93: Fumes of the suppressed

Fumes of the suppressed

0The Mother Queen's eyes widened upon hearing the news. Even though this was something that would have happened eventually, she hadn't expected the news to be dropped on them this suddenly. She turned to look at Dante, who stood beside her with a shocked expression on his face. 

"Dante?" 

"I will be leaving for the old palace," Dante turned in the direction of where Oasis was tethered so that he could reach the place quickly. 

The old woman pressed her lips together before she demanded,

"Are you absolutely certain this news is accurate?! How is it possible we did not hear a word or murmur about it?" 

The servant continued to bow, his words faltering as he stammered, "The news about Lady Lucretia's deteriorating health was dispatched yesterday, but Lady Sophia received no response and sent me to relay it today."

"Yesterday?" The Mother Queen exclaimed, baffled. "When did Lucretia pass away?" 

"This morning, Mother Queen," the servant replied, causing the Mother Queen to become distressed.

"This is bad," the Mother Queen muttered under her breath, and she ordered the servant, "Prepare my palanquin. I will be leaving for the old palace." Uttering those instructions, she turned on her heel and stepped back inside the palace. 

As she walked through the corridors towards her chamber, the Mother Queen encountered Princess Emily, who was about to ask whether the parchment bearing her seal had been dispatched to the elders. However, upon seeing the worried look on her grandmother's face, the princess inquired with concern, 

"Where are you going in such haste, Grandmother?" 

"Emily, go fetch the courtesan. We are going to the old palace," the Mother Queen instructed her granddaughter before spilling the news, "Lucretia has passed away."

Princess Emily's hand instinctively flew to cover her mouth, the revelation leaving her at a loss for words. She asked, "Does Brother Dante know about this?" 

"He and I were the first ones to hear about it. We can discuss the rest on our way later. Right now, I need you to get ready to depart," the Mother Queen urged the princess, emphasising not to waste time. 

Princess Emily nodded in understanding, and she promptly made her way to the Paradise Tower. However, upon reaching the upper end of the stairs, the guards blocked her path. A frown came to form on her forehead, and she expressed, 

"I need to talk to one of the courtesans."

"Forgive us, Princess. But we have received strict orders from King Maxwell himself not to allow anyone except for Queen Maya and Madame Minerva to pass," one of the guards informed her. 

This was the first time she was hearing this. She needed to speak to Anastasia, and the guards were denying her entry. Frustrated, she turned around and walked back down the stairs. When she reached the bottom step, she heard a voice say, 

"What are you doing here, Princess Emily?" It was Anastasia, who had only just returned after spending some time with Theresa. 

"Come with me, Anna. It is urgent," Princess Emily exclaimed in a rush, causing Anastasia to become concerned about whether everything was alright. Without question, she followed the visibly tense princess out of the palace. While they waited for someone outside, her eyes met Gabriel's, who stood in the garden holding an earthen pot in his hand, about to water a plant. They hadn't spoken to each other since her public punishment. She turned her attention back to the princess and asked, 

"Is everything alright?" 

Princess Emily shook her head and responded, "Lady Lucretia has passed away at the old palace." Anastasia frowned upon hearing the news, while the princess continued, "Brother Dante has already gone ahead, and we are going to join him there."

Just then, the Mother Queen arrived, wearing an equally worried expression. The old woman addressed her granddaughter, saying, 

"It appears that I cannot accompany you on this journey, as the restrictions placed upon me have not been lifted. But you must go. Right away, so that he isn't alone," the Mother Queen gave Emily a knowing look before shooing them away to leave the palace. 

Anastasia now sat behind Princess Emily on the back of the princess's white horse, Sky. The horse sped through the palace gates and the towering entrance gates. It galloped relentlessly across the sandy terrain until they reached the old palace.

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Upon arriving in front of the old palace, they quickly dismounted from the horse, and Princess Emily ran inside with urgency while Anastasia followed behind her. Together, they made their way to the room on the upper floor where everyone else had gathered. 

"Oh, Emily!" exclaimed Lady Sophia, who quickly walked over to her daughter and hugged her. 

"When did this happen, Mother?" Princess Emily asked in a lowered voice. 

Anastasia's footsteps continued forward until she came to stand in front of the room that Lady Lucretia had occupied. When she looked inside, she was greeted by the heartbreaking sight of a grieving son mourning the loss of his deceased mother. 

Dante sat on the edge of the bed, cradling his mother's lifeless body in his arms. He clung to her as if there was still a glimmer of life left in her, as if to make up for the time he couldn't spend with her during her final breaths. His head was buried in the crook of his mother's neck, while her hands hung limply by her sides. Her face was deathly pale, her eyes closed, and her lips darkened. 

Anastasia could hear Lady Sophia speaking to Princess Emily at one end of the corridor, "Her condition took a turn for the worse yesterday, and I sent a letter around noon, hoping Dante would make it here by nighttime. Did no one receive it?" 

"We would have come here sooner if we had heard about it," Princess Emily murmured in a hushed voice. 

"Was the information intentionally kept from you at the palace?" Lady Sophia asked, a deep frown forming on her face. She then continued, her voice tinged with sorrow, "The physicians couldn't do anything more, but… she fought to hold on as long as she could, but eventually, she succumbed." 

As the others gave time and space for the first prince to grieve, they made their way downstairs, with Princess Emily leaving Anastasia on the upper floor. Minutes passed, and they stood and sat in their respective positions without moving an inch. 

Anastasia watched Dante as he finally released his mother from his embrace, gently laying her head on the pillow. He tenderly brushed his mother's hair with his fingers, delicately picking up the strands that stuck to her face and tucking them to the side. 

Dante gazed upon his mother, now peacefully at rest in eternal sleep. She looked serene, despite the obvious signs of her recent struggle and the pain she had endured during her last moments. The traces of blood she had coughed out stained her dress and marked the corners of her lips. 

"Forgive me, Mother," Dante whispered, his voice cracking at the end. "Forgive me," he repeated, for not being beside her during her final moments. 

Because her health had always been weak and delicate, he had been mentally bracing himself for the inevitable, yet it still felt insufficient. Even if many more years had passed, it wouldn't have alleviated the pain, and he leaned forward, his forehead hovering over her stomach. 

Despite the attempts of others to whisper and keep their conversations hushed outside the room and in the corridors, Dante caught every single word they uttered, causing his hands to clench tightly into fists. If only the news had been delivered to him earlier, he could have been beside his mother as she rapidly faded away. If only he could have stayed by her side and held her hands to offer the strength she required before taking her last breath. 

If only… Dante thought to himself, reaching out for his mother's cold hand that would never again squeeze his in return. When he closed his eyes, which had turned red from overwhelming emotions, tears welled up and cascaded down his cheeks, dropping onto the fabric of his mother's dress, where they vanished without a trace. 

'Dante, you are here,' he heard his mother's voice echo from the depths of his past. 'I have been looking all around the palace for you. What are you doing here?'

Dante was taken back in time to when he was ten years old, and his mother found him sitting alone in the stables. She walked towards him with a curious expression and a smile. She sat down next to him, saying, 

"I was worried when no one knew where you disappeared to. Let us go back inside. Your teacher awaits you."

But a young Dante shook his head. 

"Okay. You wouldn't mind if your mother sat next to you, would you?" Lady Lucretia asked her son. 

When he scooted to the side, she adjusted the back of her dress before sitting down beside him. She turned to look at him, noticing his unwavering gaze fixed on the wall ahead. For someone so young, he looked too serious, and it worried her greatly because she could see his childhood being robbed from him right before her eyes. 

She then proposed, "How about we go visit Jannat? It has been so long since we last watched the water flowing under the bridge."

"It will bring pain," the young boy answered, causing Lady Lucretia's eyebrows to raise in surprise. 

"Pain? Did someone hurt you, Dante?" She asked him, her eyes scanning her son's face and arms for any sign of harm. 

"Not me… You," he replied, his expression turning serious when it should have held laughter and joy. "They speak ill of you."

Lady Lucretia softly laughed and said, "Here I was worried it was about you, but you are worried about me instead, my dear cub." Tenderly, she placed her hand on his head and continued, "Rest assured, I am perfectly fine. See? What truly matters to me is your opinion of me. What others say holds no significance in my eyes."

The young boy turned to look at his mother, casting a doubtful glance at her, only to be greeted by her warm smile. She extended both her hands towards him and beckoned, "Come here." Without waiting for him, she pulled him into a tight embrace and said, "After the bad days come the good ones, and I want you to look forward to them. Don't dwell in dark places because you are stronger than that."

"Father doesn't visit us…" the young boy murmured. 

"He's likely been busy, as he is the King of Versailles," Lady Lucretia gently caressed the back of her son's head, the smile on her lips fading as a wave of anguish engulfed her. Swallowing it down, she said, "Why don't you catch up on your studies, so that when he visits us, he will be pleasantly surprised and delighted about your progress?" 

In the present moment, Dante bitterly smiled at the memory with his eyes still closed. He had done everything to prove himself to his father and the others, but it wasn't sufficient to dispel the belief that he was cursed or change how they treated him. 

Dante finally straightened his back and head. He had no regrets until yesterday when it came to his mother, because he had always made sure to spend his spare moments with her. He had done everything he could, but the thought of her waiting for him, wanting to see him before she closed her eyes forever, broke something inside of him. 

Sensing someone at the door, Dante turned, and his eyes fell on Anastasia. He didn't question what she was doing in the old palace and simply stared at her. 

Anastasia noticed his red eyes, and when she went to bow, he turned to look back at his mother. The death of someone dear wasn't easy; she had experienced it firsthand. She parted her lips to speak, uncertain of whether it was right to ask. But then she offered anyway, 

"Would you like me to give her a sponge bath and change her clothes?" 

Dante's hardened gaze softened. He took a deep breath before responding, "I would appreciate it." 

Anastasia nodded and left the front of the room, and made her way downstairs to get a bowl of warm water, even though Lady Lucretia wouldn't know the difference. As she walked back up the stairs, the women of the Blackthorn family were still in discussion with Aziel, when Lady Sophia's eyes fell on her. 

Lady Noor was speaking, "I don't think anyone would be rude enough to stop the news—"

"Emily, is that your maid? Why is she dressed in fine clothing?" Lady Sophia questioned her daughter. 

"Because she's now a courtesan," Emily responded to her mother before returning to the previous subject, "I agree with Lady Noor; why keep the news away from any of us?" 

But Lady Sophia was not done talking about Anastasia, and she pulled her daughter to another corridor so they could speak about it in private. She asked, "Since when is a maid able to become a courtesan and mingle with people of status? How could you let this happen?" 

Emily couldn't believe that this was the issue her mother was focussing on and replied softly, "It is the king's decision. Not mine, Mother."

"I cannot believe this," Lady Sophia muttered in disbelief. A few weeks away from the main palace, and the rules and laws were dragged through the sand. "Something like this cannot happen, Emily. Women of low class cannot ascend where we are, and you cannot keep a person like her near you for company."

"Mother, aren't you being harsh about it?" Emily's eyebrows furrowed in slight disappointment. She asked, "Do you always have to bring up someone's status? She's a person, and hasn't done anything wrong."

"When will you grow up, Emily? Everyone placed at the bottom wants to thrive and climb to the top. I was like you once, thinking it was alright, but look at us now. Look at the position we are in," Lady Sophia's eyes blazed in anger at their circumstances. She said, "When I married your father, I naively believed nothing could go wrong. Nothing at all, until I started losing babies before they were born. Your father sent a woman to keep me company in my time of sorrow, but then turned her into his first concubine, while casting us aside."

"So yes, I will be harsh and warn you to keep women of lower status where they belong. So that you don't share the same fate as me. So that your children don't suffer." Only Lady Sophia knew the pain of having to share her husband with other women, while she couldn't do anything but watch. 

Emily was quiet for a few seconds before she answered, "I understand your pain and worries, Mother. But don't you think it is irrational to place blame on women of low status? When the actual fault lies in Father's actions?"

"Your father is not blameless in any of the things that have happened to our family," Lady Sophia replied, wanting to question why she had to be the former king's wife, legally married to him, if she was only meant to be exiled and ill-treated. 

"I know things have been difficult for you, Mother. That even though Lady Lucretia stole something meant for you, you are sad about her death," Emily placed her hands on her mother's arms. She confessed, "We are all saddened that Lady Lucretia has passed away. But you cannot take it out on an innocent person. I will be careful, so trust me."

On the floor above, in Lady Lucretia's room, Anastasia helped Dante wipe down his mother's body and change her into fresh clothes. The earlier evidence of blood spots had disappeared, and she now appeared serene, as if she were taking a nap. 

Anastasia noticed how gentle Dante was with his mother. But at the same time, she could sense the simmering rage waiting to erupt and destroy those who had wronged him, and she didn't dare talk to him out of fear. 

Dante pulled a chair to sit next to the bed, watching her and spending time with his mother for the last time before she would be placed in the mausoleum next to where the king laid. 

Grief heavily hung in the air, along with the silence as the time passed. 

Anastasia didn't utter a word and only stood there watching him from a few steps away in case the prince needed any assistance. 

A faint realisation came to sink in her mind. If Dante hadn't spent the evening in the Hall of Mirrors or hadn't spent the night keeping Mr. Langston away from her, maybe he would have been able to share a word or more with Lady Lucretia before she left. The guilt in her chest grew, even though it wasn't her fault. She wanted to apologise to him. But she wasn't sure if now was the time to do it when he was grieving. 

Anastasia stood near the door and heard light murmurs from the floor below. Soon she heard footsteps approaching, and she turned to look at the door. Not a moment later, the minister appeared with a troubled look on his face. 

"Prince Dante…" Aziel addressed the prince, who hadn't left the room since he had arrived here. 

Dante looked over his shoulder before he let go of his mother's hand and stood up to walk towards the minister. He asked, "What is it?" 

"I received a response from Queen Maya that—that no space will be given in the mausoleum or land near the main palace for Lady Lucretia," Aziel said, holding a letter in his hand. He said, "I don't think the news has reached the king, and I will personally go there to ap—"

Suddenly Dante punched the wall next to him, making the minister and Anastasia flinch because of both the cracking sound and the flakes of the wall that descended to the ground. 

Anastasia could only see Dante's back from where she stood, which was rigid, and as the dust around him settled, she saw blood dripping down from his hand, staining the floor red. At the same time, she noticed a subtle black fume hovering on his shoulders, and she wasn't the only one who noticed it. 

Dante dropped his hand from the wall, and blood trickled down his fingers to fall next to him in the silence of the room. When he stepped out, Anastasia asked the minister, who was still present,

"D—Did you see that?"

Those black fumes, though faint… they belonged to the suppressed demon, and Aziel tried to digest what he had just witnessed. The demon was being provoked, and though he saw them, he quickly denied it in front of the woman. 

"There was nothing. Nothing," he said while shaking his head, as this was supposed to be a secret, and he quickly left the room. 

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