I sat down in my room, trying to figure out how to talk to Mother, but at the last moment, I got cold feet. I decided to take some bed rest and followed through with that plan.
My room door opened, and I looked up to see who it was. It was getting dark, but I could make out Elise's silhouette.
I stood up quickly and started to walk toward her, but she raised her hand to stop me.
"Elise, are you okay?" I asked. She chuckled bitterly.
"Am I okay? I am not okay," she replied, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Why is Mother doing this? I know Reginald didn't do it," she said. I didn't know what to say, so I just stood there quietly.
"What have we not done for her? What has she asked for that I didn't fulfill? I'm not even from a vassal family, but I've done as much as any of them," she continued, her voice breaking. "What is she planning? Is this some kind of joke to her?"
"Elise, I…" I struggled to find the right words to comfort her, but nothing seemed adequate.
"Don't say anything, Faina. You won't understand," she said, making me swallow my words. "She…" Elise trailed off, her head dropping as she took slow steps toward me. Elise raised her hand, and a sharp rock materialized quickly but stopped at my forehead. It cut me slightly but didn't go any deeper.
"Elise…" I started, but she began laughing, her gaze turned upwards.
"I'm all talk. I can't even do anything," she said. "Faina, this will hurt a bit," she warned, raising her hand. The rock flattened and struck me on the head. I fell back, feeling dizzy. I blinked a few times to clear my blurry vision before looking up.
"Elise!" Mother's voice rang out as she stood at the door. "What do you think you're doing?" she demanded, stepping forward. I turned my head but felt something sharp in my throat. Looking down, I saw a rock-like dagger piercing my throat.
"Let Reginald go, Mother. I'm not joking," Elise demanded.
"Elise, stop acting rashly," Mother said.
"I said let him go," Elise shouted. "You know he'd never do something like that, but you…" Her voice broke again, and she started crying.
"You're letting your emotions cloud your judgment," Mother said. I was shocked. How could she say that now?
"You…" Elise began but then suddenly stopped. "If you won't let him go, then let me see him," she pleaded. "I need to hear the truth from him."
"You'll be seeing him," Mother said as some knights ran in and bound Elise.
I sat on the floor, watching them take her away. Elise wasn't trying to hurt me.
"Mother," I called, trying to stand, but my legs gave out, and I fell back.
"Livi, are you okay? You must have been scared," she said, helping me up.
"Elise…"
"She'll be locked up. I can't overlook this," Mother said.
"No, she…"
"You're bleeding, Livi," she interrupted. I didn't even care about the blood that was dripping down my face.
"It's fine," I said.
"How is it fine? I'll call a physician," she insisted, turning to leave.
"No, it's really fine," I said, and she stopped to look at me. I rubbed the spot lightly, and it healed.
"Oh," she exclaimed. "I forgot for a moment that you're also a physician," she smiled. "I'll have someone help you clean up. Get some rest, Livi," she said and left.
I didn't get a chance to tell her that Elise wasn't trying to hurt me.
…
After breakfast, I walked to Mother's office, determined to ask her to release Elise.
I knocked on the door and waited for a response before walking in. Mother was going through some files, and the boy from yesterday was standing in front of her. They both looked at me as I entered, and I took a deep breath before stepping forward.
"Good morning, Mother," I said.
"Are you okay, Livi?" she asked, her concern evident.
"It was just a minor injury. I healed it yesterday," I replied.
"That's not what I meant. You're really close to Elise," she said.
"That's why I'm here," I said. "I wanted to ask you to please let Elise go. She wasn't trying to hurt me; it was just a misunderstanding."
"I can't do that, Livi," she replied.
"But this situation only happened because…" I stopped myself before I said something I might regret.
"Because?" Mother prompted. I didn't want Elise to stay imprisoned, but I was scared.
"Because you hurt someone she cares about. It's wrong to imprison her for having emotions," I said, clenching my fists. I looked at Mother to gauge her reaction. She looked shocked, not annoyed.
"I… I still can't do what you're asking, Livi. This is not something that can be resolved easily," she said.
"I understand," I said, turning to leave.
"I didn't introduce you to Dustin," she said, and I paused. Is that important now? I exhaled and turned to look at the boy who had been standing there all along.
"Dustin Alden, it's a pleasure to meet you, my lady," he said, bowing slightly. So he's the next heir.
"The pleasure is mine," I said, trying to hide my annoyance. "I'll take my leave now," I said and turned to go.
"Livi," Mother called, and I turned to look at her. "Are you angry?" she asked, sounding amused.
"No," I lied, taking a step back, realizing the truth.
"I don't want you to stay angry, so I'll tell you the truth," she said, gesturing to the chair by the corner. I sighed and took a seat.
"My lady, the truth is we knew Elise would act rashly. It was all part of the plan," Dustin said. A plan? What plan?
"Reginald was working as a spy within the Tyrile family. He was locked up as well to conceal his identity as a spy. We wanted to draw out the rest, so we made it as believable as possible," Mother explained. "Elise had no idea, until yesterday when we took her to see him," she continued, and I nodded.
"That's good to know," I said, looking down. I was still angry, and surprised at myself for it.
"I'm glad to see you showing another emotion outside your usual one," she smiled. "Even though it makes me a bit jealous, do you care about Elise more than you do about your mother?" she asked, holding her chest.
"No, that's… that's not it," I said, looking down.
"Your Grace, about the letter?" Dustin said.
"We'll deal with that later," Mother replied. "For now, let's focus on Tyrile," she instructed, and he nodded.
"It was nice to finally meet you, my lady," Dustin said, and walked out.
"What do you think of him?" Mother asked as soon as he was gone.
"Dustin?" I asked.
"Yes," she confirmed. "He's dutiful," I said, not sure how else to describe him.
"That's the person I mentioned earlier," Mother said. "Dustin, Douglas, and Bella are my most trusted among the younger generation. They help me a lot and take care of things I can't handle," she continued, and I nodded.
"As my daughter, they are under your authority and will follow your orders. Even if you choose not to take over, you will always hold a higher rank," she informed me. Is that allowed? "So, Livi, try to express yourself as you did today. Don't hide your emotions from me, okay?"
"I'll try my best," I replied, and she smiled.