Stand By Me Darling
Chapter 300: Because Only You Are Allowed To

Chapter 300: Because Only You Are Allowed To

You are right." Gregory agreed.

Forgiving? Can he Truly forgive Jerome who had a hand in his mother’s death? Or could Jerome forgive the family who took the life of his pregnant daughter and her unborn son? Or could he forgive everything that happened to his granddaughter?

No!

Forgetting is the only way.

Such profound wisdom and calmness. It is amazing how Talia had decided the same as her grandfather.

Talking about it never solved it. Maybe it is better to not talk about it and put into action the changes they want to bring.

Talia did it by keeping all the humiliations she suffered as a secret. Arthur is doing it by staying by her side. I have a lot to do. And little by little, we can forge the peaceful future we want.

After exchanging some more words, Jerome ended the call.

"Set it right with your brother, Rod. He is not someone who is very expressive of his feelings, but he is the most emotional one." Gregory told Roderick after silently contemplating for a while. Roderick nodded.

Roderick knew he has to talk to Talia too. When everything was good between the two families, he had to ruin it! He could only sigh.

---

"I’m sorry for-"

"No you’re not, Fred. You laughed at me when my grandpa lectured me!" Talia interjected Arthur who then started to chuckle. He really thought that she’d be feeling down with everything happened in his home, but it seems like she really isn’t dwelling on it - which is better.

"That was the worst lecture I’ve ever received from him..." Arthur wrapped his arm around Talia’s neck and kissed her cheek. "I don’t understand why you kept everything from him though."

"You don’t?" Talia looked at him accusingly and Arthur grinned and kissed her lips .

Of course he knew! She wants to not cause anymore setbacks between the two families.

"Where are you following me? I want to take a bath to relax... Off you go, peasant!" Talia pushed the guy who was stepping inside the bathroom with her. He protested for a while, but seeing Mrs.Grey with a strict look, he slowly retracted.

Talia sitting in the tub filled with soothing bath salts, still couldn’t relax. with a glass of wine in her hand, her mind was worrying about what might happen the next day.

"Rosy from the kitchen, was contacted by a reporter who wanted to know your sleeping arrangements among other things. Apparently she didn’t answer him and he still left her his card. Sebastian asked to throw the card away when she reported it to us. I’m appalled by the interests of people like him..." Mrs. Grey started to complain and then felt bad for Talia who has to endure such attempts on breach of her privacy. Thankfully, the staff in the castle are more loyal than those "reporters" assume.

"I find it funny though, Mrs. Grey. I guess some people must be interested to know if I’m sharing a room with Arthur out of the tens of bedrooms in the castle - which I am. But..." Talia contemplated for a moment. " Maybe Rosy from the kitchen SHOULD talk to the reporter," she wriggled her brows and Mrs. Grey smiled understanding what Talia meant.

" Don’t look for him and let him come back. They usually pay a hefty sum depending on the story they get. But we have to be careful using this method though." Talia then explained how it should be handled and Mrs. Grey happily agreed. She was more than happy to use the money to pay for the entertainment centre for the staff themselves, rather than from the Castle finances.

Talia closed her eyes and quietly soaked herself in the warm water. They could use this to establish that Arthur and her still have no romantic relationship. If everything doesn’t go as she wishes with Lord Lockhart’s announcement, Fred would still have a way to back off. She knew he won’t back-off, but it is better to give him some leeway in case he changes his mind. She still thought he is wasted on her.

After soaking for some time, she changed and got to the bedroom and saw Arthur staring at Cyrus’ Journal.

Arthur was assailed with the scent of a mixture of lavender and looked up. In a pale pink silk slip, Talia was walking towards him and although she seemed to hide it, he could see she was still stressed.

Saying nothing, he picked her up and placed her on the bed. He had a fear; a fear so crippling that turns his blood cold - her running away. She did it once and he didn’t want that to happen again.

"Here," he offered her a plate and she with a smile got the big piece of chocolate cake and started gobbling it up. "Is it tasting slightly bitter?" she looked at him and found his expression weird.

"It can’t be.." he said, his eyebrows knitted. His jaws were clenched.

"Here, try... " she offered him a piece, but then she didn’t want to waste even a tiny bit of the cake. "It’s fine. It’s tasty," she finished the entire plate.

Arthur got the plate and watched her going to brush her teeth with a skip in her steps. He sent the mortar and pestle he used to grind the sleeping pill and the plate back to the kitchen and fluffed thr pillow for her.

I’m sorry, my love. I just wanted you to sleep better. When you wake up, I hope everything had turned out well. Even if it didn’t, don’t fret. I’ll be there with you and will protect you with my last breath. No one can touch even the tip of your hair.

As he expected, she slept soundly as he embraced her. He knew if she’s awake, she’d want to be in the hall where the announcement is made and he didn’t want that. He didn’t want to feed that vultures who call themselves ’reporters’ who’d exploit her emotions.

---

Talia, who was in deep sleep, suddenly found herself standing by the creek. The sky was bright blue, and the warm summer sun made the surface of the creek glow in a golden shade.

She heard the sound of the giggles of a little boy and walked on that direction. In a distance she saw a family of three, on a picnic blanket. The little boy who was trotting along the grass trying to catch a butterfly and the parents were watching him with glee and sharing food.

I know who they are... Mum? Dad? Is that boy my brother then?

They are alive! They are alive!

Talia felt her heart beat racing. With a wide grin, she screamed "Mum! Mummy!", and ran to the family, but no master how much she screamed they couldn’t hear her and no matter how fast she ran, she couldn’t catch them.

"Mummy! Daddy!" she cried, her tears dripped on the grass below. "Please... Look at me..."

"They can’t see you," the voice so familiar that was gentle as a smooth chocolate came from behind her. The voice that used to be her comfort and the ckvie that had turned to be her nightmare for the past ten years.

The sun went away and got replaced by moody clouds. The temperature dropped and the grass was replaced by snow. As she turned around, everything looked exactly as the day of her sixteenth birthday.

"Cyrus?" her voice trembled seeing the figure, now not so tall as he used to be.

"My Princess! You’ve grown up beautifully..." he said and Talia’s heart filled with various emotions. She tried to let it out, but she couldn’t speak. Her heart felt like it was stuffed and she found it hard to breath as she stood frozen.

"And you’ve achieved a lot. I’m so proud!" he had his usual warm smile making his eyes narrow.

Then as if he was hearing something, his ears perked up and his eyes looked at the distance. Talia turned back at the direction Cyrus was looking and saw a podium and Lord Lockhart was standing in it speaking in the microphone.

The announcement!

As she tried to listen, she heard a gentle chuckle and a hand placed on her shoulder. With the touch of the warm hand, the weather warmed up.

"I’ve watched you over, Princess Talia. And it is time for me to rest, finally." he said, his blue eyes that looked grey mimicking the sky, gradually returned to it’s usual radiance as the sky cleared.

"Cyrus..." Talia tried to hold his shoulder but her hands passed through. "Don’t go. Tell me why... Why was I the one to kill you?"

"Don’t cry, my lovely Princess. It’s over now," Cyrus wiped the tear off her cheek. "Because only you are allowed to... Because only you cared for me for who I truly am... Because you’re my Princess and I’m your Knight... It’s okay, only you have the right to... Be happy, my Princess and fare well."

"Cyrus! Wait..!"

Talia woke up screaming. She looked around and the entire room was empty. With all the curtains closed, only a little light entered the room and she couldn’t figure out the time.

She checked the time and it was quarter past eleven in the morning. She ran and switched on the television and the conference was still going on.

"... There was no residual gunpowder in Princess Talia’s hands. The shot was made by a hitman hired by Cooper...."

Lord Lockhart was answering a reporter.

WHAT!