The Red Throne | TUQ Book Two

15 | rapture

"Oh, don't cry Cecily. You'll see him again next month," I said to my sister-in-law, who was sobbing as she held Orion close to her.

As Orion was legally the Earl's son, we had to return him to his father, and Cecily had grown incredibly fond of the little boy. She had spent sleepless nights looking after Orion, changing his diapers and rocking him to sleep.

Needless to say, she was distraught.

"I don't understand why he must live with the Earl. He will be raised by strangers, not his family members. At least if he stays here, we can all take care of him together," she spoke softly.

I glanced at the sleeping Orion, his head resting in the crook of Cecily's arm. "We have no choice, Cecily. He may have the Winterbourne blood, but he is a Byron by law."

That evening, little Orion was sent off to live with the Earl, and the entire castle was drowned in silence. The realisation of Lisbeth's death began to settle in, and as I passed by the sitting room, I was reminded of my cousin Corinne, who had met her end by the vie pelkia.

I slipped into the sitting room, which was cold and dreary, the fireplace simply gathering dust in the corner. I remember being a child of fourteen summers, eavesdropping as my father and uncle decided the fate of Lady Grace Ainsworth. It felt like a whole lifetime had passed since then.

Lisbeth, who was so afraid that Benedict's scandal would implicate her, was already cold in her grave, and my vain, scheming cousin Corinne was rotting in a mass grave along with the other prisoners.
Some of them must have been slaves and prostitutes, people that she despised the most, and now she must spend her entire afterlife with them. Such irony.

The weather was becoming colder and colder as autumn faded away and winter steadily approached, but my chest felt as if it were on fire each time I was reminded that Lacey Rivers was living under my roof, still living, still existing.

We were obligated to let her dine with us, but none of us were very keen on eating anyways. After autumn came winter, and in winter, my life would change forever, for better or worse.

Both Edmund and Gilbert spent very little time at Winterbourne Castle, so I was left with Cecily and my mother-in-law.
Each and every day, my fear grew, and I was deathly afraid that Edmund would be defeated and charged with treason. My child would grow up without a father, but that is assuming if they did not kill him too.

That afternoon there was only me, Cecily and my mother-in-law sitting at the dining table before the harlot, Lacey Rivers decided to join us.
Her face was glowing, her eyes gleaming, and her lips as vibrant as the red red rose.

An extensive spread of dishes had been laid on top of the dining table, including a plate of smoked, cured meats. I had developed a craving for them recently, and eventhough the gamey scent was quite strong, I was able to stomach it.

"I smell something rotting," Lacey said as she sat down, grey eyes flickering around to find the source of the 'rotting smell'.

"The cooks would never serve anything rotten, Dame Rivers," Cecily replied with a frown, giving her the side-eye.

Lacey shook her head, still adamantly searching. Eventually, her eyes landed on the plate of cured meat.

"I think the smell is coming from that thing. Could you please throw it out? It smells so horrid that I want to vomit," she said casually, and at that moment, I had to resist the urge to drown her vapid head inside a pot of hot, boiling soup.

"No," I said simply. "If it smells as bad as you say, then you can go and eat in your room."

"You would rather send me away than give up that disgusting tree bark!" Lacey shouted at me, and my mother-in-law abruptly stood up, eyes ablaze with fury.