After her eting with her mother-in-law, Neriah returned back to her castle just in ti to see Aria running from prince Raknar with a very flushed face. The kind Neriah was certain she had not quite seen on the face of the woman before. While the prince in question just stood there with his eyes following the fleeing Aria and on his face was a smirk that very much resembled her husband’s.
His head turned and their eyes t. The smirk on his face twisted into an acknowledging smile as he walked toward her.
"It would seem Your Highness has taken an interest in my dear Aria." Neriah said as she too walked toward him since it was a path she could not avoid.
"She is quite an interesting woman." Raknar said and there it was, that tone that sounded so refined and proud, like an older version of little Barni, while his eyes still carried that mischievous look that could be found in the twins. How was he such a perfect blend of all his brothers?
"Aye, an interesting woman who apparently thinks Your Highness is out to take her life. From what I have heard and what I have seen you trouble her greatly. Might I ask why?" Neriah asked and Raknar looked at her with squinted eyes and twisted lips, as though he was playfully thinking of giving her a response or not.
He opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it again and a smile played upon his lips. "Did she say that? That I trouble her?" He asked.
"Greatly." Neriah gave an imdiate response.
"I see. Well, to answer your question of why, I must say you already said so yourself, she is a very interesting woman." He shrugged and walked past her with a smile and a small bow.
"Do not play with her, prince Raknar." Neriah suddenly said. She could not explain why the words ca out but they just did and he paused. "I do not know you well and I have not had the chance to know you well so I will not conclude that you have bad intentions towards Aria, but whatever it is, do not play with her or hurt her."
He turned and his gaze t hers once again, "Then let us get to know each other, princess." He said and he had no more playfulness in his eyes when he spoke the next words, "I really want to know you too. Are you exactly what I was inford about, or is there more to you."
"You speak as though you know all about ."
"I know what I need to know." He shrugged and turned to walk away again and this ti Neriah let him, but he paused and with his back still facing her, he said, "She has beautiful eyes." And with those words, he walked away and Neriah watched him walk away.
He was taller than Barak, but Barak was a bit bigger, she was suddenly thinking as she watched his back till it disappeared. She had no idea what his intention was toward Aria, but for so reason, she felt like it was not going to be all that bad. Maybe sothing pure and friendly like Barni and Riri.
Maybe...
...
"What? Wait, I do not understand what you are telling , My lady." Aria said with her brows creased and her hand on her forehead as she tried to process everything Neriah was telling her. "Are you really telling that you have been eting with master Lyle all this while?"
Neriah thought and thought hard before finally coming to the conclusion that it was ti she told Aria about Lyle. Aria was the only one who would be able and willing to help her.
"Aye. These are the letters he has sent to all this ti." Neriah said, placing the letters on the table in front of Aria. Aria looked at the letters with both confusion and unbelief.
"I cannot believe this. I do not even know what to say, My Lady. You even keep the letters in your bedchambers! What if the prince finds out about them? Did you stop to think for one minute that he could have actually found them? More importantly, why are you just telling this now?!" Aria had lost her humble tone. At the mont she sounded like a mother talking to her child who had done sothing beyond stupid.
"At first it was because we had plans to run away and I did not want to tell you about it until things were sure, I know this is just an excuse, but at that ti all I could think of was escaping, and I wanted it to be certain before I told you and Riri about it." Neriah tried her best to explain without shedding a single tear.
"I wasn’t thinking straight then. But then things happened with Barak and I no longer wish to leave and—"
"How long have you been eting and exchanging letters?" Aria interrupted her bunch of excuses. "My Lady, how long?"
Neriah bit her bottom lip, it almost seed like Aria’s anger was even more scarier than Barak’s. Neriah could not bring herself to speak up. "A month?" Aria asked. "Two months?" she asked again and when Neriah did not give a response, Aria shook her head in disbelief.
"My goodness My Lady, from the very beginning?!" Aria already scread before she rembered they were discussing a secret matter.
"The first letter he sent was before I left for Trago and then he kept in touch with when we were on the ship. He told he was on one of the Avelian escort ships. That was how he got into Trago—"
"No, no, no, no, My Lady, no! You should have inford about this sooner." Aria held her own head in her hands, trying to calm herself down if that was even possible.
"Now Lyle is in Trago, and you have been eting with him secretly, physically..." Aria stated as though she was still trying to process everything. "How many tis have you t with him?"
"A_About three tis." Neriah confessed with a trembling voice.
"My Lady, do you understand how implicating this is? Do you understand this? You are carrying the child of prince Barak while having a lover on the side! If anyone finds out about this, the paternity of your child could and would be questioned!" Aria said with a hand over her mouth as though her own words scared her.
"Aria, I did not do that with Lyle. I swear it. I have never laid with another man but Barak. The goddess bears witness." Neriah almost cried as she spoke. Indeed she had not really thought that far. She had not thought about it to that extent. What if she told Barak about their child and Barak doubted he was thee father?
"My Lady, I will believe you but who else will? Forgive but considering your reputation of lying, no one who hears about this would believe you! How could you be so reckless? How could you hide this from all this ti?"
Indeed, who would believe her? Moreso Barak who knew how good a liar she was, Barak who had been a subject to her lies more than once... would he believe a word she said? Would he believe her if she told him she was pregnant with his child? Would he have no doubt?
And if indeed he did not believe her, who would bla him? He was the only one who knew her lover was in Trago. But how was she to explain to him that she had never laid with the so-called lover before?
The farthest they had ever gone was kissing as bad as that sounded, that was the highest thing she had ever done with Lyle. She never let it go further. But who was she going to tell that flimsy story that would believe it?
Aria was right... She had been so foolish.
B_but it was not too late. She could begin to make it right now by first cutting Lyle off forever. Then she would find a way to make Barak believe the child was his. The goddess help her, but she would make him believe her.
And if he still did not believe her, she would bare his hate till her child was born and pray that the child looked like its father. Then he would believe her. Either way, she had to end things with Lyle.
"Aria," Aria said, walking up to Neriah and desperately taking both her hands in her own.
"I know what I did was wrong but I need your help now more than ever. I need you to send a ssage to Lyle for ."
"My Lady, do you think thus is going to be alright? Do you think it will work?"
"It has to. It is the only way... I have to end things with Lyle once and for all."
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