PART EIGHT:
Cobwebs in the Closet:
Ethia stared at the small hut for a little while, before she started walking towards it. But for layers of mold that had now grown on the outside walls, it still looked the same way it did almost thirty years ago. She would remember of course, a very personal and important transaction had taken place here. A transaction that cost her not only more than she had planned to pay, but what she knew she had to pay. A dusky hue saturated the sky, as chilly gusts of wind threatened to loosen and yank her shawl away. But she held on tightly to the piece of cloth, as she tapped gently on the bamboo door and waited. After what seemed like a long and pregnant pause, she knocked again. This time harder and louder. Her persistence and aggression was rewarded with a slow creaking sound, as someone began to open the door. A slightly attractive woman with an equally worn and tired face peered through the door that was now ajar. Ethia's shawl always gave her away, even when her shrouded face would not. The shawl was spurn from fabrics reserved only for the royals. And while a queen was on the throne, she had a special one woven for her out of colors she selected for herself. It would always be hers to keep.
"Oh.... your majesty." Whispered the shocked face, as recognition dawned on her sleepy eyes. "We did not....I did not expect you...." That train of speech was halted, just as quickly as it had been uttered. Ethia's stony face did not look like it would appreciate or even condone an accusation of non-information. "Please pardon my appearance and the room's disarray," the woman stammered as she opened the door wider to let in the unannounced guest. She then quickly ran shaky fingers through her hair. While making an effort to adjust her sleepwear to a much decent and less revealing coverage. Her polite endeavour was either missed or completely ignored, as the queen mother stepped in and towards her. Without much-a-do, Ethia brushed past the rattled woman in her signature abrasive manner. Stepping and swaying confidently until she got to the center of the sparsely furnished room, the visitor then looked around snootily. One would have thought she owned the place, observing her from a distance. But maybe she did, maybe the resources she provided for almost two decades helped secure this piece of property. Or just maybe, it did not.
"It has been a while your majesty," stated the confused and forced hostess who was now very much awake. Her statement though an obvious fact, bellied an unspoken judgement and accusation. But she knew better than to dare tip off the queen mother, as to what her thoughts really were. She had learned to make the best of what the situation had called for. Now everything had worked quite well for her, even to the point of fulfillment. And for one split second, she had thought this woman came to express gratitude or some form of accolade as it were. But she would be damned if the leopard had indeed changed it's nasty spots. "Where is he? Did he ever make it back from war?" Asked Ethia matter of factly, face void of any emotion.
The woman stared at Ethia incredulously, wondering if this was some form of a silly royal joke. It was all she could do, to keep her mouth from hanging wide open. Three times in ten minutes, this woman had managed to flip her heart. First in shock, then confusion and now a strange kind of fear. After what seemed like an enternity of a pause and a staring match between both women, the disconcerted hostess blurted out the only question that would make any sense at that moment. ".....You mean you do not know?"
Into the woods:
Reinah walked deep into the dark thick forest, until dusk began to fall. She had not eaten any kind of food for hours, since she left the comfort of the palace. But right now she did not care about the gnawing hunger pangs. All she needed was to get as far away as possible from the people that killed her mother. They wanted her dead also. As she got to a bend in a woody area that looked cleared and tended, she saw three people filling up baskets with dried food stuff as they chatted dully. All three of them turned abruptly at the sound of her feet crunching on dry leaves. The only man in their midst had instantly pulled a large knife as all three of them watched her slowly emerge from behind thick leaves. They visibly relaxed when they saw it was just a girl.
The princess' new companions were the man still clutching his knife, a woman and a girl who might have been about two or three years older than Reinah. "Oh look...." Exclaimed the woman who sounded quite jolly. "What have we here now? A lost girl?" Reinah had made sure to wear her old and tattered clothes before leaving the palace. Clothes that for some reason, her mother had not disposed of them. Debeh had just rolled them up and put them at a corner in the princess room. Maybe she foresaw a day like this, only time would tell.
I like it like that!:
The queen was in the worst of moods this very day. Ashea the new personal maid that was supposed to be a stand-in until Debeh came back from her hometown, (at least, that was the version she was fed as explanation for Debeh's absence). Kept re-arranging things differently from the way her predeccessor had done it. And the queen was not having that anymore. She was getting tired of what was beginning to look like mounting chaos all over her quarters. She was used to and liked the way Debeh did it for her. Infact, she had trained Debeh to do it for her the way Debeh did it for her! Now this new girl seemed set in her own ways. It did not appear like she was listening to what the queen was saying. Moreover, there was just something about her that her majesty could not put her finger on quite yet. But whatever that was, it was definitely something she did not like.
The baby in her womb kicked three more successive times, before she dismissed the maid in relief. "Go get the princess for me will you? Somebody needs to talk to her now." Her majesty managed a smile, happy for the timely distraction. Ashea quickly nodded and bowed her way out. But not before the queen thought she noticed what looked like a bump on the maid.
A timely awakening:
The two mystified hunters managed to prop up their 'findings' in a sitting position. Only this was no regular piece of meat nor was it a helpless game either. This was a full grown man and he was alive! They then began the ardous task of dusting of sand and removing caked mud from his hair, head and face. All the while eyeing the huge piece of gleaming rock on his right hand. Judging from the rust that permeated the intricate embroidery on his regal coat, he might have been under that pile and rubble for no less than a decade. They worked quick and hard while it was still day, pulling off and flapping weathered but exquisite garments. The character had enough robes to clothe a village. Who knows? Thought the hunters, that may have been what kept his organs from being devoured by termites and wild critters.
A tale of two Kingdoms (cont'd):
The witch seemed unnecessarily pre-occupied with arranging the beads strewn all over the floor as three pairs of eyes looked on and waited patiently. Even 'shiny shoes' was a tad bit subdued at that very moment. The situation in the sisterhood camp seemed to be going from bad to worse. They desperately needed the witch, as it appeared she had some information that they did not. So for now, the high priestess had resolved to acquaint herself with beads, cowries and cockle-shells by watching the witch mindlessly roll them around. Maybe when this particular debacle was over, she would have the pleasure of shoving every rounded and concave item down the witch's throat.
"So..... Where was I again with the legendary story?" Asked the witch, as she briefly glanced at her guests making sure to avoid any obligatory eye contact whatsoever. She did not feel like she owed them any apologies for whatever they felt had happened the previous day. They should have at least put out the flickering logs before taking off. What if the whole hut had been engulfed in flames and burnt to the ground, probably taking her along with it. Oh but then again in their dark and treacherous world, no one looked out for the other. It was an alliance that promoted the notion to 'kill or be killed'. Anyway...... "The second prince. You were getting ready to tell us about the great king's second son." 'Shiny shoes' voice broke through her reverie. The high priestess was being careful not to start another fight today. The sooner they heard the story, the better for all.
"Right..... So as you would expect, the second prince was a total opposite of his brother. He honored his father the great king and did the best he could to obey his father's commands. As time went on, the good son thrived and flourished under the king's favor. He never really got more provisions than his brother. It just so happened, that everything he did brought him peace and joy. His brother however got angrier and angrier and frustrated, as he strove to do even the simplest task. When he could no longer bear the weight of his angst and pain, he decided to kill his father and brother......"
Troubles come in threes:
"What do you mean the princess is no where to be found?!" The king was beginning to think that this crown was digging holes in his head these days. Everytime he turned around, something more sinister than what he was already dealing with erupted. There was the pending and unsolved murder case of his wife's personal maid. That was disturbingly close to home. He wanted to shield her as much as possible, for the sake of her fragile and emotional health. And most importantly of course, there was their unborn child. Now an even scarier and crazy situation had just been brought to his attention. This one looked like it had the capacity and potential to tip over, everything else that had happened before it. "Have you checked all over the palace grounds? You know how she likes to sit out in the garden and read. Have you thoroughly checked everywhere?!" The king's query was as hopeful as his dejected voice could project. "Yes your majesty," replied the second magistrate who was in charge of the palace security details and men. The exact truth was that he had actually combed the palace three times with his men, before daring to bring this latest development to the king.
"Father....," the prince had just walked into the room. "Not now Amil," said the worried and flustered king as he attempted to gently dismiss his son. Debeh's death had been understandably crushing for the young man. Now the princess' disappearance...... The king was worried about how much more sorrow his inexperienced but caring shoulders could bear. "I need to talk to you now father," his voice was emphatic and uncharacteristically cool. His father turned, took one good look at him and then dismissed every other person in the chamber. One thing he had promised himself to do in these perilous times, was make sure that he and his son were inseperable at least for the sake of protection. And that he would give him as much time as he needed to get through all the rapidly unfolding dilenmas in their lives right now.
"I saw her leave father....." The prince started to say as soon as they were both alone in the room.
The pleasure that produces pain:
Bronid anxiously hovered over his feverish and rapidly demaciating son, as his wife wept uncontrollably by his side. He then lifted the boy's nearly limp form, while he attempted to administer the herbal concoction his father had just prepared. As the greenish mess drooled off his patient's pursed lips, Bronid lifted his head in guilt and cursed the day he had been born.
.