9 CHAPTER 8
She continued her window shopping, admiring the goods being sold and looking at the fashion that was trending lately. Everything was just the same, it was only time that was changing.
After a while she arrived at the inn that she would be staying while in the city. Her entourage had already arrived before her, so when she arrived the first thing, she did was to take a nice warm bath. She took her time to freshen up and changed into another black gown before heading downstairs to have her dinner.
During her travels she usually prefers to eat with her people, something she usually doesn’t do back at the mountain. Since she had booked the whole inn, there was only her family and no one else.
Her table was already set with so many dishes but how was she supposed to finish all that food by herself? She looked for Xavier and found him getting down the stairs. She summoned him with her hand and he came to her.
“Join me, I wouldn’t want to eat alone,” she said as she sat down.
Xavier smiled at her and she felt her heart flutter. Xavier sat opposite her and another plate was brought for him. He picked a few side dishes and placed them into her plate and passed the plate to her. She looked at him and smiled at him.
“Thank you,” she said and took her plate.
She took a bite and she was satisfied. Maybe it was because it was Xavier who had handpicked the food for her. It felt so good to be eating with him again after such a long time. She felt calm and excited around him.
She wasn’t supposed to feel that way and yet she couldn’t stop it. She still remembers the first time she saw him covered in blood as men chase him. She wondered who would be so cruel to do that to a child. What wrong did he do for them to desperately chase him so that they could kill him like that?
She was reminded of her parents so the only thing she did at that time was to kill the men after Xavier and prepared another body and make sure Xavier was completely forgotten by everyone.
If he was dead then no one would look for him. If he was dead then no one would think that he would come back one day. She had always believed in the concept for an eye for an eye.
She wanted him to grow up very strong so that he could avenge for himself. Now was the time for him to do that. She brought him to the capital so that he can meet what he feared the most, his past.
If he overcomes it then he would become someone great and make a name for himself. Xavier was going to be a huge surprise for a lot of people and it was going to be a very meaningful visit after all.
After her dinner she returned to her room where she got ready to sleep when Nora knocked and informed her that the Mayor wanted to talk to her. She had seen that old leech at supper but didn’t talk to him. Just because they travelled together didn’t mean she had the responsibility to keep the ambitious man entertained.
She didn’t have time to put on her outer gown so she simply sides out of the bed in her gold silky sleeping gown and had Nora put a net so that no one will see her.
“Send him in,” Valery said and Nora asked the man in.
The old man sat opposite her and he couldn’t see through the net that had been placed between them.
“I’m sorry to intrude on your sleep. I just wanted to see you before we enter the palace tomorrow,” he said.
“Get straight to the point, I need to sleep,” she said.
“I was wondering if you could pass some good words for me tomorrow.2
“That would be a mistake. I believe that you can do anything as long as you set your mind to it. Believe in yourself and you shall be rewarded for it. I know that you are a man that is full of many ideas, use those ideas to rope whoever you want and you can go far,” she advised.
“Thank you, I will consider that. I will take my leave,” he said standing up.
“Don’t show too much greedy, no one likes that,” she said.
“I will bear that in mind.”
The man left and she sighed. He was very ambitious, something she admired a lot. He knew how business was conducted and he would really make a good official and a bad one at the same time depending on whose hand he will accept. He will have to walk down the path he had chosen himself.
She crawled back into the bed and closed her eyes. She just hoped to see her parents; it’s been too long since she last saw them. She missed them and needed their guidance. She was in trouble and in pain, it would be good to have them by her side and comfort her.
***
The next morning when she woke up the bath had already been prepared so she took her time to clean herself. There were too much herbs she didn’t even understand, that were put into her water. She put too much trust into her maids and even if they wanted to kill her, her fate said otherwise.
She was cursed and nothing would kill her. It was really funny but that was her reality. Nora came with a jug full of cow’s milk and poured it in her tub. It was good for the skin; her mother had always told her that.
She played with the rose petals floating in the tub as the maids scrubbed her body.
“Mistress, the young Lord is here,” Nora said.
“Send him in,” she said.
“You are taking your bath…”
“It’s not like it is the first time, just send him in because I won’t be leaving the tub for a while,” she said.
Nora went to the door and asked Xavier in. he came in and Nora was behind him holding a huge box.
“Good morning Saintess,” he said looking down.
“What brings you here Xavier?” she asked.
“I thought I would wait until you finish but since I’m here, I wanted to give you a gift,” he said.
“Show it to me,” she said anticipating what he had done for her this time.
