The Voice of the Nightingale

Part XVIII

Ash sat up abruptly, waking up from a nightmare. Her body was covered in sweat. Her hands wouldn't stop shaking. She felt that she couldn't breath and her heart was beating rapidly in her chest.
The door to her room opened and Nicholas walked in. He began to say, "Ash, it's getting late. You should go-"
But when he saw Ash, he rushed to her side.
"W-What's wrong? Are you okay?"
Ash, not able to say anything, just hugged him and tried to calm down. Soon, her breathing slowed and the feeling of panic disappeared.
"What's wrong?"
She still stayed silent despite his question. However, Nicholas understood and held her tighter.

"I'm sorry about me and the King." Ash said after a few minutes, finally able to talk.
Nicholas didn't respond for a while. Then he asked, "How many times was it?"
"Just once... and I'm not proud of it. It will never happen again, I can't stand seeing you hurt."
Nicholas nodded.
"Come on, you need to go to the meeting. It's in a few minutes."
Ash let go of him and went to get changed as Nicholas left. She put on a dark blue gown as well as her crown and jewellery. The door opened and Nicholas escorted her to the hall.
They found the whole council seated at the table, but Theodor wasn't there. When everyone asked where the King was, Ash answered, "I don't know. I'll get him."
She walked through the halls and soon made it to his bedchambers. The guards let her in without question. When she looked over to the bed, she screamed.
The guards, including Nicholas, ran in and all gasped at the scene.
Theodor lay on the bed, dried blood splattered on the sheets. A dagger sat next to him. His eyes were closed and he didn't wake when Ash called his name.
The Queen stumbled back, like she had done the night previous. She held her stomach with one hand and covered her mouth with the other. Nicholas sat next to her as she gagged. He escorted her out of the room and held her as she cried.
From inside the room, she heard the guards desperately search the room. One shouted, "I found something."
"It's a hair clip." The other replied.
"I've seen that before..."
"Isn't it the one owned by the mistress?"
"But she wasn't here last night, or the nights before." He said, his voice growing quieter as he began to realise.
There was silence, the truth dawning on them.