128: Dangerous words (part 1)

Dangerous words (part 1)

Darkness was meant to provide respite when one's body reached the limits of consciousness. But for Adela, the all-encompassing blackness was accompanied by a chilling sound—the weeping of her mother. It was a sound she dreaded, particularly when she found herself unable to be there to offer comfort and support, even if her efforts were destined to fall short.2

She wanted to open her eyes and get Larissa to console their mother. However, her eyelids persisted in their resistance, and she was imprisoned within a world of obscure shapes and hushed voices, rendered immobile and incapable of any response.

"Why would you do this to my child?" Grace's voice quivered with anguish.

"Because I believe it is what she would have wanted if she had the opportunity to decide,"

Upon hearing her father's response, Adela felt a sense of reassurance that her mother was not facing her sorrows alone.

"Don't you realize the immense pain she goes through in such situations?" Grace reprimanded. "Have you forgotten how difficult it was for me to be around cases with no solution in sight?"

"...How could I forget? I remember vividly what happened to you when the Baroness's child died in her womb, as if it happened yesterday,"

Adela felt a sensation that preceded a shudder, but her body did not manifest an actual response. Despite learning more about her parents and the secrets that had surfaced, there were certain things she still preferred never to hear.

"...I can comprehend why everyone held me responsible for summoning her, and I realize that you would as well. But down there, she rescued a life, one that would have been devoid of hope if it weren't for the intervention of my daughter's blessing," her father added somberly.

"Healers should not meddle with the divine will, Kaiser. Look at her! She is still a mere girl!" Grace exclaimed.

"She is as courageous as any of my knights, and even more so," 

"My brave child, pushing herself beyond her limits... a blessing," she scoffed, "She bears my curse... That is all."

"She is an Emorian fighter, through and through," he affirmed.

There was a brief pause, and Adela felt the soothing touch of a gentle hand on her forehead, followed by the gentle grazing of a calloused hand on her cheek, both providing a momentary sense of comfort.

"Have you heard about the King's offer to her?" Grace's voice broke the silence.

The calloused hand paused for a moment, its touch withdrawing before the response came. "His Majesty informed me about it before his departure," he replied, his voice infused with frustration.

The soft hand retreated from Adela's forehead, and Grace's sniffling resonated in the room. "Kaiser, I wish to go to Destan... There's a portal that grants access to Larissa. Our daughters and I would find a better life there, away from this place."

"Will you forsake me, Grace?"

"It is you who will abandon us!" More tears flowed, accompanied by sniffles. "You've always placed this land above everyone else, including me and your daughters... I can't bear to remain here any longer, not when you regard me with such icy disdain, and certainly not when that family is out there, scheming to annihilate us... Don't think I'm oblivious to what occurred down in the dungeon, Kaiser!"

"Grace!" His voice suddenly dropped to a whisper. "You can't speak of this openly. Whatever you wish to convey, write it down and show it to me in our chamber."

"Using your knights to silence the prisoners? Going to such extreme measures... Will you ever contemplate an alternative approach while I'm still here to witness it!?" Grace persisted defiantly.

Kaiser let out a heavy sigh.

"I will bear the consequences of my sins in the depths of hell... But Adelaide and Larissa, along with their descendants, should never have to endure any of this."

"Always the martyr..." she admonished once more. "Both of them will sin just as we did... Don't burden our daughters with expectations they can never meet. They are no angels... They're just humans..."

"Come here," Kaiser said.

The shuffling of weight on the bed made Adela imagine that her father had drawn her mother into his embrace, and the muffled sobs confirmed that her mother's face was pressed against her husband's broad shoulder.

"You have shed enough tears," he admonished her gently.

"How can my eyes dry when my husband speaks so casually about burning in hell? Is it the golden de Lanark blood that drives you to such arrogance? Only God can judge your eternal life," her mother whispered, her voice muffled by her husband's shoulder. "And the God who brought you into my life is too merciful to punish the likes of you..."

"It is not only what I have done, but also what I am about to do. I shall never forgive what happened in that dungeon today, not for the life of me,"

The images of a knight in silver armor, holding a gun in his hand, flashed through her mind. His face was unrecognizable, and the sword he wielded to slay the prisoners was not something she had actively sought. The act of taking his own life with the very guns that knights held in low regard spoke volumes about orders that disregarded a knight's honor.

Only two men in the entire Kingdom held the authority to command a knight to take so many lives without trial or opportunity for defense, and then commit suicide.

"After all these years, Kaiser, I find that hard to believe,"

"You shall see," her father replied with a tone that resonated with treachery.

Hearing those words, Adela mustered all her strength to regain full consciousness. As she did, the first thing she noticed was Egon's presence, his scent lingering in the air. After the experiences they had shared, she had come to know him well enough not to dismiss the possibility of him being nearby, listening intently.

In that moment, she fervently hoped that her parents would refrain from inadvertently revealing anything they didn't want Egon von Conradie to hear.

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