THE QUEEN'S SERVANT

EPILOGUE

Rocky was in the garden with the harem girls and a few female servants. They were enjoying a nice lunch of grilled seasoned meat, bread, roasted vegetables, and fresh drinks while a musician was playing for them. One of the young harem girls placed a big piece of meat in the queen's plate. Rocky smiled fondly at her.

"Your majesty should eat more." The young girl said. "For the baby."

Rocky laid a hand over her tiny bump. Being pregnant made her lose her appetite but with a smile, she still ate the piece of meat presented to her. Everyone in the kingdom was excited to see another one of king Hassan and queen Rocky's child so she had to make sure to deliver a healthy baby.

It sometimes felt like Raja never existed. With the passing years, Rocky managed to earn back the love of Chadians. She led various campaigns in order to improve their lives and make the kingdom even more prosperous. She also made herself available, going on many trips across Chad to meet the citizens and listen to their needs. They loved that, to be able to talk directly to their queen and even hold her hand at times. Rocky finally proved to be worthy of the crown.

Her husband also became an even better leader with her. She helped him rule, being a part of every decision-making process. The objective was to make King Hassan more approachable as well and get rid of his reputation that tagged him as cruel. Now, everyone knew that King Hassan of the Chad kingdom was not only strong but righteous and merciful. Many were migrating away from their kingdom to find prosperity in Chad.

And because the queen herself was a foreigner, Chadians learned to accept others as well. They now knew that not all outsiders wanted to harm them and that it was nice to meet people from different cultures.

Rocky really appreciated how things turned out and now felt that she really belonged where she was.

A grin took over her face as she saw the king walking towards them, hands folded behind his back. He just finished an important meeting, preparing to go to the Sudanese regions and sign a peace treaty with them after years of conflicts.

"Everything alright, your majesty?" The queen asked him once he sat next to her, on his designated chair.

"Yes. We will be ready to leave by next week. You still want to come, right?"

"Of course. I think it will give a very positive and less threatening message if I go with you. We will also prepare lots of gifts. They will love us!"

The king laughed and nodded.

"I have no doubts about that."

He took the cocktail that one of the harem girls handed him. He barely drank from it that they heard two children laughing. A boy and a girl. Rocky and Hassan turned around to see their children running towards them. Kasimir was now seven years old and his younger sister Zahra, only five. She struggled to run after her brother with her tiny legs and long skirt.

King Hassan smiled fondly at them but Rocky gradually lost her smile as she noticed that Kasimir was holding something in his arms. Something that looked like a very familiar painting.

"Papa, papa, papa!"

The boy reached his parents, out of breath while his sister was still a few steps away. He just looked like Hassan, with his warm and sparkling brown eyes.

"Yes, son?" The king asked.

"Who is Raja?"

Everyone became silent. Though people never spoke about Raja again, it didn't mean that they completely forgot about him. Kasimir and his sister Zahra were worried to see the horrified faces of their parents.

"Where in the world did you hear that name from?" King Hassan asked, his voice sounding scary.

Zahra whimpered and held onto her brother's hand.

"We...I..." The boy struggled to speak. "He...We found this painting in a room upstairs...His name is written on it, see?"

The painting in question was one of king Hassan and right under it, Raja had signed his name. The king took it in his hand, clearly confused. He looked at his wife who had tears brimming her eyes. She remembered vividly the day Raja painted that image of the king, just like she remembered the day he died.

King Hassan cleared his throat. He didn't ask any questions to the queen, knowing she wasn't ready to speak yet. Instead, he placed a hand over his son's head.

"Raja was just someone that used to live in the palace a long time ago, son."

"Where is he now?" Kasimir asked curiously.

"Oh. He went far, far away."

The boy nodded and his sister copied.

"Can we put picture in my room, please?" She asked. "Papa look nice."

"You know what, let's make another painting for your room, an even nicer one with mama on it too. Wouldn't that be great?"

The little girl's eyes widened and she nodded excitedly.

"Go see with your brother where you would like to hang it first, okay?"

The two kids agreed and left, running after each other and laughing out loud. King Hassan held his wife's hand once the children were gone.

"We will burn it." He said to her. "He is not back, it's just a meaningless thing he left behind."

He said that because he knew Rocky still had nightmares where Raja came back to life just to haunt them. The queen wiped her tears away, her eyes unable to look away from the painting.

"It's weird though...Why would he draw me?" The king asked with a frown. "Any idea?"

The queen shook her head.

"Raja was insane." She said. "Did many absurd things..."

"That's right. Whatever, I will ask servants to check if he didn't leave anything else in the palace. We will burn it all so don't worry about the kids stumbling upon his belongings again."

Rocky nodded but she knew deep down that nothing could make her forget Raja. She thought about him every day and the guilt never left no matter how many times she tried to convince herself that he deserved to die. The truth was that Raja became a monster because of her.

That was the price she had to pay for loving him and betraying her husband. She had to live with the ghost of the boy she killed, and fear that her children would grow up and find out who Raja truly was and the relationship he had with their mother.

Raja was surely dead but he hadn't left. He'd forever live in Rocky's memories and in a few places in the palace, like the spot where his body fell from the balcony and where grass could not grow anymore due to how much of his blood had been soaked by the earth. And Raja was probably very happy to know that, wherever he was.

To know that he'd never leave the mind of the woman he loved. 

THE END

Thank you to everyone who read this story from beginning to end and I hope y'all enjoyed it.

 Also, don't hesitate to share your opinion with me, I am always willing to hear what people think of my stories! Xoxo

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