Unlikely Endings (Now Being Rewritten as: The Pursuit of a King)

Passions

“Good Lord, will you calm down?” James cried with a frown. Henry had been pacing up and down, completely ignoring all the other guests at the feast as they mingled around the ballroom. Thomas rolled his eyes and scanned the room again.

Henry shot him a dark look that would have intimidated even the best of men. James merely laughed and clapped him on the back.

“She will be here Henry” he chuckled “There is no need to be afraid”

“I am not afraid!” Henry snapped, “This feast has merely grown to be rather tedious”

“You have been here for ten minutes” Thomas sighed. Henry turned to appraise his cousin, silently praying that the fool would not attempt to ruin this evening for him. A knot formed in his throat as he contemplated the repercussions of what he was about to attempt.

Essentially he was confessing his love for a woman he had only recently thought to hate. He clenched and unclenched his fists resisting the urge to call for more wine. Whatever he would say to Amelia, he would say it completely sober. He had always had a way with words, able to charm even the most pious of women. Yet his wife had a way of making his thoughts stick in his throat.

Henry could not endure much of this agonising waiting for much longer, where the hell was Amelia?

***

“Amelia! There you are! I have been searching the whole of the castle for you!” the Queen cried happily as she rounded the corner to reveal the mother and daughter.

Neither Amelia nor the Duchess had moved since the discovery. Amelia stood almost frozen, staring at her mother who made no attempt to deny her betrayal. Noticing where the ink from her letter had stained her mother’s fingers, Amelia felt sick. She could to some extent fathom the Duchess’ concern for Violet, yet she could not understand her haste. They would march on Elereld the day after tomorrow; they would take all Phillip had stolen from them back.

“Is something the matter?” the Queen asked hesitantly looking between them. Amelia knew what she had to do, yet doubted that she had the strength to do it.

“No, not at all your Highness” her mother began smoothly and her response suddenly strengthened Amelia’s resolve.

“In fact there is something wrong” she cut across her mother’s flowery words of flattery “My mother will not be joining us this evening, she must retire to her rooms. I would have two guards placed outside to ensure of her…protection should she decide to wander.”

As she spoke Amelia glared into her mother’s eyes and noted the disbelief in them. Perhaps her daughter would have forgiven and concealed such treachery, but the Queen of Elereld would not. She suddenly felt split into two different people, and one of them could not deny their sense of duty.

Avella did not protest in response to this strange request, for once she seemed to perceive that there was something going on beneath the veneer of their supposed civil conversation.

“I will go.” The Duchess conceded quietly. She disappeared down the corridor, refusing to meet her daughter’s disappointed gaze, flanked by two armed guards.

“What has just occurred?” the Queen asked curiously once the Duchess was out of sight. 

“Let us speak of it tomorrow” Amelia sighed.

She would not divulge anything before first speaking to Henry. Her mother had in effect committed high treason and she feared that if not handled properly, her punishment would be most severe. Even though the woman had disappointed and exploited her at every turn, she was still her mother and Amelia would not see harm come to her.