Blood Ties

Chapter 28

The choice between sanity and pain seemed a very simple one once Grace had already chosen. She knew the moment the voices had begun to curb that she was slipping into insanity once again, but she didn't want to take her medications. After what the princess of Ignis had said, the voices would be too much to bear.

But without her medications, without her coherency, she would never be able to convince Star that what she did was for the good of everyone. Her eyes glistened as she stared down at the steaming cup of tea and ingenia, her hands trembling so that she could hardly keep a hold on it.

Bringing the cup to her lips, she hesitated, the sweet taste of the tea doing little to ease the bitterness of the medicine. Placing the cup onto the desk in front of her, she added another few teaspoons of honey, trying to trick herself into thinking that there was no medicine. It was merely tea.

She recalled a time when she only had to drink the medication once a day, when there were no voices in her mind, and when she was happy. A happy princess with a family who loved her and a throne that was to be hers someday. But the day the war ended was the day she began to need more doses of ingenia. The doctors and healers thought something had triggered her, but they knew nothing.

Because the voices only began to scream after her parents were murdered.

These thoughts swirled in her head without mercy until she, with a cry of emotion, threw the cup against the wall and took satisfaction in the shattering. She couldn't stand the voices tonight. Perhaps tomorrow, she would have a change of heart, but tonight, tonight...tonight she would rest easily.

Tonight, she would sleep, free from guilt.

                                                                                      *****

The layout of the Aquan castle was confusing, and Marco's muddled mind could make neither heads nor tails of it. He blinked at the clear drawing of the hallways in an attempt to comprehend it. Running a hand through his messy hair, he yawned, "Can we go through the plan once more?"

His father grimaced, rubbing the bridge of his nose with some exasperation. "Marco, please."

Marco shrugged helplessly, leaning against the table and cupping his face between his palms. The other men assembled chuckled, and he couldn't find the will to be irritated or offended.

General Snow grabbed Marco's hand and yanked it towards the map, his voice too loud and his sudden movement causing Marco's chin to hit the table. "This is the servant's entrance," he enunciated slowly, slamming their hands against the aforementioned spot to further emphasize his words. "This is where you will enter after we remove one of the lower servants. You must put on a perfect performance in order for them to hire you. Answer if you understand."

"Yes, sir," murmured Marco, his eyes staring unfocused at the paper beneath it. It may as well have been blank for all he understood of it. A sleepy nod followed the statement, so the general continued with a sigh, "If you are hired, you will do as your told and search for where the princess is being held when you can. Once you find her, you will find a way to report back to us –whether you must fake an illness or just leave is up to you. Nod if you understand."

Marco bobbed his head and leaned it against the edge of the table, his eyelids drooping as though they weighed a thousand pounds. The wood felt so delightfully cold against his skin. "Mm, what happens if I don't get the job?" he slurred, a yawn interrupting his words.

"I was getting to that," answered the older man, his brows lowering, "if you, in fact, are not able to do as I said, you will return here immediately and we will be forced to siege the castle."