Lewis was shocked to the depth of his bones as he continued starring at Aefia's face which held only resentment in it. He could feel his mouth open and then shut almost instantly.
"Maybe the duchess was the one who wanted to kill you but why would I–"
"You have more reasons to want to kill me then anyone in this entire family! Have you not tried to end me twice before?! So stop acting symphathy for someone who isn't even your own sister to began with!" She shouted back, which seemed that the toxics had really taken over her health completely. The very next second, she was on her knees and coughing out crimson liquid onto her palm.
Lewis tried to step forward, however...
"If you even think of calling a nurse! I will end Henry's life! Weren't you all trying to use that kid to deceive my mind too?!" She pulled out a dagger from her sleeves and held it out towards him.
"Why would I even think about doing that?!"
"Why?! Was it not you the one who used Henry back at the kitchen to get my symphathy?!" She shouted while constantly struggling for breathe as she went on. "You were acting as the cold-hearted brother while you used a literal kid to control the rest of my mind!"
"..."
"I don't know what this Imperial family did to the Count's family... However... Thanks to that... I have finally found the answer to my suspicions." She glared at his direction while claming her voice down.
He wanted to interject yet again, but time seemed to keep betraying him at all cases.
"Aefia! You insolent brat!" The duchess has bursted in while slamming open the door. Something about the way his mother had spoken, had snapped a circuit into place inside his mind.
"So you didn't come." Aefia calmly replied while still reluctant about wiping her blood off her face. "I think it is time that you think about seeing him to a doctor. He probably has temporary amnesia of some sort." She answered the rest while pointing at Lewis, making him feel betrayed.
***
"What was that about? Want to talk?" The duchess had dragged him out before he could even burst out about her words.
"I don't think you of all people would want to hear it. No." Lewis sternly replied without cutting his gaze at her. He sped forward while heading towards his room.
"So then... What did she mean by you are amnesic?"
"How do you know she isn't lying about it to kick me out? And moreover... You shouldn't try to put your mind into sibling fights like this." He spoke without an ounce of warmth in his voice. That woman... Lady Elanor... Is that why she had been spending so much time with Aefia?
Nevermind... I need to investigate her intentions.
"And by the way... Leave me out for some time. I would like to be alone."
With that, he slammed shut his room door, leaving the duchess standing outside with no clue.
Aefia! You–
She wanted to curse her from the depths of her mind. You think you can just mend out mother and son bonding and then snap it off whenever you want! Just who do you think you are!
Well you certainly haven't been disciplined enough till now! I will have to teach you to never mess with someone like me!
She clenched her hands into a set of fist at her sides. Yes! I should punish you well enough to make you remember this the rest of your unluckily short life!
That child! He has never quite calling me mom in his life! And only because of your simple doing... You deserve a well worth punishment! That is your only worth in this family!
***
As her eyes scanned the interior, she felt a jolt of fear go out around her spine, her hands shoke with an intensity she couldn't overcome. The rope and walking stick was already there, and a wooden chair in the middle, but the person standing beside it while holding the rope, was her own personal handmaid.
She felt betrayal, but she felt like it had a major twist to it. Her eyes scanned around the room with frantic thoughts rushing through her mind.
Before she could step back, Brittany pulled her wrist towards the chair, while looking at her with a sorrowful eyes. "I am sorry... The duchess's order." The servant spoke while setting her down and tieing her hands behind the chair with the ropes, tightly enough to restrict even a single vibration in case she tried to escape. Her dark hair shadowed her eyes as she panicked and stared at the door, while gazing outside the small gap for any footsteps.
Anytime one passed by, she felt her mind panic and her pulse increase to a pace she couldn't keep up with. Sweat settled at her forehead as a hand seemed to twist the door knob, and pushed open the door to a small opening, revealing long dark purplish hair that swayed with every movements. "It seems that having authority... Always means you are going to end up in a bad situation."
This woman! What is she trying to do?! Aefia gritted her teeth while failing to keep her face blank. She had no sleep all night, and during the day, right before breakfast...
Her attempts at staying expressionless always ended up to twisting as soon as she thought of the servant standing behind her. Her fingers started trembling as her mind tried to slow down.
I have gone through this a lot of time... Why does it feel unfamiliar now?! Why does it feel like this is the bad luck?! Her eyes shut for a second as she folded her fingers into a fist and looked up again.
The duchess locked the door behind her while slowly walking towards Aefia. She folded her arms in front of her as a smile settled onto her face.
"Let's play a small game. I heard from Henry you like games where strict rules allows specific people with brilliant minds to win only. But of course... I may have made that up or just said it out of my opinion after watching over your small tasks around this palace. Sad to say... You have crossed multiple boundaries in many different possible ways the past few months that you have been here."
Aefia remained silent as she looked up with a tired gaze at the woman, which snapped every type of sleepiness from her eyes that instant. The woman stood on her knees while looking at her, causing her to droop her head down, with her eyes falling to a resting shape.
"I forgot to tell you a long time ago, that I was the one who placed that trial request into your bunch of documents to view. Even George had received one copy of that paper... But you don't know this... That the fact you had kept that document a secret isn't why I am here to talk to you."
She walked over to her desk to bring her walking stick over. "You were brilliant in trying to save Henry... But let's see... If the brothers you tried to protect using my commands, are going to save you today..." She raised it above her head and brought it down at her shoulders rapidly.
Despite the pain echoing through her bones, she stayed silent, just shutting her eyes to keep herself from actually breaking out in a cry. "You know what is the biggest mistake you have done so far..." The duchess spoke while holding it up again,
"Is the audacity to stop speaking to me. I was drunk back then... So I couldn't say anything." She spoke while slamming the sharp end of the stick to her left arm, which accidentally fell towards her ribs, almost causing a bone shattering force to erupt at the side of her lungs.
Her breathe came out jagged and painful as the next wave of oxygen had a difficult time filling her already weak lungs. Behind her, the maid stayed silent while watching, clearly helpless that she can't get anything to stop a mother beating a child, because she herself was her servant.
Aefia, tied to the chair, leaned forward while trying to gasp for air as the duchess flashed a wide smile at her suffering. "Do you think... That when I am practically feeding you and growing you at this point, so you can simply avoid a conversation with me and walk away? Do you remember that you live in my estate?"
Just leave me to die by myself woman! What is up with this family?! It's not like I never wished to die myself!
The woman looked down at her while picking up the stick again. "And then at the end of the day... Where you were supposed to be the one at my side of the bed, it was George. During my sickness, you were supposed to be the one who took care of my medical situations as the daughter."
She slammed it down again and again, until her muscles sored and her bones rattled to a breaking point, causing cuts at her arms as the sharp end tore through her coat's fabric and surfaced the bleeding wounds to the air.
There was no ounce of mercy at the way she was hitting her, unlike her parents back on Earth who would have thought about it at least once. The woman in front of her seemed to be in joy as she continued her punishments until a point was reached when her breathe was shallow and there were wounds at various locations on her arms and shoulders. Blood fell from her mouth and nose as she leaned forward at her chair, her back hunched as if she was going to fall forward as soon as the ropes were taken off her.
At her feet and surrounding her were blood drops sprayed against the tiles, staining it a deep, dark colours. Even when she was suffering those pains, her voice stayed in a muted position, only her deep breathes echoing against the quiet room. Her handmaid clenched her fist tightly as she watched the bloody situation with her own eyes. She wished to intervene, but it wasn't a good time to. A sense of betrayal rushed over her as she watched Aefia turn silent after a long moment.
My sacrifice for this family... It really was meaningless.
Aefia couldn't help crying, however, now wasn't the situation to do so.
The duchess lifted her chin to stare at her face, causing her to grit her teeth and narrow her eyes just to look at the woman's expressions. "You know... You should be happy that someone like you had a recognition at the Imperial family." Her mouth formed the words after a long time.
"But unhappy... That I still have a parent like you... Even if you are not my biological mother." Aefia spoke after a long time with a smirk surfacing at her blood-stained lips.
"I honestly... Don't even like this palace... It feels like a gilded cage to me now." Aefia spoke with her voice hoarse and tired. Her fingers stopped shaking as the woman let go of her chin and smacked the side of her head with the walking stick, applying enough force to sent her brain into a short moment of complete silence and just ringing.
A scream echoed against the room from the back of her throat as her breathing seemed to stop for almost too long and her eyes stayed widened. Her head turning to the side and staying like a statue until her eyes shut and thin lines of blood escaped the corners of her eyes.
Before long, blood spilled onto her shoulders before her head fell forward in an unconcious state and the dark red liquid fell onto her lap. A sudden jolt of horror went through her mind as the duchess dropped the stick from her hand immediately and locked two fingers at the back of her neck in panic.
Her other hand lifting the loose hair which was blood-stained at the end, then within the next few seconds, she let out a sigh of relief while stepping back. "Good thing she is still alive... I honestly need to stop now." Her fingers trembled as she moved slightly backwards and placed a hand against Aefia's pale face, while leaning her back against the chair. Within that short amount of time, a cold sweat broke out against her forehead as she took out a small dagger from inside her sleeves and started moving to the back of the chair.
The maid turned slightly agonized by the way the duchess had the audacity to turn the girl senseless, and then tried to act polite again by showing she was concerned for her health. The ropes finally snapped as her limp arms fell to her sides with a fluid motion as if she was barely alive.
Perpetual motion caused her arms to swing for a while, then settling at their resting position as the woman finally looked up at the servant beside her.
"Couldn't you have alert me that she had enough?" The duchess snapped while looking up at the servant with worried eyes as she stood up while holding onto the girl's shoulder to keep her stayed against the chair. Blood continued spilling onto the ground from the side of her head as she slept soundlessly against it. The woman's fingers pressed against the side of her head as she ordered the servant, one last time before diverting her eyes to stay locked at Aefia's dark hair.
No... What am I doing? Isn't she deserving of this punishment? So why do I suddenly feel symphathy.
"Go get the nurses. The least you can do now is keep her alive." She spoke with her regal voice. As Brittany ran towards the locked doors and slammed it shut before she moved towards the nurse's chamber at the last floor of the five storey palace.
As soon as the doors slammed shut, the woman placed a hand at Aefia's chin and lifted it up just enough for her face to look up at her. "I guess I don't have a reason to be honest." She spoke while bending forward to place a kiss onto her bloodstained forehead.
Brittany's breathe come in jagged forms as her master's last words hung inside her mind. To think... She had just spoken the hard truth. That girl is basically trapped in this place ever since she came here!
They are just placing pressure at her from every different directions... From every directions! Of course at her place anyone would see this palace as a gilded cage!
And which parent would hit a child like that?! She didn't give birth to her and doesn't have a right to rip her muscles apart until it rips her consciousness out of her!