Chapter 8 – Where Is He?
My head hurts as I process what he said to me. I’ve hidden all my scars well; no one could see them, except the ones on my face. But they could have come from elsewhere, and no one has ever suspected they’re from the long-lost abuse I endured in my marriage.
Maybe it was the oath he made to me that caused this, or perhaps his hallucinations are more severe than I thought. He did vow to protect me until his last breath, so maybe that’s why he’s acting this way. Or am I just losing my mind and overthinking this, as I often do with my stupid trait? I huffed in annoyance as I opened the door and placed the foul chamber pot in a corner near the entrance of the room. I was afraid to venture into the passageway, just in case whoever or whatever was after him caught up to him. I certainly didn’t want to become the sacrificial goat. Back in the room, he had already shifted away from the mattress, with half of his body on the ground, and only his leg lazily resting on the mattress.
I placed the candlestick in its proper place before I heard him mutter some incoherent words under his breath. The effects of Belladonna were still in his body; I bet he wasn’t even asleep, just too weak to open his eyes. I covered him with the blanket on the floor since I didn’t have the strength to move him back to the mattress. He suddenly grabbed my wrist, and my heart nearly leaped out of my chest. This stranger wouldn’t be the end of me.
“Why did you leave me?” He said. I couldn’t see his face, but I could tell he was pouting. Goddess Natalí, I’m in trouble, aren’t I?
“You weren’t in the room. I thought you left me,” Petty Flamingo cried, and I sighed. I was somewhat grateful I didn’t have a child yet, because his attitude and behavior were just like that of a toddler. Even Natalí knows I don’t have the patience to tolerate that yet, but I took a deep breath.
“I only went outside to get rid of your mess. I never left,” I replied, trying to free my hand from his grasp, but he only held onto it tighter, as if it were a stuffed animal.
“That’s what you said the other time, Mother, but you never came back. And you promised to take me to Ruqgu, and you never did.
“Oh, okay, now he thinks I’m his mother? His mother must be from Ruqgu, I guess.
Maybe his hallucinations got the better of him because I’m dressed like a Ruqgu woman, and I must have reminded him of his mother. Lord, I have to sleep; my eyes hurt from lack of sleep, and I still have a journey to continue in the morning. And at this point, this adult has started crying like a toddler, a little bit too loudly for my liking.
I had to cover his mouth with my two hands so as not to wake the remaining customers in the inn.
“I will leave if you don’t stop this nonsense,” I said, holding myself back from smacking him. Goddess Natalí, help me. Oath or not, if this man doesn’t stop behaving this way, I might have to waste the tears I used on him. I will send him back to that comatose state myself if needed.
But hell no! He became even louder, and I gave up right there. Deadly nightshade should be eradicated in the vicinity of all four kingdoms, so people like me won’t be saddled with the victims suffering from the side effects when I should be sleeping. And most importantly, I curse whoever made him ingest Belladonna.
“Okay, okay, I won’t leave you if you stop crying,” I said to him after a mental debate in my head that he was only like that because he was hallucinating. I would like to meet the normal Petty Flamingo and see who he really is and then embarrass the hell out of him with this little drama of his.
“Really?” He stopped crying for a while, looking at me with those puppy dog eyes, fluttering his eyelashes at me. Damn! How does a man have such long lashes? My stomach warmed up looking at his face, but I quickly coughed, reminding myself of my mission, so Petty Flamingo would not distract me.
It doesn’t matter if I left my husband’s house or not; if I don’t marry the king of Nayak, I will never have children, so I really couldn’t afford to be distracted by a stranger like Petty Flamingo.
“Yes, I won’t. Now sleep,” I said, removing my hand slowly from his hold.
“But I can’t sleep; will you tell me a story?” He asked, and I had to bite my tongue to hold back the profanities that threatened to escape my mouth. Very funny; I hardly swore in Ruqgu because an elegant lady cannot utter bad language, whether she is indoors or outdoors. But I have used more foul language than normal words ever since I met this impossible stranger. He really brings out the worst in me.
“I can’t tell you any story. The moon drifts; it will soon be day.”
“Please.”
Okay, I will forever imprint this in my memory that I met a man-child on my way to Nayak, and I hated every part of it. Well, I hate anything that disturbs my sleep except food.
“Long ago, there lived a princess who married a powerful lord but, unfortunately, she was barren and never had children. She suffered in the house of the Lord, both physically and emotionally, until her husband divorced her. But the king fell in love with this barren woman and made her his queen. Fortunately, she got pregnant and gave birth to twins, and they lived happily ever after.” I watched him sleep as I narrated the boring story of my life to him. I doubt if there is any happily ever after for me with the king of Nayak.
I just want to hold my own child, and if we don’t fall for each other, then screw it!
Wait, I just left Ruqgu without a definite plan. Okay, the oath is there; I can use the tears of the goddess to heal. But what if the king still doesn’t want me? How can I get him close enough to me to get me pregnant? I lack seduction skills, that I know.
I was always too embarrassed when I was unmarried to learn all those things that get a man trailing after a woman’s skirt. Patrick always knew what to do, and I was always content with it as long as he was satisfied until he started getting physical, of course How can I get this king, who basically has no idea that I even exist, to notice me in the midst of Nayaki women who have no problems with revealing their skin? Screw it! I need to sleep.
I felt exhaustion take over my body as I lay in a fetal position on the mattress because of the lack of a blanket to keep me warm. And soon enough, sleep took over, and I was glad to succumb to it. I opened my eyes to the bright sunlight penetrating the room from the window.
I blinked twice before rising up instantly; if the sun was that bright, then that means the day must be near noon already.
I wondered why I slept in that late before the memory of the midnight flashed through my mind. I looked around the room, searching for the stranger I helped, but he was gone already. Where is he?