Chapter 65: The Cage and the Lost Key





"It was the same fire that burns you. It was the darker and more sinister one that destroys you."



It was already morning when Lady Adeline woke up. She seemed to not remember what happened during the past night; she was only surprised that I was sitting on a chair reading a book by the side of her bed. She smiled weakly at me and said, "I thought it was just a dream. But you're here; you're finally home."



"How are you feeling?" I asked.



She closed her eyes and sighed deeply. "I feel better. However, I'm afraid I won't be able to join you for breakfast. I prefer for my food to be served here."



I knew by then that she was lying. She was the beautiful sun of the East Land. She would wake up and shine all over the East Castle and make sure that the day would be a wonderful one for us. But she couldn't do it anymore; not when the fire was being sucked out from her. I clenched my fist on my side and faked a smile. "Then I will have my trusted servants bring our breakfast here. I would really love to have coffee with you."



Her eyes shone brightly despite of her fragile body. And that was how we spent the morning: talking and sharing laughter with each other hoping that moments like that could last forever. I let her rest when she got tired and went to my room to fix myself. I didn't tell her the truth nor about my plan. She didn't know that I summoned the council in the castle for a meeting. I didn't want to make her worry about my actions.



I was walking on the hallway towards the conference room when I saw Tarnus. He seemed to be waiting for me. But instead of greeting him, I walked past him deciding that dealing with our personal conflict could wait.



However, Tarnus seemed to not see it that way. He followed me and took only a few steps before grabbing my arm, pulling me towards him. Sighing impatiently, I decided to face him. Despite of the glare he was giving me, I could see the sadness in his eyes.



"I was informed of you sending a pregnant servant last night to the dungeon. I went down to free her but she's not there anymore. I couldn't find her."



I studied him skeptically and asked, "Why are you so concerned about this woman? Are you the father of her child?"



There was a look of surprise in his face which turned into annoyance. "What are you talking about? She's pregnant and it will not help her condition if she's going to stay in that filthy place. Just tell me where she is and let me handle her. If she did something you disapprove of then I'll punish her without harming the child."



"Wherever she is right now, she deserves it. Now, let me go because I still have a more important thing to deal with."



I tried to get pass him but he didn't let me. His warm hands found the side of my face and held me gently and yet firmly. He looked at my eyes and searched for something he thought was missing. "What have they done to you? How did you become like this?"



There was pain in his voice as he asked me those questions. And I couldn't help but feel sad – for Tarnus and the old Primrose he could never bring back.



"This isn't the right place and right time for this, Tarnus," I replied coldly.



His expression became rigid, as if he was trying to stop something that was begging to come out. I found his moment of hesitation as my chance to get away from him. I sighed and free myself from his grasp before taking a step to the direction of the conference hall.



When I thought he had finally let go of our argument, he built his resolve and shouted, "I'm in love with you, Primrose."



And that was enough for me to stop on my track. With a shock expression, I turned and faced him. I didn't know how to respond to his confession and so, I remained silent as he continued talking.



"I have loved you ever since we were young. And I still do. I did everything to make you feel it by always taking your side and protecting you. But you're too blinded as you chased for that forlorn love across the ocean that you weren't able to see me. And that's when I knew that I wouldn't be able to escape from this quicksand of unrequited love I had fallen into."



He was panting and sweating and I knew that this confession took quite of his strength. But he was wrong; I wasn't blind. There was a part of me that wondered why he cared for me despite of us being not related by blood. And that feeling of being taken care of felt so blissful that I decided to keep it and tied it in the idea that he was only seeing me as his sister he never had. I knew I was selfish but he was one of those people who were too important for me to let go. But now that I confirmed what he was truly feeling towards me, I had to be brave and do the right thing.



"I care for you, Tarnus, and please know that you'll always have a place in my heart. But please, you have to let go of the love you have for me. It is a cage you built hoping that I have the key – but I don't. That's why you have to free yourself from it and if it's necessary, then please leave me. You don't have to stay and protect me."



He may saw me as a devil who used him and let go of him for my convenience. And maybe I was. But this evil woman had to endure letting go of an important part of her. He had been with me for a long time and letting him go meant that all the moment we had shared would turn into distant memories. I had to accept that it won't happen anymore.



He stepped closer towards me and brushed away the tears I didn't know were falling with his fingers. He stared at me with sadness and longing in his eyes.



"I love you, Primrose, and if you think that it's the only reason I stayed with you all this time then you got it wrong. I stayed here because you are here and this is East Land. This is my home; you're my home. And protecting you means I get to protect it, too. After all, you're the beautiful sun of this land. What pains me right now was the way being away from us changed you. I don't know you anymore. The Primrose I had loved all this time is gone. Somewhere in the vast and dangerous sea, I lost you. And the love I have for you is killing me now because I know that you're never coming back."



The coldness I felt was suddenly replaced by warmth. I had been covering my heart in thick ice to shield me from the day of treachery and heartbreak and Tarnus just melted it. I reached forward and wrapped him in my embrace.



"I will always be grateful for the love you've given me, Tarnus. And I'm sorry if I can't return it. But please know that whether it was old Primrose or the new one, you'll always be in my heart."



And that was when I decided to let him go and walked towards the conference room where the council members were waiting for me. He could see it as a farewell or a start of a stronger friendship. Whatever it was, it would be up for him to decide. I just hoped that he would use it to free himself from whatever pain I had caused him.



I barged inside the room and silenced the council members who were talking with each other; curious and confused as to why they were being summoned here. I headed straight to the center table where I would be seeing all of them. Tarnus seemed to follow me after all and sat on the chair near the door. He stayed there and watched me intently.



"I could see that some of you aren't happy to see me back. I could see that the East Castle had change after the long days I was gone," I started. This earned a familiar discomfort among the council members.



"You can't blame us. You came back before from the sea and brought chaos like a raging storm. We can't help but be wary," one of the council members responded.



"To be honest, we're doing fine without your interventions. Maybe the lady is too young to rule us after all."



There were expressions of agreement among them and I couldn't help but feel raged and betrayed. However, before my emotion got into me, Lord William interrupted giving me time to compose myself.



"Gentlemen, please. That's not the way we should treat a lady. She's one of our rulers and we need to give her our respect. Let's listen to her and hear what she has to say. After all, she's the sun of the East Land; our future is with her."



The conference room became silent, though I could still feel their defiance of what I was about to convey. I took a deep breath and faced them all fearlessly. I straightened when I finally got all their attention and announced, "We will join the Great War and take side with the Borgian kingdom."



And just like what they expected from me, the conference room turned into chaos. They voiced their disagreement loudly that Lord William had to ask them to see orderliness in the room. One of them stood and exclaimed, "You can't just come back and drag our land to participate in this destructive war!"



Angry voices filled the area once again igniting fiery daggers of hatred thrown towards me. But I had to endure it; I had to show them that I'm strong enough to rule the land.



"If you want to die, then die alone! Don't bring us with you!"



In a swift, unexpected move, Tarnus was already at the man's side with his sword close to his neck. "It is my duty to protect Lady Primrose. Disrespect her again and I'll make sure that you won't be able to utter a single word anymore," he threatened.



We were all stunned; unable to speak and move from where we were sitting. My chest tightened at his action. He was supposed to hate me instead of protecting me. I should be grateful because he chose to stay with me but somehow, it saddened me for I knew that my mere existence was already killing him.



When the member agreed to the demand and Tarnus finally withdrew his sword, everyone calmed down. Some of them though were still wary and cautious but they didn't try anything that might disrespect me.



"We're able to exclude ourselves from this; thanks to Lady Adelina and Lord Chester. We can't just throw the shield given to us and march vulnerably in the middle of the war," one of the members stated.



Apparently, Lord Chester wasn't lying when he said that the East Land would not participate in the war. He even assured my safety for as long as I was inside the East Castle. But I didn't plan to stay comfortably and pretend that everything was fine.



"We are not vulnerable. We are the East Land. We have great soldiers. We can fight," I countered.



One of them scoffed and said, "Easy for you to say that when you're not the one who's going to wield weapons and face the enemies. That pretty face of yours might be handy in seduction to escape your death but I'm certain that it will be useless in the war. Lady Primrose, please don't use your power to put our lives on the line!"



I gritted my teeth at his insult. I wanted to scream at him and defend myself. But I knew that it would only bring us back to the chaotic start. I tried to calm myself down, swallowing the thought that it was how they were seeing me at the moment.



"I assure you that I will do everything in my strength to fight with our soldiers. I will not leave them in this battle."



Lord William, who was sitting beside me, placed a gentle hand on my shoulder. I turned to him and there was a look of worry in his eyes. "But why are we taking sides with the Borgian kingdom? We're affiliated with the West Land and I think if ever we're going to join this war, we have to fight on their side."



I understood his concerns. He had witnessed how the Crimsons and the Westons built its friendship by backing each other up whenever there was conference for a law that needed to be passed for the Mainland.



"This is not about the two lands' relationship anymore. This is Mainland and choosing the right thing. I know about the truth in our history, Lord William. We're being fed with lies all this time believing that we're the mighty heroes in our own fabricated stories. The truth is we are the rebels who dethroned the Borgian kingdom from its power. We are the filthy villains in our history. And it is time now to do what is right. It's time to give back what we have stolen from them."



The conference room was suddenly filled with silence as they looked at me in horror and disbelief. Some of them, mostly the elders, seemed to have knowledge about it while the rest disagreed on it.



"This is a quite disrespect to our forefathers! How could you believe those filthy pirates?!"



The meeting had become uncontrollable with the council members expressing their anger and opposition. And as I tried to explain to them why we must participate in the war and do what was right, I realized that they would never try to listen to me. They wanted to be safe and unharmed. They wanted keep the power and the East Land for themselves. They knew that the dethronement of the Borgian kingdom in the past was wrong. However, their sense of what was wrong and right was buried with what they had earned from that sin. They didn't want to give what we'd stolen; they wanted to keep it. And if they found it safer to sit and wait for the outcome of the war, then they would take it.



"We are already safe here. We 're pretty sure that Lord Caleb will disapprove of your plan."



I laughed humorlessly which made them silent and confused for a moment. They had probably thought that I had gone completely lunatic already.



"Safe?" I asked sarcastically. "My father is dead. My mother is dying on her bed while someone tried to kill me in the woods. What made you think that this will never happen to you? If this is your idea of safety then I surely doubt the quality of protection we have right now."



The time in the conference room seemed to stand still as the council members talked with each other silently; deciding whether they would allow my decision to join the war or keep inside the weak shield they're hiding. The council members clearly expressed their disagreement and one of them stood to announce their decision.



"The Council has made its decision. We will not join the Great War," he said with finality in his voice.



I stood up and eyed each of them disapprovingly. "Well, I see that you aren't with me in this one. I hope you realize that this war is going to decide the future of this land. We are part of it. This is also our war. No one's going to fight our own war but us!" And I marched out of the conference room clearly disappointed of the outcome.



They might think that I had already gone back to my room and admitted defeat. However, the conference with the East Land council members wasn't the only thing I plan to do that day. I hadn't gone through a lot of things only to be swayed by one little rejection.



Like a ghost lurking in the shadows of the East Castle, I waited on the hidden side of the hallway until all the council members had left. Lord William was the last to go and he was surprised to see me waiting for him on his way out.



"Oh, dear. I hope you're not holding any ill feelings towards me regarding this. You know you always have me. It's just that you're asking too much from the council this time –"



"Don't worry about that, Lord William. I understand. But you can't make a Lady Crimson give up that easily, can you?" I asked with a taunting smile.



He grinned knowingly. He probably remembered the hard-headed girl who always disturbed her father's meeting during the early days.



"Well, I'll let you have all of me this time," he answered.



I smirked triumphantly. "Excellent. Please wait for me at the tea room. I'll be right there in a moment."



And just like that, we parted ways. But this time, I would make sure to win the round. I decided to follow him to the tea room after a few minutes. He was already drinking his tea when I approached him and he motioned for me to sit on the chair across from his.



"I don't know how to say it but something has changed in you. Don't get me wrong. This is surely a good thing. You look stronger, smarter, and yes, you're even braver than when I last saw you. Lord Caleb must be so proud of you."



I smiled at his compliments. I remembered that he was always on my side ever since I was young. He would always back me up whenever I was asking for a favour from my father. He had been a good ally and a supportive uncle all this time.



"Thank you, Lord William. I hope that just like before, you will support my decision to join the war."



And that was when his smile faltered. His expression though was still kind, looked troubled. He stared at me warily and sighed, "You know you'll always have my support no matter how ridiculous your ideas are. However, many lives are at stake this time. You must think about it again, my dear Primrose. We might lose people. We might lose our titles. We might lose our land –"



"Or we might be losing our power," I cut him off.



At first, he was surprised by my sudden rudeness but he easily recovered and drank his tea again.



"Beloved child, please don't look at us as if we're your enemies. We are with you. And if we refuse to give you this one thing, it's because that what we're going to risk is too important for us to lose," he explained patiently.



"But this is not ours to lose, Lord William. Once the Borgian kingdom wins the war, they will reign again. It will break the separation between lands and build unity. There will be no unbreakable distance between the Mainland and the Forsaken Land. The pirates will help us make a bridge that would connect those who are in high positions to the citizens in the poorest land. The power all the ruling families took from the Borgian kingdom will be taken and distribute back to the people –"



"Stop that nonsense!" He suddenly screamed.



I already expected that he would explode like this; it was just too soon for him to break the mask he was wearing.



I smirked. "So what ticked you off this time? Is it the land and people we're going to lose? Or is it the great power we have to give up?"



His face was now red in anger as he smashed his clenched fist against the table. "You don't know what you're talking about. The power every Crimson has is older than you. We inherited it from our ancestors and you can't just take it away from us. It is now in our blood and we must keep it for as long as we're alive."



Listening to him gave me a glimpse of the dark past. At that time, I saw a Crimson who was too greedy for power that he would do anything to claim it. He would refuse to let it go despite of what is right. I saw a man who was hiding a diabolical motive for a long time just so he could achieve his goal. The treachery of the past still lives in the present. And as I watched him drown in his own rage, I saw a desperate man who is willing to kill.



"Is that why you asked someone to poison my mother?"



Shocked by my question, he abruptly stood from where he was sitting. However, his body was already shivering because of anger. He attempted to calm himself a little and sit back down again.



"I don't know what you're talking about," he lied and averted his eyes.



"There's no sense in denying it now. The woman you asked to poison her already confessed your plans and she's going to tell the council and elders about your betrayal."



"Your mother is too weak to lead. And you? You're too much a liability to become a ruler. It should be me. Ever since you were born, this family became soft. And that's when I knew that I should take the reins this time and rule the East Land."



My nails were already cutting through my palms as I controlled my tears and rage. But I had too much to ask him. And I knew that if I would let the anger take over me, I wouldn't be able to ask him a question and just kill him that instant.



"So we're too weak for you that you killed my father in your journey from the West Land. You were with the assassins and you just cut yourself a little to make it look like you were attacked, too. You even tried to make it seem that it was only the West Land that was trying to manipulate us. You even had to use a child just to have me assassinated. How dare you call us weak when all this time, you're hiding in this sick fucking game you play!" I screamed.



He let out an evil, humorless laugh. "But who will believe the rebellious, little sun of the East Land? With that reputation of yours, I'm sure that the council will take my side. The East Land citizens will also not appreciate you risking them just to join your lover in war. You're alone, my lovely Primrose. Now, go back to the Borgian kingdom! Fall with them and never rise again!"



He tried to stand again but his trembling body worsened as he started coughing. I lifted the cup of tea he was drinking from and examined it. "I see that you enjoyed the tea Yelena served you. However, I don't think there will be enough tea leaves to cleanse your body and soul. But don't worry; I think the Lake of Dreams will still accept you."



He looked at me, horrified, and clutched his chest. "Y-You! What did you do?"



"Stronger, smarter, and braver, you say? It's funny that those who see the best part of my changes are the ones who watch me with cautious eyes." My fake smile turned into glare. "You poisoned my mother with a little hemlock everyday. And each fucking day, she's suffering and dying. But I'm too impatient to wait that long the way you did. So, I gave you the rest of it with the tea you love the most. Now, please fall and I hope that the likes of you would never be born again!"



"You stupid, little, bitch –" He used all of his remaining strength to lunge at me. It was unexpected that even I was surprised at his action. But before he could grab me, a man's boot kick him and pushed him back from where he was sitting. I looked up and saw a fuming Tarnus.



"How long had you been hiding in the shadows?" I asked.



He glanced at me and his eyes softened, "Long enough to understand everything and protect you."



I wanted to show him how much I appreciate him being with me at that moment. He made me feel that I wasn't alone – that despite everything, I was still his little sun of the East Land. But Lord William started convulsing and coughed blood all over the tea table. We watched him fall clumsily on the ground. I let a tear fall as the light finally faded from his eyes. He was the same Crimson fire that burned me. And his evil fire destroyed my family.



"I'll have someone clean this. We stopped the council members and elders from leaving just like what you ordered before getting here. And right now, the woman is already confessing the sins of Lord William," Tarnus said as he escorted me out of the tea room.



I should be celebrating because after all, it seemed that the favor would be on my side once again. But at that moment, I didn't care about their decision anymore. Instead, I went directly to the stables and get Argos. Tarnus was still following me in confusion and the soldiers who were resting stood from where they were sitting as they saw us.



"Primrose, what are you doing?" Tarnus asked. He was already suspecting what I was about to do and it was making him nervous.



"We can't just close our gates from a war that will soon knock on our doors. We must act now. And regardless of how you're feeling about this, I will still do what is right."



We were getting more attention and I saw the determination in every soldier's eyes. They were willing to accompany me if I ordered them to. "I'm not asking you to sacrifice your life for me. I know that you have your family and you don't want to risk not being able to go back to them for this war. But I am going. And if you think that I'm capable of leading you in this war then it's up to you to follow me. I'll give you time to think about it."



Tarnus held my hand and said, "I'll come with you."



"No," I answered. "You must make sure that we won't be leaving the East Land in chaos and tell them what's going on. The council is probably right; the people come first before this war. Also, give one of the guest rooms to the woman in the conference hall; the child is a Crimson after all. Might as well treat it like one before we lose everything."



He was worried and scared; I could see it in his eyes. He looked at me like he would never see me again. "Promise me that you will be safe, Primrose," he begged. I knew that at that moment, he was hurting and dying to say a final goodbye.



I didn't say a word. I just could make a promise I wasn't sure I could keep. Instead, I mounted Argos and prepared to go.



"Tell my mother that I love her," I whispered.



A sudden arrival of one of the East Castle rangers caught our attention. He left his horse and ran towards our direction.



"My lady," he bowed to greet me and I nodded for him to continue. He stood up and declared what we were all expecting. "The Great War has started in the border of the Borgian Kingdom and West Land."



And I knew by then that it was time for me and Argos to go.