Azeph stood by the entrance to the secret door that would lead them into the castle and waited. The first explosion that was supposed to help them exit the safehouse unnoticed happened half an hour ago. They should be hearing the second one by now. Looking back he saw his friends laying low beside him and sighed. There was a possibility that some of them won't make it past tonight. But they still all came ready to fight. Loyd had come to them one hour ago informing them of Elinor's message. Her father caught her and he was making his move a few hours earlier than planned. Loyd volunteered to start the explosions for them as they enter the castle not to dwindle their numbers and they agreed. Booom The second explosion shook them up and Louis immediately opened the secret door pushing the stone away and motioning for them to enter before he pulled it back into place. They made their way into the castle running through the silent hallways until they started hearing them. The guard
Azeph stepped away from the door Louis followed him. The grand duke was smiling as he spoke but when he saw them both coming his way his smile faltered and he aimed his gun away from them and toward the king who was looking at everything with a cool expression not seeming the least bit worried about his own life.Even in this situation, he had to maintain his composure and remain calm. Just how hard could the life of a king could get? How hard the life that awaited Elinor was?Future stood up despite his injured side and covered the king with his body protecting him. The king did not resist. He could not. His life was not his to waste."Either you two stop this farce or I will shoot him now. I still have two bullets in my gun," He said."No you do not," Azeph said coldly, "You would be lucky if you still have one bullet left in the gun.""How do you know? This is not an ordinary gun," He said with a smirk."It is not. It is a custom-made gun and there are only two in the world. One t
Elinor looked at her mother with wide eyes as her mother looked at her with an expression filled with disgust and hatred.“Mother…” She murmured too shocked to say anything else.“Your father told me what you did,” She said, “You sold out your own family for the sake of the king’s favor. I had no idea that you were this greedy as a child,” “What?!” Elinor spoke up this time, “Mother, you must be mistaken. I never sold our family out. It was father who-”“Keep quiet!” Her mother said with an authoritative tone and Elinor flinched, “You will not lie to me. Your father told me everything. You were siding with the king all this time and leaving the blame on him,”“Mother, do you really believe what you're saying?” Elinor asked feeling hurt at how her father set her up with her mother and at how easily her mother believed the worse of her.“Mother, please let me explain. Father is trying to take the throne away from his majesty. He has organized a coup to overtake the throne and kill his
As azeph made his way out of the castle, he spotted one car that had been probably used by the duke to get to the castle and he hopped inside.Before he could start the car, Louis came up to sit beside him looking at him as if he had lost his mind.“What are you waiting for, drive,” He said, “Don’t tell me that you got on without knowing how to drive,”“I know how to drive a damned car Louis,” Azeph said annoyed.Starting the car, he drove down the road like a madman toward the residence of the Pendragons. He could see the flames in the horizon growing brighter and he clenched his hands on the steering wheels. If only this car could be any faster…As soon as they got there, the place was swarmed with guards and officials, staring at the mansion as it burned down, but none of them made a step to get inside, nor did they try to call out for Elinor and her mother to try to find them.“What are you doing?!” Azeph yelled at them. Put down the fire, why aren’t you looking for her highness?!
“Mother!” Elinor said, “Please come back with us! It’s not too late,” She pleaded, “I can find a antidote for you!”Elinor felt her tears well up in her eyes AAs she staggwered forward to her mother but Louis put a restraining hand on her shoulder making her wince and stopped her.“It’s too late,” He said and her mother caughed up blood.Wiping it with a handkerchief. She looked down at it and smiled.“This is more effective than I anticipated,” Her mother said as she smowly fell down to the bed.“Mother! No!” Elinor struggled agains Louis escaping his grip when Azeph removed his hand from her.“Let her go,” Azeph said with a cold tone and Louis sighed.Elinor rushed toward her mother kneeling beside her on the bed.Her mother smiled at her stroking her cheek gently.“You stubborn child. Go, live your life. I cannot let your father bear the punishment alone, a true lady would never abandon her husband in a moment like that. As his wife I bear part of the responsibility for his actions
“Did you call for me, father?” Azeph asked as he entered his father’s study to find him smoking his pipe as he looked down at the fireplace.His father looked up at him and smiled.“How is your arm?” He asked motioning to his rm which was still in a sling.“Very well, father,” He answered as he stepped inside closing the door behind him.After returning from the capital, Azeph’s arm became worse because of how he overworked it carrying Elinor and using his sword. As if the medicine that Elinor had given him had worn off, he had fallen ill with a fever the very moment he got back to his family manor and the doctor had to stitch his arm up and put it in a sling.“Your mother was so worried when you were bedridden from the fever. But I guess that’s to be expected from someone who went on such a dangerous adventure with an injured arm,” His father said with a teasing tone and Azeph chuckled.“I guess I did overdo it. Elinor had ordered me not to accompany everyone but I couldn’t just let
“You may know why I summoned you here today,” The king said as he sat in front of Azeph sipping his tea,“Is it because of her highness?” Azeph asked and the king smiled.“That too. But the official reason is for the still ongoing investigation,” The king answered and Azeph smiled. “I see,” Azeph answered, “If I may ask. How is she doing?”“Not very good,” The king shook his head hopelessly, “I’m afraid that she had things bottled up so tightly within her that it is impossible to reach out to her,”Azeph knew what the king meant. He knew about Elinor’s tendency to lock things in her heart and try to pretend as if she was okay while she was being slowly destroyed from the inside.“What she went through is no easy feat, your majesty,” Azeph said, “Having to save the kingdom at the price of losing your family is a cruel fate that we only hear of in tragic plays,”The kind of play where the hero always ends up with a twisted fate causing him to lose his life or his mind.“Her highness di
Azeph looked at Elinor wondering what to do. He wanted to reach out to her so badly. To touch her and pull her into his arms. Feel her warmth press his lips against her soft her, her skin…What in the world was he thinking in broad daylight?!He awkwardly watched as Elinor remained silent for a while and he remained rooted on the spot wondering what to do. There were way too many eyes for him to do anything.He wanted to comfort her and ask her why she was making such a gloomy face. What made her so sad upon seeing him? But there was no way that he couldHe looked at Stella who was watching Elinor with her usual neutral expression and wondered if she could arrange for them to be alone for a moment.“Your arm… How is it?” Elinor asked snapping him out of his thoughts.She walked toward him her hands lifting the exquisite dress she was wearing before her. She really looked like a princess. Beautiful, ethereal, unreachable…“All fine thanks to your help,” He said, “I just overdid it a li