III. The Impact of Her

~ Fourteen ~

As they slowly stepped away from the scene of commotion, my world stopped.

My heart slowed down - stopped, even - as I saw the corpse on the ground. James and Mother called out my name from behind. But the noise around me was muffled as my ears rang. All I could hear was the slow beating of my heart and my rasped breath.

Finally, I fell to my knees. "NO!!!" I screamed until my lungs gave in.

Lady was lifeless on the ground. Her eyes and mouth hung open as she was laid on her side. I reached out to her body as my tears fell. As soon as my hand landed on her body, it confirmed my fear.

She was truly dead.

"Lady..." I sobbed as I crawled closer to her. I carried her head in my arms and put it near to my heart. "No, please..."

James sat beside me and put his hands on my shoulders. In an effort to console me, he lightly squeezed my shoulders.

"Lady, please, don't," I whispered to her ear, helplessly hoping that she would reawaken with my voice. A hand then rubbed my back as I pleaded with my champion, "I need you, Lady. You know I need you."

The excruciating pain was a knife that pierced straight into my heart, being twisted repeatedly. There was no sign of it ending. No words were able to come out of my mouth. I wept and held Lady tighter. Slowly, our memories played in my mind, which made everything even harder.

The very first time we met. James gave her to me as a gift for my birthday. That same day, one of my tutors taught me how to ride a horse properly.

Lady was the horse I used when I was finally able to go on a trot on my own. I fell off of her due to my negligence. But it was still something I could never forget.

Lady was the horse that helped me win a race against Benjamin.

There were just so many memories of us together. And all of that came to an abrupt end... I didn't know what to do.

"I am very sorry, son. I really am," James said as his head hung low. He continued, "This is all my fault. The investigation isn't fast enough to save her."

Though Lady remained in my arms, my tears were now controllable.

Mother and Elizabeth sat around me as they comforted me.

I closed my eyes as I hugged Lady tighter. But as I opened them, I noticed that there were no blood spilled anywhere near Lady's body.

I turned to James and said, "She must have been poisoned again. And this time, the poison was fatal."

James looked around the crime scene as he searched for clues within the scattered hay. Suddenly, he reached out for what seemed to be a cork. He stood up as he examined the evidence. "Had any one of you been here last night? Or earlier this morning?" he questioned them as he turned to the cooks.

"No, Your Majesty," they muttered.

"Then who would do this?" James' voice changed from calm to furious. He continued, "Someone clearly poisoned my son's champion and is foolish enough to leave evidence."

"Your Majesty," one of the cooks stepped forward, "We never stepped foot into the stables last night. After the two stablemen took care of the horses, we remained inside."

"Then, who would do this to Lady," he repeated as he pointed to Lady. "Who would even dare to harm such an innocent creature?"

James' anger was evident. Everyone felt it. Beneath his calm yet stern voice, he wasn't happy with what he saw.

But as his anger grew, I still didn't know what to feel. I didn't know if I could forgive the culprit for Lady's untimely demise. Her death was too much for me. It was too overwhelming to the degree that I felt nothing but numbness.