Queen Bee

Honeymoon

After he's had a few too many drinks, Jules stands up and announces that we've decided to retire to his bedroom. The guests continue dining even after we leave, forcing it to just be me and Jules in the hallway. His fingers hold onto my shoulder as we walk to his room. He opens the door, ushering me in. We part direction as Jules rummages through his drawers. I sneak a glance outside, the light of the moon illuminating the window.

"Adela, My Dear..." Jules calls for me, and I turn to face him as dread fills my stomach.

"Yes?" He sits on his bed, beckoning for me to join him. I comply, unsure if I even have other choices.

"I'm sure you know that I've always seen you as very mature and grown for your age, hmm?"

"Yeah." I try to look elsewhere, but Jules lays his hand on my thigh and I look at him in surprise.

"Should we just begin?" He begins to take his jacket off, a far away look in his eyes. Suddenly, I stand and say "I've never had alcohol before!" He looks at me with wide eyes and I quickly add "so I thought, maybe I could try it when it was just the two of us. Alone," with a low voice, and he immediately smiles.

"What a pleasant idea, My love." I hide my cringe at the name, but manage a smile any way. I go to the door and open it, revealing a bottle of alcohol I had Godfrey place there after we talked about it today. I bend down and pick it up, closing the door slowly on my way back in.

"I seem to have forgotten glasses to pour it in." I frown, looking around for any ones in his room.

"We don't need cups!" He stands excitingly, ushering me back to the bed in a hurry.

"You're right." I smile sweetly, letting him open the lid. It pops and the rancid smell quickly fills the little space between us.

"You go first, I insist." He holds the bottle out to me and I take it gingerly. I lift the bottle up to my lips, taking a small swig of it. I don't swallow in time and so soon a burning sensation fills my mouth and nose. Jules takes the side of my head possessively and tells me to swallow as he stares into my eyes. I do, leading a trail of fire down my throat. I choke and Jules kisses the top of my head.

"That was wonderful for your first time, what a good girl." I force down puke, not sure if it's from the drink or Jules. He quickly takes the bottle from me and takes a chug of his own.

"That's how it's done properly, My Love. But don't worry, you'll learn the right way soon enough." He sits the bottle on the floor and wastes no time as he begins kissing me again. I ignore the feeling of his prickly beard against my skin as he begins going harder and harder, forcing me down on the bed. He only takes in a few deep breaths every once in a while, too hungry to stop for long. He slides my body to the middle of the bed, now hanging over me as he runs his hands down my body, touching everything in reach. I take his jacket the rest of the way off slowly, taking as much time as I possibly can. I throw it to the side and before I can control it he's working on me. His hands find the zipper on the back of my dress and begin to slowly zip it down. He can't keep his hands off of me for that long, so thankfully he takes a short break from taking my clothes off. When he begins again, I notice his kissing has become slower and less forceful. His body becomes heavy against me as he suddenly stops moving, his lips still against my face. I take a breath, gasping for air as I manage to push him off my body. That was close, but luckily Godfrey found the right mix to put him to sleep before it went farther. The only bad part is that I drank it too, and now feel my body slowly drift into a lulling sleep.

I wake up to an empty bed and a headache. Slowly crawling out of bed, I recount the moments from last night. I stand and make my out of the room, not caring that my dress is half zipped as I make my way to my room. Well, my old room. I quietly close the door behind me and run to the bathroom. I get sick into the sink as I feel the anxiousness from last night leave my body. As well as the alcohol mixture.

"Adela?" Anna's voice comes from behind me.

"Why can't anybody just leave me alone?" I mean for it to come out as angry, but my words leave me weak and broken. Anna comes up behind me and begins hugging me, like she always used to do whenever I was upset. It's been a while, but I turn and embrace it. I begin sobbing into her shirt, snot and all as she whispers into my ear.

"I know, I know." She says is a hushed voice, massaging my head.

"I'm sorry Anna, I shouldn't have said what I did. You were right." My words are broken by my sobs as I fight for air.

"I wish I wasn't right, Adela. Because I know what he means to you, and who he really is." I take a breath and look her in the eyes. Through the tears I say "He means nothing to me, Anna. Not anymore." She just shakes her head and pulls me back in for a hug.

"He did it to protect you." I don't say anything. He should know I don't need protecting, especially all we've been through. Anna sets me gently on the floor, standing up to wet a towel in the sink. She hands it to me and I wipe my face, cooling the heat in my cheeks and cleaning my mouth.

"We all know how brave you are, Adela." I don't know if she can read my thoughts, or just feels the need to say it.

"He murdered them."

"Adela, I'm only going to say this one more time. So look at me," I do and she cups my face gently. "Olivier killed your parents. Yes, we all know that and that is a horrible thing to do. But he did it because he loves you. I know it because I know everything, right?" I smile and manage a laugh.

"He left his home for you and traveled all this way, with Sawney, mind you, who is not easy to get along with! The least you could do is hear what he has to say and then come up with your verdict. Got it?" I nod, not wanting to agree. Anna is pretty hard to say no to, though.

"Now, Manuel says I need to help you get ready for today. Jules is making an announcement to the kingdom in town today and since you are his wife," I sense the disdain in her voice, "you have to be beside him." She winks, helping me up from the bathroom floor.

"Thank you, Anna." She shrugs.

"Don't mention it." Then she makes a comment about how my hair looks like a rat's nest and begins helping me get ready for today.

"Greetings, citizens of Astaria, allow me to introduce myself! I am King Jules of Franse, and I am now your king!" There's some applause some, heckling as Jules keeps his arms in the air for dramatic effect. I stare down at the citizens from the stage we're on, wondering how many are missing work just to hear Jules talk about himself.

"The lovely Queen Adela and I have agreed to combine the boundaries of your land and Franse's in order to form a permanent alliance between the two nations. Isn't that right, My Queen?" Jules turns to me and I feel a thousand watchful eyes staring me down. I know my voice will never be heard, so I simply nod even though Jules and I never formally agreed upon this.

"Franse will be integrating our systems of work and government unto you, so prepare for a few changes around here. There's hubbub from the crowd and for a moment I see a flicker of worry on Jules' face.

"But do not worry, my queen and I will be working side by side to make sure the transition is as comfortable as possible! Now, any questions?" A handful of villagers raise their hands and Jules bends down to pick just as a flash of something comes right between us. Suddenly blood is dripping from the side of Jules' head, screams erupting from his mouth. Then, hysteria from the villagers ensue and I notice an arrow, dripping with the king's blood, at my feet. I look up, just in time to see another arrow fly by and duck from it. A gaurd takes me by the arm and leads me down the stairs. He takes me down a back road and in a split second we're surrounded by strangers.

"Did you really think you could get away with murder, Princess?"