I am Reborn through Revenge

Valerie's suicide

As usual, I was already awake. It was the morning of the next day. So I had already taken my bath, changed my clothes, and done all that needed to be done. If I was asked what I needed for a birthday gift, I would say "I need Valerie to tell me just the truth and nothing more." But I agreed on something and that was; if she fails to tell me the truth then I will make her eat the food she will bring. But will that really solve it? What if she did not know what the food might contain? I hoped that what I was thinking wasn’t true because I really needed answers. At least that way, I will know how fast the person after me was, I thought.

I had thought of reading a book that will divert my attention and keep me busy so I could wait for her to come to my room like she used to. I thought it would be a good way of reducing the weariness that had confounded me. I stood up and went to my reading desk, and relaxed— I planned to read. In fact, reading was a hobby I found interesting when I am bored. I brought out a book and then flipped open the first page and began to read. To be honest, I was just mumbling out words from my lips but I didn’t understand anything from it. I didn’t even bother to check the name of the book I was reading neither did I pay attention to the genre of the book. I couldn’t get myself to focus on it. I looked out the window, it seemed like it was gradually passing the normal hours I usually see her in my room. What could be keeping her busy? I wondered.

I couldn’t wait anymore for her. If she won’t come to me then I guess I should go to her instead, I thought.

I closed the book, tossed it back to where I brought it from, and then made my way to the exit door. I decided to visit their lodge where I thought she might probably be. The lodge was a place the maidservants are meant to stay when they are off duty. It is very close to the field but closer to the general kitchen side. I had passed the long lobby which leads to my room and I headed straight to the kitchen side. But while I was walking, I noticed some unusual movement of some guards and some servants in a reverse direction. Their faces weren’t exactly the type of face one would expect to see very early in the morning. Apart from the guards who juggled past me, some of the female servants passed me with sagged faces and their hands resting on their heads. I noticed that something was wrong and it just didn’t seem right or normal. I began to have a change of mind. I became confused. Should I go to the lodge instead and forget about what I just saw or should I go with them and know where they were all going to? I asked in between thoughts.

I decided to suspend going to the lodge and find out what was happening. I ran in their direction too, trying to catch up with the guards. I didn’t want to lose them or lose their tracks. They led me to a backyard lobby where I saw more people clustering around.

What is happening, I asked myself.

There were more people than I could count. They were all looking at something which I couldn’t really see. When the soldiers approached the crowd, the people that clustered made way for them to pass through. That moment, I saw something like a body hanging halfway to the roof. I couldn’t see it properly so I decided to move closer to confirm if my imagination was true. Lo and behold; it was the body of a woman whose face I couldn’t see yet. I could see fury and shock written all over everyone's faces. And my face wasn’t any different. I think mine was even worse. This must be something ugly, I thought.

Why was a corpse of a woman hanging down the roof in the Palace? Not even in a private room but in a public space? A lobby? I stood hanging both hands on my waist, waiting for the guards to cut loose the rope that was across the strange lady's neck. Immediately the rope was cut loose, I walked a little bit closer and I took a proper look at the body.

Hell no!

It was Valerie. Goodness!

Her eyes were wide opened and I think mine did the same. Her tongue was outside her mouth like it was forced out and her lips were looking bloodless. I held my breath, I couldn't even breathe when I wanted to. I couldn’t exactly tell how my body was feeling at the moment. I couldn't explain it. Valerie wasn’t exactly any of my acquaintances, friend, or servant. I even barely knew her but I felt really-really devastated seeing her dead body lying in front of me. My tooth began to hit each other repeatedly and my fingers were visibly trembling. Everywhere became silent as if a spirit of tranquillity fell over the room. Or was it over me?

I saw the guards trying to wrap her with some pieces of white clothes which would be used to lift her corpse away from there. It dawned on me that there was no need of going to the lodge again— it's useless. The point of going there had become useless. Someone might have masterminded her death, I thought. A young girl like Valerie wouldn’t just commit suicide for no reason. It was impossible. Or was it. . . ?

Though Brady told me earlier that she grew up from one foster home to another. So does that have any connection to what happened to her?

Or?

Does it have to do with the findings Brady did? I couldn’t exactly pinpoint where the problem came from or where the water was leaking from the pot. I still strongly believed that there was no way Marie could kill herself. After all the struggle of coming to the palace?

No! So what am I missing? Who was behind this? Who knew that I was getting close to finding out the truth? This was no coincidence and I was very sure of it. Or was I sabotaged? by whom?

“Think Anon” I mumbled to myself. “Think, think, think,” I said loudly.

“What are you thinking exactly?” someone asked me from the back. A voice I think I recognized.

I turned, it was Princess Diane. “Diane!” I blurted out. I was shocked to see her. “What are you doing here?” I asked.

“Same reason why you are here, Anon,” she said. She came with two female servants. They both wore the same colour of dress: a light sky-blue gown. There were no additional colours to their outfit meanwhile Diane was in a long red gown that stretched down from her shoulders to her feet, her makeup was not much on her face. She had her hair drawn back in a tight braid revealing a sharp jaw beneath. Her face was void of emotion and pity. Though I was expecting nothing less from her.

Maybe because it was a death scene; most people didn’t know that the Princess was there. Without uttering any more words to her, I just turned and shifted my glance to the soldiers. Diane walked closer to me, just beside my right-hand side.

“She must have committed suicide. What a poor girl!?” She said with a soft voice.

Without turning or looking at her. “I don’t think she committed suicide,” I argued.

She took a glance at me. “If it’s not suicide," she said. "Then what happened to her?” she asked me.

I ignored her and continued looking at the soldiers. I couldn't afford to answer the question at that moment.

“Do you think someone might have orchestrated her death?” she asked.

This question touched me

“What?” I muttered and turned to regard her.

Why would she ask me that type of question? I don’t know what made her think that I was going to answer her.

“I don’t know.” I turned back to the soldiers. They had already wrapped her body in the white clothe and they lifted her corpse. They went past us and took the corpse to where I think she will be buried or probably where they will keep it until her family comes to claim her corpse.

“Then it must be suicide then. People are killing themselves these days because of different reasons. I suspect that she could be suffering from mental problems. She could be possibly passing through a lot of pains that she didn’t care to share with anyone,” Diane said. She spoke as if she knew or cared for Valerie when she was alive. “You know they say that a problem shared is half solved. Maybe if she had shared her problems, it would not have degenerated to this insanity we saw today.” Her voice was quiet and dusky.

I looked at her with exhaustion and anger. The Princess had said more than enough already and, to be honest, I wasn’t feeling comfortable with it.

“Let’s get out of here,” she commanded, beckoning at the maids. They followed her instantly. Most people in the lobby also started retracting to wherever they came from. They were all wearing sad faces and it was written all over them. Most of them walked sluggishly while they were leaving and this spoke much about how deeply saddened everyone's heart was at the moment.

I was also sad and even confused. I felt like I had been beaten in my own game. I was so convinced that she didn’t kill herself and then, whoever it was that had done this, was dangerous. I started to rule out possibilities of who could kill Valerie or who could be after her life. Her body was found hanging in a lobby and I was sure that you can’t walk forty foots straight in a passage without seeing two or three guards posted at a corner. Securities in the palace were beefed up by the Queen in recent years and I had noticed it, it was no longer like before. In every corner or turn in the palace, there should be soldiers overseeing what happens. Veronica made so many internal enemies than she made with external ones and due to that fact she wasn’t prepared to have a taste of her own medicine— she planned the security architecture very well to suit her satisfaction.

So the big question is; was it possible that Valerie committed suicide while the soldiers were there?

Ridiculous, right?

Another possibility is; was it possible the soldiers weren’t there at all when she killed herself? Or rather when she was hung?

I think the latter would be more satisfying than the former. The guards were removed by someone and not just anyone, it could only be done by somebody who could order them around. Now the question is; who?

Was it the Queen? But she doesn’t seem like she was the person who could do this. The last time I spoke with her, she did not know that Valerie was serving me food. But then who could be another person on the menu? Was it Young? No! This wasn’t his style, I thought.

Nightwinder? Even if Nightwinder would want to kill me, why would he need to use someone he barely knew? Why would he go through such stress just to accomplish nothing? He couldn’t be so fetish. If it was him, I don’t think I would have figured it out really quick, I thought. Then who is missing in the circle?