Milady kept pacing back and forth near her carriage, trying to calm her anxious mind down. She'd been waiting for him like that for an hour already, but there was no sign of her husband. Milady was nervous. She knew very well that everything was up to Athos. Even if he didn't come, she could do nothing against it and it angered her. Milady de Winter liked to rule her own life, her own fate, but when it came to Athos, her hands got tied automatically. He was the only one she couldn't touch, couldn't buy with money, couldn't get forcefully. Instead, he was free and could do as he pleased. But what about her? Did he still have feelings for her? Whatever they were, she knew from his earlier actions that the answer was yes. She just found it difficult to reach beyond the walls of his heart to see if there was any place left for a whore, a thief and a murderer. Athos' love for her never prevented him from choosing his duty over his own happiness and she was afraid this time he would do the same. Milady felt her heart clutching painfully in her chest at the thought of never seeing him again. Despite all the hatred and anger in her heart, the temptation to touch him, kiss him or hold him and never let go was always there. She couldn't help but melt at the memory of his small heart-melting smiles, his twinkling eyes shining with love and adoration just for her and only her. Milady was ready to give half of her life to get him back. She could gladly endure any kind of suffering to see him smiling or to hear his laughter. Milady de Winter, the almighty and famous assassin in France, who could kill without giving a damn to her actions, suddenly felt her knees going weak as she understood he wouldn't come.
Milady was about to enter the carriage, when she heard someone approaching. Her heart skipped a beat as she waited for the stranger to show up. Her bright smile faded immediately as she realized it wasn't Athos, but several red guards riding their horses towards her. Sighing quietly, she opened the carriage door, but was stopped by a rough hand on her arm.
"In the name of the king you are arrested!" – She heard one of the red guards talking to her, but her mind was too foggy to understand a thing. So this was the end. She had to die without seeing the love of her life one last time. Without a goodbye kiss, without a promise of meeting someday in a better place than this cruel world both of them were stuck in. It drove her insane.
"You need to come with us". – The man spoke again, trying to lead her away.
Milady understood what was coming and started struggling violently to free herself. The men tried to stop her, but when her actions got out of hand, one of the men slapped her hard. It didn't work, so this time she earned a forceful punch in her face, ending up with bloodied nose and lips. She tried to attack them again, but failed miserably. The men started fighting with her. One of them even grazed her arm with a small knife, just to scare her. Milady hissed as the pain spread through her body, blood dripping from her wound, spilling on her pale glove and wetting the ground. After a lot of struggling, she gave up, deciding it was better than getting killed by them.
"The king wishes to see you." – The man removed her gloves, throwing them on the ground carelessly, before leading her away.
Milady knew, the king had teeth on her. Since the day she "betrayed" him, Louis refused to accept her "humble and heartfelt apology." He didn't even look at her, waving his hand in dismissive gesture, forcing her to leave the palace. Instinctively she knew she wouldn't escape only with this loss. She saw something in the king's eyes and didn't like the way they shone with mischief. However, she decided to let it slide, as she was too powerless against him.
As they entered the palace, Milady felt everyone's eyes on her. For the first time in her life, she hated it. Even in her early childhood, she felt proud of her beauty and couldn't help but smirk every time she caught people's eyes staring at her beautiful figure, their mouths turning into an "O" shape. Milady would smile and continue her way through the dirty streets of Paris. Despite being who she was, people's admiration made her feel alive. That small gesture reminded her she was human like them. At such times, she wasn't a poor thief, but a beautiful child with whole life ahead. If others' reactions made her smirk, at her husband's praising, her heart always did quick flip-flops. She knew, his mesmerized look wasn't only a physical want, but a great love mixed with adoration. Milady could hardly remember a man, who didn't see her as a whore, whose eyes didn't fix on her body, who wasn't ready to pay any price for a single night with her. She felt embarrassed as she felt Athos' eyes boring straight into hers instead of focusing on her figure. At that time, she knew he was the one. She felt a deep connection with him, but it didn't bother her a bit. On the contrary, she liked it. Although it was unfamiliar for her, she found herself getting along with it smoothly. Accepting the sudden positive changes in her life.
She shook her thoughts away when she found herself in Louis's study room. Judging by the twisted lips, narrowed eyes and clutched fists at his sides, the king was in a bad mood.
"Ah, my dear Milady de Winter, how good to see you. I was waiting for you to show up and express your "heartfelt" apology for 100th time. Why didn't you come? It's not good to forget old friends, don't you think?" – His voice proved he was up to something horrible.
"I didn't want to disturb you, sire. Ever since you made it clear, my services are no longer required, I decided to move on and stop ruining your marital life."
"I find it hard to believe a woman like you is able to move on." – Said Louis harshly.
Milady fixed her eyes on him, clearly asking the meaning of the words.
"Why are you so surprised? Did you really think I wouldn't find out about your whole dirty past? You were the cardinal's spy, a famous assassin and a dirty whore. How can you justify your actions?"
Milady desperately wanted to say something, to defend herself and escape death once again. However, she stopped herself from uttering a word. Her life was done. She had nothing left to lose and nothing left to gain. She lost her position as Louis's mistress, she lost her husband and ended up penniless. Milady could return to Sarazin and continue her old job, but she respected herself enough to dream of something more. She was tired of being a foul creature, who cheated and killed without conscience. She wanted more, deserved more, needed more. She wanted to find out who she really was, where she belonged and what was waiting for her in the future. Sadly, this sudden death was a proof that she didn't belong on earth anymore. She had to burn in hell forever, without any hope of mercy. She didn't really care about that. She'd been in hell for all her life, except for those few months with Athos. He was the only good thing in her life, but she lost him, losing her good sides along with it. Now it didn't matter what was going to happen to her. She was fully ready to die as she was already dead without Athos.
"I believe those gentlemen informed you about the upcoming punishment for your actions. All the people dead by your hand demand justice, so I have to hang you to clean my conscience and do my duty."
Milady didn't even flinch at the statement, keeping her eyes firmly on the floor, staring blankly, worrying past about the world around her. Athos would be finally free from her. He would find someone new, much better than the murderer of his only brother, who would fully deserve the love and adoration that once belonged to her. She felt tears stinging her eyes, but blinked hastily, forcing herself to stay strong.
"Don't you have anything to say? Fine, then get her away from my sight!"
Milady moved quietly with the red guards, showing no signs of resistance. She refused to talk even when some women in a small room started undressing her, looking at her with pity during the whole affair.
Athos kept riding his horse with a lighting speed, giving Roger no time to catch his breath. After failing to meet his wife, he was about to go back to the Garrison, when he noticed the bloodied glove on the ground. He recognized it immediately and felt panic growing in his chest. Where was she? What was wrong with her? Was she even alive? Who would try to harm her? Athos knew, she didn't deserve the love he held for her and he had every right to just let her go, but that damn heart of his ached so fiercely that he had no other choice than obeying its wish. His mind focused only on her safety, praying that she was still alive. He had to reach the Garrison as soon as possible, get his men and find his wife. He would kill anyone who dared to abuse his dear Anne.
Just as Athos reached his destination, almost dropping from his horse in haste, he quickly ran up the stairs, barging in Treville's study without even knocking. Treville readied himself for a loud shout and punishment, but stopped himself as he saw his swordsman pale as a sheet, trying to catch his breath.
"Captain, my… My wife…" – Athos choked out.
"What's wrong, Athos?" – He asked, concern clear on his features.
"I went to the crossroads to meet her, but she wasn't there. Just as I decided that she left for England and was about to come back, I noticed this…" – Athos took out the bloodied glove from his pocket, showing it to his captain.
"I am sure she's in danger, captain. We need to save her."
Treville kept looking at the glove wordlessly, obviously considering. He knew, despite the attempts to appear nonchalant, Athos always loved his wife deeply and her death would truly do no good to him. The captain would be damned if he let the swordsman fall into depression once again and lose meaning of life. He felt it was his duty to help Athos. Despite the fact that she deserved every kind of punishment, he couldn't go against the swordsman's wish. If she was all he needed to be happy, Treville would do anything to save her.
"Please." – Athos' broken voice shook his thoughts away.
"Get Aramis, Porthos and D'artagnan now!" – Treville shouting, jumping to his feet. Athos ran outside to call the others.
Once she was ready, a few men took her outside, where a noose was waiting for her. Milady remembered her first execution. The way she wanted to strangle Athos with her own hands for betraying her trust, for not being who he seemed to be at first, for destroying all her hopes of bright future. She wanted to live to get her revenge then, but now she stood calmly, heart growing empty, useless and broken. Athos wouldn't mind if she died. Or even if he did, it would be a brief breakdown. Then he would continue doing his never ending duties that were actually responsible for all the mess in their lives.
As she stood on a high chair, someone put a rope around her neck, but she didn't feel anything. There were thousands of people watching her including the king and the queen. Anne of Austria stood with a deep frown on her face, looking at Louis's former mistress with a mixture of pity and relief. Milady could hardly blame her for it. The queen saw her as a danger, as a concurrent, as an enemy. Any woman would feel the same way in her place.
The brush of rough rope against her throat made her flinch a bit. She could already feel the pressure of it as it dug into her sensitive skin. She felt a pair of hands behind her back and knew someone was about to push her forward. Closing her eyes, she tried to remember all the prayers she had once learned as a child. Her lips started moving quietly, without actually saying a word.
Just as the man readied himself for pushing his victim forward, someone drove a sword right through his heart, forcing him to embrace the cold ground. The others gasped audibly seeing the king's favorite musketeers along with their captain standing there with deadly expressions on their faces.
Milady de Winter's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as she realized it was Athos who killed the man. Their eyes met for a second and the whole world stopped around them. Anne could stare at his handsome face until her last breath and judging by Athos' expression, the feeling was mutual. She grew even more shocked, when he approached her and cut off the rope, helping her down from the chair, hugging her tightly. She followed his lead wordlessly, wondering if it all was real. This could easily be a dream. She would wake up soon alone in a cold bed, longing for her lost happiness. But it was real. He was real. He was trying to save her from death, wanted her back and he… He went against his honor, abandoned his duty to save the love of his life. Once again, Anne was overwhelmed.
"Touch her again and I'll kill you." – Athos' quiet yet dangerous voice filled her ears. Milady let out a breath she had been holding for a long time. It was still unbelievable, but she could accept it as long as he was with her.
"How dare you interfere in someone's execution!" – The king yelled furiously, approaching the swordsman. Athos didn't even move a muscle seeing Louis's angry face. He was ready to fight against any man who dared to abuse his wife.
"She isn't someone she is my wife!" – He yelled back, suddenly forgetting who he was talking to.
"You must uphold the law!" – Louis didn't give up.
"To hell with the law!" – Athos' angry growl rang in her ears. Turning her head in astonishment, she met his love filled gaze, melting in those sky blue eyes of his.
Everyone gasped audibly, but Athos cared past about them. The only person who existed in his eyes was his wife, who stood there with shocked expression.
"Treville, what's the meaning of this?" – The queen turned to the captain.
"My humble apologies, your majesty, but we can't allow you to kill Milady de Winter. She's Athos' wife and they love each other deeply." – Treville answered, begging the queen to do something with his eyes.
"If your majesty expresses his generosity and cancels her execution, we give you a word that she will never bother you or anyone ever again." – He added after a few seconds of silence.
"Please, your majesty." – Athos' desperate voice sent shivers through Milady's spine. She couldn't believe he was risking everything for her safety.
"Do you even know what you are asking for?!" – The king yelled.
"Louis…" – The queen went to her husband and took him aside for a few minutes. When they finished talking, the king approached Athos and Milady with a frown and said:
"Fine, I'll not hang her. However, you must promise me she will cause no harm to the country."
"You have my word, your majesty." – Athos bowed respectfully.
"All right, then. You all are dismissed." – The king waved his hand carelessly. Everybody was disappointed for not being able to watch another death, but they could do nothing against it.
After thanking his captain and friends, Athos went to his wife and kissed her passionately.
"Thank god you are alive." – He whispered between kisses, making her smile through her tears.
"I thought you would abandon me again." – She whispered, cupping his face.
"Never again, my love. I promise, I'll always be with you."
"I expect no less." – She said, kissing him again.
At that time, she felt truly alive.
A.N. I desperately wanted to hear those words from Athos' mouth for Milady's sake so I wrote a quick thing to calm my mind down. Hope you like it and don't forget to leave reviews :)