Waiting in the Dark

𝓉𝓌𝑒𝓃𝓉𝓎 𝓈𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓃

      I decided I needed time away to think. To figure out what I was going to do about the curse. I couldn't kill Cirillo. I loved him too much. I was going to. 

        I placed my hands on my belly. I had to keep this child safe. Cirillo's twentieth birthday was in three months. I only had three months to break the curse. 

     With a sad sort of determination, I thought up my plan.

        
          It was late, well past midnight, and we were lounging in our sitting room. Cirillo had enchanted a small piano in the corner to play music. Out of nowhere, Cirillo hopped up and pulled me up along with him. 

        "Dance with me." He insisted with a childish grin on his face. 

        The song changed to a slow waltz. He wrapped his arms around me and we swayed to the music. The ebb and flow of the e music would normally be calming but not tonight. 

        My mind and heart wrestled with each other. My heart wanted me to protect Cirillo. My mind wanted me to protect my child and the entirety of Javaid. My mind won. 

        I pulled the knife from my sleeve and held it to his back. He didn't notice. I couldn't muster the strength to kill him. So I held it poised over his back. We continued to sway to the music, slowly turning in a circle. 

      Suddenly, he shoved me away. Anger flickered in his eyes.

        "Guards! Guards!" Two guards rushed into our room. 

       Cirillo's expression was one of pure fury. 

      "I can't believe it! You were going to kill me?!" He pointed to the dagger in my hand. "I saw it aimed over my heart as we passed the mirror!"

      "Cirillo please, let me explain! I was doing it to save our ba—" 

       "I don't want your skewed logic!" He fumed. He was yelling now. I was trembling in fear. I had just attempted to murder the king. I would lose my life. 

       He pointed to the guards. "Get her out of my sight." He showed no emotion. His face was cold and cruel. The guards hauled me to my feet end dragged me out of the room. 

      "Please, Cirillo, please! Let me explain!" 

      His only response was to slam the door.

       The guards dragged me to a small, dank cell deep in the dungeon. They tossed me to the floor. I lay there and sobbed. The sobs racked my body. I was shaking from both the tears and the cold. The only thing in the cell was a dirty mattress and a small chamber pot. 

        I had failed. I had failed Javaid. Now they would fade into nothing. I had failed my baby. 

         I don't know how long I stayed there. The cell had no windows. It was cold and dank and dark. I shivered because the only thing I had on was my thin nightgown. Guards brought me food, water, and a grimy blanket. 

         After a while, three days by the rotation of the guards and amount of times they delivered food, I was dragged to the throne room

      The last time I had been in the throne room was for the ball. That had been one of my favorite nights I'd had here.

       Cirillo sat in his throne, looking like the demon king that Keir made him out to be. I felt my heart pound in my chest and my palms were already sweaty.

         The guards forced me to my knees. Cirillo stood, motioning for people to leave the room.

     "Only the guards and the council members may stay." All the other spectators filed out of the room.

       "Why?" Was all he asked me.

        "I thought I was doing it for the good of our child. I was told that killing you was the way to break the curse. I thought that I could save all of Javaid and our child if—" My voice broke and I couldn't continue.

       "Who told you that you had to kill me to break the curse? That is a complete and utter lie." He looked enraged.

        "Madame Currade. I went to ask her how I could break the curse and she told me."

Cirillo cursed under his breath. "Send guards to her house and arrest her. Bring her to me for questioning."

"How do I break the curse?" I asked.

        He sighed. "It's quite simple actually. All you had to do was fall in love with me and stay with me for a year. That's why all the girls were dying. Fate didn't want me to break the curse."

       I felt my mouth drop open. Anger welled up in my gut. Not at Cirillo or Madame Currade, but at myself. How had I been so foolish?

         

The guards led me back to my cell. A little while later, I heard footsteps. I shied away from the door. I didn't want them to touch me again. I had painful bruises from where they dragged me forming already. 

"Aracelli?" Cirillo's voice was soft.

I didn't respond.

"Aracelli?" He called again. He spotted me curled in the corner of my cell. He put his hand through the bars and tried to reach me.

"Love, listen, I'm trying to prove your innocence." He gave me a sad smile.

I shook my head. "I'm not innocent though."

"You didn't actually harm me. You were tricked." He looked around then spotted what he was searching for. He came back with the keys. He unlocked the door and stepped towards me. Unintentionally, I sunk deeper into myself, making my self smaller, safer.

His eyes filled with sadness. "Did they hurt you?"

I shook my head.

"I'm not going to hurt you, love." He knelt to the ground next to me and pulled me into his arms. I stiffened.

"I'm sorry for not trusting you. I know you would never harm me. I was blinded by rage and fear. I shouldn't have reacted that way. Now I've dug us both into a hole."

"I'm alright. And it's okay. I understand why you reacted that way."

"I should have believed you." He suddenly seemed to notice my shivering. He grabbed the blanket off my mattress and wrapped it around my shoulders. He pulled me into his lap and held me close.

"Have you eaten? What did they bring you?"

"Some stale bread and water. I don't know when I last ate." I whispered, my voice hoarse.

Cirillo cursed. "You're pregnant, for goodness sakes!" He gently moved me off him and stood.

"I'll be back. I promise."