37
1089 Words
Pearl Gem
“You brought a damsel with you, Kade?” Zephan’s question came the moment his eyes settled on me, and I watched Kade King turn to look at me.
I had stood still for a while, my mind still trying to process the series of shocking moments I’d just witnessed.
“She is…” Kade King began, and I watched him struggle with himself before swallowing. “She is a woman I fancy.”
At his words, my brows lifted. Did he just drop a bombshell like it was nothing? A woman he fancies? Did he mean love or something else entirely?
“I am Zephan,” Came the pleasant voice of the man in the wheelchair, and my heart swelled unexpectedly. Looking at him and His Majesty, I didn’t want to admit it but they looked a bit alike.
Slowly, I went down on my knees before him and took his hand, offering a warm smile.
“I am Pearl.”
“Pearl?” He repeated, eyes wide in awe. “A very sweet name. Gem.”
“I am Gem too,” I replied with a wide smile. “That’s my middle name.”
He chuckled happily before turning to Kade.
“She is beautiful.”
“Yes, she is,” His Majesty replied, clearly lost in me. Then he turned to Zephan with a sigh. “She is also stubborn. Very.”
“You are too,” Zephan countered, making me smile as he took my side. Then he turned to me and asked, “When will you come by again? Maybe I will make a meal. You should come on the full moon. I usually can walk on that day.”
At that, I raised a brow and asked,
“The full moon strengthens you instead of weakening you?”
“Yes.”
Slowly, I turned to Kade King, baffled. What sort of sorcery is that? Zephan’s case was reversed. He was supposed to be stable every other day and weak on the full moon.
I had so many questions, but I let them slide. None of them owed me any explanations, and I knew my curiosity wouldn’t serve me any good. So I just sat there, holding Zephan’s hand while the two men talked.
“How is the outside world?” Zephan asked.
“Still the same.”
“And how are you ruling?”
“Tedious. I barely have a moment to myself.”
“The crown is a heavy weight… as heavy as it is beautiful,” Zephan muttered before shrugging. “It is cursed too, Kade. Cursed with innocent bloodshed. You should be careful.”
“I always am.”
“How do you sleep these days?” Zephan asked further. This time, I turned to Kade, eager to hear the truth. Prince Xerox had once mentioned that His Majesty hadn’t had a full night’s sleep in years.
Kade simply shrugged as if it weren’t a big deal.
“Not a single good night’s sleep since I returned from the Moonspire Citadel.”
His words confirmed it and confused me. Moonspire Citadel. That was the same place I’d heard Royce mention. Wait… how did Royce know about His Majesty’s whereabouts?
Zephan’s soft sigh drew me back as he nodded.
“The weight of the crown?”
“More than the war within the family,” Kade muttered under his breath before shrugging again, his usual gesture to conceal pain. He was about to speak further when footsteps echoed from the left side of the hallway.
I hadn’t expected anyone else to be in the house, until a beautiful woman walked in. Her hair was gently tousled from sleep, and her large, round belly glowed with the marvel of pregnancy.
I watched her enter the living room and suddenly stop when she realized there were guests. Her sleepy eyes widened with surprise as she shifted her gaze between His Majesty and me, then finally landed on Riven.
“I… I didn’t know Your Majesty would be coming… with a guest.”
“It was a short notice, Lovemore. How are you?” His Majesty asked softly, rising to his feet and approaching her. But she didn’t answer the question. Instead, she glared at him, making Kade King swallow. "I know I have been a bad in-law.”
In-law?
“You are not leaving tonight,” She stated flatly, making me glance at Kade King in awe.
“Lovemore, come on…”
“You are sleeping over. No discussion. End of story and you too Riven.” She said it with finality before he could protest. Then she turned to me, a small smile forming on her lips. “You are…?”
“Pearl. Kade King’s woman,” Zephan answered before I could, making me suddenly stand up and shake my head in denial.
“Never. I am… I’m his secretary. Nothing more.”
At my words, Kade King turned to stare at me, disappointment evident in his eyes.
“Am I that bad as a man?”
“Your Majesty…” I protested, stunned, but he didn’t give me the audience to explain. The emotions on his face, however, made Lovemore smile, chuckling quietly to herself.
Then she turned to me with warmth.
“I’m Lovemore. Zephan’s wife. Nice to meet you. Now you two are stuck. You must visit when I put to bed. The doctor says it’s a month away. Twenty-nine days, actually. What do you think?”
She was asking me, and I studied her in silence before replying honestly.
“Sometimes the predictions are wrong. What if you get it early or late? I’d suggest you have a doctor on standby around that time or better still, be near a hospital.”
A silence followed my words, and I wondered if I had overstepped. That was until Lovemore turned to His Majesty, who nodded with a sigh. Then he reached out to gently caress her belly.
“We will provide a doctor before then. Nothing’s going to happen. You will be safe in here. Zephan too.”
“Zephan too,” Lovemore echoed. And for a fleeting moment, I saw the unique bond between them all. It was different. Heavy with secrets… thick with a darkness that couldn’t be voiced.
I turned gently to see Riven ahead, keeping silent watch as I swallowed hard.
A silent guard. A king of many secrets. And I… a woman with a fused heart of too much.
What an empire.
- Writer
