Chapter 10: For Bloody Love and Chaos, Part I
Damien held his mother's back and felt her fear. He might have lost his abilities for unexplained reasons, but his father taught him well to be a human and became more aware of human interaction.
"I would like to know how and why I had two mothers. But what's clear now is that she's a dangerous and powerful being. And having said that, Papa can't be alone in looking for Jean." The ladies looked at each other as the lad suggested the logical scenario.
Oh no, my Stéphane. Catherine's mind panicked. "Damien is right, Lucille. He can't be out there alone. He could still see Henry." The queen immediately stood up with Damien as she ordered Lucille.
"Damien, accompany Lucille back to the castle. Tell my guards that my grandson was kidnapped. Direct them to the forest as my orders." She handed him her insignia of command. "Hand this to them and they will follow you. When you hold this, my words are as good as yours. Then, order my servants to attend to Lucille's wound and give her a proper meal. Stay put in my chambers and wait for us there."
By that time, the lad was assisting Lucille to stand and Catherine was walking towards the door.
"Your Grace, I can manage to go back to the castle alone. Let Damien accompany you." The nun weakly replied as Damien second the motion. "I agree with Lucille, Maman. It might be dangerous for you out there."
Catherine became stern for comfort as time was not on their side. "Listen both of you. We don't have much time. Both of you might have special abilities. But considering the current events, neither of you can handle Emmanuelle. Perhaps, not yet."
She couldn't emphasize that fact enough that she let out a desperate sigh of air before continuing. "As far as I'm concerned, I'm the only one who had the chance to stab the witch with my bare strength and snap your father back to reality. So follow my orders, NOW."
She didn't shout the last word but it was commanding enough that both individuals' knees shook for a second. The queen hooded herself with her riding cloak and made her way to the lone horse outside. As she settled on the horseback, she gave out her most important order.
"Be careful and don't die. Am I understood?" Both nodded and her son expressed the same for her. "You too, Maman. Return to us safely with Papa." Catherine gave him an assured but timid smile. "I'll be back with your Papa and hopefully Jean. Now go and tell the guards to hurry."
The queen mother expertly maneuvered the horse to move towards the forest as Lucille and Damien hurriedly went back to the castle. About a quarter of an hour had passed when both parties arrived at their destinations. Damien immediately carried out the orders of his mother while Catherine was in the deep forest. But her husband was nowhere to be found.
Dear Lord, please spare my husband. I can't lose him like this. She prayed as she scouted the area further.
Meanwhile, the lord chancellor found himself in the middle of a clearing. For some reason, Arion stopped and didn't want to move forward. Narcisse tried his best to navigate the horse but to no avail. "C'mon, Arion! We need to move now!" Then he heard a voice.
"You can't force a stubborn soul to move if you don't even know where you're going." The late King Henry appeared as he turned his horse around. Narcisse couldn't hide the mix of fear and anger in his eyes. "YOU ARE NOT REAL! GET OUT OF MY HEAD! GET OUT OF OUR LIVES!" The ghost simply smiled and circled him as he taunted the living.
"It's really funny how you think you could get rid of me. You can't even escape yourself, poor thing. You've deemed yourself worthless to my wife. Losing my grandson under your protection? And now deliberately risking her heart and life to save yours? You are worse than me."
His diabolical laugh resonated within the space and made Narcisse tremble in what's to come. He uttered no words as Henry continued laughing. His horse became erratic as he focused his mind on clearing out the ghost's voice. He closed his eyes and tried to calm himself and his horse. Then, a familiar and comforting voice made its way to his consciousness.
"Stéphane! Where are you?!" He was not sure if it was his imagination or the real Catherine he just heard. He shortly opened his eyes and Henry was gone again. He turned around as he saw a human figure from the farthest distance his eyes could reach. Arion was stable now but only moved out of the clearing. He shouted in the direction of the figure just to be sure. "Catherine? Is that you?!" v
"Oh, thank God," A sense of relief swept her hair, together with the wind, as she darted towards her husband. She expertly controlled her horse and halted to disembark from it. Her husband did the same and welcomed her in his arms.
"Oh, Catherine. Why did you come here alone? Where are Damien and Lucille?" She held his hand and kissed his palms. "I sent them back to the castle to fetch help. Did you find them? Are you alright?"
But a different voice answered for them. "He was not alright a few moments ago. But I guess he finally learned how to overcome the poison I gave him." The couple immediately turned in the direction of the voice.
"It was you! How dare you," Catherine and Narcisse were almost ready to pounce on Emmanuelle in the middle of the clearing. But she held a dagger over Jean's throat and froze the couple's plans. It was the very same dagger the ghost of Henry held in Narcisse's illusions. The child was still very much alive and appeared to be sleeping. The couple noted Jean's breath as Narcisse's grip on Catherine and his sword became tighter.
"Don't you dare come any closer or else this child will die on the very ground where his true father met his Maker." Stunned by the revelation, Catherine involuntarily stepped back and took in the surroundings.
The witch tortured her further. "Yes, Catherine. This is that unfortunate place. This is where you found the lifeless body of your golden child, held by his wife, the now-dead Queen of Scots."
The memories crushed her soul once more. She could see them as if it was just yesterday. Her lips trembled and her breathing staggered. Mary... Francis... No, no, no, no. Not this place. She started to panic further as she saw the witch's nail bore harder on the child's skin.
Narcisse didn't know what to do as the witch hostage his traumatized wife and endangered stepson. He held Catherine's hand firmly. "Catherine, please stay with me. We need you. I can't do this alone."
It was a mere whisper, a plea for stability for this unfortunate mess, a prayer for any god to answer from the lord chancellor. Unfortunately, the witch heard every word. The couple felt hopeless and she made sure that's all they would feel.
"Yes, you can't handle anything on your own. Manipulating you was so easy that I got bored. I even used an evil ghost king as a weapon but that made me yawn."
Narcisse's eyes darkened with fury and wanted nothing more than to kill Emmanuelle. But her magic took over the couple and rendered them stuck where they stood.
"You might have found a way to control it but you stood no chance of eradicating it. So, let me remove that burden from you. An illusioned King Henry won't ever haunt you anymore... But maybe his grandson will haunt you for real."
She swiftly moved the dagger across Jean, a few inches far from his throat. But the view of the couple showed otherwise as they collectively shouted a resounding "NO!" in the forest. It echoed together with the witch's sickening laughter.
Catherine's reflexes made her bury her face unto her husband's chest as Narcisse simply closed his eyes and lowered his head. He held his wailing wife and embraced each other in their horror. The witch kept laughing until she revealed Jean's fate. "Did you seriously think I was going to let all of you go that easy? Open your eyes, you fools."
Narcisse slowly opened his eyes first. He let out a sigh of relief with a pang of anger for the terror inflicted on them. "Catherine, she tricked us. She didn't kill him." The queen immediately turned and dared to step forward in rage. "YOU DEVIL! WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM US!?"
Emmanuelle just smirked. "I just wanted my son. I strategically placed him in your lives to bring the worst in everyone he touched. But you did something to him and now, I find him worthless. So, I need a replacement for him. Luckily, I found one." She tugged Jean to her.
"An innocent soul with a tainted origin is just what I need to gain more power. This bastard will help me get what I want." Catherine was still wailing but very determined to get Jean.
"Whatever you'll do to us, you will never win. You will pay for this. I will find a way to give you the most excruciating death." She let out her threat in the most insidious voice.
But the witch was not affected. "Finally, a good challenge. But didn't you try to kill me before? Did it work, Catherine?" Another laugh escaped the witch as the couple's tears hit the ground. They were lost. They didn't know how to beat an evil soulless being.
All of a sudden, they could hear horses from the near distance. A sudden hope filled their hearts only to be vanquished the very next second. Sudden black energy loomed over the clearing as the witch continued.
"Don't try to find us, unless you want to waste time. But I assure you this child will live as I need him alive." She laughed once more and placed back the dagger on Jean's neck.
"Our battle is just about to begin. But the best part for me would be seeing you all fail miserably. Just like what's happening now and what will happen soon."
Thunders sounded along with her laugh. Catherine and Narcisse held onto one another but truly didn't leave their place anymore. They felt that any movement from them would make her kill Jean regardless of her true intentions.
"Your service has come to fetch you. I suggest you hurry back to the castle because you have a family to fix. So, good luck to you both. You will need it." Emmanuelle was about to turn back but had the chilling final words for the couple. "My condolences to both of you."
Before they could react, the skies darkened and lightning hit the spot where the witch stood. Smokes filled the area as the couple tried to cover their faces. In a few seconds, the witch and the bastard were gone.
"JEAN!" Catherine ran to the cursed spot, space where her grandson was last seen alive and her son was found dead. She desperately knelt on the ground and wailed in anger. Narcisse immediately embraced his wife.
"I'm sorry, mon amour. I'm so sorry, Catherine." He whispered to her but all she replied was her cries in his arms. Horse gallops filled their ears as the dark clouds dissipated. Catherine's guards finally arrived. Everyone heard her cries as they echoed their route. The lord chancellor took over.
"Jean has been kidnapped by a woman with red hair in maid's clothes. Search the whole forest if need be. Look for them, NOW!" His anger was transferred to the guards as designated search parties dispersed in the scene.
The couple was left with four guards. They surrounded the circle of the couple and attentively looked away from them in respect. Catherine's breathing returned to steady as Narcisse calmed her down. He gently urged his wife to stand up and walk so they could get moving.
The lord chancellor guided the queen mother to Arion's back. He followed suit and in no time, the company returned to the castle. The ride back home was silent and eerie. The couple didn't know what to do next.
Upon their arrival, Catherine was still silent as Narcisse barked orders. When everything was settled outside the castle doors, Catherine took his hand and almost dragged him in. Narcisse was surprised as Catherine said nothing and held his hand as her life depended on it.
They walked hand in hand towards her chambers. Their pace was steady and gave anyone they encountered a chance to curtsy and gossip about their public display of affection. They both cared less about what people had to say about them now. The only thing that ran in their minds was Jean.
When they arrived by her door, she stopped and heavily sighed. Narcisse was behind her and no one else was around. He turned her as her reddened devastated eyes welcomed him. Her sorrow reflected on his face as well.
They had no words. He caressed her face and kissed her tenderly. They didn't care anymore if anyone would see. They needed each other more than ever. A kiss might have brought a sense of hope in them. But their burdens were just about to get heavier.
Narcisse opened the door as Catherine entered the room. They were welcomed by the terrified faces of Lucille and Damien. Both didn't speak.
"Lucille? Damien? What happened?" Catherine's concerns brought her immediately to their side and didn't notice her whole family was gathered at the center of her chamber.
However, Narcisse was shocked to see them and whispered to his wife. "Catherine, we got company." The queen's back faced them. Except for King Charles, the Lord Chancellor announced their legitimate children's presence. Catherine turned and was caught off guard. "What are you all doing here?"
The royals were seated in the queen's lounge with unexplainable seriousness in their eyes. The couple had no time to inquire with Lucille and Damien as the dauphin spoke shortly.
"We were informed of Jean's disappearance. Did you find him? Who is this nanny that kidnapped Jean?"
Catherine replied quickly. "We didn't find them. But my guards are already searching the forest. She's some rogue woman with the audacity to challenge me." She blankly spoke as the image of an almost killed Jean drowned her mind.
She closed her eyes and let out a heavy sigh. Narcisse's hand on her shoulder brought her back to reality and continued. "Again, what are you all doing here?" She was calm but tired. Her husband felt that and offered a seat for his wife.
Margot rolled her eyes to the lovers' disregard of surroundings. Claude nudged on her sister to stop making a face. Their brothers Henri and Hercule just shook their heads at their sisters. The dauphin urged the couple to listen.
"Mother, Narcisse. We have important information to discuss." The couple looked at each other and felt uneasy. They felt something wrong was about to happen. They felt like an interrogation would ensue.
Supposedly, Henri would handle this but his sister had other plans. Margot stood, undermined authority, and went straight for the kill. "I won't mince words because we all want the truth now. And your 'friends' right there are not helpful."
She brought out Narcisse's box on the center table and asked. "Are you two married? Is that lad your lovechild?" She pointed at Damien. But all attention heavily dropped on the couple while Narcisse and Catherine shared a worried look under their trained straight faces.
These young royals had an idea of how the couple would navigate and try to lie about this. After all, they were known master manipulators of the French court. But all of them, including the couple in question, didn't know how to deal with the cards laid on them.
Narcisse recognized the box and knew its contents. He wondered how it ended up in the princess' possession and how much they knew. Catherine, however, was never aware of that box. But the queen was smart and cunning. She felt that it had something to do with their secret, otherwise, why would Margot bring it up with her line of question. Whatever that box contained, she knew she would just deny her daughter's claims. "Married? Us?" She almost laughed. "That's just absurd. Stéphane and I are just,"
Margot interjected. "Mere lovers? Political colleagues?" The princess scoffed. "Oh, please. Your manipulation and lies would work on the French court, but not on us, your children. We know you and we see through you. You raised us after all." The queen was caught off guard. She didn't expect her daughter's response. But the princess had a lot to say.
"And this elaborate double life you pulled off is quite something. Just when we thought that only one parent could be shameful by having bastards. Here you are, galavanting with a disgraceful secret with our father's friend, no less. Have you no decency? Haven't we suffered enough from you? We are broken as it is but, of course, you had to inflict this on us. The evidence speaks volumes, Mother. So stop denying and just admit the truth inside this box!" Her tone was indignant and ungrateful.
Everyone didn't expect Margot to pop off the way she did. But one person was having none of it. He was the least likely person to react but he could not stand how her children treat his wife.
"Enough!" All attention shifted to Narcisse. "I will not sit still and listen to you berate the woman I love." He did not leave his place and stood his ground. Margot's color might have left her as the lord chancellor continued. Everyone was stunned by the very public declaration.
"I know you are her daughter and your station is above me. But I had enough of your disrespect and utter condescendence." He looked at the young royal intently and let her taste her own medicine.
"What a shame, princess. You call her out on her decency and yet you lack the said quality by invading my privacy. That box is mine. Catherine does not know anything about it. So, whatever you see inside, you address it to me." But Narcisse was not done. He was so mad that he didn't think before he spoke.
"None of you are any better than us. You have no right to tell us what we should be and do when you are nothing but spoiled brats who seek attention. Your mother did her best but it's unfortunate you turn out the way you all are. But then again, this is what you get when your father is a man like Henry."
Catherine stood right after Narcisse's last word and faced him. She clenched her fist so hard that it looked so pale. Everyone was on their edge as to what the queen would say.
"You didn't think that through, did you? I appreciate your support but I don't need it, especially if you're going to chastise my children in front of me." Narcisse bit his tongue as Catherine pointed out how his words had hurt her more than her children.
"Yes, they need to be disciplined for their actions. But calling them nothing but spoiled brats and unfortunate outcomes? How do you think that made me feel?" Catherine was shooting daggers and it felt Narcisse's blood pooling on the floor. She still didn't let him speak even if Narcisse was so ready to ask for forgiveness.
"I expect you, of all people, to understand how that came to be. But I guess I expected too much of you. You had the chance to stop the moment you called her out. But no. You chose to reflect on their upbringing. But for what? To humiliate me as a parent? Tell me, Narcisse. Are you such a good parent that my best was not up to par with your standards? Would you like me to apologize for producing substandard royals?" Catherine bore her disappointment on her husband and the whole room felt that.
"Do you know what's more frustrating? This hurts more than the moment you chose to be with another." She just had to say what her heart knew at that moment. Everybody felt gutted in their way.
"I've said this before to you and I'll say it again. Regardless of who you are, if you dare say anything about my children, you are directly addressing me. And if I don't like it one bit, I will retaliate, one way or another." Her stone-cold voice sent chills to everyone. Narcisse wanted to punch himself after all his wife had said. He wanted to apologize. But Catherine didn't give him a chance and immediately shifted her attention to her daughter.
"And you, Margot. I know you hate me and deservingly so. But what you did is wrong and you know it. I raised you after all." The way the queen used her daughter's words against her was so good that her other children hid their amazement by lowering their heads at different rates. Damien was both in awe and afraid of his mother's other side. Catherine established back her authority and commanded the room.
"Now, you are so convinced that that box will prove your assumptions. Have you proudly shared that with your siblings? Is that why you are all here?" The princess was still shaken by what transpired and just looked at the box. Her sister filled in the void.
"Yes. We received a message for us to gather here. Then, she claimed that you two are married, which was rather ridiculous in my opinion. But not impossible. She was about to explain but didn't get a chance to open the box because the nun and the lad came in." Claude acknowledged Lucille and Damien on the corner as Hercule took the opportunity to speak.
"I just met Damien last night. I even introduced him to both of you. So, I was very surprised to see them here and have direct orders from you, Mother. So, please enlighten us. Is he our brother?"
They all waited for Catherine to speak. She weighed her options. She was so tired and wanted her husband to work on this alone. Since he placed himself on her bad side for a moment, it could be his punishment. But they needed to work together with whatever that box contained to hide their secret. None of her children could know the truth. It would mean their death sentence. And Lucille's mind agreed. She was more nervous than ever. If the young royals have truly discovered their precious secret, it would confirm her blurry vision earlier.
Finally, the queen spoke and wanted to make it difficult for her husband. "Very well. Margot, give the lord chancellor his box and let him explain whatever it holds. I'm also quite curious about what he has to say." Catherine gestured on Margot to Narcisse with a stern look on both.
The princess hesitantly obeyed while her husband anxiously held the box with a fearful glance at his wife. The key was already in the lock.
"Catherine, I don't think this is our best option." He whispered under his breath. "Well, I wished you thought of that before ever keeping that box." She coldly replied. She was still mad at him.
"But it contains everything I hold dear. I hope you will understand why I kept it." He warmly reasoned with her. "Then, show me. Show us. Make me understand why my daughter would use this to make such claims and why I should let you keep your head." They just heard Catherine's command and threat in one sentence. That was the queen they were accustomed to while he wished he could just get his loving wife back, especially once the box's treasures were revealed.
He sighed heavily and opened the box in front of everyone. He carefully laid on the table each memento he kept as a reminder of his marriage with Catherine.
The queen was speechless for a while. The others were rather taken aback. Margot was about to get one of Catherine's letter replies to show everyone its contents. But her mother swatted her hand. "You discovered it but these are not your belongings. Let the man explain."
Then, she picked up that letter and eyed her husband knowingly. "Go on, Narcisse. Save us from our misery and say what you need to say." Perhaps marriage enhanced their telepathy as Catherine handed the letter to Narcisse with a riddle that translated her shouting mind.
Make the best alibi you can think of and maybe I'll forgive your misplaced heartwarming blunder.
She gave out a focused glance that gave him hope and an idea of what they needed. He opened the letter and read it silently. He knew he couldn't tell them the truth so he formulated a concealed story in mere seconds. Then, handed the letter with the cipher to Claude and to everyone's surprise.
"That's a reply from your mother when I was back at my estate. As you can see, we are very in love with each other. We address each other as husband and wife just to signify it."
Henri gave a knowing look at Margot. The prince had suggested this and felt confident that it might be true. Claude and Luc made a dubious glance at one another. They knew their parents well. No matter how involved they could be, they wouldn't fall into the romantic trappings of a relationship, unless something has truly changed. Hercule was just confused. Then, Narcisse thought it was the best moment to tell his history with Catherine to her children.
"You might not know this but I've always liked Catherine ever since we were young and the very moment she arrived from Italy. But I can't pursue her as she was already betrothed to Henry. So, I just admired her from afar. I even left court because of it. Throughout the years, I married and lost wives. But my heart has always belonged to a queen."
Upon hearing this, Luc held onto Claude involuntarily as the rest gripped on this revelation.
"So when I finally had a chance to be with her, I took it. Shamefully, we were not the same naive juveniles we once were. We've changed for the worst. Our admiration for each other remained but for the wrong reasons. We knew this game of life too well that our affair didn't come without a caveat. That's why it failed miserably on the first attempt."
He lovingly looked at his wife. "But I guess, destiny has other plans for us. Unbelievably, we found our way back after everything that we've been through apart and together. And upon getting there, we discovered to share a love for someone we never thought we would ever care for or would even exist." He gazed in Lucille and Damien's direction.
"I shared my secret son with Catherine upon discovering him. We learned of him through Lucille. She is part of the congregation in Lorraine and was acquainted with me before our Chenonceau trip. Catherine and I met with them there to make sure that he was indeed my son with a woman from Lorraine, who happens to be Lucille's mother as well."
He smiled at them. "I might not be her biological father, but in the past few weeks, she's been like a daughter to me. They provided ample evidence that he was my son and I claimed him. But I decided to keep him a secret for now as my duty as lord chancellor has become more precarious. I could not risk losing another son." He looked at Luc and made him understand.
"Catherine fully understood this and was quite taken by Damien's good nature. So, she decided to be like a mother to him, even from afar or whatever context that entailed. She insisted that he could call her 'Maman' when no one is around." He managed a nervous chuckle for the vulnerability his little family had presented and gently picked up their wedding painting.
"And because of that fact alone, I fell harder for your mother. I love her so much that I wanted to marry her. Well, it didn't help that we were planning a grand wedding alliance. And since we can't be married, I asked Lucille to paint me the most magnificent make-believe wedding for us. A little Damien was included just to commemorate our unexpected quaint family."
He did not stray too far from the truth but he embellished it enough for at least one to believe. Catherine stood calmly by his side and observed her children. Her anger towards her husband's earlier mistake dissipated a little. Narcisse's speech was not bad and quite believable. Lucille and Damien were anxious if the royals bought the alibi. Hercule and Henri were rather touched. Claude and Luc would love to give the benefit of the doubt. But Margot was far from convinced. Narcisse felt all that energy and decided to say one last piece of his heart.
"I know it might sound very unlikely for people like us but don't we have the right to find happiness in any way we can?" With that, Narcisse took Catherine's hand and placed a chaste peck on it. Her features finally softened back at him. Their audience was generally captivated, except for Margot.
"All of what you said to us might be true. And I do think this box was a vital piece. But what of those words you've spoken when you thought no one was around?" The princess softly spoke as she analyzed what she heard from the lord chancellor's chambers.
Catherine held on to Narcisse unyieldingly. "What are you talking about now, Margot? Wasn't his explanation enough?" The princess examined the couple back and forth.
"It's rather too much in my opinion. You say you just use those terms as endearments. Yet you stated that you've recognized my mother's power. Even if she was still married to my father. But especially now that she is your wife. That is not endearment. That's a proclamation of your status. And both of you expressed it without reservations."
The couple shared a nervous look and gulped simultaneously. They felt that the princess was present in a place she was not meant to be in. "When and where did you hear those things?" Narcisse became uneasy by the second.
"This morning, right after the privy council meeting. In your chambers." The princess hesitated to continue but had to tell the truth that she spied on the couple. "I went to your chambers to inform you personally of what I found out about England. I accidentally found that box and ended up hiding behind a panel with Henri when you both arrived at the room. Then, we found out that you two might be married with a grown son."
All eyes fell on Henri. "Hey, I urged for us to leave but you insisted on staying. And now, we are here." He eyed his sister back in annoyance. But Hercule voiced out his elder siblings' immature ways. "Did you seriously spy on them?" The younger prince just buried his face in his hand.
"I do acknowledge my immaturity in the situation. But please, little brother. They owe us the truth because it will affect all of us. I thought the box was the evidence we needed. But apparently, it's their words." Margot defended her actions and inquired one last time. "So do you still stand with all that you've said to us? Or is there a new truth that we need to hear?"
The question posted a nightmare on the couple's minds. They had accidentally revealed their secret to their children. It was directly to Margot and Henri. Then, passed on to the others. No matter how many alibis they made about the box or their relationship, the princess absorbed every bit of information from their mouths.
That meant their cure against the curse was broken. This might have been what the witch meant by her statement about fixing their family and her chilling condolences. Catherine and Narcisse were stunned along with Lucille.
Oh no. They found out the truth. Is this the end for all of us?
Lucille spoke and rendered everyone off guard. "My Lord, your Grace. There's no more point in hiding. They already know." The couple refused to believe that this was the only option.
"But that would mean their deaths!" Catherine couldn't hide her painful frustration. Narcisse felt defeated. All their efforts to save their family were wasted on an unguarded second. They felt foolish to believe that they could pull this off. But alas, the dreaded day has arrived.
"What do you mean by that? What do you mean by our deaths?" Claude just had to address their confusion. Her children didn't understand what's going on. The couple needed a moment to breathe as tears formed in Catherine's eyes. Narcisse held her and whispered. "We need to face this, mon amour. We need to come clean." They shared the pain that's burying their chests. She closed her eyes and braced herself before she went closer to them.
"I want you all to know that in everything I do, you are all my priority. I may have made worse decisions but my utmost intention is always to keep you safe and make you thrive as royals. Now, I need you all to listen and not interrupt me. You need to fully comprehend what you just learned about us." The siblings exchanged glances and were not prepared for what their mother had to say.
She took a deep breath before explaining.
"All of this started when I was so desperate to save your brother from the pressures of his kingdom. I made the crucial mistake of seeking the devil himself. I didn't understand a few things, so I needed an individual that was well-versed with dark magic. That's when I met Emmanuelle, the witch that your sister Leeza has rounded up together with some heretics. She used her witchcraft to help me navigate Charles' rule." Catherine observed her children. She felt their judging eyes boring on her. She had no choice now.
"In return, she used her dark magic on Narcisse and me. I don't know how but she got pregnant and bore a son instantly. In retrospect, that son is ours as he was created through us. It was logical for us to just kill them both. But we couldn't kill them with anything. Then, she vanished. Upon her absence, she placed a curse on us and left her son to infiltrate our lives. Her ultimate goal, I believe." Their expressions were a variation of dismay and wonder. The queen kept talking.
"But we found a way to at least even out the battlefield through Lucille. She also had capabilities that could match the witch but she works for the Divine Force against the devil. Luckily, she had the chance to take in the witch's son. He grew up to be Damien." She looked at her son.
"I thought we wanted to kill him as planned. But we just felt that he is ours, no matter what his origins are. We thought if we could not kill her, perhaps we could have Damien as leverage. And with that, the curse needed to be pacified by some cure that we could do." She held her husband's hand and finally said their supposedly well-kept secret.
"Lucille had a chance to decipher the curse on us. The witch placed us in unending sadness that could cause all your deaths in our hands. Unexplainably, a secret marriage with a connecting soul was the solution that was seen in Lucille's vision. And so, Narcisse and I got married with Damien's presence. Not under the French law nor the Catholic church. We secretly married ourselves with the hope of saving all of you from that curse. If our secret were discovered by anyone, the cure would be broken and that would mean the curse would be placed back. Hence, we did our best to cover the truth, even with a box full of evidence."
Catherine hoped her children forgave them why a ruse was needed and clung to the better days. "For a while, we felt it worked as things around here turned out for the better. The King is on our side, I finally have you all here with me, and we have a new son. And just today, it seemed the witch confirmed we made the right decision in keeping Damien. We turned him to the witch's disadvantage. Everything was just in sync with our happiness. But that happiness was too good to last for long." Her defeated voice felt more real than ever.
"The witch found a way to poison Narcisse. And since Damien felt useless for her, she kidnapped Jean in revenge. Then, she predicted you'll know the truth and offered her condolences. So now, here we are. We fear that the worst is yet to come."
Her children had so much to take in and became relatively speechless. They felt a mix of overwhelm and disbelief with all of this information. For some reason, no matter how ridiculous the details got, it felt very true. Perhaps it's because the facts came from Catherine and they knew when their mother told a lie or not.
And contrary to what Narcisse might think of them, they did care about their mother. They might not agree with her decisions but she made sure that they understood her actions. So knowing that she participated in the occult just to make sure their brother had a protected rule was not surprising. But hearing it verified added more depth to it. Now, they share one fear.
What could this witch do to them? Is this the end for all of us?
Hercule just had three words. "This is crazy." Claude and Luc just held hands. Henri went to Margot's side before she spoke. "How can we prove that the curse was broken and the witch was successful with her curse? Will one of us just suddenly die?"
As much as it was vital for them to know, no one wanted to realize Margot's question. But the answer was just waiting to be delivered by a knock on the door.
Without Catherine's permission, the door opened as the newlywed King Charles and Princess Elisa came in. Everyone stood in attention as their mother immediately went to her son. The king's expression was gloomy and his wife's teary eyes were very telling. Catherine felt her heart fell on the floor. She knew they bear bad news.
"We have received an urgent message from Spain." Elisa held a letter and handed it to Catherine.
"Is it from Leeza?" The queen inquired.
Charles involuntarily closed his eyes to the mention of his sister's name. Elisa knowingly held his hand and comforted him before he broke the news.
"No. It's from King Philip. It is to inform us that Spain is in mourning for the passing of their queen consort and their third princess. This morning, Leeza gave birth but both mother and child did not survive."
Before anyone could react, Lucille said the words no one wanted to hear. "The curse is upon us. It has begun."