The missing knife

Melina kept serving the dishes around the different tables to the high-class people in the room with her head low not wanting to meet anyone's gaze. But as it always was, there was trouble following her.

"Give me the cutlery" ordered a deep voice that almost startled her, causing her to look up and stare at the person who ordered her. It was no other than the young man who had made an abject statement about female servants earlier.

She looked around to notice that this was Lord Nicholas' table as it had only his family there. All the chieftains especially had their table while the rest of the guests used random arrangements.

"What are you waiting for?!!" she heard the man bust out in annoyance and without wasting time, she quickly moved to where he was seated and dropped the cutlery that she picked from the cart. Unfortunately, before she could drop it along with the napkin, the heavy metal-plated spoon fell and hit the toe of Lady Jordyn's feet, who screamed as if she had just been put through a burning furnace. She stood up and slapped Melina on the side of her cheek where she had injured her head a few weeks ago.

"What type of maids are being trained in this palace?! Has it suddenly just lost its spark because King Lucas is dead?! Where is Carlos?!" she turned her head, searching for the ugly-looking woman who couldn't even do a good job.

"Maybe it was best if this policy of changing maids after every King's reign was abolished because it seemed these new ones know absolutely nothing." another lady who heard the uproar on the other table added her mouth.

"They don't get beaten enough. How will they train others if they lack simple etiquette themselves?" a man from Lord Zuko's table said, glaring at Melina who looked confused. Before she knew it, a whip came her way from behind and its voice yelled "Go on your knees when you are being spoken to!"

Ms Carlos would be lying if she didn't admit that she felt ashamed. Despite her shouting and lectures for all these weeks, these novices kept disgracing her with their slob behaviour and now, it was this shallow-minded girl that provoked her the most that was misbehaving.

"So they do not know to kneel and bow their heads in apology when they annoy an elite? If you didn't teach them that, then what did you do, Carlos?" the people in the room kept babbling amongst themselves.

"I think you should be punished, Carlos. U are not fit for this responsibility" Sir Andre suggested and the crowd buttressed.

"No sir, please." Now, it was Carlos on the floor, pleading as she knew what type of punishment they were referring to.

"I do my best to train them but they barely listen to my instructions, I assure you it's not my fault!" she begged. Melina who was shivering and scared at that moment spun to look at Ms Carlos.

Wasn't this the same woman who usually acted with such authority that they dared not even defy her? She knew she was in a hot seat right now but seeing Ms Carlos like this excited her. If not that she didn't have a say, she would have supported that the lousy woman be punished too! A taste of her own medicine was needed.

"Enough of all these!" came a long-awaited voice.

Jordyn had expected her father to voice something out but surprisingly, he had just kept quiet.

"This is a celebration of life and you all cannot have a bit of respect for the dead?" Leon said in a vexed tone, turning his sight to the other end where his father's throne was with a calabash seated on it and the rest followed his line of sight.

"If you don't have some respect for an average dead person, you could at least take it to regard that it is my father, the King's burial we are talking about here?" he said before glaring at Jordyn, who had started the commotion. Jordyn noticed this and said "It wasn't my fault! It was this useless maid who hit my toe with the cutlery." she said and stomped on Melina's hand that she saw in view which only made her wince.

Prince Leon turned to stare at the two servants whose heads were now bowed and their bodies trembling. Even the other female servants had bowed their heads in fear of what would happen if their head maid was punished.

"You can both rise" Leon signalled the two with his eyes rolled as he was not interested in the situation and had more pressing thoughts. They both rose and he was about to make a statement before his eyes caught the redhead maid and his eyes lingered a little longer at her before he turned to look at the head maid.

Seems like the maid had a good relationship with danger as she was never out of it.

"This is your last warning, Carlos. Such insolence should not happen again or you will be to blame for it.

"Thank you, my prince!" she thanked and Melina did the same thing before picking up the cutlery that fell and dismissing herself.

Just as the commotion had been calmed, Lady Alice stepped into the chamber. She had gone to the washroom to clean every trace of what Sir Julian had done so no one asked her any questions before coming to sit on the seat reserved for the royal family.

Though she smiled at everyone and seemed normal, she could not hide from her mother that she was not okay as she picked on it immediately.

"Alice, what happened to your face?" Queen Sonia uttered in worry as she stared at her daughter's lip, something she hadn't noticed earlier. This drew the attention of the people around as they gaped closely at Alice's lip which seemed a bit torn.

Alice paled at them as she thought she had hidden it well. She glanced in the other direction where Sir Julian was fixated and he gave her a small cunning smile before she looked back at her mother.

"I had a little accident, Mother. It's nothing to worry about." she tried to cover up. She wasn't scared of Julian but didn't want to be the centre of attention and hurt anyone as she knew what would happen if she told the truth.

"And part of your hair is torn" Amie had added when she notices her sister's hair wasn't the normal way it used to be.

This attracted Prince Leon's attention as well as the rest as they waited for her to explain that too when he saw Matthew walk into the room with urgency, scanning the entire crowd before their eyes met. He gave him a quick signal and Leon swiftly stood up from his chair, excusing himself and drawing everyone's attention away from Alice to look at Matthew who had faint blood stains on his right hand like he had gone in combat with someone.

Leon stood up with enthusiasm his eyes brightening when he got closer to Matthew only for Matthew to shake his head slowly, signalling to him that things were not okay.

He quickened his pace and Matthew opened the door before slamming it after they both got out.

"I hope it's good news"

"It's nothing like it." he was straightforward, not wanting to give him any ounce of hope as this was a serious matter he needed to prepare to face reality.

"Speak"

"The* knife... it's missing I don't know how," he confessed and Leon stopped in his tracks to properly hear him.

"How is that possible?"

"I have no idea and the guards swear they protected the dungeon with their lives." he paused seeing his friend had started flaring up.

"With their lives? So their lives still weren't enough to protect something that simple?!" he yelled and continued walking.

"I doubt they would do something like that. They've been loyal for years and some were even here since you were born, Leon like me."

"Take me there," Leon said.

Matthew picked up the lantern he used earlier when they got to the servant's quarters and headed deeper. The dungeon guards were now standing there with guilt in their eyes, scared at what Leon would do as they saw him approach.

"My Prince-"

"Open the bars" he ordered not sparing a minute to hear their explanations.

One of them rushed and did as he was told before the two stepped inside. Leon silently wished this was one of Matthew's jokes but knew that they were certain things he never joked about.

The gate to the room where his father's body lay was left unlocked and he pulled it further open.

He looked around and confirmed his suspicions...the knife had been taken out. But how come? He wondered.

"The person must be either desperate or is into some sort of voodoo magic." as there was no other explanation for this, Matthew reasoned.

Leon was not satisfied with what he was seeing and looked around like Matthew had done.

"I already checked everywhere, you'll find nothing," he told him.

Leon collected the lantern from his friend, pulled out a kerchief in his pocket and began to examine his father's body himself. He pointed the lantern directly at the wounded area in his father's neck, where he was stabbed and noticed that the person had cleaned the blood stains around the wound.

"Did anyone else aside from you and I know about the plan?" he asked Matthew, who quickly denied it as he would not dare reveal something like that.

"Not that I can think of. Only the guards who claimed they saw nothing."

"Lock the gates and search the entire Kingdom for the knife. Do not leave any place unsearched. Only when we are sure there are no traces will anyone be let out of the palace for any reason." he commanded.

"Yes, your highness!" he obeyed and quickly left the dungeon to give the guards orders.

After a while of inspecting his father's body, Leon finally climbed the stairs and exited the dungeon.

As he was about to leave, he suddenly halted and turned to the guard who had been present the previous day.

"Do you need anything, Your Highness?" he asked still dreading if the Prince thought he had betrayed him and wanted to punish him.

"Were you present last night when Matthew and I were here?" he questioned the guard, remembering that a can fell from a servant's room that night that alerted him.

The guard bobbed his head up and down, ready to take responsibility for his negligence.

"You said it was a servant's quarter the can fell from?" he inquired and as if realization dawned on the guard, he raised his head to look at the direction where the can fell the previous night and said "Yes, your highness! I'm fully aware and it was from a maid's room!" he replied and Leon turned to his sight of direction.

"A maid..." Could that mean someone had spied on and heard their discussion?

"Yes. It belongs to three young novice maids."

"Arrest the three of them for questioning and search their rooms thoroughly. Leave no traces" he said before storming out of the place and the guard hastening bowed his head, ready for action.

It had hurt him that someone had tried to play on his intelligence despite having served here his whole life and he would make sure they paid for it, he thought as he looked at the window to Melina's room.