The Angel of Death

Part - 36

Lady Elizabeth Whitson, the elder woman tried to hold on to Abheeliya's hand as she started step aside from her on Darian's order.

Once Abheeliya moved away, Elizabeth flexed her outstretched hand then looked down before she started spiraling her short grey hair around her fingers nervously.

All eyes were darting between her and Alayken. He was still on his knees but his shocked expression was clear that he knew this woman.

Darian cleared his throat loudly, making everyone glance at him, apart from Lady Elizabeth, who was lost in herself.

"It's clear that you know her, you can't deny it. Can you?" Darian asked Alayken, but he didn't reply and kept staring at the elder woman, as if he didn't hear anything.

"Who is she brother? What connection does she have with him?" Stefan asked looking at the woman.

Darian didn't reply immediately. He calmly stood up from his throne and came down the stairs towards the woman and stopped when she looked up at him before taking a step back and trying to catch Abheeliya's hand again.

Abheeliya moved away from her before Darian spoke "This woman is Lady Elizabeth Whitson, wife of Lord Miller Whitson. Our old gate keeper."

"You mean Miles? She is Miles's wife?" Stefan asked looking at the woman again astonishingly.

"Yes."

"But Miles died twenty years back in the fire at his house along with his wife and children."

"Yes" Darian agreed then added looking at Lady Elizabeth "But that was not the whole truth. Was it Alayken?"

Alayken looked at Darian then back at Elizabeth before lowing his eyes and slumping his shoulders in final defeat, but didn't answer.

"What's going on brother?"

"As our dear uncle finally decided to keep quiet, I have to tell everyone the truth."

"Go on then" Stefan said eagerly.

"As we all know now that the Duroider was the reason behind everything Alayken did. He killed all king Briard's illegitimate offsprings, murdered his own sister and got his father killed by our father. He did all this so he could be only one left in his family, thinking that would make him wielder of the Duroider as per the prophecy."

"What prophecy?" Stefan asked, siting up straighter.

"There was a prophecy that the chosen one who would wield the Duroider would be born in king Briard's family." Darian said and Tessa caught Stefan's hand tightly. She knew where it was going. If the so called prophecy was true, then that would mean she is Alayken's relative. That could mean her mother was right after all? Oh god, please not again. She silently prayed.

"How come I am not aware of any of it?" Stefan asked, even knowing what was going on in Tessa's mind.

"You don't know of it because Alayken never told about it to anyone. Even our father didn't know. I came to know a year ago when I accidentally met Miles's daughter Abheeliya." Darian said and looked at Abheeliya who stood silently aside, still quite away from Lady Elizabeth.

"Is she Miles daughter?"

"No."

"You are not making any sense dear" Janet spoke for the first time, proving that she was also very much interested to know why her husband was telling this tale. That too now, when everything seems to be ending quite fine.

Darian smiled at her then continued "Abheeliya is Lady Elizabeth's care taker."

"But you said..." Stefan started but Darian silenced him by speaking before he could finish.

"I know what I said. When I met her first, she was introduced to me as Lord Miller Whitson's daughter, but when I got over the shock of seeing Miles's family alive and somehow managed to find time to speek to her confidentially, she told me about herself and the truth about Whitson family's survival."

"And what is that truth?" Stefan asked.

"If you stop interrupting me then I would be able tell." Darian said calmly staring at his brother.

"I am sorry. Go ahead." Stefan said shaking his head and leaned back in his chair.

Tessa couldn't help but smile at his restlessness. Although she wasn't that interested in Alayken's life history, but Stefan clearly was. And by the way Darian was telling it so thoroughly, it seems important too. Even Janet looked interested, unlike herself.  All she wants right now is a little privacy so she could hold the Duroider again and ask it the questions, that has been troubling her ever since she seen Merlina's sketch in Stefan's chambers.

Darian's voice brought her back from her musing when he spoke again "I know that some of you are eager to retire to your chambers after such a bad and hectic day. I also know that some of you may not be interested in Alayken's history and must be thinking why I am trying to bore you with this talk of prophecy and all, but believe me, it concerns us all."

He looked around but no one interrupted him this time, so he started "What you all don't know is that Alayken kept his secret search on for informations about the Duroider, even after our father made him his royal advisor. But even then he couldn't find the Duroider. During that time he met Lord Whitson. He befriended him so he can get informations of whereabouts of the Duroider in Xaincia. However Lord Whitson proved to be truly loyal and didn't gave him any information. Then Alayken kidnapped his wife and daughter. He threatened Lord Whitson to destroy his family  if he won't tell him what he wanted to know.

But as me and Stefan know Miles, as we called him was truly loyal to Xaincia and was a friend of our father, he refused to tell him anything. In anger and frustration Alayken raped and abused Lady Elizabeth and killed their daughter in front of Miles, while he was helplessly tied down by Tiatan's spell. So he couldn't help but see his wife getting abused and raped cruelly several times before his young daughter being killed mercilessly.

When after all that Miles didn't break, Alayken's ordered Tiatan to set fire to their house and left. What he didn't know was that one of Miles's faithful servant was seeing everything. So when they left after setting fire to the house, he opened Miles. The servant safely brought lady Elizabeth out from the burning house but Miles couldn't make it.

"Then why he didn't came to our father with Lady Elizabeth?" Stefan asked, unable to keep quiet any more.

"Because he had recognized Alayken as the royal advisor and thought who would believe a mare servant over a high figure of court."

"Our father would have listened to him." Stefan said.

"Of course, but he didn't know that." Darian agreed.

"But he had Lady Elizabeth with him. Surely our father would have listened to her."

"True, but after what all she went through, she was in very bad condition. She lost everything in such a cruel way that she became quite unstable after that. Even now her condition is not improved." Darian said in a sad voice and heard his wife sniffling and wipe her wet eyes.

Stefan was silent for a long time, thinking how could he was so blind to not be able to see Alayken's true face. When he was foolishly indulging himself in drinks and women, Alayken was wrecking havoc on innocent people's lives.

Tessa squeezed his hand lightly, trying to convey that she could feel his sadness.

"How come Abheeliya knows so much about it? She is clearly not much bigger then sixteen herself and it all happened before she was born." Janet asked after composing herself quicker than everybody else.

"Because she is that servant's own daughter." Darian replied.