Chapter 474 Her Nightmare
"James…" Hailee called out to him.
James, who was in a trance, came back to his senses. He blinked his eyes and fell into his gaze at Hailee, who remained to look outside the window.
"What is it, Empress?"
Hailee raised one brow when James changed how he addressed her.
"You deserved the title. Besides, you are no longer the little girl we swear to protect." James immediately explained himself.
Hailee grows up entirely into a mature woman. She isn't that pampered princess anymore, but someone willing to give a beating to anyone who touches her bottom line.
"From now on, it will be our secret alias for you," suggested James. "I will notify everyone about it."
"Alright!" Hailee agreed since it would help from any suspicion by the others.
"What is your further instruction?" asked James. Hailee seemed to ponder a lot lately, which made him worry.
"I'm bored, James. I don't want just to sit idly and watch everything unfold before my eyes, then suddenly it reaches the end, and I do nothing."
"But you need to rest and settle your emotions," James advised. Being the person who works closely with the princess, his mom, Doctor Manni, reminds him of what he must consider for Hailee's pregnancy.
"It will only worsen, James. My mind would only remember and worry about Vincent. So…" Hailee lifted her head and met James' gaze. She said, "I want you to set up a meeting in the morning. Inform the executives and the representatives of the firms to meet me by ten-thirty tomorrow."
"Empress, you are prohibited from stressing yourself."
"I am not. It will only be a light talk."
James felt helpless that Hailee didn't listen to him but gave in. Of course, he knew she was stubborn. "Alright. I will message Geoffrey to send out a notification to everyone."
"Don't worry, I am fine." Hailee smiled smugly.
"Okay. If nothing else, I'll head out now."
"That's all… Thanks."
James nodded, then bid good night. James took another glance before he shut the door gently.
Later on, Hailee called her nanny to prepare the bed for her. She had a long night, and her body reached its limit for the day.
~~~
That night, she had the same nightmare that she had before.
No. She already had this dream five years ago. But after she visited Lady Isabella, she no longer had nightmares. However, lately, she has been dreaming of it again.
"Stop…" "Save him…" Hailee mumbled in her sleep.
"Your majesty! We have to leave!"
"No! I won't leave him!"
"His majesty wants you to live!"
"I won't leave him behind! If he is going to die, I have to die too!"
"Your Majesty…"
"Lavender, please keep my son safe."
"No! You have to come with us!"
"Empress Xing Ming!"
Hailee sat up, gasping for air. She grabbed the glass of water on a bedside table prepared for her every time she went to sleep.
Emptying the content, Hailee felt relieved a little. The air condition in her bedroom was high, but she was sweating too much, having a nightmare. Hailee heaved a sigh to calm her nerves and leaned back to the pillows.
Gradually, the beating of her heart settles down.
"Empress Xing Ming?" she muttered to herself.
"Xing means star, and Ming can be translated into bright or brilliance."
"The Star is Bright… Could it be like a sun or a moon?"
Hailee is raking her head for the little Chinese she learns from Vincent. She closed her eyes and recounted her dream.
The scene that appeared in her dream started with lively music from wooden instruments inside a grand hall. Everyone in the banquet dresses dashingly.
But, what got her attention most were the female guests. They are all wearing regal robes, jewelry on their bodies, and flamboyant headdresses on their heads with genuine gemstones.
And another thing that is interesting about her dream is the guests' bows every time she passes them until she arrives in front of the man, seated on a small stage or something.
It was kind of vague when she reached that part. So, the man appears blurry. She isn't sure what he looks like.
However, the merry banquet shifted to a bloody scene. There are dead bodies everywhere, fire and screaming.
Then a beautiful girl appeared in her line of sight, carrying a child. If she is not mistaken, she called that young girl Lavender.
"Who is she?" Somehow, the young girl looks so clear in her dream. "She was too beautiful."
Hailee recalled the girl's overall features.
She was wearing warrior clothes, tying her jet black hair up to her head into a ponytail. She had an attractive shape of lips and puffy eyes like Vincent. However, the shape of her jawline and her proud nose was like hers.
"Wait… She looks like…."
Knock! Knock!
Hailee's deep thoughts were interrupted by the knock. Not long, Mrs. Brown entered the bedroom and hurried to her side.
"Mrs. Shen, your vitals aren't stable. Are you okay?" Mrs. Brown asked worriedly since the monitoring gadget had indicated an abnormal pulse from her lady boss.
"I'm just having a dream, Mrs. Brown," Hailee replied and glanced at the bracelet on her wrist.
Shun gifted her this bracelet to monitor her vitals whenever she sleeps alone when Vincent is away on a business trip. It would tell her nannies if she was in such emotions. That is why she has been working to suppress her feelings and not over-stress herself by worrying a lot.
"Would you like me to serve your breakfast now, Mrs. Shen?"
"Yes, please, Mrs. Brown. I will have my bath after."
Mrs. Brown slightly bowed her head before she left.
Hailee reached for the Tablet on the bedside table. The gadget is connected to everything in this suite. She presses something on the screen, and the giant curtain suddenly opens.
Now she felt a lot better seeing the beautiful scenery from her window.
Hailee picked up the phone receiver and dialed the telephone number of James's hotel suite. Her cellphone, MacBook, iPad, and another laptop were confiscated so she could contact no one outside or watch any news.
"Yes, Empress?"
Hailee was stunned. James, addressing her this way, gives a chill on her back. Hailee closes her eyes, then a scene in her dream flashes through her head. The young man behind Lavender looked like James, and even his voice sounded the same.
'What was his name?' She heard Lavender call him out. Also, there are other young men around them. Ah! Her mind is too messed up. She must stop thinking about her nightmares.
Putting aside all the unimportant matters, Hailee informed James. "Please tell everyone that our meeting was rescheduled for lunch. I'm not feeling well this morning, so I want to move a little."
"Alright. I'll call Geoffrey to inform the construction firm representatives."
"Thanks." Hailee was about to hang up the call, but she remembered to ask James about something. "How's Vincent's flight? Did he arrive safely?"
"Yes, he is, Empress. As of right now, they are heading to the Hillside Lake."
"Good. That's all…" she then hung up and put down the phone.
Hailee closes her eyes once again and contemplates. Her thoughts drifted to Italy. She wondered if Shun had found out something already. Also, tomorrow is the court hearing. The world will know that Vincent has nothing to do with the collision.
"You were so confident, Samuel Miller…." Hailee mumbled under her breath.
Until now, she doesn't understand why these people want to harm her family even after Liam is locked up. So she wanted to know what her family had done wrong.
"Who are you?" Hailee was thinking about Liam and Samuel's master.
Hailee strokes her belly upon having these thoughts as there are slight fetal movements in her belly.
According to Shun, Samuel Miller is working for the leader of the Dark Shadow Organization. Now, Shun and Vincent will do everything to locate them and end this war. After they apprehend the leader, she will finally have the answers to all of her questions.
"Hang on, my little loves… I'm sorry if Mom was on a roller coaster ride of emotions in a while. We have to capture these bad people, so dad Vincent will be with us forever."
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