Nanny burst into the room looking frantic.
"so much for being level headed" Qaya mused.
"The Harbinger has struck again and this time..."
"The story of Qaya Wright: The Milton-Lackey"
"Why???" Qaya muttered as she stared at the bold print before her.
"Qaya Wright was a real person after all" Nanny remarked.
"read it to me"
Jaslin nodded and obliged.
"Sir Milton is unarguably one of the most respected men in the country, not just because of his vast wealth but for the commendable deeds and sacrifices he's made for this nation.
one can almost say that a noble like him is too good to be true and that's right.
Behind his nice and polite demeanor sir Milton has been using one Qaya Wright as a lackey.
further investigation into his personal enterprise revealed that Sir Milton would pimp his lackey to his competitors in business, find intel on their enterprise or personal issues and either blackmail them or use this information to their advantage..."
"that's enough" Qaya snapped
"my apologies, it seems like they are using Qaya Wright to get rid of Sir Milton"
Nanny interjected "surely no one will take her seriously, not too long ago there was an article about her affair with this man. that means..." she was cut short by Jaslin.
"It says here that Qaya Wright was found murdered at a barn managed by the Milton family"
" they are trying to set him up with my death."
"wow so Melinda could actually stoop to my level, no this is beneath me because I would never defame a dead person and tarnish their dignity like this" Qaya mused.
"So Qaya wright was a real person that died just when you regained your consciousness. this is too much to be a coincidence but how is this even possible" Jaslin asked as she dropped the paper and went into the closet to bring out Qaya's outfit.
"we can think about that later, for now we have to keep The Heris household from collapsing, get my mother acquitted and clear my name"
the two women nodded.
"this will be a load of work" Nanny added
"I am fully prepared"
Qaya and Jaslin decided to visit Hillian House, it was a recreational house, that all the nobles visited to catch up on gossip.
she was hoping to meet Esquire Rachel, she was one of the most reputed barristers in the capital, and Qaya especially liked the woman because of her cunning and wit.
when they got into the building, people immediately started talking, it was first of all about her dress.
she was dressed in a decorative grey jacket and trousers, it was aesthetically appealing but not socially appropriate.
she waited in the Grade-A lounge, hoping that she would catch sight of the Esquire before she left.
she heard mutterings of people around her, peering at her.
"Jaslin I am feeling peckish can you get me some pastries"
"yes Ms. Heris"
"is this a craving of yours" a man jeered as soon as Jaslin stepped out.
"that only happens when you're pregnant not after you've given birth" another, a woman joked.
they all laughed but Qaya rolled her eyes, refusing to entertain their rubbish.
"she must be feeling shy because after all pregnancy out of wedlock is not something to be proud of, at least she has some shame" another woman added spitefully.
the others nodded in agreement
"you must envy out-of-wedlock pregnancies, seeing as even after being married you are unable to conceive" Qaya replied, never raising her eyes from the book she was occupied with
"how dare you?"
"it was just a guess, I know that the last time I saw you you were yet to conceive, and even now you don't look like you're expecting or have had a child at all" she lied, after all it wasn't a guess.
"what do you mean 'guess'?"
"I guessed, I have been in a coma for over ten months, even a year now but I mean what does that matter, everyone was hoping i had a child."
"I wonder how that happened, where did such news come from?" She faked a confused look and scratched her head.
"Ma'am, I came with a dark chocolate cake" Jaslin came back into the room, feeling the hostility that pointed towards her master
"thank you"
The first man laughed heartily "of course she couldn't have been pregnant, who could impregnate a man"
they all burst out laughing.
"forgive my impudence, Ms. Heris, obviously a man will not see a fellow human with such build and want to bed them" another added
they all laughed and were pleased with their retorts.
this time Jaslin stepped in "I expected more from you Sir Gome, after all you are married to Madam Gome"
Everyone kept mute. Mr Gome was infuriated.
"how dare you speak of my wife in such a manner"
"who's she" Qaya asked feigning ignorance, Jaslin whispered into her ear.
"ah yes" she exclaimed excitedly "I would never say anything against Madam Gome, I know people say she looks like a boar and that it's impossible for anyman to be with her, but I for one know not to throw stones from a glass house"
Jaslin added "Mr. Gome, I hope you can also apply that to yourself."
As everyone stared in awe at how Qaya and her friend handled their taunts, a woman walked in, she had a pair of glasses resting on her nose, her blonde hair was beginning to be gray, but you could tell she was a beauty in her youth.
"Excuse me, I'm told Ms. Heris inquired of me"
"yes, I did"
"let's talk some where else" Rachel looked over at the people in the room almost condescendingly
"I would love to"
they got to Rachel's suite
"allow me to serve you"
"there's no need, I have just finished eating cake"
"as you wish" the older woman put away her glasses and sat in the chair opposite Qaya.
"I would like you to represent me, I plan on suing The Harbinger for Libel and defamation"
Rachel nodded "I see, but I must have you know that it's an unspoken rule that, that news agency works for the King, the man that will precede over the case."
"I am well aware of this, I don't plan on winning the case, I just want...." she swallowed back, she felt a sharp pain in her throat, even though she knew who she was, she couldn't bear the thought of Qaya Wright's work going down the drain.
"I just want The Harbinger to lose credibility"
"..."
"I know that even that is hard seeing as the king uses it to spread his own agenda but even the king can't control what everyone thinks"
"I'm afraid people can no longer think for themselves" Rachel retorted
"Then I will do so for them."
"that's all for now, Jaslin will tell you everything I know. I just woke up from a coma , so I need to rest and think, get used to reality. "
Qaya left alone, leaving Jaslin to attend to Esquire Rachel, ironically she was in a better place to account for Ms. Heris life, this past year.
Qaya closed her eyes, craving sleep but the arduous road and the rocky path, would not let her sleep.
"what can I do? there's so many questions that need to be answered, why did Melinda do that"
she sighed, "I really want to rest. I was so caught up living as Ms. Wright that the succor I wanted, was to leave a quiet, stress-free and drama less life, you would think living as an heiress would get me that but....Argh"
Soon, everyone caught word of Qaya's audacious appearance at Hillian house. And word had begun to spread that Qaya was in fact in comatose the past year and was not pregnant, people had begun to question what mal-intentions Melinda had against the Heris family.
"see, it eventually backfired" Melinda grumbled and put away the cup of coffee, fuming. "I am beginning to lose face over what? a family that was bound to fall anyway"
"calm down, you have the backing of the king after all, what better reputation is there?"
Awin joked while scribbling in his journal
"why does the Heris family cause you so much headache?" Melinda asked as she flicked a speck of dust away.
the king gave a patronizing smile almost as if to shut down the matter. "I don't think our partnership has matured that much for me to tell you that"
"you would have gladly told Qaya, I reckon?"
"too bad she is dead"
Melinda did not know why but the King's presence left a bad taste in her mouth, he said she had his support but it was obvious that he was only supporting his own cause. But she also knew that the king dealt with her with such levity and friendliness, that even Qaya had not experienced. she would endure the bad taste, it would have to become the norm for her.
"Very well, I plan on going to Hillan to salvage what's left of my reputation"
The king looked up from his journal, shrugged and continued with his work.
"I'll see myself out" she curtsied and left his office going straight to Hillan.
she was not prepared for what met her there; what was waiting for her.
As she entered, she could feel everyone being feverishly excited, they could almost not contain their joy and expectancy.
she stopped at the great lobby, as it was called, not bothering to book a suite or lounge.
"is anything the matter?" she asked loudly enough for the whole room to hear, and the room was indeed large.
"forgive them, they're expecting a showdown"
Melinda froze, she felt unfamiliar feelings today. As she heard the lady's voice, she spun around.
A tall lady, with dark curly hair and grey eyes looked at her. Melinda instantly knew that she was Ms. Heris, the lady she had slandered.
she knew how she looked, among their age grade, She was notorious for being a hypocrite, there was no proof of Ms. Heris hypocrisy except for the fact that everyone collectively felt that beyond the facade of a quiet, introverted lady that avoided social gatherings as best as she could, the thinly veiled truth was that she was filled with disdain for the rest of them, others even said that young mistress Heris avoided people because there was no other way to hide the hatred and ill-intent she had for humans.
"Good day Ms. Heris, I imagine you'll handle this matter with civil discretion" she said between a feigned smile
Qaya equally beamed back "you are definitely right, I plan on acting in the most civil way possible, that's why I'm taking you to court for your misconduct"