Stand By Me Darling
Chapter 260: Equilibrium is Needed

Chapter 260: Equilibrium is Needed

Walter turned and left. Yes, his heart hurt, enough for him to make him unable to breath, but there was a relief in there somewhere too.

Ah... She was earnest and graceful. Like I know her to be... I sure won’t meet another woman as perfect as her!

Arthur... Arthur... I hope that you realise what a gem has fallen for you. I hope for heavens sake you treat her well. Or so help me God, I will take her!

---

Talia stayed in the garden for some more time before going back to her grandfather. Bear still wasn’t willing to get out of the pond and she was surprised how good the puppy was at swimming even though he has no training.

She knew Newfoundland puppies are very good swimmers and they love water as a bee loves honey. Also Mr. Ed told her how Newfoundlands are trained to rescue people from rivers and other water bodies, since they are strong and also great swimmers with their webbed feet. In fact, they were first used as working dogs in fishing vessels.

Guess their inherent nature sure catches up with them, if they get trained or not, right?

When she returned, Walter was not there and Talia was relieved and sat beside her grandfather and drank an entire glass of cranberry juice from the jar that was served for her grandfather.

"Are you feeling refreshed?" her grandpa asked with a smile. She looked tired after being gone for less than half and hour. It must have been hard for her to reject someone like Walter. He seemed like a very genuine boy.

" It’s too tangy! There’s no sugar, " she complained and sat hugging his arm.

"This is my life now... My sad, poor life. Life without Cigars, scotch, salt and sugar. I can’t even eat bananas as much as I want! I thought living without my Annabelle would be the worst. But I was wrong. I don’t know why I’m still holding on," her grandpa said with a smile and Talia sat up straight and glared at him.

Her Grandpa says that often even though it made Talia enraged.

"For me! You’re holding on for me! Don’t you dare die, grandpa. I will not speak to you then!" Talia said with an angry pout and leaned back on his shoulders. "If you die, I’ll become an orphan and who will walk me down the aisle then?"

"Don’t say that!" her grandpa got angry by her words this time. "Who is going to be an orphan? You still have a King and a Prince - Your brothers, to walk you down the aisle."

"But I want you to walk me down the aisle, grandpa. I won’t forgive you if you don’t walk me down the aisle. I promise!" Talia rubbed her cheek on her grandpa’s sleeves like a cute kitten.

Her Grandpa didn’t answer her, but he couldn’t help but smile seeing her acting cute with him. She’s a cute child always, no matter how much she grew up.

And how much she needs me still!

"No matter who walks you down the aisle, you’d have a King waiting for you at the end," Jerome petted her head and Talia smiled imagining Arthur at the end of the red carpet with a smile in his face... Or will he end up in tears looking at her? Probably not.!

"You must walk me down the aisle, grandpa. It is a must." Talia was adamant about it. She will not let her grandfather die soon. "Speaking of Fred... Grandpa, apparently the King is not announcing the breaking of Fred’s engagement. Can’t you talk to your old friend about this? It is getting dragged so much," Talia decided to ask her grandfather’s help. She didn’t like it getting dragged like this.

" He’s no friend of mine. He is jealous of me. You know we had to maintain appearances in the public. He didn’t like it when I asked to leave the Council after the issue with the rejection of having Wallace’s company in Esteria. Just wait... He’ll die soon and his smooth-brained son can be easily manipulated. Also the engagement order he signed will be void after he dies, " Jerome said without blinking an eye and without an ounce of empathy and Talia was surprised.

Grandpa rarely is this hateful towards someone. And that too with the King of Esteria? The one he swore to serve? What is behind this?

Jerome really had no consideration towards the King. Ten years back, when he pleaded for his granddaughter to be not allowed to get married to a monster, the King reminded him of laws and that he cannot let go of his integrity for a friend.

And now, The King dared to ask him to save his idiotic son who got mixed up with dangerous people? What happened to the laws that needed to be upheld? What happened to his integrity now? Hypocrite!

He is thinking his son is well protected now he is in another country. Let him stay there, like an exiled criminal, just like how they treated my granddaughter!

Just like I lived without my granddaughter for the past ten years, let that hypocrite die without his son by his side! He deserves it!

"Can’t you... Influence him in some other way, grandpa?" Talia was not in the leisure to wait for the death of the King to be with Fred. Grandpa must have some incriminate details about the King!

"No matter what threat anyone uses on him, Titus will not abolish the Council. Abolishing the Council will inevitably lead to the abolishment of the Monarchy. He will never wish for his name to be written down in history, for signing in agreement of the abolishment of the Monarchy. Artie... He is stubborn and I thought he won’t succeed, but with the help of many smart people, he is close to his aim. Either Artie has to back off, or King Titus III has to die. Otherwise there is no way that engagement will be cancelled." Her Grandpa said in a sure tone.

In a fight against a centuries old establishment, Arthur went too close to success. The establishment has claimed many victims. United, they gave a big blow to the establishment. But it still is not enough to end the establishment. The establishment survives and that is absolute. In a way, the establishment is a necessary evil that needs to survive. The pendulum cannot swing too far in one direction.

One direction is the side of the establishment, who talks about traditions and conservation. The other side talks about liberty and equality.

The pendulum used to swing in the direction of the establishment before. Right now the pendulum has swung in the direction of the resistance - people against the establishment. The establishment has done a lot of atrocities using their inherited power. But giving too much into the side of the resistance will not end well either. True liberty will not achieve prosperity. If everyone chooses to live the way they want, will anyone even be willing to pay taxes, or follow the laws?

True peace can be achieved when both sides come together, sit in the middle and attain an equilibrium.

It is easy for an old man like him to understand this, but the youngsters whose blood boils with their ambitions won’t like the wisdom of the adults. He will express his thoughts sooner too. It would be better if Arthur listens.

In his opinion, the future he envisions where the nobles and commoners are spring together is not far. His granddaughter will love to see it. Arthur will be the bond between the two sides and bring the equilibrium that is needed for the prosperity of the nation. He already has friends in both sides, doesn’t he?

And his granddaughter... She’d be the bridge between two nations. Isn’t that all wondrous?

" Hmm... " Talia felt disheartened hearing her grandpa’s words. "But everyone’s against the nobles in Esteria now. The King got to do something right?" she asked.

She herself wasn’t a big fan of what’s happening in Esteria. For now, people aren’t hating the Brunton family. But how long will it take for them to turn against them?

" He will do something to pacify the people. What do you think he will do?" Jerome patted Talia’s back and asked. His granddaughter is smart. She’ll figure it out.

Talia thought for the moment. And then it hit her. "He will not dissolve the Council. He will cut the funding to the members of the Council. That way, people will be placated that their hard-earned money is not paying for the luxurious and scandalous lives of the aristocrats."

"You’re a smart girl," Jerome patted her head.

"But grandpa... Cutting their funding won’t reduce their powers. They can always make money being in the Council, by other means like bribery. People won’t be oblivious to that for long." Talia asked with her eyes wide.

"You’re too smart, Mary Ann. And you do know why Titus won’t care." Jerome sighed.

"Because he won’t be alive to see the next revolution. It won’t be his problem then. He is putting a bandaid over the wound, hoping the deep wound will heal itself somehow. " Talia took in a deep breath. "But the wound has festered and that’s why there is fever. Unless you clean the wound and have antibiotics, the wound isn’t going to heal by a bandaid. The only way going forward should be by uniting both sides, if we want peace in the future. Taking sides will only further the rift and won’t achieve a thing!"

Jerome became too overwhelmed to say anything anymore. He just wrapped his arm around her shoulder and kissed her forehead.

She remembered everything I taught her!

His eyes watered. All those years, he brought her with him wherever he went and made her watch how he operate. She did learn from them. And after all these years, she remembered them all.

My sweet child!

Talia didn’t want to think about Esteria anymore and sighed as she felt so tired.

"I don’t know how you rejected every woman who confessed to you, grandpa!" she leaned on the table with her elbows supporting her chin and she looked at her Grandpa.

"What do you mean?" her Grandpa got flustered and it was fun to watch for Talia. "I’m already this old and I’m married-"

"What old? Grandpa, you don’t realise how many eighteen to twenty one year old women with really big boobs and lips, will stand in queue here if I announce that you’re taking a wife?" Talia’s confidence got boosted seeing her Grandpa going red out of embarrassment. "Not just for your money, grandpa. But you’re handsome. Let me tell you a secret... You’re more handsome than Fred even..." she built up her honeyed words until her Grandpa shut her up.

"Oh, enough! Mary Ann... You’re such a silly and brazen child. Who would talk to their grandpa this way? No one had confessed to me. I’m married for f*ck’s sake!"

Talia couldn’t help but chuckle. She had made her Grandpa swear. Jerome just shook his head trying to compose herself. How could his granddaughter say that he’d take a wife younger than his granddaughter!

Shame! Shame!

Talia’s laugh subsided as she saw her grandpa’s ring. After her grandmother died, her grandfather joined her grandmother’s wedding ring with his ring and he never parted with it. Its been forty four years since her grandmother died, and Talia had never seen him without his wedding ring.