him problems.
"I have returned" Ana announced with a radiant smile that lit up the place and contrasted with the tension that was breathed in the environment.
With a natural elegance, she sat next to her parents and, while she took a delicate cup of tea, she addressed her father with a question that she knew would break the deathly silence that had settled in the room:
"Father, could I ask you some questions about our engagement with Prince Diego?"
The duke, surprised by his daughter's frankness, nodded with caution, and responded:
"Of course, darling. Tell me what it is about."
"It is about the engagement itself" Ana said, without beating around the bush. "Was I really in agreement with marrying the crown prince? Was I sure of my feelings toward him?"
Empress Elena, visibly uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was taking, interrupted with a slightly elevated tone of voice:
"Of course you were, my heaven. You were very much in love with Prince Diego. You have always admired him and have desired to form a family with him."
Ana, without being fazed by the empress's interruption, directed her gaze toward her mother and asked her with a disconcerting serenity:
"Are you sure, mother, that what I felt for the prince was true love and not… I don't know, a kind of fraternal affection? Is it possible that I have confused my feelings and that I have seen him more as an older brother than as a future husband?"
The empress almost choked on her tea upon hearing these words, but, before anyone could even open their mouth to reprimand the prince for his outburst, Valeria raised her voice with surprising serenity and said:
"This is exactly what I am referring to. It is evident that neither of us is in agreement with this engagement. Parents, emperors, I beg you to reconsider this agreement and not force us to live an unhappy life, tied by an engagement without love. For my part, I assure you that I have no intention of marrying someone whom I do not love. I want the man I choose as a husband to look at me with love and tenderness, in the same way in which you, father, look at my mother, or how the emperor looks at his beloved empress."
Empress Elena, visibly disconcerted by Valeria's firmness, tried to soften the situation with a conciliatory tone:
"Love can come with the years, dear. It is only a matter of…"
"Forgive my boldness, empress" Valeria interrupted with courtesy, "but how many more years do I have to wait? I understand that we have known each other since we were children, and if those feelings have not emerged until now, I doubt very much that they can do so in the future. Besides, look at Prince Diego: he has not lost his memory, but neither does he seem to like me even as a friend."
Valeria made a pause, took a deep breath, and continued with a tone of voice loaded with emotion:
"So, now I ask all of you: is that what you really want? An empty life without love for your own children? I ask you to think about it carefully. For my part, I retire, as I do not feel well. Mother, do you permit me to go rest?"
Duchess Renata, moved by her daughter's words, nodded with tenderness, and responded:
"Of course, darling. There is no problem at all. Go rest, and later I will let you know what decision we have made."
Emperor Fernando, for his part, added with a kind tone of voice:
"Yes, Valeria, go rest. You have not yet fully recovered. For my part, I promise to think about it and give you an answer as soon as possible."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, with your permission."
After pronouncing those last words, Valeria withdrew from the place with a smile on her face. Even though they did not cancel the engagement, she knew it was a matter of time. With everything she told them, she had set them to reflect.
Once Valeria left, the first to speak was the Duke: "Fernando, follow me to my office, we need to talk…"