The knock came again.
And again.
Delice moved around the room quickly, searching for something… and hiding something.
“My Lady? Are you in there?”
Finally the door swung open and Delice flashed the guard a warm smile.
“How may I help you?”
“My Lady.” She bowed his head lightly in respect, before standing standing straight. “Princess Laura has sent me here to tell you that she has been released.”
“Oh.” She said said flatly with a blink. “Of course, thank you. Anything else?”
“No, My Lady.”
“You may take your leave.”
She bowed again, then left.
Delice shut the door, her hands a little shaky. She picked up the raincoat from where she had hidden it in a haste earlier, then matched to her wardrobe, tucking it away to the deepest part of it.
That wasn’t Laura had she had feared. What a relief, but she would still have to see her soon.
She must freshen up quickly, it would be bad news for Laura to know about where she had been.
In no time, she had taken her bath, changed her dress, and applied fresh frangnace.
That should do.
She sprinted out her room and rushed down the hallway to Laura’s room.
Before she knocked, the door flung open.
“You! I was about to come to you.”
The anger was unmistakeable and expected. She hated Zezi and to know that she thrown into the dungeon on her account, she certainly wouldn’t be fine with it.
Laura smelt like the dungeon, it was so unpleasant. She smelt like pain and anguish but she looked very put together, still had her coak but her white shirt was stained here and there.
“I’m so glad you are alright.” Delice attempted to pull her in for an embrace after shutting the door but Laura pulled away.
“I stink.”
She started pacing around.
“I was locked in the dungeon!” She fumbled, her hands picking up a bottle and dropping it back on her experiment table.
“I am a Princess. I was locked with the lowest of the powers of our kingdom. Stupid vampires, happy to have me in their midst.” She ran her hand through her hair, freeing her already loss ponytail from it’s bond. “I can’t stand how I smell. Give me a moment.”
She was in the bathroom next and out with a dress, running around to style her hair, putting in her earings and apply frangnace.
Delice watched her, silence settling in between them.
“I still haven’t said anything about the stunt you pulled.” She snapped, looking away from the mirror as she put on her bracelet. Her gaze blurbing with anger.
Delice froze on the edge of the bed where she had decided to sit while waiting for Laura to come out of the bathroom earlier.
She hated it whenever she was like this.
Angry, illogical and out for blood.
“What stunt?” She asked, picking her words.
Her eyes squinted further in anger as she walked closer to her, making Delice look up at her.
“I tossed that pathetic plead in the fire for it to get devoured by the flames not delivered to my brother.”
Laura had not confronted her about this before. She should have seen it coming. It was inevitable.
“Laura, I just… I thought…”
“It was an accident? That’s a lie, you know me very well to know that it was not. You should have pushed it further in the flames.”
“That is not right.” Delice said, standing up.
“If you had just done that instead of been ‘oh so good’, you would have been Queen by now and we would have gotten rid of that unnecessary baggage.” She shouted in her face and Delice stiffened once again. Laura let out a sigh, rolling her eyes at how petrified Delice looked. Then she lowered her voice like she was talking to a child who should already know what she was talking about but was too daft to grasp, her hands gently on Delice’s shoulders.
“Don’t you love my brother?”
“I do.” She said, looking down. “You keep asking me.”
Her grip on her shoulders tightened.
“Because you keep acting like you don’t!” Her voice became low again. “If you love him as much as you claim,” she dropped her hand away from one of Delice’s shoulder, snaking a finger underneath her chin instead, and raising her face to look straight at her, “you must try to make him pick you at all cost. Even if it means getting rid of that pathetic wolf.”
Her eyebrows scrunched up in an incoming boiling rage. “Mate my foo—” her voice trailed off, her face relaxing before it gave way into a frown.
Delice bit her tongue, realizing what could be admiss.
Oh no.
“What’s that smell? It stinks.” Her hands dropped from Delice’s shoulders as she leaned further in, her nose almost grazing Delice’s neck.
This time around when Laura grabbed her shoulders, the pain was bone crushing.
“Were you out in the rain tonight?” Her voice was deadly low. “You smell of mud.”
“No.” She answered firmly, keeping the pain away from her voice.
“Good.” Her grip lossened. “Because I don’t want you anywhere near that grave. The past is the past. My brother would not be so keen to pick you if he knows you have all that baggage. He already has enough himself. You have to be perfect. Absolutely flawless.”
“I’m trying, Laura.” She couldn’t hide the weakness that seeped into her voice this time.
“Try harder.” She raised a eyebrow at her. “Try hard enough and you will be everything he needs.”
Then she pulled her into an embrace that Delice soon relaxed into. “I’m proud of how far you have come, we just have a little longer to go. Will you make me proud, Delice?”
“I’ll make you proud.”
“That is why I love you so much.” She pressed a kiss to her forehead, smiling down at Delice, who smiled in returned to Laura who pulled her into an embrace again.
No one deserved to be Queen except for her perfect Delice.