This is a nightmare.
Just when I thought life couldn't get any worse, I'm pregnant. It wasn't that I despised the idea of conceiving, of having life grow in my belly. It's just that I couldn't bear the thought of passing on to my child the same pain and heartache his own mother couldn't avoid.
The physician left my room moments ago, but I'm still trapped in the harsh reality of his words. My child, my poor child. He's going to grow up trying to squeeze what little affection he could get from his father. He will grow up thinking he's not enough. He will live a life that mirrors his mother's life. Despite it all, I would rather die than harm him.
"My lady, this is a special brew tea given to you by Grand Madam. Please drink it. It will help you recover fast."
I felt so drained of my strength and yet I still forced myself to look at Lyn, thanking her for making the tea.
The bitterness seeped through my taste buds and I almost spluttered the greenish liquid on the pristine white sheet. Even though I resisted, I ended up coughing some, spilling a few drops on my dress.
"My Lady, are you alright?" Lyn immediately handed me a table napkin.
"I-I'm fine… I was just caught off guard by the strong taste. Are you sure this is safe for the baby?"
"I wouldn't have given it to you if it were harmful, My Lady," Lyn replied. "Grand Madam said it's safe and healthy for the baby."
My doubts eased. Despite the deadly bitter taste, I forced myself to empty the tea cup. It must have been the aftereffect of the concoction, because as soon as I lay down on the soft mattress, I fell asleep.
Huff! Huff!
I awoke to the sound of my own scream. My hair a tangle of mess from endless toss and turns on the queen-size bed. My nightgown clung to my body, glued by my sweat.
My stomach hurts so bad, I couldn't think of a word to describe the pain but it somehow felt like I've swallowed a bowl of rusty nails.
"Lyn!" It was supposed to be a scream for help but what came out was a barely audible gasp, like an old, feeble woman catching her last breath.
I crawled out of bed, determined to reach the door where help is within grasp.
Thump. Thump. My feet felt as if they weighed a ton, I was surprised that I was still able to move them.
Almost there.
Gasp!
Thud.
I collapsed to the floor, curled into a fetal position, trying to make sense of the excruciating pain assaulting my body. It was then when the nauseating stench of something metallic invaded my nostrils that I noticed the crimson stains in my palms — blood. The pristine white sheets, they too turned into a sea of Crimson.
"Eeeek!"
"My Lady! My Lady!" Lyn's frantic calls pierced through my fading consciousness. I must not pass out, I must not. My willpower However is weaker than ever before, but I fought against the overwhelming urge to succumb to darkness.
Lyn's hands were gentle as she tried to lift me from the ground, but every movement sent waves of agony crashing over me. I gritted my teeth and clenched my fists, trying to push through the pain.
"L-lyn." I managed to gasp out, my voice barely a whisper. "I-I lost the baby…." Those are my last words before my consciousness faded.
—
There are no words that describe the pain. Wrapped in a dark haze swirling around me with dizzying speed, I wished death would just come. It's coming anyway, but in the most brutal way I never imagined, not even in my darkest dream.
A warm, comforting embrace should have been my comfort, but instead I found myself surrounded by damp, shadowy walls. The cold chains wrapped around my fragile wrists held me tightly, making sure I couldn't run away. There was no escape, as the rusty iron bars themselves seemed to hold me for eternity.
"The criminal is summoned to the hall. The Alpha will announce his verdict."
I heard the words loud and clear, but there was no reaction from me. I remained motionless, not uttering a sound. It was as if I were a mere piece of log, breathing.
The gates of hell swung open, followed by a calloused hand clamping down on my arm with a grip so powerful it threatened to rip it off. I was too drained to even cry out in agony, my whole body too exhausted to make a sound.
I trudge wearily down the hallway. Each step echoing through the seemingly infinite stretch of space. Each tap sounded like a bomb ticking, ominously warning of the looming doom.
The doors to the hall flung open, exposing a sea of spectators looking my way with fiery intensity that could have sliced through my soul like a knife.
High on a platform, my husband sat on the oak throne that symbolises his authority. On his side sat his second wife, wearing the tiara that should be exclusive to the first wife. I could clearly see her flaunting my attire even from afar, as if deliberately mocking me with the knowledge that all my possessions had now become hers.
After a long silence, Beta Vincent, my husband's right-hand man, stepped out from behind the wooden door. He wasn't alone; trailing behind him was my faithful servant Lyn, handcuffed with fresh bruises littering her face.
"Lyn…" My scream came out as a painful whimper. She refused to look at me, even though she knew my eyes were on her. Perhaps she didn't want me to see her face, or it might be the opposite – she didn't want to look at my pitiful state.
What have they done to you, my poor child?
I wanted to run to her, wrap her petite frame in my arms until her shaking stopped, hold her cheeks with my palms, and whisper reassurance that everything would be alright, even if things didn't make sense anymore. But what could I do when my weak, starved body couldn't allow a single step? I could only look at her, my heart splitting into a thousand splinters.
I could accept being treated unfairly, locked behind prison bars after losing my unborn child. But to think they would harm my servant just because she's on my side is unforgivable. I wished for the Divine being to take revenge on my behalf. Burn them alive until their skin melts like candle wax, leaving nothing of their flesh and blood but dust - dust that, once blown away, would completely erase their existence. But at that moment, even the Gods have failed to hear my pleas.
"Baby killer! Murderer! You deserve to die!"
The words echoed in my ears, slicing through every fibre of my being. I tried to keep my head held high in the face of this unrelenting hatred because deep in my heart, I know I have done nothing wrong.
"Guilty! Guilty! Guilty!"
The crowd's chants reverberated through the hall, drowning out all other sounds. I felt suffocated, their hatred smothering me like a blanket of darkness.
"Stop!" Beta Vincent thundered. "Alpha Damien has made his decision regarding the fate of these criminals. I will now be announcing his verdict!"
Suddenly, the crowd fell silent. A hush descended over the hall.
"The servant is proven to be an accomplice in the plot to get rid of the Alpha's unborn child. For that sin, she will be sentenced to one hundred flogging."
Even the strongest warrior in the clan could not withstand eighty flogging. At this point, Lyn wouldn't be able to survive it
"Nooooo!" I finally let out a scream, but it sounded more like the whimper of a dying animal. I tried to get up with sheer force only to collapse face down on the rough ground, blood seeping from my torn flesh.
Helpless, I watched Lyn being dragged across the uneven ground like a ragged doll that didn't amount to anything. For the first time since she got there, she looked at me. There was no hatred in her eyes, which I had prepared myself to see. Instead, there was only forgiveness and understanding. It was as if she had fully accepted her cruel fate. She still held onto her loyalty until the very end.
"To the prime instigator, the first wife who callously disposed of her own flesh and blood, your fate is sealed with death. Your beheading shall occur without delay."
The executioner raised his blade, the smooth edge aimed at my neck. I shut my eyes, resigned to the fact that I have reached the end of my pitiful existence.
"Stop!"
My eyes fluttered open to see my husband standing in front of me, his icy blue eyes as lethal as a frozen lake.
I extended my hand to the man I once loved, and thought loved me back, asking him for one last act of mercy, but he didn't take my hand. What a cold-blooded bastard.
"Beheading seemed a bit lenient for the crime this woman has committed. I have decided to change the sentence; she will be burned at the stake, and her remains will be left for the crows to devour."