24 Chapter 32 Somewhere wonderfully free and fun

( RHIO POV's )

Somebody knocked at my car window.

"Sir…" Deo began. I threw him his car keys and instantly got off the vehicle.

Somebody else escorted me to the other Limo that waited beside Elthon's car. The whole ride was silent and tensed. The protective guns that jutted from my men's holsters made me feel uncomfortable. Their monotone clothing and expressionless faces made me feel like some action movie star whose life was too important to be compromised.

Security officers stood uptight on parallel lines when we got through the gate of the mansion. I passed through in disregard of their presence and went directly to my somber room. I settled on the mahogany settee and exhaled deeply.

Sya quickly checked on me and told me to show up downstairs where the count of guests had gradually increased. I took a quick shower and wore a mourning suit I was expected to wear.

Everything went like a scripted play; the maids bowed their heads at my presence and the majority of people in black uttered their condolences. Then repeat.

I was like Moses on the isle between divided waves of black. But unlike Moses, I wasn't expecting salvation or hope as I traversed the other side. I was expecting to meet my nightmare, the finely crafted Poudretteite coffin where my father's corpse lay.

The people quietly watched me as I gazed at him. He looked more peaceful than he had been on the hospital.

On several occasion, a camera would flash and remind me I was indeed an actor running a script for the public to see. I held back my tears.

Niel tapped on my shoulder to express a wordless sympathy. I nodded in appreciation and whispered something. "Please take the media out. I want this wake to be kept private. Some people out there were just snickering at my loss and the others…" I paused "I don't need their sympathy."

He nodded in understanding then left to settle my request.

I sat beside the guests for a while and passively narrated the answers to their repetitive questions. Then I retreated to the comfort of my room, sunk on the soft comforter, and whispered a little wish in the air.

I was a nobility trapped inside the confines of a palanquin, never to touch the ground as I was carried by servants through the same boring pathway to a lonely castle. I wished my whole life would change a different direction.

Somewhere wonderfully free and fun…