A Demon's Wrath (3 page)

She changed the subject to ease her
daughter’s mind. “Aye, I am tired. Pass me some tea, darling.”

Cecelia poured her mother a cup of tea and
helped her as she drank the warm, dark liquid. After her mother had
finished, she helped her settle back in bed. The countess was just
closing her eyes when Cecelia broke the silence.

“I’ve been to see the king,” she began.

Margaret reached for Cecelia’s hand. “Do not
bother him. He has enough on his mind already. The war—”

“Mother, please stop. Where have you heard
of such?”

“The maid and the healer.” Margaret opened
her eyes just a little to look at her daughter.

“They gossip too much. But you are
important, too. The poison… the healer said it has reached your
heart. I’m so afraid.”

“Perhaps it is time for me to go.”

“Please, Mother, do not speak of such.”
Cecelia shook her head as tears started to brew in her eyes.

“We are only mortal, here to live in this
world for a short time and then be taken away again. Even demons,
they too will die someday—”

“Please do not speak of them. Not the
demons. They have caused us enough pain,” Cecelia said, her heart
raging with hatred at the mere mention of them.

“Your father was a brave man, Celia. He
stood up to them. He was a great lord and a great warrior.”

“I am proud of him,” Cecelia said, touching
her mother’s hand to her cheek again.

The countess sighed.

“The Pearl of Life—” Cecelia brought up the
subject.

“Do not speak of it, Celia. Let fate take
its course.” When Margaret looked at her daughter, there was a
command in her brown eyes that Cecelia found hard to disobey. She
was a good daughter, and she must do as she was told. So she
dropped the subject. She didn’t want her mother to think too much,
for the mere act of thinking itself, the healer had told her, would
also increase the poison’s power.

“I will let you rest now,” she said.

After helping her mother comfortably settle
in bed, she left.

In her own bedchamber, Cecelia was deep in
thought, planning what would be the best course of action to save
her mother’s life. There must be a way to get the Pearl of Life.
Her previous solution was to plead with the king for his help, but
now that wasn’t possible. Another idea that came to her mind was to
hire a well-trained soldier to retrieve the item. But who would
risk their life to go into the Demon Kingdom? There were too many
unknown creatures along the dangerous journey already and many
unknown obstacles they must overcome in order to reach the kingdom
itself. The very word demon would send people shaking with fear. A
demon could suck the blood out of a man and then rip his body to a
thousand pieces.

There is no hope for her now.

Cecelia threw herself on her bed, helpless.
She lay there for how long she did not know, deep in thought. She
was also beginning to get a bad headache.

“Celia?”

She lifted her head and saw her brother at
the door. She quickly sat up as her brother walked into the room.
She saw his left boot was ripped at the heel, his breeches and coat
were smudged with dirt, as was his young, handsome face, and his
dark hair was tousled.

“How was the hunt?” she asked, not surprised
at all at the fact that her brother looked like he’d been beaten
severely. His skin was so pale that it worried her.

Brian Van Zandt came to sit beside her on
the large, four-poster bed. She frowned when she saw his dark,
scowled face. She knew he must have been silently raging inside.
She knew he felt trapped and worthless. He craved to do much, much
more. Her heart ached for him.

“They left you in the forest alone
again?”

Brian frowned fiercely and then reluctantly
nodded.

“They will get it back one day, Brian. You
will see,” she said, wiping the dirt from his cheek.

“How is Mother?”

She didn’t know whether to tell him the
truth of their mother’s condition or not. She knew if she lied to
him, it wouldn’t sit well with her.

“She is getting worse, Brian.”

“Why isn’t the king sending his soldiers to
fetch the Pearl of Life?” Brian snapped angrily.

“It is too dangerous. The journey is long
and there are many unknown creatures. There are also the demons,”
Cecelia explained.

“If only I were healthier, then I would go
myself and fetch it,” Brian said, nodding his head and squaring his
jaw Cecelia had seen their father do so many times before. She
heard the bravery in his seventeen-year-old voice. “If only… if
only I were not so sickly. This body of mine.”

He was referring to his chronic condition
that had caused him much pain during the nights. Ever since the
sickness had struck two and a half years ago, a sickness no one
knew the name nor had ever heard of, he had been coughing and his
whole body aching severely. He was always tired and so very pale.
Most of the time, he couldn’t breathe easily. The healer said
strenuous exertion could kill him, which she feared might just
happen if he continued to burn himself out just to prove to those
other youths that he was capable of standing on his own two feet,
that he wasn’t just a pampered young lord.

Looking at him now, Cecelia thought how
different he was years ago when they’d been back at Rosevalley
Island. The younger Brian had always been so outgoing and active.
He had love exploring and riding and practicing his smallsword
against her, sharpening his skills. If it weren’t for the
infection, he would have grown to be a fine young man, strong and
powerful. A young man who could one day take back Rosevalley
Island. But fate had dealt them a dreadful blow. Now he could do
naught of those things he loved, those things that would make him
stronger, for in doing so, it could kill him.

“And if only I were born a boy,” Cecelia
said absentmindedly, nodding her head.

“Aye, then you could become a soldier and
you could go to the Demon Kingdom and fetch the Pearl of Life.”

“You must not forget I must first fight the
demon king, for the Pearl of Life belongs to him.”

“Aye,” the youth said, nodding. “I trust you
would beat him. After all, you are very good with the smallsword. I
know your fencing is unparalleled, but those teachers and lords,
they don’t know you know how to fence, let alone lift a
smallsword.”

“The demon king is a very powerful warrior,
Brian. How could I defeat him? I am only a woman with a woman’s
strength.”

Brian eyed her. The innocent look in his
brown eyes nearly made Cecelia forget everything, and she wished
she were once again a child. Then she would have no worries. But
that is not to be.

“Father was huge, but Mother was still able
to defeat him,” he said, thinking about those times long ago when
their father had surrendered to their mother when they’d been
fighting with words.

Cecelia widened her eyes. “They are
different, Brian. The demon king is a demon. He is not a man.”

“What is the difference?” Brian asked.
“Surely demons are like humans, too? Surely they look very much
like us?”

Cecelia thought even though Brian was
seventeen, his life had been quite sheltered, as was she, for they
had been exiled here in this northern castle since Rosevalley had
fallen. He didn’t have friends, nor she. They went through life
without much experience of the outside world. Thus, he didn’t know
demons were creatures to fear. He didn’t know they were monsters
that killed without mercy. He didn’t know they were hideous beings
with beastlike bodies and faces resembling wolves. But she knew
because she had seen them.

“Well, for one thing, demons are demons,”
she explained weakly.

“Celia, I just know you’ll defeat this demon
when you meet him,” Brian said. “I will go wash up. I smell very
bad.” He kissed her on the cheek, stood, and then slowly limped out
the door.

Alone, Cecelia turned to look out her window
into the large city below the palace. She closed her eyes and took
a deep breath. She wondered if she were to meet this demon king,
would she be able to defeat him? She doubted it. She would probably
faint on the spot just looking at him. Nay, she would never meet
him. That she was certain of.

THE IDEA CAME TO HER in the middle of the
night. It was so simple, yet why had she not thought of it earlier?
Cecelia was excited. She knew she must save her mother, and all she
had to do was to fetch the Pearl of Life
herself
.

As soon as the idea formed in her head, she
slumped her shoulders. The journey, as the king had told her, was
fraught with danger and unknown creatures. Then there were the
demons themselves to deal with. How was she ever going to get to
the Demon Kingdom?

Nay, she must not think too much. She would
just have to do it no matter what. Her mother’s life was very
important. Without her, Rosevalley would not rise again.

Cecelia drifted off to sleep with the
thought of her beautiful land coming back to life.

She spent the next three days planning and
packing. She didn’t tell anyone, especially not her mother. She
knew the woman would forbid her from acting out her plan.

Finally, it was her last night, and as
usual, she and Brian were having dinner with their mother. The food
was delicious, but Cecelia couldn’t taste anything apart from the
bitterness in her mouth. She supposed it was because of the fear,
the doubt in her own ability that she hid deep in her heart.

“You look pale, darling,” the countess
said.

“Oh.” Cecelia turned to look at her
mother.

“Is something the matter?”

“Nay.” Cecelia lowered her soft-brown
eyes.

“Destiny, my darling, has a way of finding
us.”

Cecelia lifted her face to look at her
mother. The woman had a fatigued paleness about her that made
Cecelia’s heart ache in her chest. “Mother, you are tired. Brian.”
She looked at her brother.

The youth nodded, got up, and kissed
Margaret on the cheek. “Good night, Mother,” he said.

“Good night, darling,” the countess
whispered and touched his cheek. Brian nodded and then left the
room.

“Was the food to your liking?” Cecelia
asked, tucking the sheets around her mother.

Margaret nodded and yawned. Then she closed
her eyes. Cecelia sat and clasped her mother’s hand in hers. She
brought it to her lips and gave it a gentle kiss. “I love you,” she
whispered with her eyes closed.

“Please don’t do it.”

Cecelia darted her eyes to her mother in
surprise. “You knew?”

“I am your mother, Celia. You are so like
your father, so determined and stubborn,” the countess said
tiredly.

“I am his daughter after all.” Cecelia
smiled.

“I know I cannot stop you. But I’m afraid.
What if you are not here when—”

“Hush, Mother, do not speak of such. Milan
the healer will look after you well. I promise I will be back with
the Pearl of Life as soon as I get it.”

“When will you leave?”

“Before the sunrise.”

“How?”

“As a lad. There are travelers leaving the
city. I will go with them, and then—”

“I am worried.”

“I will find a way, Mother. I’ve already
packed. There are gold coins.”

“How will you protect yourself from
thefts?”

“I have father’s smallsword and dagger.”

“And the creatures in the forbidden forest?”
the countess prompted.

“I pray to God for his aid.” She bowed her
head as tears flowed from her eyes.

“My darling, you will die,” the countess
said in anguish.

“Nay, Mother,” Cecelia said, shaking her
head. “I will not die. I will come back with the Pearl of Life… for
you.”

“My life is not worth this dangerous
journey. I am ashamed of myself. I am your mother, yet I bring
danger to your life.”

“Nay, Mother, it is the demons that should
be ashamed of themselves, for they were the ones that attacked our
land and killed Father,” Cecelia said bitterly.

“You have hatred in you against the demons?”
the countess questioned.

“Aye, I despise them.”

“Sometimes, my darling, the ugliest demon
could have the kindest of heart. It is the one with beauty that is
ugly on the inside.”

“You speak in riddles. I do not understand.”
Cecelia looked up to her mother, frowning.

“You will in time.” The countess patted her
daughter’s hand. “Will you look after yourself, my darling?”

“I will.”

“God be with you,” the countess said,
closing her eyes.

Cecelia knew her mother was tired. She
leaned down and kissed her forehead. “I love you.”

Countess Rosevalley smiled with her eyes
still closed.

Cecelia left her mother and went into her
own bedroom. She saw her brother sitting on the sofa near the
hearth, reading the history of Rosevalley Island by Lord Mark Van
Cortlandt, the wizard, died three years ago defending her father
against the demon.

She came to sit beside him and looked over
his shoulder.

“Halfway already?”

“Our island is interesting. I miss our
home.”

“I, too, miss our home,” Cecelia said,
resting her cheek against his. “I remember the rose field in
summer, the wildflowers, the vineyard, and the smells of grapes and
lavender and honeysuckle. I remember our castle, our bedchamber
looking over the vast blue ocean. I remember seeing Father’s grand
ship, the Lady Emerald, sailing into our harbor with goods from
other kingdoms. I remember riding my mare, Snow, all white and so
beautiful and so gentle. I remember many things, and I wonder,
Brian, if we will ever have those things again.”

“Will the king restore Rosevalley for us?”
Brian asked, closing the book.

“I hope so. He has promised.” When she said
that, she knew in her gut that the king would not help them. He was
too busy trying to sort out the war between his kingdom and Virdis
Kingdom to have time to think about anything else, least of all the
building of Rosevalley.