CHAPTER NINE

'Adonia, I hope you are prepared to give me what I would consider your very best. After this acne, I will determine if you will still be the main lead of the show or not and If you would be the one to continue the role. I saw the magic you gave at the audition and I'm expecting nothing less." Jordan asked softly and Adonia nodded. He felt bad for shouting at her the other day but he doesn't know how to bring up a conversation with her after the shooting. He was definitely not going to apologize to her in front of everyone because some of the cast deserved the shouting he did at them, especially Quincy. He really hoped the young lad knew what he had planned for him in this shooting. The young stars who managed to climb the fame ladder need to be taught the etiquette of how not to behave if you want to last long outside.
Adonia's heart was racing as she took the script in preparation to read it and the last thing she wanted was to be embarrassed especially after Jordan asked her if she was ready. She knew she could do it, considering her performance yesterday and her mom and Maxine were impressed. She climbed the podium and her eyes landed on Maxine who blew her a kiss and she smiled before clearing her throat to start reading the script.
"Dearest Claudia," Adonia started and her face held so much hope like she was receiving a letter from her lover and husband to be. She smiled softly before placing the letter over her chest to feign how she craved she missed being close to him. She smiled before she continued reading the letter, pretending she had no idea of the horrors the letter held.
"I hope by the time you open this letter, the sun is up and it gives your face the kind of reflection I want. You are happy and your hair is all over the place, and your smile is intact. I don't care what your feelings might be at the end of this letter but I'm glad I got to experience what being in love with you meant. I loved you, Claudia, I always did. I was so sure you were the one I was going to marry. I couldn't wait for our children to take your beautiful features and I always thought a mixture of our genes would be perfect. That was until Desire happened." She reread the paragraph again as if she didn't get the message the first time and she re-read it again to get the feeling. She tried to come up with fake tears and it did, she dropped the letter before picking it hastily and she tried to read the remaining content as if she would find out what he meant by until desire happened or if he would write I got you and say he was just kidding.
"I fell out of love with you Claudia. I didn't know how it happened but it did. I am so sorry that all the promises of forever I whispered to you in the throes of passion no longer mean anything. My heart is now dominated by a much younger wildcard who doesn't care about anything or anyone. The sight of her racing through the fields in excitement is a feeling I would never come to understand. That woman is my life now and I hope you stay safe. I'm sorry for leading you on dearest Claudia, I feel very bad already. One can't choose who to fall in love with and I'm sorry our love story ended in this manner. You would always be a woman I adore but for now, It's better to let go of whatever remains of what we used to share and move on with life. I love you, Claudia, not now but forever but sometimes love isn't enough and you might not end up with the person you love. " In the last paragraph, Adonia already broke into full-blown tears as she read it again while muttering what could have happened and she tried to find out what had changed the mind of her dear lover.
The whole hall went up in applause and Adonia looked up to find Jordan clapping vigorously with a wide smile on his face. She wanted to jump up in the excitement and she searched the crowd for Maxine who was jumping in excitement. If anything, she knew she had aced the reading by the look on the face of everyone in this hall. She climbed down from the podium and Jordan stretched his handkerchief to her so she could clean the tears and she accepted it with a smile. He had an elite taste in perfume because the whole perfume smelled so nice.
Jordan waited for the noise to due down before he cleared his throat tom speak. He had a wide grin on his face and he looked nothing like the grumpy man everyone knew. Adonia couldn't help but feel more happy that she nailed this hard part 0f the reading. Jordan pointed at Tyson before motioning for him to come closer and Tyson obliged. He handed himanother script and he nudeged him towards the stage Adonia had just came down from.
'Tyson, I want you to bring your role to life and I want to believe y'all are on a row now and everyone finna ace their roles. So young lad, make me magic and put a smile on this grumpy old man's face." He added the last part with a laugh and Tyson climbed the stage before he started to read his own part of the story.
'Dearest Claudia,
I know my letter would be part of the hundredth one you have received today and I don't mind. I would sleep happily knowing you opened this letter. Whenever we meet again, I would read this to your face and hold your hands to reassure you that the love I feel for you is still as crazy as it's supposed to be and I wouldn't mind being your favorite human forever." Tyson read softly and there was this look on his face that seemed to impress everyone. He looked so serious just like he meant it, he didn't look like he was reading from a sheet of paper, it sounded like he was the original speaker. Jordan was impressed too but he wasn't letting it show on his face.
I think you're the most beautiful woman I've set my eyes upon and I want you too badly. Gazing upon another woman should be a criminal offense because I have set my eyes on you. I see your face in my dream and I feel like fate has things set in place for us. I see you smile at little things each day and I want to be the sole reason your face would light up so well like the sun. The first time I heard your name, I knew I want to spend the rest of my life pronouncing it. I want to tell people that the love of my life is Claudia. You may perceive this letter as straightforward but I would love to inform you that you are the only one who crosses my mind each day and night. I burn for you, my dear Claudia," Tyson ended his reading with a mindblowing performance as usual and Jordan praised him before calling the two next characters to read their own part. He prayed nobody flopped and they wouldn't have to break the winning streak or worse ruin his mood and remind him how terribly his life was falling apart. He went back to his seat and he watched the whole hall fall into silence. He waited for them to start. Adonia was waiting by the side of the stage too because she has to read from them too.
'Do you know Lady Claudia of the Brooks estate has just announced her engagement to a soldier? She has a whole list of suitors arraigned for her and yet she chose to with a soldier who lives off killing other people than a well respected lord of the Bancroft estate." Maria added and the other servant looked away to confirm if they were alone or not before she started speaking. Overtalking and gossiping about a royal family member might get them to be killed.
'Have you seen the soldier's uniform and I think he is the most powerful person in the whole kingdom? Claudia is so lucky to have him and I would do anything to be in her shoes right now. Major walks and the whole world stop to stare because of how much respect the cloth carries." The other servant added and they both looked around before they went back to whatever they were talking about without mentioning the young wife of Lord Valentine.
'What do respect have to offer them in their new home? Would it give the children royal titles to inherit or will Lady Claudia go to the grave without having to pass it on? Military respect can't be passed on and the children have to work hard to beat their father's legacy so they could It saddens me greatly because I feel like she could have picked Lord Bancroft and the two estates would be merged and be the most powerful estate in our country" The other servant maintained her point of thinking that Claudia could have done better with the whole process and she could have been the new queen of the Bancroft estate instead of marrying a soldier who would not only die in a battle but would leave her children without titles.
'Because she has too many wide options and she picked the one she wanted most. She picked the one that would make her happy for the rest of her life and she has made the perfect decision according to my own opinion. The soldier might die in a grave battle and she might not have the opportunity to tell him goodbye on his deathbed. He might leave her with young children and she might be widowed for life. I am quite sure that she would make the same decision over and over again. What more money does she need to marry Lord Bancroft for? Her father left her enough fortune to last her entire life. She would be sure to enjoy her marriage even with an average man. We all know how badly the rich lords treat their women and they are degraded before their friends. Lord Bancroft has a soft spot for pleasing bis friends, isn't it a matter of time before he starts to find new ways to please them." Anne filled Maria and she nodded slowly as if she was trying to let the word sink into the head. She knew her friend was saying the truth because Lord Bancroft was divorced two years ago by Lady Nita of the Abbots estate who claimed he was a vile beast and he had no spot among humans. She looked around to make sure no one was watching them and she scurried off with her friend, Maria.
Lady Claudia watched from the garden as the young servants debated bout her fate and she turned to her trusted handmaiden before speaking, the girl listened with rapt attention to her mistress's words.
'Love might not be enough indeed but wealth shouldn't be one of the things you consider when planning to get married to the person you love. It is quite acceptable to find a man who will give you a comfortable life. Find you a man who will stare at you like you are the most valuable thing on earth, find you a man who will treat you like a princess, find yourself a man who will move the earth just for you. A man who will respect you and not treat you like you are beneath him, a man who will think you are the most beautiful thing he has seen. Love alone is not enough, other things should be considered too.