Bars of Blood

Chapter 6: Hopeful Funeral

The funeral dress was itchy.

The lace grated against my skin, turning it red in seconds. The cotton cloth didn't exactly do that well in terms of comfort, either, since the pieces of lint on the cotton felt like boiling rocks pounding against my sweat, wiping away the make-up that Euryale had applied.

It didn't help that I was wearing my horrible socks, too.

Oh, well. I could change out of this after the funeral.

I stepped into the limo, caressing the smooth leather underneath my fingers as I dropped into my seat. Adonis sat beside me, while Ariadne and Cecilia seated across from us.

I stared at my siblings as the limo started up, the slight rumble of the engine propelling the limo forward. They were silent, looking out the windows.

I coughed.

No response.

I nudged the prince that sat beside me. Adonis looked at me with a weird face, then turned back to the window.

I waited another second before coughing once more. "So..."

No reply.

"How are you?"

Cecilia shrugged, Ariadne ignored me, and Adonis groaned.

"Shut up, please."

"That's no way to talk to your queen!" I teased.

"That's no way to talk to your brother," Adonis said, turning away with a huff.

"Look, I know you never really knew mom because you-know-what, but we loved her, okay? And sometimes when you're grieving, you don't want to talk." Cecilia patted the side of her seat, leaning back and yawning.

"You seemed so talkative yesterday."

"Yeah, there's something called the five stages of grief? Denial is a thing, you know."

I tried to hide my confusion. "Uh... right."

"Where's Ivan?" Adonis asked. He sounded hoarse, as if he were being forced to speak.

Ariadne let out a small sob and Cecilia shushed her, her usually fierce eyes softening. She reached over to hug her, and Ariadne sniffed. And then, like a broken dam, burst, tears falling out as she buried her head in Cecilia's lap, letting out a wail.

Cecilia sighed, patting Ariadne's perfect curls. "I don't know; he must be running late."

"He's never late. He probably got an emergency call or something and had to run without telling us."

"Mom, I love you-"

"Ari! Get yourself together!" Cecilia gave Ariadne a hard slap across the face as she got up. Ariadne grimaced, rubbing her face where Cecilia had slapped her. "The funeral hasn't even started yet, you sensitive idiot!"

"I-I'm sorry-" Ariadne sniffed, then glared at me. "It's all her fault."

"What?!" My dress still scraped my collarbone. "What did I do?"

Ariadne didn't answer, turning back to the window, wiping away her tears.

"Come on, Ari. Give Helen a chance." Cecilia's brown eyes looked hesitantly at me. I looked at my feet.

"She killed a sister I never got the chance to meet, and she probably killed mom! Next thing you know, she's killed Ivan and then you and then me and then-" Ariadne sobbed again, her voice cracking. "She just gets away with it!"

"I know, but you can't do anything about it. Just suck it up and understand that she's in power here."

Ariadne nodded, looking up at me again. She sighed, then forced a cautious smile, holding out a wet hand.