A.N. – On with the story, hope you are all enjoying it immensely! Please give me a review! (On my knees begging…)

Disclaimer – It gets tiring saying the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and over so please remember: I don't own anything except the story line!

Chapter 11 – A Night of Torture, A Lifetime of Suffering

Charlotte awoke with the sunlight streaming in the window and covering her with a golden glow. Squinting in the bright light, she rose from her bed and looked towards the window. She had fallen asleep with the curtains open; how very unlike her.

Looking down at herself, she found she was still wearing her clothes from the day before. She hadn't even managed to change into her nightwear! What had happened last night?

Then it all came flooding back.

Pierre had arrived and whilst making introductions he had let slip that Charlotte looked almost identical to his late Aunt. What did that mean? Was she somehow related to Clarisse's family? It would explain why Queen Clarisse had been acting so strange around her lately…

Then she remembered Joseph saying something to her before bringing her up here to her quarters. All of that was just a blur so she could only assume that she was too exhausted and confused to get ready for bed so had just fallen asleep as soon as she collapsed on her bed.

This morning, however, she was much more clear headed. She knew that Pierre had information that could help her in her search for her birth mother, so knew she had to find him and talk to him.

But first things first, she needed to shower and redress. And by the feel of her light head, she also needed something to eat.

Looking across at her clock she found that it was still quite early and that Pierre would still be sleeping. This meant that she still had plenty of time before talking to him.

She immediately began readying herself for the day ahead, knowing she still needed to report to Queen Clarisse at some stage in the next couple of hours. She could do it all, whether she went without a break all day or not.

'Family comes first' Charlotte thought to herself as she headed for the bathroom.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

It was lunchtime and still Charlotte hadn't had time to find Pierre. As soon as she had reported to Her Majesty, Clarisse had found something for Charlotte to organise. Not just that but every time Charlotte tried to leave, Queen Clarisse would give her some more work. Charlotte was almost beginning to think Queen Clarisse didn't want Charlotte to speak to Pierre.

Charlotte shook this thought off; it wasn't good to be suspecting her sovereign in such a way.

Finally leaving Clarisse's office, Charlotte headed down to the kitchens. It was the place Pierre was having his lunch, or so all the staff was saying.

Walking into the kitchens, Charlotte found Pierre sitting there with what appeared to be a feast for ten in front of him. He appeared to be waving away more food the cooks were trying to add to the pile.

"Please, I don't need anymore thank you. You've given me more than I can even make a dent in. I may be a full grown man but I can't eat that much!" Pierre was saying with a look of exasperation.

Charlotte smiled, this situation was rather commical as the cooks tried immensely to please Pierre with all manner of different dishes. They must have been working all morning with the amount the few of them had made.

Pierre looked up as Charlotte moved into the kitchen and his exasperation immediately changed to that of a broad smile.

"Oh hello, beautiful. Can you help me stop the chefs from cooking everything they own?" Pierre asked kindly, his eyes twinkling with humour.

"Gentlemen, please" Charlotte began.

"Her Majesty wouldn't appreciate you wasting all the food we have in storage. I'm sure Prince Pierre has more than enough to eat right now. You wouldn't want him to collapse from over eating would you?"

At this the chefs got the idea so began cleaning up the mess they had created and put away all the unprepared food. They soon left so it was just Charlotte and Pierre.

"Thank you, Charlotte" Pierre said, sighing in relief.

"They really were beginning to get to me. All I wanted was some pancakes and chocolate drink! And they start bombarding me with everything they have!" Pierre chuckled, shaking his head.

"Care to join me?" he asked Charlotte, indicating the chair opposite him on the small table.

Charlotte took the seat and began searching the pile for something appropriate for her to eat for lunch.

"By the way Charlotte, I will remind you to call me Pierre. I'm not a prince anymore, even though I'm the Queen's son, so I don't need the title," Pierre said kindly.

"Of course, Pierre" Charlotte said, smiling.

"Tell me, Charlotte, where did you run off to last night? I thought you would join the happy gathering" Pierre asked.

Charlotte's heart skipped a beat and she had to swallow before it jumped right up her throat. Taking a deep breath, Charlotte decided to get right into why she had searched out Pierre.

"That is why I wanted to speak to you. I was curious about what you were saying yesterday afternoon when you arrived," Charlotte asked, trying not to sound too curious.

"You mean when I said you looked like my late Aunt Marie?" Pierre asked, quite comfortable with the conversation.

Charlotte didn't trust her voice so just nodded.

"Well, what do you want to know?" Pierre asked, picking up a carrot and chewing quietly, waiting for Charlotte to begin.

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened to her? I tried to ask Queen Clarisse this morning but she told me to get on with my work and not concern myself with it" Charlotte explained.

"Yes, I would expect Mother to react in such a way. You see she still beats herself up over it and blames herself for Marie's death" Pierre was frowning at this, "which of course is completely ridiculous. Mother couldn't do anything about Marie's sickness."

"What was wrong with her?" Charlotte asked, not knowing where this was leading.

"Marie had a terminal illness that there was no cure for and so was dying slowly over about a year I think. There was nothing any of us could have done" Pierre explained, looking sad.

"Then why does Queen Clarisse blame herself? Surely she must understand?" Charlotte asked, confused.

"It wasn't the sickness itself that Mother blames herself for, it's the fact that she wasn't there when Marie passed away, even though she was asking for her" Pierre was staring off into the past, remembering.

"You see, Mother herself was also very sick at the time. She was ill for many months herself and even ended up in hospital in the end, just when Marie had reached her worst.

"We weren't allowed to see mother for months on end. The doctor wouldn't permit it. I even remember father storming around complaining that he was the king but not even he was allowed to visit his own wife. He was saying something about her hiding something from him, which made him quite a terror to be around during that time.

"It wasn't until Mother was in hospital and Marie was on her death bed that things really became desperate. Mother was at her worst and the doctor came to see Marie, saying that Mother really wanted to come and see her but couldn't. As far as I know, Mother was at the climax of her illness just as Marie passed away. She has never forgiven herself for not being here and was depressed for months after Marie's passing. We were never told of what it was Mother actually had and why we weren't allowed to see her. She would always avoid the topic and the doctor said he couldn't say because of patient confidentiality.

"What was his name again; Dr. Ferguson? No…Dr…Fitzgerald! That was it, Dr Fitzgerald. Apparently a very good doctor but I think he was over-reacting to Mothers illness just a tad," Pierre said thoughtfully.

But Charlotte was barely listening now. The doctor was with Clarisse during a long illness that lasted many months, and they were at the hospital at the end. Charlotte couldn't help but shake the feeling that this was somehow very significant indeed. There was one thing that would tie everything together and give Charlotte a lead.

"Tell me, Pierre, when was it that Queen Clarisse was in the hospital?" Charlotte asked, her own voice sounding distant.

She was definitely assuming a lot here but everything was so overwhelming. If she was on the right track at this moment, and could understand all the clues she had gathered, the truth would be so huge, so mind consuming she couldn't even begin to imagine what it could mean. All she needed was the date.

Pierre seemed not to notice Charlotte's paled face or trembling figure as she waited for his answer. He was staring into space, figuring out the date.

"I believe it was in 1967…sometime in July, although I could b – CHARLOTTE!" Pierre sprang up as Charlotte collapsed out of her chair and onto the cold hard floor.

The truth had overwhelmed her.

A.N. – Goodness me, the drama! What conclusion has Charlotte come to I wonder…read on to find out!