Dedicated to belleandbeauty22, thanks for all the votes and suppprt:) ily
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Chapter 32: To Lady Brianna Huntley
Everything happened so fast, one minute I was proved not-guilty, the next minute, Genevieve dropped the biggest bombshell ever.
"What do you mean she found a bottle of Venetia?" I asked, shivering as I stepped into the living room.
"I don't know, Miss, I'm sorry." The maid replied, handing me Ashton a towel. We had been swimming in the pool when Lucy, the maid, came in and said Luke was here to see us.
"Luke?" Ashton called as we arrive the sitting room."What's going on?"
"Thanks." Ashton and I both said as Lucy handed Ashton a t-shirt and a pair of shorts and me a sun dress. Luke waited until we were comfortable on the chairs before speaking.
"Okay. Um. How do I say this? Well, I think the cops found the real murderer."
"What?" I whispered.
"Yes. Four days ago-"
"The day of Anna's hearing." Ashton mumbled.
"Yes. That very night, Ryan Miller went out of town and wasn't home. His daughter, Genevieve, I believe you know her? Right, she somehow found herself in her Dad's garage, she came upon a pile of rubbish and found two items. Two very important items." Luke showed two of his fingers while we leaned forward.
"A bottle and two letters." Luke continued. "Not just any ordinary bottle or letter, but a bottle containing Venetia and two letters addressed to the two of you."
"Us?" Ash asked, Luke nodded.
"Wait, if she found these things four days ago, why... why do we know about it now and not earlier?" I asked.
"Technically, you aren't supposed to know about this until the public does as you are not family of Cordelia or anything. However, since the letters were addressed to you, you are told now. As for why not earlier, well, let's just say the cops need time to process stuff." Luke explained, he took out his briefcase and took out two envelopes. "Here, you two read it. The seal's broken because, this is just a guess, Ryan read it. No one else has, I think, not even me or the police as it's yours, but if there's anything in there which can help with the case, you must tell us, okay? The murder is still being investigated, you know."
"Okay." I whispered, overwhelmed by everything, I looked down at the envelope.
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To: Lady Brianna Huntley
Dearest Brianna,
By the time you find this letter, I'd be gone. Don't cry, dear, don't cry for me. I'll be watching from above.
I expected this actually, my death, I mean. From the moment Ryan said we'd never be his real parents, deep down, I knew. However, I wouldn't admit it, just like how I wouldn't admit I had feelings for George. I knew he would be the death of me, just not that literally. Since George had passed away, Ryan would always ask me about Sweets, like what I'd do with it and give me suggestions. I never told him much because, frankly, I didn't know what I was going to do. I guess it's my fault, I didn't raise him right. Don't blame him, Sweetie, he had to do what he had to do, but I can't give him Sweets. I promised George I'd keep Sweets in good hands. YOur father has good hands, I trust him. With my life.
I trust you guys with my life too. You and Ashton are just like my grandchildren, your parents my children. Which is why I'm about to tell you what I'm about to tell you. There are things I have to tell you, actually. The first thing is something I had written in Ashton's letter as well, the second is something more... personal.
The first thing is something I've never told anyone, so you two are the first ones to know this. This is something George told me. WHen he was abroad studying, he had to go to this field trip. They had many activities and one was called 'Treasure Hunt' where student formed into groups of two and find 'treasure' in the forest. (It was an all-boys school). He went with a friend, I think he was called Hollocks. Actually, that was probably his last name. Anyways, while 'hunting', they came across a young woman. She was wearing, no, wrapped in a cloth and was tied to a tree. Her face was bruised and she had her eyes closed. George and Hollocks ran towards her and woke her up. Her first words had been 'water'. So, of course, they gave her water. After that, they untied her and helped her up, but then she became unconscious. They brought her back to the campsite. After resting for a day, she finally woke up. Turned out, she was from the Venetian Troop, and the tripe had gone to America for a while. Their teachers told the boys to bring the woman back to her tribe, Her tribe was more than grateful. The boys were given a lot of gifts and one of them was a wooden bowl. On the bowl was a symbol. The chief of the tribe told them that, if in the future, they need something, anything, they can take the bowl to one of their Venetian Tribes and say the words 'Hukisa Lumeni de Cruise' and they will help them. They were told not to tell anyone, I only knew about the bowl when George was near his death. However, Ryan was there when George told me about this. So, he know. I don't know what he'd do, just be careful.
The second thing I want to tell you... don't be mad. The week after your whole family came to visit, Jason came to see me. Since I own Sweets and he is the king-to-be, his father sent him to see me, to talk about business. HOwever, we eventually ended up chatting. He told me a lot of things, including you. I won't go into details as I did promise him not to tell you. Let's just say, he doesn't hate you, not at all, in fact, I think he feels the exact opposite. I knew it was before he even admitted it. The way his eyes shone when he mentioned you, smiling. It was George all over again. That's why I told you about George and I the next time I see you. You see, sometimes, boys just don't know how to act with how they feel. I don't know will the two of you end up together or will you ever stop 'hating' him. To be honest, I don't think I'll ever see it. Still, I gave you the Étoiles du Ciel, I was hoping you'd wear them on your wedding. Please don't go and date Jason just because of what I said. That's not why I told you, I just thought you ought to know this. But at least give him a second chance, put aside your hatred and try to get to know him once more. Everyone deserves a second chance. I don't care whoever's waiting for you down the aisle, Jason, Toby, anyone. As long as you are happy, I am too.
I don't regret much in my life, but I do regret not knowing you guys earlier. Don't tell your dad that though, he's going to blame himself all over again.
I've got so much to tell you, so much to say, but if I go on, this letter will never end. I wish the best, love. Stay strong, okay? And don't get all emotional for me. Remember, try to see the best in everyone. I love you. See you in Heaven.
Love,
Cordelia
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"So, what now?" Ashton asked as Luke finished reading the most crucial parts of our letters. "I mean, Ryan's definitely the murderer."
"Yes, it looks like it, but the cops would need more evidence, but we'll leave that to them. We will also need to hand in these letters."
"But some parts are-" I began, nit wanting the whole world to know about the Jason part.
"Don't worry, I'll file in a document so those parts remain hidden from the public and unrelated officers." Luke answered.
"Okay... So, what now?" Ashton asked, putting the letter back into the envelope.
"Now we wait."
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You know how funny things are, how unexpected and sudden they are. Like one minute you were running happily, the next you were on the floor crying. Once when we were really young, Mom and Dad brought Ashton and I to this park. We had a blast, chasing around and having a picnic. The sunny was shining brightly, Mom was even trying to work on her tan. Suddenly, it got really windy and the sky turned pitch black. The minute we got onto the car, it started raining. The storm had lasted for days.
That was exactly how I felt, helpless, not understanding what was happening or how things can change so fast overnight. One night I was a murder suspect, one night I was free, the other night a man I trusted was the true murderer.
Yes, Ryan was the murderer. Didn't see that coming, huh?
Apparently all the evidence on me were all plotted by him. All of them.
The soup? He ordered a maid to pour poison in.
The statue? The same maid.
The bottle? Ryan ordered the same maid to bury it and then threatened the gardener into saying that it had been me.
Intention? Anger towards Cordelia. Turned out he missed his birth mother a lot and had always disliked the fact that Cordelia was to nice to him, he felt like Cordelia being so nice was like wiping his birth mother away, and if he learnt to love her, he'd have betrayed his birth mother. All he wanted was the Sweets and the money.
Why me? I had asked with tears running down my face when I saw him.
Why you? He had answered. You had everything! Literally everything! Cordelia loved you and your family more than she'd ever loved us! Not just that coz I honestly didn't care if she loved us at all. If fact, she might as well hate us, I'm sure she does now, anyway. But you also had something else, something that mattered, something my daughter has been trying to get for a long time.
What thing? I had asked.
Jason Gilbert. He had answered through gritted teeth. The heir to the throne, the Sherfillas' teen heartthrob. The most powerful person-to-be. And did my daughter ever succeeded? No. All because he only had his eyes on you since the day he met you.
I didn't know he- I had argued, even though that was not my fault.
Oh, quit your stupid lies, Huntley. He had yelled. You think you can fool me? I saw how all through these years, you just led him on, but never giving him a chance. What made you say yes? Knowing that you needed him for your case?
No! I had shouted. I dated him because I, unlike your daughter, love him! I didn't lead him on. I didn't know he liked me...
Love? You? He had laughed. Huh! Here I thought framing you would get you out of the way and Genevieve would finally have a chance. Little did I know it backfired.
Did Genevieve know about all these things? I had asked.
No, no, she didn't. Then, he had laughed, a humorless laugh. Guess she knows all about this now and she hates me. I did all of this for her, for my daughter. Everything. I wanted to have Sweets because I knew she wanted to study business. What can a father do, except to try to provide her a good career path? I wanted Sweets so that one day, she can work there and eventually own it. Her working there allows me to protect, to make sure she doesn't gets hurt. And the prince? I knew how much she liked him, and how she deserves so much better than a normal man. A Prince is perfect for my little princess. I had everything under control, everything in my hands until you came and destroyed everything!
What about Genevieve? I had questioned. Don't you think she'd be mad or even hate you when she knows what you did?!
It wouldn't have mattered if I succeeded! He had cried. I don't care if she hated me! She'll understand that I did this for her!
I had opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Then Ashton came and pulled me away. I didn't know how I felt. Angry, sad, confused... numb.
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"You know, I could use a little help here, Anna." Trisha said.
"Hmm?" I asked, snapping out of my thoughts.
"Earth to Brianna! We are choosing a movie?" Trisha said, snapping her fingers on front of me.
"Oh, yeah! What movie?" I asked, forcing a smile on my face.
"Piglet, are you o-" Jason began, scooting closer to me.
"I'm fine! Stop asking that! I was just thinking, you know, something you should try." I answered, hiding a real smile.
"Burn." Ashton laughed, dragging the word.
"You should try that too, Ash." Trisha smirked. "You know, thinking."
"Burn." Jason mimicked Ashton, slapping his back.
"Okay, now I vote for a Nicholas Sparks!" Trisha cried.
"Nooo!" Ashton cried. "I vote for a scary movie, right Jase?"
"Normally I'll be right behind you, but today, I don't wanna be killed." He joked, looking at my death glares. " I vote action."
Everyone turned to look at me.
"Nicholas Sparks all the way!!" I cried. The boys groaned.
"Yeah!!" Trisha cried. "Which one?" She asked, looking at our movie collection.
"Name some?" Ashton asked.
"It's not like you'll know which is which anyways." Trisha muttered. " Message in a bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Not-"
"Wait, I have a request. Can we at least watch one where the main character doesn't die?" Jason asked.
"Well, there's The Last Song... Ooh! Better yet, why don't we watch The Longest Ride?" I suggested.
"Yessss!" Trisha squealed, choosing that movie.
"What's it about?" Ashton groaned.
"A bull rider." I answered smugly, knowing that it'll get them interested.
"Ooh, now I'm interested." Jason smiled, leaning back as the movie started. I sighed contently as snuggled close to my boyfriend. The boy I used to hate with all my guts wrapped his arms tight around me and kissed me on my forehead. This was what I called perfect.
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Author's notes
I can't believe it, this is the ending of Royal Innocence.
But don't worry, coz there's still the epilogue:)))))))))))))
I hope you liked the ending:))
Chapter song: Good for you -Selena Gomez
Add me on facebook pls? (Tell me who are u pls:)) Bethia Cheung
Lots and lots of jianna moments;)
~Bethia ♡