Ava's POV I stood waiting patiently for Diana to give me an answer to what she said earlier, I didn't understand what she meant by that.“What do you think it means?” Diana answered my question with her own question. Oh, I hate her arrogance.“If I can remember correctly, Odessa had two daughters Skylar and Serena, so where did the last one come from?” I questioned in a low tone, scared that someone might hear me mention those names.“Serena, that's the name I knew, not Ava,” A small smile played on Diana's face, “Odessa fell in love with someone other than her kind, and she birthed a child for that man.”What? It wasn't just Skylar and I? Mother had another child? I have a sibling somewhere?“Who is that child? What is that child's name? What does that child of now?” I questioned out of mere curiosity.Diana smiled, “Let's play a little game,” She walked around me, “I will give you clues to find that child and if you get them, you will know who that child is or I might end up tellin
Aurora's POV“Do you really have to go for that wedding?” Tristan asked from the bathroom while I got ready in front of my dressing mirror.“Yes, she invited me and I have to go,” I smiled as I put on my earrings, “She is my sister.”“She is marrying Elijah, aren't you going to be uncomfortable?” Tristan wrapped a towel around his waist when he came out of the bathroom, “I have something to do at the court today else I would have followed you.”“I understand; you don't have to be worried, and why would I feel uncomfortable because she is getting married, Elijah, when I have you?” I stood up, “I heard she is pregnant.”“Take care of yourself,” Tristan planted a kiss on my forehead, and droplets of water from his hair dropped on my face, “I will try to finish on time and come pick you up.”I planted a kiss on his cheeks, picked up my purse, and left the room to the carriage.I arrived at Elijah's house with Elena, three of the palace maid, and three guards, including Travis.“Isn't that
Aurora's POV “Take her inside,” Tristan ordered the guards when I came down from the carriage.“Where are you going?” I asked Tristan out of mere concern.“To do something important,” Tristan smiled at me.I knew he was going to get the evidence of the real Diana but that wouldn't matter because she can still prove she married him. The only way to get her out of here is to prove that she is a snake.I nodded my head and walked inside the palace with some maids and guards following behind me.“Did he find the evidence?” Diana asked, standing at the entrance of the North Wing.With a wave of my hand, I sent all the maids and guards away, “Why? Are you worried?” “Worried?” A smug smile played on Diana's lips, “Why should I be worried over something silly? He will find the evidence but won't be able to do anything.”Why was this shape shifting snake so confident? “That's a lot of confidence, where are you getting it from?”“Can't wait to see it being wiped off my face, right?” Diana ask
Aurora’s POV I walked back and forth anxiously at the entrance of the door. It was almost dawn, and I was impatiently waiting for any news, no matter how small of news it was.“Are you waiting for the apples?” Ava scoffed as she took a sip out of her bottle of water, “You used your royal seal for something this stupid, you could have just sent your worthless maid to go get it.”“She is just trying to show her power as queen,” Mother laughed, “Look how impatiently she is waiting for her apples and embroidery designs.”I didn’t have the strength to talk back to them, I was waiting for Elena and Tristan to arrive.“Even Tristan didn’t say anything about this madness, he must be in his room enjoying his peace,” Mother added.I kept my mouth shut because I didn’t want to be rude. She didn’t even know Tristan wasn’t at home. “Aurora,” I heard that snake's voice from behind me, “I know I am not pregnant but I would also like some special apples.”“If you want some apples, then go get some
Aurora’s POV I hurriedly entered Grandma’s room with that snake Diana by my side. Everyone was already there including the royal physician.“What happened to Grandma?” I asked in haste.“We don’t know for sure, but when we got here, she was talking and walking around her room,” Tristan explained with happiness written all over his face.“Grandma, are you okay?” Mother sat on the bed next to Grandma and patted her head gently.“I had a bad dream; it was very bad; I was paralyzed because I fell down the stairs,” Grandma said with fear as if reliving it, “It was scary.”“In your dream, who pushed you down the stairs?” I knew something wasn’t right when Diana asked Grandma those ridiculous questions.Grandma paused her lips into a thin line, “I can’t remember much but I remember seeing Aurora there.”My eyes fell on Diana and she threw me a dirty smile. Was that what she meant when she said she manipulated Grandma’s memories? “What? I didn’t do it,” I quickly defended myself before anyon
Aurora’s POV I managed to calm myself by sleeping the whole day, I slept in Elena’s arms but I was sure when I turned Tristan was by my side but when I woke up, I was alone.I was on my way to the dining room when I saw a shadow in the kitchen. I wanted to ignore it, but the chef and kitchen staff were all supposed to be in the dining room.I moved closer to the door but stayed by the side to see who was inside; Diana was turning juice inside a cup. There was nothing to see, I was about to leave when I saw her bringing her lips closer to the cup.“What are you doing?” I asked when I noticed she wasn’t drinking from it.Diana turned to me with a smirk on her face, “Just trying out something,” her smirk widened as she spat into the drink.I couldn’t ignore it, Diana’s spit was poisonous, “Whose drink is that?”Diana used her hand to cover the drink, “How about you find out?” Diana winked at me. She bumped her shoulder on mine as she walked past me.I hurriedly walked behind her, “I mad
Aurora’s POV Anger rang through my veins as I watched both my husband and Diana locked in an embrace and the most annoying part was the smirk on her face.“Elena, take Aurora to her room, the chef will send her dinner,” Tristan said after he pulled away from Diana’s embrace.“I….”“Aurora please!!!!” Tristan yelled before I could say what I wanted to say, “That’s enough, please,” Tristan took a deep breath, “Please,” he lowered his tone, “You should rest now.”“I…” Elena held my wrist stopping me from talking as she shook her head twice, “Sure,” I listened to Elena, “Let’s go,” I glared at Diana before following Elena to the north wing.“It was really poisoned, she is venomous, and she spat into it,” I tried explaining to Elena, but she looked at me as if she didn’t believe a single thing I had just said, “You…. You…. Don’t believe me,” I scoffed, “Why don’t you believe me!!!” I yelled at the top of my lungs.My hands began to shake for some reason, I held Elena by the shoulders, “I…
Tristan’s POV“She is still refusing to come out of her room?” I questioned Travis without looking up from the book I was reading.“Yes, only the physician can get in, but he isn’t reporting for some reason,” Travis reported what was on the ground, and I nodded my head in acknowledgment of what he had just said.I don’t even know what the matter was; ever since that day in the dining room, Aurora locked herself up in her room, and it’s been four days already.“I’m worried, how sick is she?” I really wanted to see her but she locked the door from the inside. I wanted to break the door, but she said if I broke it, she would never forgive me.“Do you think she is angry?” Travis finally made sense after all this time.“Do you think it was because Diana hugged me?” I asked Travis.“I don’t think so; I mean, you defended her and were willing to take a punishment for her, but,” Travis paused, and I impatiently awaited his answer.“But what?” I questioned when he was quiet for way too long.T
Tristan's POV Hearing those words leave Diana's lips sounded like a betrayal to me; I paused and turned to her angrily, “What did you just say?”“It's almost seven months now, and there is no improvement; let your Mother clean up the room. Maybe then Aurora would understand the reality,” Diana said.“How can you say that, you know that's how Aurora is coping,” I was trying my best not to yell at her.“Don't you think she has mourned enough?” My lips felt sealed as a part of me understood what she was saying and a bigger part of me felt she was spewing nonsense.I jerked my hand off her hand, “You cannot tell a Mother when to stop mourning the loss of her child.”“I know that very well but what if that's the only way to bring her out of this depression?” I glanced at Diana, opened the door, and left the office.I didn't walk; I ran to the nursery; when I got to the entrance of the north Wing, my legs refused to move further as I saw Mother and some guards throwing the things out of th
Tristan's POV I stood carefully behind Aurora trying my best not to make a sound as she hummed softly while trimming flowers in the garden. I was cold; I wondered if she wasn't cold as the snow had been falling heavily for some days now.These few months have been the hardest; Aurora wasn't eating; all she takes is tea; she walks around the garden looking distant and singing some children's songs.My wife has lost a lot of weight which makes me scared for her health. I'm not bothered that she still wears mourning dresses or dresses like a widow, I'm only bothered about her health.“Look after her,” I said to Elena, “I have some work to finish off.”I didn't want to leave Aurora, but I couldn't leave my duties like that, and some councilors were waiting for me in my office. Sometimes, Travis did help me with some work, and the councils covered up some work for me, especially the right state council. do “Thanks for coming all the way here,” I sat down when I entered my office, “So to
Aurora’s POV Mother’s nature of emotional blackmail was still the same; she has always done it, and right now,w, she is still doing it.I was irritated, I wanted to show her that I was better than her at emotional manipulation, “Even better,” I emptied the gallon on my body, “Let us all go to hell.”“Tristan!!!” Mother yelled when she saw I was playing the same game with her.“How can I stop a grieving mother? I should have punished Ava but I felt it would be better if Aurora punished her because she was closer to our child than I was, so how can I stop her?” Tristan supported me, “If I was killed would you sit and watch? Wouldn’t you kill the person too?”“The situation is different, you are a full human, and her child was only a fetus,” Mother whined, “That child wasn’t even formed yet; it was just blood!!”I couldn’t believe what mother had just said, “A fetus? Just blood?” I lit another match out of anger.“Are you going to watch her light us?” Ava yelled and I walked closer to h
Aurora’s POV “They killed your child!!” Diana said when she pulled me inside the nursery and shut the door behind her, “Are you going to keep pretending that nothing happened?”“Stop,” I shook my head as I pleaded.“I can’t stop, if I stop today then I have failed Skylar,” I placed my hands over my ears, “Do you think Skylar would be happy to see you in such a situation?”“Please stop, you are hurting me,” I pleaded with tears streaming down my face.Diana held my hand, she dragged me to the front of the cradle my baby was supposed to be in, “Look at that,” she forced me to look at the cradle but I refused, “Do you see a child there? No, there isn’t, do you know why? Because your child is dead!!! You child isn’t in the world of the living!!!”“No!!!” I covered my ears and screamed, “Please, don’t.”Diana pushed the cradle, she began to scatter the room and I ran after her trying to stop her from doing, “Not my baby’s room please, please.”Diana gripped my hand, “I won’t ask you to be
Tristan’s POV It’s been days and I haven’t done anything. It’s not like I don’t want to do anything, it’s just that I don’t know what to do. Everything was on my neck; it was almost like before when I had Skylar in one hand and Mother in the other. I haven’t gotten the courage to see Aurora, she has been in her room, she wasn’t talking to anyone, she didn’t even want to see anything. I lifted my head from the table when I felt someone tap me on my back, “I have been calling you for ages.” “I’m sorry Diana, I didn’t hear you,” I apologized. I thought by now I would have exposed Diana and kicked her out of this palace but she was here helping me instead. “I know,” Diana sat opposite me, “I wanted to talk to you about Aurora.” “What about her?” I hurriedly asked, “Is she okay? What’s wrong with her?” Diana placed her hand on my hand and I calmed down, “It’s nothing much,” I let out a breath of relief, “I don’t like the fact that everyone is agreeing with her that her child is
Tristan’s POVThe cup fell from my hand and scattered on the floor. Diana hurriedly carried the child from my hand.“You said something I didn’t hear right,” I didn’t even know when I stood up and walked to where Beatrice was kneeling, “Repeat what you said!!!”“I said it was Lady Ava who had asked me to mix pennyroyal and tansy in Queen’s Aurora tea the moment we found out she was pregnant,” Beatrice cried, “I didn’t want to harm another mother because I know the joy of being a mother but just like you have threatened me with my child that was the same way I was threatened with my child, a mother would go to any length to protect her child even if she has to harm someone else.”I scoffed, “Why didn’t you say something when you were given the order?!!! Why didn’t you come to me?!!!”“Everyone knows that Lady Ava is your best friend from childhood; if I had accused her without any evidence, I wouldn’t have seen this day, or would you have believed me?” I laughed out loudly like a madm
Tristan's POV Beatrice stared at me without saying anything and it only made my blood boil, “Don't you feel like talking?” I balled my hand into a tight fist. “If you have already heard it then I believe you don't need any explanation,” Beatrice replied arrogantly. “How dare you speak that way?!!!” Diana yelled, “Do you know who you are speaking to?!” Diana stood to her feet angrily. “I know who I'm speaking to, and that's why I'm speaking with nothing but respect,” Beatrice answered slyly. “Explain the pennyroyal and tansy herb,” I gritted, “Else I will make sure you suffer, you will beg for water, you won't see, you will beg for death and it won't come.” “Even if you fed me to the dogs I still have nothing to explain,” Beatrice said adamantly. “Okay,” I stood up, “Anybody that can give me any information on Beatrice, no her weakness, if anybody can give me her weakness, not only would I free that person from here, I will make sure to give you three acres of land.” “Anyone?”
Tristan's POV “Why are white flags raised on the road to the palace?” I questioned myself and Travis.“Maybe something tragic has happ….” Travis paused when we heard the sound of a bell, “Something tragic has happened.”My mind went blank, “Aurora” was the only name that crossed my blank mind. I didn't want to think of what couldn't or couldn't have happened, so I kicked on the horse to hasten its speed, and everyone rode their horse behind me at the same speed.I didn't wait for the horse to stop; I jumped down and ran into the palace, “Tristan,” Aurora called; she ran and jumped into my arms.I tightened my hold on her, “I'm glad you are Okay, thank you for being okay.”I was surprised to see the way everyone ran outside to meet me with a huge smile on their faces. Their eyes looked swollen, and the most disturbing thing was they were wearing mourning clothes.“What's going on?” I questioned as I pulled away from Aurora. I looked at her; I noticed she wasn't wearing a mourning dre
Aurora's POV We were all in different worlds, they were bowing to their new king while I was in pain, not just physical pain but emotional pain from the supposed death of my husband.Tristan cannot be dead; it's not possible; he just left only a moment ago; I looked around, and I couldn't tell if I became more scared or more relieved when I didn't see Travis around.“My….. My…. Child….” I cried out as I saw blood on the floor, “My…. My…. My… baby…” I didn't want to lose my child, so I bent to the floor and started using my hands to pack the blood together.“Call the physician,” I heard Grandma's voice break behind me, “Take her to the south Wing.”I held my tummy protecting my child as both Diana and Elena carried me to my room in the south Wing. “Aurora, I promise nothing will happen to you,” Diana touched my hair with a small smile on her face. Anyone could see the smile was fake.I shook my head, “Not…not… me… save…. My… child…. please.” Diana's silence told me everything I need