Chapter Sixty-five

Murmurs of approval filled the courtroom and soon enough, he was flanked by guards on both sides and dragged away.

Then as custom would have it, my uncle stood up and with his guards, they left the courtroom. Once he was gone, the courtroom also cleared out gradually and the tension, which the nobility and courtiers had come inside with, was gone only to be replaced with gossip and speculation. Harriet and I sat there for an additional moment, watching as everyone filed out and the jury spoke to each other.

"I think it is time for us to leave as well," Harriet said to me.

We stood up together and sighed, "Where's Emily?" I asked her.

"Speak of the devil," Harriet rolled her eyes as she saw Emily walking towards us wearing a serious look on her face.

"Regina, what do you think of all this?" Emily asked, tucking her hair backwards. "Father never even mentioned how he was going to be killed. Do you think it is by public execution?"

Before I could respond, Harriet interjected. "It's bizarre, isn't it? That the brother should receive anything at all after such a heinous act?"

Emily shot her a look. "I wasn’t talking to you, Harriet."

Harriet huffed but fell silent, crossing her arms in defiance. I glanced between them, weighing my words carefully.

"I see no point in him having any of the money, especially since he’s sentenced to death," I said.

Emily nodded thoughtfully. "True, but even in death, people are often remembered by how much they were able to acquire. It’s a strange comfort to some, a measure of their worth."

I felt a pang of disagreement but held my tongue. The idea seemed materialistic, a superficial measure of one’s legacy. However, now was not the time to debate the complexities of honor and memory. "That does settle it then?" I said to her, "He will definitely not be beheaded by public execution after this."

"Well, father has a unique way of doing his things," Harriet shrugged. "He may still choose to do it."

"Again, no one asked for your input," Emily yawned. "Seriously, you need to learn to be quiet a lot of times."

As we continued walking through brightly lit corridors back to our rooms, Harriet grumbled to herself. Meanwhile, Emily appeared to be daydreaming about something else. She also seemed to find pleasure in Harriet's grumbling but occasionally she told Harriet to shut up.

"Why is the court so far out of living chambers?" She groaned. "I swear I need to be carried."

"Can you stop grumbling about your tiredness or whatever it is this time?" Emily shot back. "You are pathetically lazy about every fucken thing."

"No I am not, you just have weird strength for everything," Harriet yawned. "I am a real princess. I wish to live a soft peaceful life where I can do anything I want and at any time."

"Being a princess comes with a duty," Emily snorted. "That's what makes me a real princess."

Do these two ever shut up? Raven asked me.

Nope. You know that. I grinned at her. We both knew that Harriet and Emily were always at each other's throats every single time.

"Oh shut up!" Harriet spat with a playful glee in her eyes. "You were adopted into this family. I am the real princess."

"Oh no, you were adopted."

"Get lost." Harriet groaned. "Oh, we have reached our quarters." I could hear relief in her voice.

"Goodbye Gina," they both called off simultaneously. It still surprised me to this day that they were not twins and they were from two different mothers.

"Enjoy the long walk back to your quarters," Harriet added. "If I did have the energy, I would walk you back."

"No, no, it's okay," I said, knowing that I would only be able to have some peace and quiet if I walked the remaining journey alone.

"You'll be lonely," Emily said. "Harriet, let's walk her. We can keep each other company on the way back but she has no one."

"It's fine really."

"Nonsense," Emily said, pulling on Harriet's arm. "Let's all go together."

"You are only doing this to torture my legs," Harriet groaned. "I'm only glad to accompany you two because of Gina."

Upon reaching my chambers, I was smiling from within, looking forward to embracing my children again. That’s what kept me going: the mere idea of their laughter and their simple ignorance of the cruelties of the world. I opened the door hoping to find them playing with one of the maids or perhaps, sleeping.

But the room was deadly quiet.

My heart skipped a beat. "What the hell! Where are they?" I shouted, the sound of my voice escalating slightly to a note of panic.

There was no answer. It took me just some split seconds to turn my attention around, my gaze shifting from one corner to the other. The toys were left on the floors and no one had got up from their beds.

"Where are they?" I replied, quietly, with my heart in my throat. I got up and went to the next room thinking they might be inside hiding or simply playing, but that room also was uninhabited.

"Maybe the maids took them somewhere else," Harriet answered. She and Emily were very shocked as well.

I hurried towards a window and looked outside to view the yard from the window. Nothing. In the cross of my thoughts, devilish images danced in my head, worst-case scenarios spiralling in my head.

"Guards!" I screamed out loud, my voice ringing through the empty corridors. In less than five minutes, two guards opened the door and stepped in looking alarmed.

"My children are missing," I said, my voice trembling. "Find them. Now."

The guards nodded and hurried off, the urgency of their mission clear. I stood frozen in place, my heart pounding, every second feeling like an eternity.

"Oh by the moon goddess, What’s happening?" Emily asked, her face pale with worry.

"Her twins are missing," Harriet said, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I can see that," Emily retorted. "I just meant..." She trailed off.