Thank you to all who continue to read "Joseph". A special thanks to Leopardy's Sylvia, for the lovely review.
Kisses
Maria
Rupert seemed distracted by the newspaper, but Clarisse knew him too well not to notice the tension in his shoulders. Determined to wait for her husband to start the conversation, Clarisse turned back to the book she was reading. Rupert looked at her from the corner of his eye, moved in his chair, changed the pages of the paper ... until he gave up.
"Clarisse, I need to ask you something ..." He folded the newspaper and placed it next to the whiskey glass. Clarisse closed the book as well and placed it on her lap, turning completely to Rupert.
"Contrary to what you might think, it was a great relief to me, that Sandra left the palace, but I fear that she will provoke some scandal ..."
"That does not seems to me as a question, Rupert. Where do you want to go with this conversation? " Rupert was silent for a few seconds. Then he got up and went to the living room window.
"Why didn't she let Joseph register the baby? He proved to her that he was the father ... Why did she disappear? This woman almost destroyed Joseph and mine. I saw Joseph this morning and he's broken. "
"Two weeks without a single word, without having the slightest idea where the son will be. I have no words to describe Sandra's attitude. That child, it was the trump she had against you. While there was doubt, she knew you would not risk a scandal. But when Joseph presented the test results to her, she realized she could not continue the blackmail. It is obvious that Joseph is shattered. Have you ever imagined how you would feel if I had taken your children? " Rupert looked at her in silence. He had never been a very emotional father, but he did not want to imagine the horror that Joseph should be living. Then he sat down again and picked up the newspaper.
"Clarisse, I want you to know that since we returned from America, after Philippe's marriage, nothing more has happened between me and Sandra. We…"
"Rupert, please ... I do not want to know. This subject only brought pain to everyone. You can not change the past… " A knock on the door interrupted her.
"Come in." Charlotte opened the door and Rupert and Clarisse turned to her.
"Your Majesties ... I was not sure what to do, but ... There was something, I mean, a person ..." Noticing Charlotte's nervousness, Clarisse got up and walked over to her.
"Charlotte, what's going on? Calm down, please. "
"Your Majesty ..." Charlotte was so nervous, but not worth delaying ... She took another deep breath and, without looking at Rupert, said ...
"Your Majesty, Sandra is in the foyer waiting for Joseph." Clarisse could not hide the irritation. "She's accompanied by two men ... And she's wearing black ..." The irritation gave way to a tightening in Clarisse's chest. Rupert came near Charlotte too.
"Where is Joseph?" Asked the King.
"He's back at the Palace, Your Majesty. I think it should be here at the maximum, in ten minutes. "
"Did she say what she wanted from Joseph? I have a very bad feeling, " said Clarisse. Rupert put an arm around her shoulders and she did not push him away. In a way Clarisse felt that it will be very hard days and don't need not be at war with Rupert.
"What an unpleasant situation. What do you want to do, Clarisse? "
"Sincerely, I do not know…"
"Do you know who the men are, Charlotte?" Rupert asked without leaving Clarisse.
"No, Your Majesty. It's weird, but they actually looks like two bodyguards."
"Oh my God ... Did something happen to little Frederic?" Clarisse said, startled. Nothing made sense. Rupert pulled her to him and kissed her forehead.
"I hope not, Clarisse. It would be devastating for Joseph. Charlotte call the security office and tell Shades to send three or four more men to the foyer. And ask him to go too. If Clarisse's fears come to be truth, I do not know if they will be enough men to stop Joseph from committing same madness. " Clarisse nodded.
"I'll do it right away, Your Majesty." Charlotte said and left.
Clarisse sat down again.
"I'll stay here, Rupert. Joseph is a great friend and I want to be around. "
"Clarisse, I do not know if that will be very wise. I do not want people to think you're giving too much importance to your bodyguard ... "Clarisse turned immediately to him, with a cold look.
"Don't you dare to finish that line, Rupert. Don't even dare. If we analyze the situation well, it will be your fault, first! "
"Mine?" Rupert asked scandalized.
The stress of Sandra's arrival, allied with Rupert's irritation, was making her completely frustrated.
"Yes, Rupert. Your fault! If you had not jumped into her bed, none of this was happening. So please, stop. "
"I understand you, but I will not be waiting for this situation to unfold. I'm going to my room. I do not want you to be upset with me again. "And he left.
Two minutes later, Joseph entered the foyer. Tense, silent. The anger he felt at Sandra was so great that he was afraid to explode. His hands were closed so tightly that he felt his nails dig into the palm of his hands. Joseph immediately noticed the presence of four guards who were not supposed to be there ... In addition, Shades and Charlotte were also at the door to the Queen's office.
"Where is my son?" He asked. Joseph could be a formidable man when he was angry. Sandra barely managed to disguise a slight shudder but the two bodyguards immediately placed themselves between Sandra and Joseph.
"Joseph. How are you? "Sandra asked in a seductive tone.
"Where is my son?" Joseph almost shouted. Clarisse heard him and got up immediately. She wanted to open the door and run to him, but she could not do it. She leaned against the door and opened it slightly so she could hear what they were saying. She did not approve spying but now it was for a good cause. Charlotte saw her and smiled shyly, turning almost immediately to Joseph, not letting anyone notice Clarisse's presence.
"Joseph ... I came personally because I think you'd better know for me ..." It was then that Joseph looked at her ... She was wearing black ... It was as if he had been punched in the chest.
"Where is Frederic? SPEAK! " Shades and Mike moved closer to him. Sandra's bodyguards were inches from Joseph. Sandra pretended a moving voice and put a hand to cover her lips, but her eyes remained without a tear.
"I'm sorry, Joseph ... My boy, my precious son, the light of my life ... He died!" Joseph thought he was going to faint. Suddenly the whole palace began to spin, and the pain in his chest was such that he thought he could not bear it. Clarisse and Charlotte could not contain their tears. Unable to utter a word, Joseph dropped to his knees and at that very moment, Shades was at his side. Clarisse was about to leave the office, but Charlotte stopped her.
"Please do not go, Your Majesty. This woman is pure evil, "Charlotte whispered. Clarisse did not know what to do but opted to wait a few more moments.
Tears streamed down Joseph's pale face as he babbled a few words. Sandra had the unfortunate idea of trying to humiliate Joseph again.
"Stop being ridiculous and get up. What a silly thing ... "
"How?" Joseph asked, still on his knees and without looking at her.
"How what?"
"How did my son die?"
"But what does that matter?" Now Joseph's anger was almost reaching limits he did not even think existed. "It was with any virus. I did not even ask. "And at that moment Joseph completely lost his head. With two very violent blows, he threw down Sandra's bodyguards. A third punch cast Sandra against the wall. Shades and the other guards tried to stop him but in vain. A second later, Joseph was again catching Sandra by the throat, completely forgetting that he was beating a woman. Sandra was terrified and tried in vain, to protect herself from the blind fury of Joseph. In seconds, the foyer was turned into a battlefield. Without much effort, the four guards immobilized Sandra's bodyguards. Shades tried in vain to stop Joseph from killing her, but it was not until Clarisse got between Joseph and Sandra that he stopped hitting her. Sandra was on the floor, leaning against the wall, her face full of blood.
"Joseph, please stop!" Clarisse asked. "She does not deserve it."
"I'll sue you. I'm going to rip you off all your money! EVERYTHING! Until the last penny! "Shrieked Sandra.
Clarisse lowered herself slightly and murmured close to her:
"If you ever get close to any of us, I'll give a personal order so that it will NEVER happen. Did you understand? "
Sandra was a machiavellian woman but she was not silly and understood perfectly the threat of the Queen.
Joseph turned to Clarisse, took her hand and kissed it, panting, his face wet with tears and his heart bursting with pain.
"Your Majesty, I want to ask the rest of the day for personal reasons."
Clarisse placed a hand on his cheek.
"Oh Joseph. You can not imagine how I regret it and how I wish I could do something to minimize the pain you feel, but I know I can not. Take the days you want, my friend. " Sandra used Clarisse's words to leave. Shades and the guards accompanied them to the outside of the palace. Joseph tried to speak but couldn't. Just put his hand on Clarisse's hand and squeezed it lightly. Words were not needed. They felt each other. And Clarisse knew there could be no greater pain than losing a child.
The only light in the room was a tear of moonlight coming through the window. Sitting on the couch in front of the window, he was the mirror of defeat, of discouragement, of pain ... To be a father already late in life and to see life to rip his dream, this little bit of himself ...
Clarisse stopped in front of the door of Joseph's room. What if he was already asleep? No ... it would be impossible to sleep after such a tragedy! And Joseph was his best friend. Clarisse knew that he was devastated and that he needed her ... Without knocking, she opened the door and entered. She closed the door slowly and stood for a few seconds, adjusting to the dark of the room. Always in silence, she walked over to him and sat down on the other end of the couch where Joseph was. Then she stretched out her arms and Joseph hugged her at once. Clarisse kissed his forehead as she rocked him. Joseph could not stop crying.
"I never had the chance to put him to sleep. Or to cradle him in my arms. " Joseph laid his head on her lap. Clarisse patted his arm, trying to comfort him. " Besides my love for you, Clarisse, it was the thing I wanted most in life ... Being a father!"
The next morning, Joseph woke up on the couch, covered with a blanket. The scent of Clarisse's perfume was still in the room ... It had not been a nightmare! Unfortunately it was all real. He got up from the couch and entered the room and dropped himself on the bed.
Two days later, Charlotte hurried into the Queen's office.
"Your Majesty, Shades already has more information on the subject you asked for ..."
Clarisse took off her glasses and told Charlotte to call him. Minutes later, Shades entered the office with a briefcase.
"Sit down, please. And show me what you have. "
"As Your Majesty requested, I have followed in all Sandra's footsteps since the day she left the palace. That day, at 5 pm, she took a plane to Brazil, with the baby, as Joseph already knew. She stayed in the same hotel in São Paulo for two days. Then she went to Rio de Janeiro and that same day she flew to Fortaleza where she stayed until she returned to Genovia. "
"Yes, we already knew that. Didn't you find anything new? "
"I found it and that's where it gets very strange. She came back alone! So I tried to look for the baby's death certificate and there is no death certificate from Frederic. "
Clarisse was confused.
"This is very strange ... Shades, use Charlotte's computer and please confirm if there is any plane ticket, to Genovia or any other country, in the name of Frederic."
"I'll do it right now, Your Majesty."
Shades sat down at Charlotte's desk and began to work.
"Charlotte, I need you to contact your friend at the Central Bank of Genovia ..."
Four hours later, Clarisse was knocking lightly on Joseph's door. Guessing it was Clarisse, Joseph got up and went to open the door.
"Good afternoon, Joseph."
"Good afternoon, Clarisse. Please come in. " Clarisse carried the briefcase with her, which made Joseph intrigued. She sat down on the couch by the fire and put the briefcase in her lap.
"How do you feel, Joseph?"
"Better, Clarisse. I'm going back to work tomorrow. Being here is making me insane. " She sat down on the couch in front of Clarisse.
"Joseph, do not worry about work. The only thing that matters is that you are well! "
"There is nothing that changes the past, Clarisse. Nothing I can do! But tell me what's on that briefcase? "
"Well ... I took the liberty of doing some research ... In spite of knowing that I was getting me into personal matters ... Yours ... But you are my best friend and I needed to understand better ..."
"I understand you and I thank you, Clarisse. But I have also done the same investigations ... "
"But I know some things that you do not know ..."
Joseph was silent. His heart was beating so hard he was sure he could see through his shirt. Clarisse continued.
"We followed Sandra's course in Brazil and we discovered the same as you. However, we could not discover Frederic's death certificate ... And we accidentally found a plane ticket in his name. He traveled with Manuel Bernardo da Silva to Portugal. Shades got the video surveillance footage from Lisbon Airport and, in fact, is a baby of the same size as Frederic, but we can not see his face. Unfortunately, Manuel Bernardo da Silva does not exist ... The passport was false and we could not find the trace of that man. The strangest thing is that at that moment, Shades' contact in Brazil called him to inform that the Central Hospital of Rio de Janeiro issued today a certificate of death of the baby. When he asked where he was buried, they replied that "THE" parents gave the body for investigation ... " Joseph got up and threw his glass against the wall.
"Why are you telling me this, Clarisse?" Joseph was deeply hurt.
"Because I believe your son is alive!" Joseph turned immediately to her.
"Four days ago, Sandra deposited a million euros into her bank account ... in notes! I believe she sold the baby, Joseph! "
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Kisses
Maria