บท 2: Reward For Wickedness

Maxine sat down on her bed, her head buried in deep thought. Her mind replayed the events of about two weeks ago.

The father of the man she was set to marry, King Louis, despised her due to her mother, but he still wanted her to follow in her mother's footsteps. Back at the palace, she had been summoned to the King's hall. When she arrived, King Louis had his back to her, staring at his throne. But when their eyes met, he smiled and walked toward her.

Before Maxine could greet him, he interrupted, "And here you are, Lady Haverston."

"Your Majesty, is there a reason I was summo—"

SLAP!

The next thing Maxine knew was the collision of the king's hand with her cheek, making her cheek burn rapidly. The hall seemed to spin around her as she struggled to maintain her balance. Her vision captured the guards standing beside the King, who appeared to be dancing along with the sudden wind that filled the hall, as they laughed, mocking her.

If only he weren't the King, Maxine knew what she would have done by now. However, she kept the abuse a secret because of the secret she shared with the King himself. She would do anything to prevent it from getting exposed to his son, her childhood sweetheart, who would become her husband the next day. She had to endure it.

"Young Lady Haverston!"

Maxine heard a loud call from none other than her stepmother. She had been sitting on her bed, sorting out the names of the sick people who had received complete treatment. She had no idea when she had drifted into thoughts about what happened back at the palace. Her childhood friend was someone she wished to marry, but his father was her very enemy.

She groaned and walked toward her stepmother, who had already opened her door without permission. She had lost count of how many times she had told her not to barge into her chamber.

Now, she stood in the middle of her chamber, one of the rooms where she kept her pots of medicines, and looked at the woman in front of her. "I am here, Mother."

She knew something was up, as her stepmother only referred to her by her status when she was extremely excited. She often got tired of reminding her that she wasn't called by that title by others. She was 'Lady Healer Haverston,' for Christ's sake, and she would no longer bear that title in less than twenty-four hours. She would soon be called Crown Princess Maxine of Beddington. That thought only made her cheeks flush red.

"Right, angel," her stepmother purred. She cleared her throat before bringing out a small box from behind her. Maxine had been wondering what her stepmother was up to when she hid something behind her.

Her stepmother, Lady Mary Haverston, opened the sparkling silver box slowly. Maxine's eyes met a complete set of jewelry made of sheer gold. Although Maxine was used to seeing gold jewelry, for some reason, these gold pieces looked majestically designed and different from any she had ever seen. Suddenly, she wished she could have it grace her neck at that instant.

"Young Lady Haverston," her stepmother said, bringing Maxine out of her reverie. She smiled from ear to ear as her eyes never left the jewelry box. "This was sent from the palace by Prince Maverick. Look at it; it is said to be crafted by none other than the great goldsmith from Ashbourne Dukedom."

Before her stepmother could continue praising the jewelry, Maxine reached out to take it. However, with a look of disgust on her stepmother's face, it seemed that Lady Haverston wasn't going to leave it with her.

Maxine was happy that it was sent by Prince Maverick, her childhood sweetheart who would be her husband the next day. She was so excited that she hadn't slept well in days. All her time had been spent writing missives instead of making herbs for the sick people waiting in her abode.

Maxine replied, "You have not stopped talking about Ashbourne Dukedom. That place does not exist, Mother. A place filled with luxuries, tall walls made of gold binding the borders, where vampires roam the night, and humans fear to venture out even before dusk? It doesn't exist."

"Oh, kid yourself, child. It does, and it is the finest place to ever be."

How could a place where humans hardly survived be the finest place to ever be?

Maxine rolled her eyes. "All lies. I find it hard to believe how many people in this kingdom sometimes have their heads in the clouds. They just can't differentiate between books and reality."

Before her stepmother could respond to her opinion, Maxine cleared her throat, and a cheeky smile appeared on her face. "Now, let me have it, Mother, since it's from the prince."

However, what Maxine heard was something she could never believe, even if she were on her deathbed. "Maxi, have you no conscience at all?"

"Huh? What do you mean, Mother?"

"Prince Maverick brings you all kinds of gifts every week, and now that he brings me one for the very first time, you refuse to let me have it?"

Maxine looked at her stepmother, bewildered and frustrated. How dare he bring her such a gorgeous gift when he had not given her anything like it before? She looked at the box and recalled the words he said the last time they spoke.

Fifteen days ago, she had a tea party with Prince Maverick at the palace, alongside invited princes, princesses, young lords, and young ladies. At the end of the tea party, when they each presented her with expensive gifts, Prince Maverick had denied them, saying, "I am very sure my woman is not swayed by expensive gifts. She has received more than enough from the families of those she has healed."

Recalling that moment, her cheeks burned, and she could only yell in her mind, 'Maverick, you scoundrel!'

She asked herself, 'Don't tell me that by expressing my displeasure over his rash decision, he has refused to give me any expensive—'

"My beautiful daughter, now that you acknowledge the beauty of this precious gift, I would like to—"

Before her stepmother could complete her words, Maxine found herself bursting out in anger as she took the box from her. With no words and no further glances, she walked out of her room, a proud smile on her face.

She had entered her room looking sad and devastated, and it was almost unbelievable that she would walk out with a completely different expression.

As she walked out of the room, her stepmother, Lady Haverston, clenched her jaw as she looked at her plain fingers that had once been adorned with the jewelry box. "That stupid child! I thought that by being nice to her, she would at least forgive me and shower me with care once she becomes the queen."

As anger raged inside her, her eyes fell upon a pot on a wooden desk nearby. Seeing it as something that could ease her pain, Lady Haverston picked up the pot, which was extremely cold, and then, with enough strength, she threw it away, causing its contents to spill all over the marbled floor.

However, as the liquid splashed, a drop landed in her eyes. Seeing the mess she had made, she grimaced. "Oh... a beautiful mistake. I am very sure this is the potion King Louis requested for her to bring when she comes to the palace."

She clapped her hands, and a devilish smile appeared on her face. "I would love to see how King Louis agrees to the marriage if the Queen cannot be treated within a limited amount of time."

Excited, Lady Haverston continued, "And then, my daughter can get married to the prince in her place!"

It was known that if there was an arranged marriage between a man and a woman and for personal reasons, the man refused to proceed with the marriage, he would have to marry the woman's sibling, or else he would have to give many properties to the woman's family.

Maxine's stepmother looked at the mess she had caused once more and turned around to leave Maxine's chamber. "I wonder why I never thought of this before."

However, to her surprise, she saw Maxine, with her wavy ebony hair, staring at her with hatred while still holding the box that was meant for her.

Maxine, who had planned to hide the box somewhere safe to prevent it from being stolen by the chickens in the house, was annoyed to see what had happened when she decided to retrieve something she had forgotten from her chamber.

Her stepmother, who had always been wicked, looked at her with eyes that were slightly turning red.

No, her stepmother wasn't a character from a crazy tale. She was very real.

"Mother, what have you done?"

"Oh, Maxine, do I need to wash your eyes with spring water? Of course, I ended up mistakenly pouring away the pot labeled 'queen.'"

However, Maxine walked toward her stepmother and stopped. The left side of her lips immediately raised as she said, "I think you are the one who needs your eyes cleaned. And that's because that pot isn't for the queen. Since when did you forget that I gave your daughter a nickname because you've always shown us that you want her to be queen?"

Still not understanding what Maxine meant, Lady Haverston rubbed her eyes with her finger before asking, "What do you mean? Don't you say the pot is filled with the herb your father told you to make for my daughter?"

"To disappoint you, yes it is. And before you ask, no, I'm not making another one today, nor tomorrow, nor in a fortnight or after."

Lady Haverston remained stiff and suddenly dropped to her knees, regardless of her age. "Forgive me, my daughter. You have to help your sister. She needs to be healed completely, or those boils will appear anytime soon."

Maxine shook her head before finally saying, "Graceful hell, my eyes aren't heavy enough to watch you kneel. Please stand up; I won't help you stand, after all."

Just as Maxine uttered those words, Lady Haverston felt her eyes itching intensely. Suddenly, all she could see was a blank page. "What is happening to my eyes?"

"You must have gotten a drop in your eyes, Mother," Maxine replied. She added, "Fear not; you will only be blind for a fortnight. After that, your vision shall be cleared," before majestically walking out of her sight.