Hidden Lavender

Chapter 19 | Evidence

"...We must tell him, he has the right to know."

*****

Silence, Utter and complete silence. Phillip sat solemnly on the side of his bed while looking at the snow covered mountains and plains. Wishing he would be able to see Lorelei once more, even if it was just when his eyes shut.

His greatest fear at this moment was if he were to close his eyes and begin a dream, he would not remember each detail of her beautiful face. How she scrunched up his nose whenever she focused, or how her eyes lit up at every conversation they had. He wanted to have the memory of her ingrained in her brain.

"Phillip! My dear child, why are you sitting there?You look like a toddler who lost his favorite toy." The queen entered his bedchambers accompanied by Sir Nicolas and two ladies in waiting.

He rose to his feet and bowed towards his mother, putting on his expressionless mask in front of them. "Hello Mother, are you well?"

"Of course I am! You are about to become king and wed a beautiful and mannered princess. Unlike that poor excuse of a girl you took a small interest in, Lottie was it?"

Every nerve in Phillip's body tensed, how could she know of her? "I do not know who you speak of mother."

The Queen snorted and said, "Oh, do come off it my son, I am not an idiot."

His facade began to falter. "Oh really, I couldn't tell."

In a blind of an eye, His mother strode towards Phillip and backhanded him across the face. Her magnificent rings covered in gems slashed his cheek and blood started to surface from his face. Gasps erupted from the bystanders but none spoke up. How could you? She was the Queen.

"All of you, leave us at once." The mother warned.

"Yes your majesty."

The large doors closed and now it was just Phillip and The Queen.

"You ungrateful little boy, You dare make a mockery of me in front of my subjects?" she was fuming.

Phillip said nothing, without showing pain, he brushed his finger tips against his wounded cheek and examined his blood.

"What happened to that bravery you showed moments before?"

Nothing.

"If you weren't the heir to the King's throne I would have discarded you long ago." She leans in closer to his ear so only Phillip would hear her words. "And trust me when I say, I could do that with no remorse."

And with that, Her Majesty left the room. And a distraught Phillip alone in the antagonizing silence.

He wanted to scream and cry, he wanted to rush to his desk and swipe it clean but he knew it would not do him any good. He must keep his facade perfect.

"Phillip! We have something important to show you!" Cecily and Hastings barged into his room without any idea of what had transpired just moments ago.

"Phillip? Are you okay?"

With some hesitation, He turned towards his friends. Displaying multiple gash wounds with fresh blood and a single tear threatening to fall.

Cecily gasped, "What happened to you? Better yet, who did this to you? Don't worry, just give us the name and our trusty Hastings will take care of it."

Hastings pounded his fists together, "I can make it look like an accident."

This caused Phillip to give off a half hearted smile, "How would you ever punish the Queen?"

Pity glossed on both of their faces.

"Your own mother did this to you? Oh Phillip..." Cecily embraced him in a hug, patting his back softly to comfort him while Hastings went into the bathroom to find anything to clean his cuts with.

Cecily lets go, "Why did she hit you?"

"Does she ever need a reason? I just said something disrespectful to her."

"She probably deserved it." Hastings murmured.

Phillip's eyes widened when he had just remembered something. "Cecily, Ambrose, She knows about Lorelei. What if she plans to hurt her? Or take her away from me forever?"

"Phillip, I just came back from Lorelei's" Ambrose interjected.

"Is she okay?"

"Yes she is completely fine, a bit distraught from your disappearance but other than that, she is completely normal."

He let out a relieved exhale. "What was it you wanted to see me for?"

"Oh right! Hastings here has been such a great help and found something that could easily shift the outcome of our supposed marriage."

Ambrose took out the letter from his side pocket and handed it to Phillip. As The prince read through each sentence written, his face shifted from concentration to shock. The contents were appalling to him but not outrageous.

"I'm sorry if this is too much of a shock to you but we believed that this is something you needed to know." Hastings adamantly nodded, agreeing with the princess.

"No, no. I'm fine. It is certainly a shock for sure, but I wouldn't put it past her."

Ambrose understood what he meant however, Cecily never saw how his mother truly acted behind closed doors or a sweet act.

"But Phillip, this is your mother. If you want to destroy everything she has as a Queen then that is your choice but she is the woman who birthed you." She tried to reason. Although from what she had seen today, she doubted her own words.

"I don't give a damn what happens to that poor excuse of a mother anymore. This is our ticket to freedom and I intend to use it to its fullest potential." 

The three sat in silence until Hastings commented, "Well, let the games begin."

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Hello my precious reader!
I hope you enjoyed this chapter of Hidden Lavender, things are finally starting to get interesting.

I wanted to pop by and check up on all of you beautiful people. I hope all of you have a Merry Christmas and if you don't celebrate Christmas, then I hope you have a pleasant evening and an exciting few days left in this year.

-M