A/N
(I'm sincerely grateful and feel indebted to you all. Thank you for your messages. I haven't read most of them yet, but I feel a lot better already.
I won't be taking such a long break again. I promise. 05/06/2023)
PS: Those reading JOCK NEXT BED can check for updates later also.
****
The palace had never been in such an intense mess in all the history of the Moon Kingdom. Everyone was talking about something, running around, looking for someone, hiding from someone, and what had happened in the courtroom during the assembly was quickly spreading around the palace already.
Alvin was going to find Harold when he found him, but at the same time, Harold almost fell and held himself up by resting on the wall. He looked like he was in pain, had his eyes tightly shut, and his breathing was laboured.
Alvin ran to him at once and looked at him in concern. When he got closer, he noticed the sweat all over him and that his eyes were unstable.
"What is wrong with you?" Alvin asked as he panted from all the running he had been doing.
Harold seemed surprised to hear his voice and opened his eyes faintly.
"What... are you doing here? You should be resting." Harold said as he tried to look closely at him, but he felt very sick, which was rare, and he hadn't even been able to smell Alvin nearby.
His head was hurting, his eyes were hurting, and his entire body was hurting. But none could compare to the ones he was feeling in his chest. It just wouldn't stop!
"Susan is missing. We can't find her anywhere."
Harold heard the concern in his voice. There was also a hint of fear.
Initially, he thought this was a simple thing, and since Susan liked to sneak around, they would find her soon. But now, this was also adding to his worries.
"On... my command. A search party should begin. Curb through the inside and outside of the palace. She must be found."
Harold noticed Alvin's hesitation. He wanted to leave immediately as he seemed impatient but was also worried about leaving Harold alone.
"Leave now."
"Will... you be okay?" Alvin asked him.
Harold managed to nod as he said, "Amber... have you seen her?"
Alvin quickly shook his head but had a concerned look on his face.
He wasn't sure he had ever heard Harold address her that way before.
"You can leave now." Harold waved him off, and at once, Alvin ran off, but after another long, worried look at Harold.
Meanwhile, Paulina was racing all over the palace, searching for her mistress. She had heard that her mistress had ruthlessly killed Queen Darcy, bringing the assembly to a quick end. But no one knew where she was now, as she had disappeared after the act.
Paulina, however, didn't believe it. Alica was not like that. She wouldn't just kill someone. So even though many people were talking about it, she still firmly believed that someone was trying to frame her.
Eventually, she saw her.
It was a room she had entered that she found open. She heard loud breathing inside and slowly pushed the door open to find her at the end of the room. She was sitting on the floor and hugging her knees. Her entire body was shaking.
Even in that position, Paulina could see blood on the side of her face and clothes.
When she gasped loudly in fear, Amber raised her head and locked eyes with her.
But the sight of the blood on her face made Paulina's eyes shine even brighter, and she stepped back in fear.
"P-Paulina—" Amber croaked out as a croaked sob escaped her lips.
"W-What... what did... you do?"
Amber sniffled and helped herself up, but that just sent Paulina racing to the back, farther away from her.
"Mother always said I should stay away from the wolves." She said quietly as she hugged herself.
"She said that a lot of times. And told me... that if I happened to find myself in the midst of the wolves one day, fate would guide me."
Amber wasn't even staring at Paulina. Her gaze was empty as she stared into empty space.
"You... killed—"
"She deserved it," Amber said, breaking off Paulina's whisper and making her gasp in disbelief and fear at the confirmation.
It was as though Paulina was still holding on to a tiny thread of belief that she hadn't truly killed Queen Darcy.
"You... you are not like this. How could... how could you..." The remaining words could not come out of her mouth, and all that came out was a sob.
"COME TO YOUR SENSES!" Amber snapped at her before she stumbled backwards and clutched her head as she let out a cry of pain.
Paulina was torn between going to her, standing right there, or running out the door. She was scared. Something was definitely wrong somewhere.
When she noticed the pain had subsided for Amber, she looked at her with concern and took a step toward her as she spoke, "You... you are not that heartless. You are not like that—"
"You wanted me gone too," Amber said, her voice filling with disappointment as she looked at Paulina with eyes that reflected her tone. She was disappointed.
Paulina looked at her in fear and confusion before her eyes widened and she asked, "Mi...lady?"
Amber let out a laugh. "If you are so sick of me, you can leave."
Paulina shook her head as she spoke.
"That... is not it. You... killed—"
"I ALSO WATCHED MY MOTHER BE EXECUTED!" Amber yelled at her in tears.
"I... watched." She cried with a shaky voice. "WHY SHOULDN'T HER CHILDREN WATCH TOO?"
Paulina used a hand to cover her mouth as tears streamed down her face.
Her gaze was on Amber, who was still looking at her with disappointment before she cleaned the tears from her eyes, and her voice went hard as she spoke.
"If you think it's going to end here, you better rethink it. They need a good amount of time to feel the heartbreak of losing a loved one. And then... I will burn them all down. Every. Single. One." She said in a dark voice as she looked around the room, letting Paulina know she meant including the Moon Kingdom.
*****
A/N
I've been away due to a family issue. Been with my aunt for a couple of days now. She was preparing for surgery and finally had it last night. It's been quite hectic for me and I'm hoping I'll be able to do my best with the updates after she travels back tomorrow.
15/04/2023
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺