Inheritance

Part 2. Chapter 20: Swoon

After speaking with Francis, Kori wasted no time in running back to the king to tell him her plan. She knew he wouldn't approve, but she frankly didn't care whether he would or not.

She felt like she didn't even know who he was of late.

He had been deceiving her so much, and he had taken so much away from her.

She nonetheless requested an audience with him in his cabinet again, and she sat still on a comfy chair—waiting impatiently for him to arrive.

Kori was not an adventurous woman, and after she had been banished from Trella, she had stayed in Maribel since she had left. She liked predictability, and she had liked Laurence, and that was enough for her to never want to venture far from either.

She was incredibly nervous about this venture she was about to undertake, but she couldn't help but feel a little excited as well.

It might be fun in the end... She thought to herself. Maybe my problem is that I'm not very adventurous.

The knob on the door twisted and interrupted her thoughts, and Laurence walked into the room and shut the door behind him. Silently, he sat in the chair across from Kori. "Did you speak with the elf?"

Kori nodded. "Yes... And, I came to an agreement with him."

Laurence bristled and his posture became stiff. "An agreement?"

"Calm down, we still have the upperhand, Laurence, and nothing happens without your say so." Kori interrupted before he could protest. "Hear me out. You have gotten us into a situation where we have no good options. You have kidnapped the queen's emissary, and you have put the kingdom deep into debt. If it came to war, we would lose in an instant. Alanheim is far bigger than Maribel, has more resources, and has far more experienced warriors."

Kori took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling for a moment before continuing. "Now, I propose we try to negotiate with the queen. I have made a deal with Francis; if we let him go, he promises to put in a good word for me with the queen via a messenger bird, and I will accompany him back to Alanheim where I will attempt to negotiate with her to lower the amount of gold we owe her each month. It may be a long shot, but it's our best shot. At any rate, it's better than risking a war."

Laurence stood up with his fists clenched and his eyebrows knitted. "Absolutely not! I will not have you running off with a man who will kill you the moment your back is turned! Besides, what would be keeping him from telling the queen that I had taken him captive?"

Kori cleared her throat awkwardly and hoped Francis would forgive her for giving away his secret. "He told me a secret that would ruin him if I related it to the queen. He told me he is... He has the parts of both a male and female."

Laurence's immediate reaction was a look of distaste, and then he clasped his hands behind his back and his expression changed to one of pity. "Some people are born unlucky, I suppose. But still, this is no guarantee that he won't stab you in the back. He could easily just kill you on your way to see the queen, after all, and then he could tell his queen what I did to him."

"Please, he will have no weapons and I can take care of myself. I have magic, after all. You need to trust me, Laurence. Or else..." Kori looked down at her hands which were folded neatly in her lap thoughtfully.

"Or else what?" Laurence's voice rose in frustration. "Nothing you can say will make me allow you to go on this fool's errand."

Kori closed her eyes and murmured sadly, "Laurence, you have already taken my son from me. You have taken the jewel from your crown so that I can't summon the Astral Elf to take me to the Crater where I would truly like to be. You have made my life entirely about you, and yet you never planned to marry me. If you don't let me do this for the kingdom, I swear I will leave. I have no idea where I will go, but I will leave."

"So that's what this is about? My refusal to marry you? Kori, I told you that I adore you more than anyone in this world—even my own wife! I told you my reasons for being unable to marry you--!"

Kori was so furious that she stood up and flipped her chair over to show how enraged she was. "Stop it, Laurence! I can't stand it anymore! You can't just dangle me like this—like I'm a common street walker! Like I only exist to soothe your damaged soul! You were my only friend when I was banished from Trella, and I will always love you for that, but I refuse to be your whore any longer!"

Kori leaned on the leg of the chair and clutched at her heart with tears streaming down her cheeks.

And Laurence tried to get her to stay in the way he always did—with warm promises, kind words, and strong arms. He glided to her side and swept her up in them. Because she was so tiny and he was so big, she felt incredibly safe in them, and she wanted to stay in them forever.

"Kori, you're not a whore. You're not my mistress. You're my dearest friend; I respect and love you. That's why I refuse to let you go on this suicidal mission. Stay here with me, my love, and I will give you what you want." Laurence whispered in her ear.

She nearly swooned in his arms like she always tended to do, but she thought of the person she would truly like to hold in her arms, Eory, and found that she couldn't stand being in the arms of the man who kept her from him. She struggled free from them and she looked at him determinedly. "So, you'll let me be with Eory, then. You know that's what I truly want."

Laurence's eyebrows lowered angrily over his eyes at her belligerence. "Never. I won't let you go with that monster, nor will I let you go with that creature in the cell down there. You will stay here."

"Don't call him a monster! Gods, you..." Kori gasped and tried not to let herself cry anymore. "You killed his dog in front of him—you would have killed him when he meant you no harm. I am beginning to think you're the monster! And if you won't have this kingdom's best interests at heart, then I guess I will. I'll do this with or without you!"

Kori headed for the door, but Laurence murmured menacingly, "you will not. You'll come running to me like you always do. You'd be dead without me."

Kori grabbed the knob on the door with a heavy heart, took a deep breath, and opened it.