CHAPTER FOUR: A LITTLE GIFT
1155 Words
ELYRIA’S POV
“...Are you certain?”
“... Unfortunately, she may...”
“... Just three months...”
A groan leaves my lips as I force my eyes open. The familiar ceiling of the royal infirmary comes into view.
“She is awake.”
My head turns to find Rhaegar and Doctor Ruby standing by the door, eyes on me. Ruby rushes to my side, checking the heart monitor as she grabs her note.
“How are you feeling, Elyria?” she asks.
I elevate myself up a bit with my elbow, groaning as a slight ache course through my chest. “What happened?” I ask with a voice I refuse to believe is mine.
“You passed out,” Rhaegar states the obvious, closing the distance between us and stopping by my bedside.
“Why?” I ask. I do not fail to catch the shared glance between Ruby and Rhaegar. “I need an answer. Now,” I demand.
“We have identified an illness, my lady,” Ruby says solemnly.
“And what illness is that?”
Her hazel eyes soften with sympathy before breaking the news. “Lunaris decay.”
My brows knit with confusion. “I have never heard of that.”
Ruby nods in understanding. “Very few have. It is quite ancient and infects one out of ten thousand of our kind. It existed long before we were stripped off our wolves. The disease kills the wolf within before the body it resides in. And in our case, we have no wolves... which means...”
My brow hikes at the abrupt pause. “Spit it out already!” I snap, my patience running thin.
She sighs, “Since we do not have wolves, the disease attacks the physical body with ten times the force.”
I nod slowly, still trying to wrap my head around everything she is saying.
“Can it be treated?” I ask.
Silence.
My eyelid twitches and I glance at Rhaegar. He looks like he would rather be anywhere but here.
“I asked you a question, didn’t I?” I ask, and Ruby sucks in her bottom lip.
“There is no known cure, my lady.”
My heart slams to a stop.
This can’t be happening to me.
“So... you are telling me I am going to die?” I ask, my voice shattering with every word.
“I am afraid so, your grace,” she reveals.
I am unable to control the tear from slipping past my eye. My body grows numb and a sharp ring fills my ears.
I had to leave Freya behind only to return to the news of my father’s death, my usurped throne and a terminal illness.
“You have about three months left to live. Maybe less,” Ruby adds, sprinkling salt to my already gaping wound.
“We get it. You can leave now,” Rhaegar says coldly.
Ruby bows before taking her leave. But just before she is out the door, I ask one final question.
“Is this disease hereditary?”
She pauses, glancing at Rhaegar before me. “No, it is not.”
An invisible weight is lifted off my shoulders as she takes her leave. Rhaegar shuts the door behind her before sitting beside me.
He releases a pitiful sigh, his hand rising to caress my hair. I turn away.
“Oh, sister. You must be devastated. I can’t even begin to imagine how you feel,” he says.
“Save me the pretence, Rhaegar,” I spit, my voice void of any form of emotion.
“Don’t be so bitter, big sister. I know we have always had our differences in the past, but I know you adored father. And with the news of this ailment, you must be utterly shattered,” he bites his lips while shaking his head. “Perhaps this is the goddess’s way of confirming you were never meant to rule Silver Hollow. I know you really wanted to, but there is nothing you can do now.”
I say nothing, letting another bitter tear escape.
Rhaegar gets off his seat, walking towards the door. “If you want my advise—live the rest of your life quietly. Enjoy the little things. You can even go on another trip without telling a soul. Do the things you love.”
Before he shuts the door, I could have sworn I caught a smirk on his lips.
My life is over.
The days pass by in a haze. I could not bring myself to speak to a single soul. Occasionally, Ruby would come into my chambers to check on me and offer me some drugs for the pain.
I did not take them.
What is the point if I am just going to die anyway?
I can not even pretend to ignore the gossip flying around. The glances and stares during my evening strolls are agonizing.
“Did she really think she could be the first female monarch?”
“She is so delusional.”
“Not to mention ungrateful. She abandoned the only person that truly believed she could do it.”
After that, I refused to step one foot out my door. My pillow is soaked with my tears, and I am hit with waves of regret and defeat every thirty seconds.
I can’t even bring myself to call Meredith. The thought of facing Freya knowing her mother is a failure feels almost impossible. But all I want is to have her in my arms. There is nothing left for me in Silver Hollow.
No father.
No throne.
No life.
Maybe Rhaegar is right. I should just disappear.
Even if I have just three months with Freya, I would make them my best.
A knock comes from my door, putting an end to my sorrowful thoughts. I do not bother wiping away my tears before inviting them in.
“What!”
The door opens and Gail steps in with a box in his hands and scrunch on his nose.
“Pardon me, your grace. This came in for you. It’s from a... Meredith?”
My heart skips a beat and I sit up instantly.
“Bring it here,” I order and he hands me the box.
He gives a final bow before shutting the door behind him.
A faint foul odour fills my nostrils. “What the hell?”
My hand comes up to my cover my nose but freeze mid way.
The crimson print has my blood freezing and the world around me vanishes.
What the hell...
Dread seeps into my heart as I lift the lid.
I thought the news of my fast-approaching death was the worst thing to ever happen to me.
I was wrong.
It is receiving a photograph of my child getting kidnapped and the severed head of my best friend as a present.
- Writer
