Sharing a Pavilion With You
Chapter 91: You’ll Destroy Her...

Chapter 91: You’ll Destroy Her...

The Second Prince placed a hand on either side of Meili in a fury, leaning over the bed, his eyebrows lowered, glaring down into her eyes.

"Don’t say those words to me Mei Meili. Are you intentionally trying to make me jealous with talk of marrying Bai Li?" he was yelling now. "Tell me now," his arms shook as he held himself above her, "are you pining for another man?"

She blinked up at him in shock, tears spilling from her eyes.

He pinned her hands above her head with one of his hands and gripped the back of her head with the other.

She was tossing her head from side-to-side in a vain effort to avoid him when a servant announced, "the Crown Prince arrives".

The Crown Prince took one look at the scene and strode across the room, pulling his younger brother away from the young woman.

"What’s going on here, brother?" he asked him coldly. "Because it looks very much like you’re forcing your unwanted attentions on Miss Mei. Are you alright Miss Mei?" he took in her tear-streaked face.

She nodded shakily. "Yes, your highness. I’m just overcome after nearly drowning. Your brother was checking on me, nothing more," she sniffed, trying to pull herself together.

"Really?" the Crown Prince growled suspiciously, "because that’s not what it looked like", he glared at his brother with dislike.

"I had something caught in my eye, that’s all," she lied. "He was taking a look for me. But your highness, perhaps you can persuade your brother that I must recuperate in my own room. As thoughtful as it is to wish to keep an eye on me after this morning, it’s not appropriate for a young unmarried woman to be in the Second Prince’s chambers."

"Brother! You know that well!" the Crown Prince scolded his younger brother. "Even in an emergency you must maintain your honour and preserve Miss Mei’s reputation." He called to his servants, "have Miss Mei sent back to her own room to recuperate immediately".

"I can walk," she said, as they brought a palanquin to carry her.

"Nonsense," said the Crown Prince. "Of course you’ll be carried. I’m certain your brothers would not let you walk in this condition, and neither will we."

Mei Meili climbed into the palanquin without looking back at either brother, collapsing with exhaustion against the side of the chair as soon as she had been carried out of their sight.

"Don’t take liberties with Miss Mei, brother," said the Crown Prince harshly, rounding on his brother the moment Miss Mei left the room. "Father won’t give her to you just because you over-step with her you know. All you’ll do is destroy her."

"I just saved her life after someone tried to kill her, brother, so I think you’ll understand why I might be a little emotional. I begged Father not to bring her here, and now this is the direct result!"

"Let’s focus on finding the culprit, shall we? I suspect your energies are better directed towards finding the enemy than they are at Miss Mei, hm?"

"On that, we can agree, brother!"

The Second Prince turned on his heel and stalked from his own room, pleased to have something to do to take his mind off Mei Meili.

Sergeant Wu followed him at a discreet distance. He knew the prince’s moods well enough not to try to speak to him.

Her face danced before his eyes, pale and lifeless; even now, the image hollowing him out with a desolate fear. Then her eyes opened, and nothing else seemed to matter.

He didn’t regret kissing her. He touched his hands to his lips remembering the feel of that moment, the taste, the way the world fell silent around them as their lips met.

She would be his! She must!

He would speak to his Father. But first, he would investigate the killer and bring them to justice.

The prince had his men fan out across the Emperor’s garden, searching for clues.

"Careful men," he shouted, "don’t trample everywhere. We’re looking for footprints, anything that might have been dropped, broken branches, anything might be important."

The men peered under bushes and into the caves, using burning torches to search in the darkness of the manmade caverns.

"Sergeant, I found this," called a man doubtfully.

Seargent Wu strode over and grabbed the ragged piece of cloth from the soldier. It was a scrap from a eunuch’s robe. He handed it across to the prince.

The prince held the scrap up the sun, inspecting it. It looked fresh. It hadn’t been sitting there for long.

He had an idea worth exploring...

The Second Prince left the Sergeant and his men to continue the hunt, while he strode off to Mei Meili’s chamber.

Tricky was sitting outside his mistress’s room when he arrived in her courtyard, keeping guard.

For the first time, the standoffish dog greeted him with affection.

"Finally you like me, do you?" he knelt down and petted the Chow Chow. "It took a lot to win you over. There won’t be many in the inner circle if they have to save her life, you know?"

He suddenly thought of what Mei Meili had said about Bai Li also saving her life, and he scowled, realising that the dog must also be friendly with his love rival.

"There’s only room for one man in her life Tricky-Wu," he told the dog seriously. "You must pick, and you must choose me."

Tricky gave him a big lick on the cheek and he laughed despite himself. "Alright, if that’s the price of being picked, you may lick my royal personage."

He sat down on the step outside Meili’s room. "Show me your paws, please boy?" he asked the dog.

Tricky obligingly handed the man each of his four paws in turn, and the prince inspected his claws.

Sure enough, there it was! Some little red threads and a tiny scrap of fabric stuck in the dog’s front claws.

The prince prised out the pieces that he could, dropping them into the dragon pouch Mei Meili had sewn for him.

"You’re a very good dog," he patted Tricky on the head, "the best".

Pushing himself to his feet, he knocked on Mei Meili’s door.

"Mei Meili," he called softly, "how are you?"

There was no reply. She should be asleep. He couldn’t help checking in on her.

He pushed the door sliding doors open gently. Mei Meili lay fast asleep in her bed, but even from a distance he could see that her cheeks were flushed.

He ran over and knelt beside her, feeling her forehead with the back of his hand.

Burning up!