The door to the bathroom stall slams against the tile wall as Eleanor drops to her knees. She doesn't have time to remove the hair from her face as she vomits the little amount of content in her stomach. Droplets of sweat form on her forehead. The confined space is slowly revolving before her eyes.
How could this have happened?
What did she just do?!
"Eleanor?!"
Her mother calls for her down the hall. Helena hurriedly rushes in to the bathroom before locking the door so it would only leave the two of them in the lounge.
Careful to keep her balance, her knees wobbling, Eleanor slowly elevates to her feet. A sweaty palm glides across the stall door before unlocking the lever. Helena instantaneously swings the door open. Her eyes are sympathetic to the scene before her.
"This.. this wasn't supposed to happen," Eleanor whispers in somber defeat. It was an unspoken agreement between the two women.
It was only moments since the Royal Wedding had come to a close. Willow had defied the entire family posing as a participant in the coup. She had promised to expose King Robert for who he really was.
A lying, manipulative, heartless tyrant.
How could she be so naive as to trust the innocent facade that Willow put on all of these years? If it wasn't for her Willow would have never been in on the plan and Robert would currently be detained and stripped of all titles.
Instead, Wilhelmina Moreno.. rather, Wilhelmina Henstridge staunchly enabled and guaranteed a lifetime of Robert's reign of terror. Plus, she landed herself the perfect position to be by his side along for the long run.
His bride.
Queen Wilhelmina Henstridge.
Eleanor stares at the ceiling in an attempt to clear her vision which was currently flooded by tears. Helena dampens a wash cloth to help clean her face and hair that had just been soiled. She offers a mint from her clutch before retrieving her makeup bag. Eleanor accepts the mint while her mother powders her face and touches up her lipstick.
"There you are," Helena slowly speaks closely watching her. "All better. No one will notice a thing."
"All better?!" Eleanor snaps speaking louder than intended. "I don't know if you've noticed mother, but that pathetic excuse of a man still stands in power only now alongside an equally maniacal Queen. All she ever wanted was the title. How could I have been so stupid to trust her?!"
Helena's eyes widen motioning her hands to lower her voice. A sudden bang on the bathroom door startles them.
Another loud bang.
"Oh, bug off, would you? There's someone sick in here. I assure you there are plenty of other restrooms in this goddamn place," Helena seethes simutaneously smoothing her daughters hair. Her eyes turn back to her. "We are still in the midst of the aftermath, we have to keep it togeth-"
"Len?" Jasper's concerned voice is prominent on the other side of the door. With a relieved smile and a gleam in her eye Helena takes a few steps back unlocking the door for him. If there was anyone that could take care of the Princess more than she, it was Jasper Frost.
He sloppily stumbles into the lounge quite inelegantly before halting in place. He casually presses his tie down and flattens his hair. His attempt at trying to act calm and collected was failing. His bright blue eyes do a quick examination of the women before him.
"Is she okay?" he asks Helena although his eyes are dead set on the Princess.
"She'll be just fine," Helena delicately reassures, trying to keep the issue at hand as calm as possible.
"Did she get sick?"
"She," Eleanor aggressively interjects opening up her purse. "Is right here and can answer her own god damn questions."
Jasper and Helena's eyebrows raise at her uncharacteristic hostile behavior. The Princess' hands fumble opening up a pack of cigarettes. Placing one in her mouth she makes a bolt for the door.
"Besides, I already managed to screw up the future of the whole monarchy anyway." She passes the both of them without taking a glance. "I think I can handle myself."
The lounge door slams shut leaving the two speechless for a moment.
"Go after her," Helena instructs. "We don't know what's going to happen, but one thing is for certain. We must continue as a united front."
Jasper does a quick nod in agreement before opening the lounge door for her. Helena smooths the sides of her dress while taking a deep inhale before strutting forward in her normal fashion.
Jasper is swarmed by an army of guests who were now standing and mingling in the chapel. He can barely see an inch before his face, nonetheless where the hell Eleanor may have stormed off to. Finally connecting eyes with a familiar face, Jasper makes his way over to Liam.
Well aware that they were most likely being watched they keep it to a nonchalant head nod and a forced smile. Liam placates his hand on Jasper's shoulder forcefully gripping it. The uneasy look in the Prince's eyes is more than enough to communicate he felt just the way Jasper did in the moment.
Anxious would be a huge understatement. It was more so like they were waiting on their pending death sentence. It was pretty much a miracle that the church hadn't been invaded by MI5 by now.
"I have to find Kathryn," Liam mouths to him. Being that both men were on a mission to find their significant other's, Jasper tilts his head toward an exit.
"Come with me."
They speed walk at an accelerated rate attempting to maintain a reasonable pace to onlookers. Neither of them say a word. Aimlessly roaming for a few minutes, Jasper tries to dial her on her cell. Apparently it had been turned off.
They approach a towering cobblestone wall taking a sharp right turn behind it. The discover a covered area surrounded by shrubbery and a large fountain producing a soothing trickle.
Luckily, they are greeted by Eleanor sitting alone on a bench.
"Len," they say at the same time. She lethargically raises her head before resting her chin on the palm of her hand. A cigarette rests between her fingers as a cyclone of smoke plummets into the air. Considering the circumstances she still looked pulled together. Her makeup was in place and her tiara still rest effortlessly in her long wavy hair.
"I ruined everything," she mumbles carelessly taking a drag. Jasper pauses as her brother takes a seat next to her. He throws a reassuring arm around her pulling her in close.
"She had me fooled too, you know," Liam replies somberly staring at the ground. "Hell, she even fooled mum. Imagine what a number this is doing to her ego right about now."
A hint of a smile traces across Eleanor's lips as she leans her head on his shoulder.
"If-if I had never told you, you wouldn't have to carry this burden," Jasper chimes in. Usually the mentally strongest of the bunch, he can't help but let his guard down. The level of guilt was all consuming. "If anything this is my fault Eleanor."
"No it's not," Liam says firmly. "The only one who should be claiming responsibility right now is Willow." He stands to his feet as Jasper takes his spot. He plants a soft kiss on the side of her head as the young Prince paces back and forth before them.
"What's happened has happened," Liam lectures keeping his focus on the gravel beneath his feet. "If we focus on the past, it'll only set us back further. Either Robert has no knowledge of the coup-"
Jasper involuntarily lets out a 'you've got to be shitting me' chuckle.
"Or," Liam continues shooting him a quick glare. "He knows damn well and probably has this whole time. Whatever the reasoning is, we aren't sitting in prison right now and that's nothing short of a god damn miracle." He pauses for a moment before demanding eye contact from them.
What he was about to say next was the most fundamental statement that their family undoubtedly must abide to.
"We may not be in prison, but we are not safe. We must brace for impact, but most importantly: we must stick together."
"He's right," Eleanor states standing to her feet while crossing her arms. "We should go back inside and find mum." Jasper joins her side putting his hand on the small of her back. "Where the hell is that idiot of an uncle of ours?"
"He walked out in the middle of the ceremony. Something or someone caught his attention," Jasper confidently answers.
"I'll go find him." Liam gives a nod before turning on his feet. "You two hold down the fort."
Jasper takes Eleanor's hand leading them back toward the cathedral.
"I'm sorry for being a bit of a.. bitch earlier," she says coyly giving him puppy dog eyes. He reflexively rolls his eyes with a smirk.
"That? Oh that was nothing," he teases her.
They eventually make their way up a slight hill as Eleanor's pace begins to slow down. There's an uneasy silence between the two of them. He can feel her warm clammy hand slipping between his fingers. His eyes dart to the side silently examining her.
"Ah, there you two are," Helena greets them with a counterfeit grin on her face. She stands rigid with her hands clasped together. "And where's my son?"
Eleanor's mouth opens but nothing comes out. She blinks repeatedly as if trying to gain focus. The walk up the hill had officially worn her out. The stress from the evenings events left her thoroughly drained and queasy. This was not the time to be coming down with the flu.
"Liam's looking for Cyrus," Jasper bluntly answers, his eyes steadfast on the Princess.
"Are you alright Dear?" her mother asks the daunting question for him.
Eleanor's grip on Jasper's hand loosens as she gradually nods her head. But she'd be lying if she said she felt in tip top shape. An all encompassing wave of exhaustion consumes her. In the moment she didn't care about Robert, Willow, or anything related to the loathsome Royal Wedding.
She simply needed rest.
"I'm taking her home," Jasper adamantly states making the decision for her. He brings her in closer so she could lean on him.
"I'll let the others know," Helena replies with a concerned look in her eye. "You keep me updated Mr. Frost."
"I'm fine mum," Eleanor stubbornly replies. However she didn't have a say in the matter as her boyfriend firmly grasps on to her waist turning her body the other direction. He leads her to the sidewalk to call a car for them.
While fixated on closely watching her, Jasper doesn't notice Liam sprinting toward them. He's absolutely frantic. The blonde aggressively combs his hair back with his fingers, his eyes wild.
"What is it?" Jasper inquires, unsure if he could take on yet another issue.
Liam bends his knees resting his hands on them. He's having trouble catching his breath.
"They took Kathryn."