Chapter Thirty-Six
A.N. We are very close to the end now. Probably two more chapters besides this one. I hope you enjoyed so far and will enjoy the rest. :)
Without the children, the King and the Queen had no reason to stay in the same room. That is why Helena was a bit taken aback when her husband asked her at the dinner table:
"Will you come to bed soon?"
She didn't need more to know what he meant and she reluctantly nodded. A few minutes later, they were in their bedroom.
Helena quickly took off her clothes and lay on the bed next to the King. She was completely naked except for her jewellery because she knew that her husband liked it that way. She climbed on top of him and began kissing him when he suddenly spoke:
"How was your day?"
"Who cares? Let's get over with this." – the Queen replied, visibly annoyed.
"Someone is in the mood…" – her husband remarked scornfully.
Helena hesitated, then she said:
"I'm sorry. I'd just rather skip the small talk."
She quietly continued what she started without any particular interest until Simon talked to her again:
I heard you fired your bodyguard… Ralph, is it? Why?
The Queen reluctantly climbed off him.
"He behaved inappropriately." – she replied objectively.
Her husband frowned and asked another question with a hint of suspicion in his voice:
"For how long did you have him as your security detail?"
"I don't know. 7-8 years." – Helena said in a bored voice.
"And he never tried to… approach you before." – the King remarked uneasily.
His wife didn't answer so he continued:
"Why now? I mean, if he didn't get any encouragement…"
Helena leaned on her elbow so she could look her husband in the eyes.
"I didn't encourage him, but if you want to accuse me of something, please, just say it."
She didn't really leave time for her husband to answer before she added with disdain:
"You know you have every reason to be jealous. The way you treat me… and that you and the twins always 'gang up on me', no matter what I'm doing."
"That's not true." – King Simon protested weakly.
"Yes, it is, but here is the thing, Simon: you can't keep me and drive me away at the same time." – the Queen answered with a hint of sadness in her voice, then she turned away from her husband and switched off the light.
A few hours later Queen Helena was woken up by her husband's groaning.
"I can't breathe… Helena, I can't…" – he mumbled.
The Queen thought that her husband just continued their earlier dispute and she replied half asleep:
"That is marriage, darling."
"No, I really can't." – the King said, gasping for air and grabbed his wife's arm.
Helena finally woke up and realized what was happening.
"What do you feel?" – she asked and turned on the light so she could see him.
"It hurts and there is a pressure here…" – Simon moaned and pressed his hand on his chest.
The Queen was sure that her husband had a heart attack, but she couldn't tell him that without further upsetting him.
"Just relax, it's probably nothing. Try to breathe normally, all right?" – she said in a soothing voice and grabbed the King's hand. – "It will pass, darling, it will pass very soon."
She got out of bed and searched for the aspirin on her nightstand.
"What is this?" – her husband asked suspiciously when she tried to give him the pill.
"Just aspirin." – Helena replied and finally she managed to put it in his mouth. – "Chew it, don't swallow."
King Simon frowned as soon as he felt the taste of medicine.
"Bitter." – he mumbled.
Queen Helena gave him a dim smile as she remarked:
"You are not as sick as you think if you can whine about the aspirin's taste."
She tried to use that her husband was distracted and quickly texted to Rachel to call the ambulance. Her assistant texted back immediately, reassuring her that she would take care of everything.
Helena let out a relieved sigh, but her husband noticed the phone in her hand and it made him paranoid:
"Are you calling the children?" – he asked nervously.
"No! Why would I call them? I just… I wanted to know what time it was." – the Queen lied, but it didn't convince the King.
"I feel like I'm going to die." – he said weakly and winced in pain.
"Stop being melodramatic, Simon, it is not fit for a King. Everything is going to be all right." – Helena remarked in a firm voice, trying to convince not just her husband, but herself as well.
The waiting in the hospital seemed like an eternity. Queen Helena paced the corridor like a caged lioness until a doctor finally came out of the operating room.
"Good morning, Your Majesty! I'm sorry to keep you waiting. My name is Dr. Patel. I performed the surgery on King Simon." – he greeted the Queen with a reassuring smile.
"How is he?" – Helena asked impatiently.
The doctor looked around and lowered his voice:
"Would you mind talking in my office?"
The Queen quietly nodded and followed him into a small room. The doctor waited until she sat down before he began to talk:
"The operation went well and we managed to stabilize His Majesty's condition. We have every hope for a full recovery." – he said in a calming voice.
Helena knew this tone too well, her father's doctors used it often when they were about to tell her bad news. She didn't want to hear the rest, but there was no other way around. She let out a sigh and asked:
"But?"
Dr. Patel shyly nodded and replied:
"But the next 24 hours is crucial. Despite the successful surgery, there is a high risk of development of blood clots, which can be fatal in his current state."
The Queen tried to process the information and she was surprised when she heard her own firm voice instead of the doctor's, stating the facts:
"Which means that he can die."
At least, he didn't try to make the situation look better as he remarked in a soft voice:
"Which means that you have to be prepared for this possibility."
"He is the King of England. You must keep him alive." – Queen Helena snapped at him.
The doctor wasn't scared of her as people usually were and Helena felt that he could see through her.
"We will do everything we can, Your Majesty." – he said reassuringly. – "I know it's hard to process, but if I can help you in any way… I can give you something for the anxiety."
The Queen looked at him with a sudden anger.
"No, I'm all right. I would appreciate if you focused on my husband."
By the time Helena came out of Dr. Patel's office, Rachel was already waiting for her.
"Are you all right, Your Majesty? You look pale." – she remarked in a worried voice.
"Neon lights don't agree with me, that's all." – Helena quickly replied.
Her assistant nodded and cut to the chase:
"The Daily Mail called."
"How much do they know?" – the Queen asked, annoyed, but she didn't get an answer. – "Find out and deny everything. The press can know nothing about this. They can't know what happened to the King."
"All right." – Rachel replied and Helena thought that the conversation was over. However, her assistant had not finished yet:
"There is one sensitive matter. If His Majesty's condition becomes more… permanent, we will need a Regent until Prince Robert comes of age."
The Queen didn't wait the end of the sentence before she cried out in indignation:
"It's not the time nor the place to talk about this. Besides, the King is perfectly fine. He just needs some rest."
"It can take weeks." – Rachel protested. – "If he doesn't choose a Regent, the PM and the Cabinet will. And knowing Prince Cyrus…"
"He would do everything to get the regency." – Helena finished her thought.
"I know it's difficult for you, but you have to make the King pick you as Regent. For Prince Robert's sake." – the assistant saw the Queen's hesitation and continued. – "I have already prepared the document, His Majesty just needs to sign it."
Helena took the papers from her assistant and entered her husband's hospital room.
The Queen was trying to calm down her daughter with some reassuring lies over the phone so she didn't notice immediately when King Simon woke up.
"How are you feeling?" – she asked softly.
"Better. Thank you for making me believe that I didn't have a heart attack. That helped a lot." – he remarked with a dim smile.
The Queen returned the smile and said:
"You're welcome. Is there anything I can get you? Would you like some water? Do you need painkillers?"
"No, I'm good." – Simon answered, a little surprised by his wife's unusual kindness.
Helena decided to ignore the puzzled expression on her husband's face and continued:
"Great. I'm glad that you are feeling better."
They were quiet for a while, then the King asked:
"Are the children coming here?"
His wife shook her head.
"No, I didn't tell them. There is no need to unnecessarily worry them." – she remarked in mock ease.
"I see." – Simon mumbled.
Helena couldn't take his gaze and she burst out:
"What? What is it, Simon?"
Her husband shrugged and hesitated before he answered:
"Nothing. It's just… I had a heart attack and you don't think it important enough to tell the kids. You are also unusually nice to me." – he summed up his observations and suddenly he realized: – "Oh my... They told you that I would die. Am I right?"
"No, of course not." – the Queen cried out in indignation. – "First of all, it really hurts me that you think that I would only be nice to you if you were dying and second, don't even think about leaving me alone with three teenagers and a country to rule."
The King couldn't hold back a chuckle that soon turned into a painful grimace.
"I wonder which one would be bigger challenge for you." – he remarked teasingly.
"You know which one." – Helena replied in the same tone.
The moment was quickly over when Simon's voice became suddenly serious.
"You wouldn't miss me for long. We both know that there would be someone to take my place very soon."
Queen Helena felt that her heart beat faster and she swallowed hard. For a moment she believed that it was all over: Simon knew about Allistair. And yet, she felt a strange wave of relief. Then, her common sense was proven stronger.
"Yes. Robert. He would become King then." – she managed to sound casual and confident. – "Speaking of Robert. You will need a Regent until you are in hospital and Robert is still a minor. He can't rule in your place alone."
A shadow crossed King Simon's face as he believed to understand his wife's real intentions.
"You want to be Queen Regent. That's what this is all about." – he said scornfully.
"I'm only thinking of Robert." – the Queen hissed angrily, disappointed in her husband who thought so little of her. – "At least I have our children's best interest in mind. I can't say the same about your brother."
The King didn't want to argue. It was always easier to give his wife what she wanted. He let out a sigh and said:
"You are right. Where do I have to sign?"
Just minutes after the Queen left the room, the King's circulation collapsed. The doctors rushed in and managed to stabilize him, but he was still not out of the danger. Queen Helena couldn't wait and sit there for another six hours so she decided to visit the children's ward.
The little ones' faces immediately lit up and they all stared at her in awe.
"Is that really you, Queen Helena?" – a little blond girl finally asked her.
Helena smiled and leaned down to her:
"Yes, I am. Who are you?"
"Sadie." – the little girl replied proudly.
"It's nice to meet you, Sadie." – the Queen remarked, then she asked her. – "What were you doing before I interrupted you?"
Sadie took the Queen's hand and led her to a huge paper sheet on the floor covered with children's paintings.
"It's very nice. What is this about?" – Helena asked as she looked at the various artworks.
"It is about our dreams. It's about what we will do when we are healthy and we don't have to be in the hospital anymore." – Sadie replied heatedly. – "Do you want to see mine?"
The Queen gave Sadie a smile and said:
"By all means."
Helena knew that Sadie would keep her all for herself if it was up to her, but it would have been unfair to the others. She spotted a little boy alone in the corner and she made her way to him.
"Don't you want to paint something?" – she asked nicely.
"I can't paint." – came the sulky response.
The Queen let out a soft laugh and caressed the boy's shoulder.
"Me neither. And do you know what else I can't do?" – she asked in a low voice.
Martin, because that was the young boy's name, looked up to her curiously.
Helena whispered into his ears:
"Sing."
"You can't sing?! Every mom can sing." – Martin cried out in shock.
"Sssh! I don't want everybody to know." – the Queen remarked with a wink.
The boy frowned and asked after a moment of hesitation:
"What do you do at Christmas?"
"I'm just faking it." – Queen Helena replied honestly and she had an idea. – "You don't have to paint either."
She took Martin's index finger, dipped it in the paint and said:
"You just press your finger onto the paper. Great! Now you do it again and again… and there you go. You painted a flower. Do you like it?"
Martin looked at his painting, then he turned to the Queen with a grin and he nodded.
Finally the critical 24 hours passed and the Queen sat back to her husband's bedside with a relieved sigh.
"You've stayed." – King Simon remarked with surprise when he opened his eyes and saw her.
"Of course I've stayed." – Helena replied primly.
An awkward silence fell on the room. The only sound was the Queen's compact as she snapped it open to adjust her makeup. The King quietly looked at her, then he said:
"I'm sorry for what I've said earlier. I know that you just wanted to take care of the children."
Helena didn't look back at him. She stared in the small mirror while she lined her eyes with a black eyeliner.
"Well, it was a long day. I'll have to deal with the press and take a shower…" – she finally said as she took out her lip gloss and applied it. – "I think I should go."
Simon nodded and gently rubbed her arm.
"Okay. Thanks for being here."
His wife gave him a smile and said:
"I will call the children as soon as I get home so they can come to visit you tomorrow."
The Queen got up and she was about to leave when her husband's voice stopped her:
"Helena, just one more thing. The doctor… Did he tell you that I could die?"
"Mmm… He may have mentioned something, but I didn't take it too seriously." – the Queen replied with ease.
The King couldn't read from her expression, whether it was the truth or a joke so he just shook his head in disbelief:
"You are a remarkable woman." – he mumbled, more to himself than to his wife.