Kitanna
Chapter 73: MEMORIES OF THE PAST

Chapter 73: MEMORIES OF THE PAST

[MUSIC RECOMMENDATION: INSOMNIA ~ THE ROSE]

Kitanna took her time standing beside the corpse, which others assumed to be Axilla. What seemed to look like an act of mourning to others was only a moment of playing for Kitanna.

Almaria and Deonisia left the place after the execution was over, trotting behind them was Bareea. Khelan wished to go over and comfort Larel, but he knew better because she had already warned him to stay away from her for the time being. He didn’t want to risk being embarrassed in front of his servants.

Khelan turned to notice that one other person had not moved from his position, and it was the royal guard. He walked to where he was sitting intending to start a conversation with him and maybe grab a drink since their relationship was beginning to improve.

Nix noticed the movement from the corner of his eyes; it was the king who was now walking towards him. He didn’t have the leisure to sit around and engage in small talks with the young king. At least not today. Nix made his move faster and walked out of the ground, his strides leading him straight to his quarters.

Khelan sighed when he saw the guard had already gone away. He opened his lips to call out to the guard to wait for him, but his ego got the best of him. What would others think of him, a king, asking a guard to wait for him? Khelan shrugged his shoulders and left the place, his face looking defeated.

Kitanna wiped the sweat on her face. When she noticed the queen dowager and her cousin had left the execution ground, she dropped the act she was putting up.

"Thank you, Queen Larel. I wasn’t sure you’d accept to help despite the short notice. And coupled with the fact that you had your personal problems to sort out," Kitanna said to Larel, trying her best not to spell out her brother’s infidelity. She wasn’t sure the queen had healed from it.

Larel smiled, "Axilla was the only person who brightened my boring days in the palace. I was already waiting for the right time to get her out of prison any way I can. Until the opportunity came as a letter on an arrow hitting on my window." The young queen beamed with joy. She was glad she helped save a life, and it was the life of a maid who made her mundane days in the palace bright, just like her name, Bright Flower.

One thing worried Larel; she had saved a life at the expense of another, and the guilt only made her face crease in worry.

Kitanna noticed the subtle change in the queen’s look. Larel was someone so softhearted; she never had ill intentions for even a mosquito that sucked her own blood. That was how nice she was, and if she was frowning after saving a life, it meant she was bothered about the other which was lost.

"You don’t need to worry too much. Calissa used to be an assassin, and she even killed an innocent widow just to hide her identity. And may I also let you know that she was here on your wedding night to kill Khelan.

Although looking back now, I think it’d have been a better option for you if I had let her, considering the fact that he made you cry," Kitanna grinned at her dark humor.

But Larel was not having it; yes, she was mad at Khelan but not enough to wish him death. She looked at Kitanna with a horrified look on her face.

"No?" Kitanna decided to keep her dark thoughts away from the queen. She was really a soft one. She moved on to ask, "Axilla is in safe hands now, right?"

Larel nodded, "Yes, I made sure my brother was the one who took her. He is trading for my father, so the merchandise that is supposed to be moved to Avon, he will also hide Axilla in them. I just hope he is not stopped to be searched. But I believe Cortez will handle it." The queen spoke confidently.

"She’d be awake by evening; I had them sedate her before moving her away. Axilla would have thought I abandoned her all this while." Kitanna muttered the last part to herself.

"Let’s go back inside; we’ve mourned for too long," the princess suggested with a smile.

In the evening, Kitanna walked into her chamber. She had been taking some potions Nix got for her, which will help her regain her memory. But the thing there is, the bitterness of the potion made her wonder if it was actually for her to remember or just forget her own name. Because even after drinking it, the bitter taste always lingered in her throat.

Kitanna ended up requesting for sweet cookies more than usual. This night was not an exception. After having her bath, she picked up the potion counting the number of things she could find in her room. Kitanna raised the goblet and gulped down the content. She cursed under her breath when she felt the bitter taste rub on her throat; she immediately picked one cookie and sucked on it.

"Is this really helping me regain my memory, or is Nix just trying to punish me? I’ve been taking this for days now, and I’m beginning to forget my name," Kitanna spoke in between her teeth.

After nibbling on the cookie, she entered her bed and covered herself with the soft covers. Her eyes moved around her room; it was strangely looking too big. She brushed the feeling of loneliness off her mind as she thought of Axilla and how she was faring at the moment.

"Bright flower, Axilla. I hope you’re doing alright," Kitanna whispered.

Slowly, her eyes turned heavy, and without noticing it, sleep gripped her shoulders and pulled her into the land of subconsciousness.

Kitanna opened her eyes; she was standing in front of her father’s room. She peeped the tiny opening of the door, and for the first time in decades, Kitanna saw her father’s face.

He was talking to someone, no, he was arguing with the person rather. She moved closer to listen to what seemed like mumbling. The person’s face showed, and it was Almaria.

Kitanna pressed her ear to the door to know if she could make sense out of what they were arguing about.

"I will only give you the grace of letting you leave the kingdom without spelling out your sins," Kitanna heard her father speak.

Why would he tell Almaria to leave the kingdom? And what sins did she commit? Did she perhaps sleep with another man because she had the tendency of doing such? Kitanna smirked. She continued to listen to hear what Almaria had to say.

"You would do no such thing; Kitanna knows no mother except me. Imagine how she will feel if she finds out that her mother was banished. She will hate you," Almaria fired back at the king.

Kitanna rolled her eyes; well, that’s going too far because her life would have been better without her in it. That’s called gaslighting, she muttered.

"Don’t let an act fool you; you’re not even her..."

Kitanna turned when she felt someone hold her shoulder. She turned to look at the person’s face, but all she saw was a huge figure that had a face but no nose or eyes, just lips.

This caused Kitanna to shriek, and when she did, the door opened, and Almaria stepped out of the room in anger.

"What’s going on here?" Almaria asked with annoyance.

Kitanna tried to call out to her father for help, but when she raised her face, her father’s mouth was covered with cobwebs, just like the nightmare she had which caused her to collapse few weeks back.

"She heard everything," the huge figure who held her back spoke to Almaria.

Kitanna had never felt so scared in her life. She tried to scream, but nothing was moving out of her lips. The figure dragged her away, with Almaria and her cob-muted father following them behind. Kitanna struggled to loosen the grip, but it felt impossible because she couldn’t move herself.

When they got to a place that seemed to be their destination, Kitanna was dragged to the royal pond. The huge face with just lips pushed her forward, causing Kitanna to land on her bottom.

"Please let me go," Kitanna pleaded; "I didn’t hear anything"

She didn’t know what they were planning on doing, and the worst case she didn’t know how to escape from it. Because for some reason she felt suppressed and weaker than usual.

"Proceed," Almaria ordered.

The huge face with just lips dragged Kitanna and dipped her head inside the pond. Kitanna’s hands flailed, trying to survive anyhow she could, then her head was raised again. The huge figure continued with this until Kitanna felt her lungs were now filled with just water. She coughed, trying to get hold of her breath; her eyes were beginning to close.

"Not so soon, Princess," the face with only lips said. It was a female voice. The face pulled out a potion and forced it into Kitanna’s throat.

Kitanna was left with no option than to gulp it; she was left to stand on her own, her legs were too weak for her to stand. She reached out her hand for father to rescue her. But he stood there, his eyes clear of any emotions. Before Kitanna passed out, the face with lips said to her,

"I’m letting you go next time you come back here seeking to find your memory, you won’t return alive." This sentence ended with a wicked cackling from the figure.

Kitanna jerked up from her sleep; she was panting like she had run cross country. What she saw was nothing like a dream. Without adding anything to her thin nightwear, Kitanna ran out of her room.

She ran as fast as her legs could carry her until she got to the isolated path of the palace. Her hands kept hitting on the palace door frantically, like someone was chasing her, until Nix finally opened the door.

Far away from Nix’s room, a figure stood in the dark, putting on a dark cloak.

"Run, little princess. Run; that’s all you can ever do," the figure whispered with a grin.