Reign of Betrayal in the Palace

"Someone help me!" Prince Jason heard the unmistakable distress call as he drove along the not-so-busy street. He thought of driving on as highway robbers were known to be using such decoys to pounce on unsuspecting motorists, but changed his mind as the piercing plea rent the air again. He stepped on the brakes and swerved the car onto the roadside and parked. It was seven thirty in the evening and the visibility was getting poor as darkness crept in. He wished he had brought his pistol along as he searched for some weapon on the backseat. He found a chain that he used to practise his martial arts lessons. Tall, muscular and aristocratic in stature, at twenty five he cut such an imposing figure that could intimidate most street urchins. With confidence, he bounced towards the source of the screams. He was infuriated on seeing three men molesting a young lady of about early twenties. One of them held her arms behind her back while another one was tugging on her briefs. The third one had already pulled down his trousers in anticipation of whatever he wanted with the girl. The girl kept on kicking and struggling in futility as the three jeered at her. "Let go the girl!" Prince Jason bellowed, unable to hide his displeasure. Respect for women was something that had been instilled in him since he was a toddler. It so riled him whenever he saw a man mistreating a woman, regardless of her stature in society or background, or whatever. "No one would get hurt if you let go her," he warned as the men turned glaringly towards him. "My a*se! And who do you think you are bursting into other people's business?" Retorted the man without the trousers, advancing. "Let's teach this mother-f*cker a lesson!" Added another one, taking out his dagger while the third one continued holding the girl. "This is your last chance!" Jason said, swinging the chain ominously. "No one needs to get hurt. Just let the young lady go." "C'mon, smartass!" Challenged one of the two men, encircling Jason. "Show us what you have got!" He added, bending down and suddenly lunging at him. Jason swung the chain downwards at almost the same time, squarely getting the man on the back. He howled like a maniac as the shearing pain tore through his body. The other man took advantage of this distraction and charged at him from behind. A heavyweight punch connected with Jason's muscled shoulder blade, almost deflating him. He staggered forward a few paces before bringing his chain hard on the man. Seeing his two companions on the ground writhing in pain, the man holding the girl become frightened. The girl bit one of the arms holding her and managed to set herself free. She ran towards Jason before the man could recover from the shock and pain. He scampered away instead of chasing after her. Meanwhile, the other two men got up from the ground and started backing away as Jason refocused on them. "What kind of dunderheads are you preying on an innocent girl?" He inquired of them. "How would you feel if she was your sister, or daughter? Do you . . .?" He halted mid sentence as a dagger whizzed towards him and implanted itself on his chest. The impact and the pricking pain caused him to fall backwards onto the ground as blood spurted out in jerks. The men disappeared into the forest. "Oh my God!" The girl exclaimed, rushing to where Jason lay prostrate. "Hold on, please!" She added as she tore her headscarf to bandage the gushing wound. "Who are you, and what association do you have with these vagabonds?" Jason asked her as he pulled out the dagger. "Thanks for coming to my rescue," she responded, fervently trying to bandage the wound. "Name is Victoria, Vicky to my friends. I swear I don't know any of them. I just ran into them!" More blood gushed out through the wound and he coughed out a bloody sputum, almost choking. He finally passed out and lay still. "Holy virgin Mary! What now! C'mon, please don't die on me!" She pleaded, excess adrenaline sending fear through her body. She heard a vehicle approaching and rushed to the road to try and find some help. With his weight, she already knew that it would be a Herculean task for her to get him to his vehicle. "Help, please!" She implored, waving her bloody hands as the vehicle approached. She almost stepped in front of it as the driver seemed like driving past her. The car came to an abrupt stop a few feet away from her. Behind the wheel was a middle-aged man. He looked surprised on seeing the blood on her hands. Nevertheless, he rolled down the screen and looked at her in askance. It took a lot of convincing for the driver to come out of his car and assist in carrying the now comatose Jason into his car. "Can I drive?" The man asked Victoria on seeing her hesitancy as she fumbled with the ignition of the limousine. "Thank you. Let me do it!" She responded, managing to start the car. She engaged the gear and took off towards the only hospital she knew. * * * * * The royal family sat on the dinner table, ready to enjoy their dinner. King Jades and Queen Liz sat on one side while Prince Ben and Princess June occupied the opposite side. Sharon Barry, Queen Liz's niece, sat next to Ben at the corner of the table. The nuclear family would have been complete were it not for Prince Jason's screaming absence. "Has any of you heard from Jason?" Queen Liz asked. "It is two hours since he last called and said that he would be in time for dinner," she observed. "Don't tell me that you are suggesting that we wait untill he arrives to enjoy our meal!" Prince Ben frowned. "For God's sake, he is an adult and can find his way home. Stop pampering him as if the rest of us were insignificant!" It riled him that Jason seemed to be his parents' favourite. "Peter! How often have I warned you against such foul language?" King Jades interjected. "Have you been drinking again?" "Daddy, I don't need to be drunk to notice the difference in the manner in which you treat Jason and us, particularly me!" He said, slurry, proof that he was a little tipsy. "Who told you to be my mouthpiece?" Princess June intervened. "I have no complaints!" "Respect is earned, not forced. I'm afraid to say that you have done so little towards earning it!" His father retorted, sounding dejected. "Besides, no one disrespects you as much as you do yourself," Queen Liz opined. "How can you be respected if all you do is drinking and senseless roaming? At your age, you should be thinking of settling down with a beautiful family." Her cell phone started ringing before he could respond. She looked at the screen and realized that the call was from Jason. "Finally, he is calling!" She commented as she clicked on the receiver icon. "Is this Jason's mother?" A feminine voice asked from the other end. "Sure, you are right," Queen Liz answered. "This is his phone, right?" "You are right. I'm Victoria and I searched through his contact list and 'Mum' popped up. He has been involved in some fight and I'm calling from the Community Hospital. He is in bad shape and in need of immediate surgery. The doctor says that consent is required from the next of kin," the caller said in a trembling voice. "What! Dear God, have mercy on us," Queen Liz prayed, almost losing hold of the phone. Her husband took it from her. "You said you are at the Community Hospital?" He asked. "Yes. And the doctor has just informed me that he is in need of a blood transfusion. Unfortunately, his AB+ blood group isn't available." "Don't worry, we will be there in a few. Thank you for informing us." "Ask her about Margret, his fiancee. When he called me he was with her and was planning on bringing her for dinner. What happened to her?" Queen Liz wondered. "Sorry, I already disconnected. Why don't you call her?" King Jades said, sending for his chauffeur. All except Prince Ben started for the hospital. * * * * * "How is he, doctor? May I see him?" Victoria asked for the umpteenth time since Jason had been admitted, fear and remorse evident in her voice. Fear that he might succumb to the wound and she fell into remonstrating with herself for being responsible. If only she had listened to her mother about going to the chemist so late! But she could not just sit and watch as she writhed in pain after her sedatives were over. "Calm down, there's no need to beat yourself," the doctor consoled her. "You aren't the one who perpetrated the act. Besides, what is important is that you have communicated with his parents. Let's hope they will be here in time." A few minutes later, the receptionist ushered in King Jades and his entourage. "Good evening, doctor," he started. "I have been informed that my son is admitted here after some fight. Are you the lady we talked with on phone?" He added, turning to Victoria. "Ye, yes, your Majesty," Victoria stammered, greatly taken aback. She could not believe that the good man fighting for his life because of her foolhardiness was a whole prince. She had known nothing much about the royal family untill recently when her mother insisted that they come back to what used to be their home. She did not even know why her mother had left in the first place. "Good evening, your Majesty," the doctor responded. "You are right, but we are sorry we didn't know that he is your son. His face was covered in blood making it hard to identify him. If you may follow me," he added, leading the way to where Jason was being prepared for surgery. "He is not in good shape and immediate surgery is required. Though we have managed to stop external bleeding, we have every reason to believe that there's some internal haemorrhage." "What are you waiting for?" Queen Liz posed, unable to believe that the comatose man laying on bed was his dear Jason. "You should have performed the surgery like yesterday!" "It is legally procedural to have the consent of the next of kin of the patient, your Majesty. Besides, our blood bank doesn't have his blood group. We were hoping that someone from the family could be possessed of the same." "Did you say that he is AB+?" King Jades asked for confirmation. The doctor nodded. "No luck here. I'm A+ and my wife is B+," he stated, turning towards Princess June, Sharon and, Margaret, Jason's fiancee who had decided to come after the Queen had informed her. "I'm B+," said June. "No luck here either, because I'm O-," Margaret said. "And Ben is A+. Tell me, doctor, have you inquired from other hospitals? I suggest that you do while I send word to the palace to see if anyone has that group." "We have already sent inquiries, but I'm afraid none has turned out positive. Besides, time is of essence." "How much blood is required?" Victoria posed. "I mean, I'm AB+ and I can donate if I can be in time to go and attend to my sick mother." "Then what are you waiting for? If my understanding serves me right, you are the one who put him in this situation!'' Queen Liz quipped, sneeringly. "Stop harassing the poor girl, will you?" King Jades intervened. "Come here, young lady. Do it if you can, and you have my word that your mother's sickness would be taken care of." "With pleasure, your Majesty. My mother would really appreciate it. She once told me that she used to work in the palace as a young maid before she left about twenty four years ago." "Really? Why did she leave? Sorry, go ahead with the donation and you will tell us more about your mother later, ok?"