"Mother, please help me! How can you bear see me being disgraced like this?" Lisbeth screeched, her wails echoing throughout the halls of Winterbourne Castle.
Cecily stood beside me, her cold fingers intertwining with my own. There was fear in her eyes, as well as disdain, but not a single word escaped her lips. Gilbert stood on the other side of the room, his lips pressed into a thin line, brows furrowed. He showed no sympathy towards our sister Lisbeth, and in my heart, there was none too.
"Annie, can't you help me?" she cried exasperatedly. "We are sisters Annie, you must help me!"
She grasped my hand, clutching onto it tightly, her hot tears splashing onto my palm. "You must help me.." she pleaded.
I had returned home to Winterbourne Castle for the Harvest Festival with Edmund in tow, although I knew perfectly that it was all a front for him to see my father. Gilbert had joined the league, now enchanted by the prospects of aiding the new ruler to ascend the throne. He would be a crucial player in the dethroning of his own father-in-law, too. However, I had not expected to see a heavily pregnant Lisbeth suddenly return home, completely drenched by the rain and unaccompanied, carrying nothing with her but the clothes on her back.
"Everyone knows of what she has done," Gilbert said bitterly that night after Mother brought Lisbeth back to her old chamber and screeched at us to fetch for physician.
"What did she do, Gil?"
Gilbert sighed and beckoned me to come closer and whispered into my ear, "Our sister committed adultery, Annie. That child she is carrying is not her husband's."
"How do you know that?" I asked, confused.
"Her husband was away on a business trip, and there is no way that he was the one who had impregnated her. Once he found out the pregnancy, off to the streets Lisbeth goes."
I smiled thinly, not at all shocked by my sister's predicament. Afterall, she brought it all upon herself. "Lizzie has never been very bright, Gil."
"Well, the brightest would certainly be you, Annie. Father adores you, and he is determined to place the crown on your head."
"It is not only that, Gil. From now on, every future king or queen of Phoenicia will have Winterbourne blood running in their veins. Our family name will never be lost in time," I stated determinedly. "The Ainsworths, on the other hand.."
Gilbert frowned in discomfort at the mention of his wife's maternal family, but not a single word left his lips.
"We must annihilate them, I suppose. Otherwise, how can we conquer the east ? The old marquis is probably rotting away, but their influence is not entirely dead. Eventhough the Queen has practically lost her mind, there will still be some stupid fools who would support Prince Gregory to the throne," I continued enthusiastically, and Gilbert's frown grew even deeper.
"I suppose the King and Queen along with her uncles have to go, but do we really must kill off all the Ainsworths? Wouldn't it be too harsh on Cecily?" he interjected.
"She is a Winterbourne now, whether she likes it or not," I retorted mercilessly. "The sooner she accepts the fact, the better."
My brother's eyes were taut and stiff, not showing a sign of agreement, but he did not retaliate. "I hope so, Annie. Now regarding Lisbeth, what do you think we should do? Father might be able to put some sense into that Byron boy's head, but the damage is already done. Lisbeth is now known as a harlot, an adulterer."
"Reconciliation might be the best route, as it would salvage her reputation a little, although I doubt her husband would accept. But Gil, do you know who the child's father is?"
Gilbert shook his head. "I don't, but I will find out."
In the coming few days, I spent my time strolling around Winterbourne Castle with Cecily and trying on the new dresses and hats that my father gifted. The warm sunny sky felt almost foreign to me after spending almost a year in the cold, dreary northwest.
"No matter where you go, home is always where the heart is," I remarked as I sat down on a large, flat stone that overlooked the slim, lazy river behind the castle. Cecily sat next to me, her pale pink lips spread in a thin smile.
"Indeed, Lady Anne," she said, her voice soft and low. Underneath the sunlight, Cecily's porcelain white skin had turned slightly red, and her long cascading hair shone, like a stream of starlight. Pale blue eyes glanced at me, and below it was a tiny button nose, and small but full lips. Compared to her sister, Margaret, she definitely did not lack much, if it were not for the birthmark under her right eye.
"Tell me, Cecily, has my brother been treating you well?" I asked her.
She froze, not saying a single word as she stared at the vast grass field that surrounded us. Her small, thin fingers were wrapped around the fabric of her skirt tightly, and her thin smile faded.
"He is very kind to me, Lady Anne, but I do not see him quite often. He goes to the barracks at the beginning of the month and comes home during the end of the month, spends three days here and off he goes again," Cecily said truthfully. "But he is happy, Lady Anne. He tells me that he is not as smart as the Earl, so he could not possibly become a minister at court. Instead, he dreams of becoming a great general, to serve my cousin Edmund."
I was reminded about the matter of the inheritance, and I recalled about what would have happened if Cecily retook her titles once more.
"Cecily, you could have become a princess again. Why did you not take the opportunity?"
She shook her head, smiling sadly. "I am already doomed from the start. Me becoming a princess again will not grant me happiness, and I shall be depriving Gilbert of his dreams. I know that a Prince Consort cannot hold any position at court or enter the military, and my husband would suffer if he had to live that way.
But Lady Anne, everyday I wonder, was my decision worth it? The Countess would not stop insulting me and my long dead mother, as if she had a personal vendetta against my her. She can taunt me and spit in my face as much as she likes, but bringing up my mother is too cruel, Lady Anne. Saying that she turned away from God by taking her own life is too much.."
There were tears falling down Cecily's cheeks, and she brought up her hand to her lips to stifle her sobs. She dabbed her tears dry with the sleeve of her gown and turned around to face me.
"I never told this to anyone, but I say it to you, Lady Anne," Cecily whispered, her eyes flickering around wildly. "My Lady Mother never took her own life. She was murdered, Lady Anne. Murdered by her own husband, the King."
How can that be? The dead Queen Helene was completely destroyed by the death of Prince George, and everyone assumed that she killed herself out of grief. Why would the King murder her, after all these years of marriage?
"But why, Cecily? For what reason ?"
She looked down at her lap, frowning deeply. "I don't know, Lady Anne. But she failed to give him a son after eleven years of marriage, and George's birth was godsend. My mother went insane after he died, and I suppose that it became clear that she would not produce another heir."
I felt unease pooling inside my chest as I touched my stomach, unnerved by the thought of being killed off just because my inability to bear a son. But that was what the dead queen went through, all because of me.
"Oh, don't be afraid, Lady Anne," Cecily suddenly said cheerfully. "You are carrying the prince, the future king of our kingdom."
I smiled thinly as I nodded. Indeed, my son would one day become king, but what of the child in Lisbeth's belly? Born to a mother ostracised by society and no father, it likely would not have an easy life.
A few weeks would pass before Gilbert eventually found out about who the child's father was. "It is the Marquis of Lockebel, Annie," he told me grimly.
"Oh ?" I said in surprise. "He is unmarried, is he not? Perhaps we can negotiate a marriage between him and Lisbeth, after the divorce is finalised."
My brother nodded in agreement. "That would be for the best. Then, I shall inform Father and we shall get an official separation letter for them."
I thought that everything would be fine after that. Perhaps Lisbeth and her child would not live as outcasts forever. Although she was likely still bitter because I did not let her marry Edmund, she was still my sister, and any humiliation she experienced would reflect on me.
As I passed by Lisbeth's old room, I noticed that the door was slightly ajar. Stealthily, I neared it and quietly peeked it. A strong and overwhelming floral scent wafted through the little crack, reminiscent of the chrysalliere roses from Terrawyn, which were pale pink and glistened like glass. The chrysalliere roses undoubtedly smelled wonderful, but if there was too much, it made one's head hurt.
At the vanity mirror Lisbeth stood, holding a pink powder puff, generously patting white powder all over her face and neck. Her face, pasty white and garish, was contorted into deep frown, and no trace of her previous beauty could be seen. Everytime she exhaled, I could see the powder particles blow off of her face, and when she breathed in, she sucked them back in.
Eventually Lisbeth set the puff down, and picked up a pot of deep red rouge. Instead of using a brush, she dug into the small pot with her own long and unkempt, dirty fingernails. My sister giggled eagerly as she smeared the bright red paste all over her lips unevenly, and she put them on the apples of her cheeks too, creating an odd looking, unnatural blush that somewhat resembled a rash.
An ugly, old tattered purple silk dress clung onto her bodice tightly, and I recognised it as one of the dresses that she would wear when Edmund came to visit years ago. Then, I noticed that her waist was unnaturally cinched, and since she was heavily pregnant, it should not have been that way. Two lace strings dangled at the back of the dress, and I realised that my foolish, and possibly insane sister had put on a corset.
Pushing the door wide open, I composed myself and calmly said, "Take it off."
Cold, trembling grey eyes met mine, like a deer caught in the headlights. "No," she said indignantly. "I shall not."
"Your child will suffocate if you keep that corset on," I stated bluntly. "Do you want to see your child die?"
Lisbeth shook her head hysterically as she wrapped her arms around her round stomach. "It will not harm him! I am his mother, how could I ever hurt him ? It is you who will harm him ! Vulgar, scheming little Annie !"
I scoffed in amusement. Lisbeth's vivid imagination was truly something to behold, and I wondered how she was able to twist every single thing to make it all about her.
"Sister, forgive me for saying this, but I genuinely don't care about you, your child or what you think of me," I sighed tiredly. "But just so you know, almost everyone in this kingdom has known about your infidelity, and we are now a laughingstock ! What is the use of Father and Gilbert's hardwork if all you do is destroy House Winterbourne's good name and reputation ?"
"You and your reputation, over and over again," Lisbeth said, her voice cracking. "I am your sister, Anne ! Do you truly value something like reputation over your own blood and flesh ?"
Tears were streaming down her cheeks, cutting through the thick powder like tiny little streams, and the whites of her eyes had become bloodshot and swollen.
"Yes, Lisbeth. Above everything else."
Clearly taken aback, she looked down at her lap in dismay, and for a moment, the room was absolutely silent, save for her occasional sobs. After what seemed like forever, she finally looked up at me, face contorted with disappointment, as if I had destroyed her entire purpose to live.
"I hope you die alone, Anne. I hope that you have no one with you when you die, and only then you will understand the meaning of family. What use is your precious reputation then ?"
Hi! If you liked this story, try checking out my other story, which is set in the early 1700s, Catarina and The Prince ! And please vote and comment, it means a lot to me 🥰