章 8: Anything but normal
Kaoma gasped out loudly then inquired, "my lord, are you alright?"
No answer.
Was he trying to make her pity him or had he bruised his ego when he landed on the floor in such an undignified manner.
Her hand had already flown to her mouth as a reflex.
It was not like he would want to call the servants for help, she would have no choice but to swallow her pride and assist the weak and feeble old man.
"Do not sulk my Lord, let me help you to return to the bed," she said softly.
Still no response.
Now she used those same hands to brace herself so that she too wouldn't fall off the bed in her excitement to check that her husband was alright.
Exasperated she stared down at the drunken lout, other than the initial sound when he fell off the bed there was no additional sounds or movement since.
Naturally, she began to fret, trying to prevent the hysteria that was slowly starting to take over her body.
Instead she pinched herself to make sure this was really not a dream, the pain reminded her that she was alive but making her fear the worst for her husband.
Especially since, body was covered in cold sweat and his chest was not heaving.
That normally downturned mouth was open wide enough to swallow flies and Lord Horace no longer blinked, as his bulging eyes stared affixed to the ceiling.
It was like her worst nightmare came to life, she was stuck in the privacy of the bridal chamber with a dead man.
The normal reaction would be to scream out for help but her circumstances were anything but normal.
Was the foul tempered bastard really dead?
In her heart she certainly did not feel an ounce of sympathy for him, in fact, her emotions were mixed and as fleeting as the wind.
If she had to describe, aside from fear, if she was being truthful Kaoma felt exonerated, free at last, even more than willing to dance on his grave.
The fear came from the fact that even though she was under her own roof, many of Lord Horace's guests and servants were still present.
Would they believe that she had nothing to do with his death, she didn't even want to touch his cold body for fear that it would make her situation worse and somehow incriminate her.
The only thing she could think of was to run straight to her guardians.
Kaoma could really use their wisdom right now, they would protect her and tell her what to do, instinctively she felt the old women placed her well-being above everything else.
She quickly put on her nightdress as it wouldn't do to run naked out of the room and arouse the suspicions of the guards if they managed to spot her leaving the bedroom.
It felt like she was running for hours and not just a few minutes but when she finally reached the sister's shared bedroom, she wasn't surprised to find it locked.
With so many strangers out and about the castle the spinsters didn't think it cost them anything to be too careful.
Occasionally trinkets and valuables were known to go missing when large wedding celebrations were in session, not that the old women were pointing any fingers.
Kaoma knocked on the door while still panting heavily trying to catch her breath.
Lady Hilda opened the door shocked to find her ward standing outside.
The guardian checked to see that no one was around before she swiftly pulled the young miss into her bedroom and closed the door behind her.
Lady Kaoma launched into all that transpired and the moments leading up to Lord Horace's untimely death.
"Slow down child," interrupted Lady Hilda, "you are speaking too fast."
Kaoma took a deep breath to calm her nerves before slowing down and enunciating her words so that the two partially deaf women could hear her without complaint.
"Heaven's help us, it is worse than I imagined," said a frowning Lady Gertrude who surprisingly managed to stay silent during Kaoma's reiteration of events.
The two women huddled in the corner of the bedroom away whispering conspiratorially until they finally reached an agreement before turning to include Kaoma.
"First of all you can't spend the remainder of the night with us," said Lady Hilda as she gently pulled her into a hug before releasing her and nudging her towards the door.
"Buh..bu…but," stammered Kaoma after moving her hands dramatically.
"I know but we need you to stay strong and take command of the situation, the night is not over I'm afraid for you, it is far from it," snapped Lady Gertrude grumpily.
Lady Gertrude didn't mean to sound aggressive but she hated it whenever her sleep was disturbed even though she would not have wanted to be kept in the dark.
Ignorance is bliss her knowing this now made Lady Gertrude an accomplice in this and it didn't sit well with her even though she had secrets of her own.
Even though they believed what Kaoma was saying, Lady Hilda just wanted to check for herself that the old fart was truly dead and not passed out from too much excitement.
Both women put on fluffy robes over their nightgowns and followed as fast they could behind Kaoma to get to her room and assess the situation.
Lady Hilda closed his eyes as his body had already started to set in rigor mortis and his dying facial expression was unnerving and far from cute.
While Lady Gertrude assisted when she drew the coverlet off the bed and covered Lord Horace's body with it giving adage to the old saying out of sight, out of mind.
Before turning towards the door Lady Hilda spoke in earnest, "do not let anyone else in this room before we return."
"Where are you both going?" Kaoma asked out of desperation.
Lady Gertrude chuckled, "isn't it obvious, to find you a replacement groom."
Seeing the shocked look on her ward's face Lady Hilda added hastily, "it is imperative that you get pregnant, hopefully tonight, don't worry about it, all you have to do is ride him like a pony and let nature take its course."
The two women closed the door on Lady Kaoma's incredulous facial expression that spoke volumes.
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