Lucky number 13!!! This chapter was fun to write. I hope you like it! Thank you to those of you who have kept with this story!! According to my calculations there are only 4 (maybe 5) more chappies to go… What are we gonna do with our free time?!

This chappy is one of my favorite parts in the musical- so those of you who saw the show prolly know what's coming. If you didn't… then you're in for a surprise!!! ^_^

And sorry for it taking so long to update... I was in a musical and we had dress rehearsals and shows and tonight was our cast party so now I have free time to post!!

ENJOY!!

Chapter 13

A Sickening Reunion

Elisabeth quickly forgot about Joseph and his wedding ring as the following months became more and more busy and hectic. She traveled all throughout Austria for months at a time visiting schools and hospitals, helping with various charities, opening new hospitals. She was seen as the "People's Princess"- always thin and beautiful, charitable, modest, loving, and kind to anyone who crossed her path. She led a virtuous life in the eyes of the public- giving up her time with her husband and son to spend it with the people of Austria- helping men, women, and children, and still having hope in those the world proclaimed to be "insane."

The time she did not spend with the people of Austria in the paparazzi's eye, Elisabeth obsessed over her physical appearance. She felt God had given her such beauty, she should try to make it last. She began to exercise- at first she would walk or run every few days, but as the months and years passed she began to exercise every single day for hours at a time. She had also begun to watch what she ate. At first she cut back in small amounts, but as time passed she began to eat less and less. To the eye, she appeared to be a beautiful, thin woman who looked to be in her twenties, rather than 37, but if one took the time to look into her eyes they would see the truth. For if eyes are the window to the soul then hers would show a weathered, tired one. The loneliness and exhaustion never appeared on her face but it was destroying her on the inside.

In the two years she had spent traveling through the nation, she had been home four times. She had attended Rudy's thirteenth birthday and three other times spent with Joseph. These times seemed to show them that their marriage was still strong. They would enjoy the days together walking through the city or through a forest and their nights together, holding one another after months of being apart.

This was Elisabeth's first visit home in months and she was anxious to see her little boy- or rather, little man of 15. This time was special compared to the others- she was there to stay indefinitely. She had no plans to leave anytime soon and wanted to make the most of her time spent with her family. As Elisabeth looked out the car window, she could see the palace and her heart skipped a beat. She couldn't help but smile. She would be reunited with her husband of over 15 years and little boy.

As she walked up the steps she looked up at the palace, she had forgotten how large it was.

"Hello?" she called out as she opened the door, entering the grand foyer. "I'm home!"

"Hey mom," a deep voice called from up the stairs. Elisabeth looked up to see Rudy standing there. He came down to help her with her bags.

"Oh Rudy," Elisabeth sighed as she wrapped her arms around her son. He was already a head taller than her and still growing, his blonde hair had begun to curl in loose waves. He was a handsome young man who had the stoic air of his father and the beauty of his mother. "Where's your father?"

"Oh," Rudy said as he turned to walk up the stairs to his mother's room. "He went out for the night. He said that he was sorry he couldn't meet you and to not wait up for him."

That night, Elisabeth waited. For hours she sat at the foot of the stairs in her bath robe, staring at the door in the grand foyer. She had promised herself to not become paranoid as the hours passed… 1 o'clock… 2 o'clock… 3 o'clock. Finally at four in the morning, Elisabeth heard the door handle rattle, and Joseph entered the house.

"Sisi!" Joseph said with a smile as he put his hands in his pockets. "What are you doing up so late?"

"I could ask you the same question," Elisabeth said as she stood up and walked over to her husband. "Where were you? It's four o'clock in the morning."

"You've been home for a day and you're already playing the nagging wife role?" Joseph joked, placing a quick kiss on her forehead. He walked passed Elisabeth, leaving her alone in the foyer thinking about what had just passed between them.

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Over the course of several weeks, Elisabeth spent one night alone with Joseph. The rest of the time she spent with her assistant or Rudy outside- in the mountains, the forest, town, shopping. During this time, she also took her eating and exercise to a whole new level. She exercised all day, everyday- weight lifting, dancing, cardio, strength, running. She began to eat less and less until she made herself sick with exhaustion and hunger.

"You!" Elisabeth's assistant screamed upon seeing the collapsed Elisabeth. "Get the doctor!" she motioned to one of Elisabeth's bodyguards. To the other bodyguard, she hissed, "Take the President's wife inside!"

Once Elisabeth was seated in an armchair in the living room of the palace, her assistant placed a cool wet cloth on her head and waited for the doctor to arrive. Elisabeth's eyes fluttered open and she winced from the pain.

"Oh, thank heavens," the woman whispered as she saw Elisabeth open her eyes. The woman stood up and asked, "Are you alright, ma'am? You fell while you were running and cut your knees and hands," she said as she wiped the blood from Elisabeth's knees, as if she were a child incapable of doing it herself.

"I'm fine," Elisabeth said quietly.

"What's the matter?" a deep voice said at the door. Elisabeth raised her eyes to the door where the doctor stood. He must have been new, for Elisabeth didn't recognize him as any of the other doctors the family had had in the past.

"Oh," Elisabeth's assistant said, walking over to the door. "She was exercising outside- running. Anyway she fell down," she turned to look at Elisabeth for a moment and then looked back to the doctor and whispered, "It's no wonder she passed out. She's been so active and she hasn't-"

"You can go," the doctor said to the woman in a short and annoyed voice. The woman, looking insulted, left the room in a huff.

After a moment, the doctor slowly walked over to Elisabeth who was sitting in the chair, still in a daze. As he got closer, Elisabeth stared at him. He was in the usual medical scrub that doctors wore, latex gloves covering his hands and a surgical mask covering most of his face. He stood next to her and placed his hand on her forehead.

"Your forehead is hot."

It must have been true, Elisabeth thought, for when the doctor placed his hand on her brow, it was cool and refreshing.

"There's nothing wrong with me," Elisabeth said quietly, batting the doctor's hand away. "I just haven't-"

"Eaten?" the doctor finished for her. "Yes, I know."

Elisabeth looked up at the man. Even with the mask covering the lower part of his face, Elisabeth felt that he was smiling at her… mocking her.

Kneeling before her, the doctor took hold of her chin and looked into her eyes, searching. Elisabeth waited in silence, to hear his diagnosis.

"Eyelids are white," he noted to himself as he stood up. Elisabeth sighed and closed her eyes, waiting. He walked around Elisabeth and stood behind her. He continued, "If I'm wrong," he paused for a moment, "And I have never been wrong. I would say that this is a loving gift from your husband."

Elisabeth's eyes shot open as she spun around in her chair to look at the doctor. She stared deep into his blue eyes, her mouth hung open in disbelief.

"No," she said, shaking her head. "No, my husband is loyal to me."

The doctor let out a short chuckle. "With all due respect, ma'am, you haven't been home lately and the President is only human. Even a President can be weak when tempted in all the right ways."

"So you're basically telling me that I have an STD?" Elisabeth cracked out, tears blurring her vision.

"Yes," the doctor said, his eyes cold. "Most likely Hepatitis A. Not life threatening, just… unpleasant," he finished, his teeth clenched.

Elisabeth slowly rose from the armchair and began to make her way to the door. Tears brimming along her long, black lashes. She whispered softly to herself:

"I hate him…"

How could this have happened? Granted, over the last two years they hadn't seen each other very often. But she had remained loyal to her husband and she had expected the same from him. But when they were together, Elisabeth worked so hard to make their marriage work, to fall back in love with him. She thought that they had a fighting chance. The night she had found Joseph's wedding ring should have warned her of this but she had tried to erase the suspicious event from her memory.

What had she done wrong? What did she do to deserve this? Had God given up on her? Forgotten her? Cursed her? This was not a life worth living. She had nothing and no one to live for. She had lost all hope… she wanted to die.

"Do it," a cold voice said behind her. Elisabeth froze, a deathly chill enveloping her frail body. Slowly, she turned. Standing before her was a man she had not seen in three long years. The doctor's mask, gloves, and uniform lay discarded on the carpet. Standing in the doctor's place was her der Tod- unchanged and still as beautiful as ever. Donned all in black, his black coat slid along the floor as he reached out a cold, black gloved hand, advancing toward her. "Elisabeth," he whispered, his eyes capturing hers. "I wait for the day."

"You!" Elisabeth cried out as she fled the room. Why was I so careless? How was I left alone? Elisabeth thought as she ran to her room, her injuries and dizziness long forgotten upon seeing her Dark Prince standing before her. Memories of their previous encounter flooded her mind's eye and, suddenly, she began to fear for her life.

She finally reached her room, slammed the door shut behind her and locked the door. Leaning against the door she placed her hand over her heart, her hand brushing the string of pearls around her neck. Looking down, she ripped the necklace off and threw it onto her floor. She turned to lie on her bed but stopped in her tracks.

Death was standing in front of the bed, arms crossed, looking directly into her eyes. Elisabeth froze where she was as Death took long strides until he stood before her. She had lost all control of her body, she hadn't forgotten this horrible feeling and she certainly hadn't missed it. She was trapped- Death before her, the closed door behind her, her body frozen in place.

Death lifted his hands to her face allowing his penetrating icy eyes a clear view of Elisabeth's wide chocolate orbs. Elisabeth held her breath, waiting for whatever was about to come.

"Elisabeth. Oh, Elisabeth," Death said her name as if it were a prayer. He closed his eyes, "I can't stand seeing you like this. Knowing that that man hurt you. Infected you with his disgusting actions. He doesn't deserve…" he stopped. Elisabeth couldn't help but wonder what Death didn't feel Joseph deserved- didn't deserve her; didn't deserve to live? "Why are you fighting so much?" he asked in a hushed voice. He looked back into her eyes, "Stop suffering. Come with me," he whispered, his cool breath dancing on Elisabeth's pale face. He slowly pulled her face closer to his, their lips a breath away from meeting in a deadly kiss.

"No," Elisabeth said, breaking Death's hold. She placed a hand on his lips and pushed him away from her. "I don't want to die. I want to live," she said proudly pushing passed Death. "My husband did me a favor. Now that he has broken his vow, I have no reason to keep mine. I can finally live the life I've always wanted. I can see the world and experience life the way I was meant to. Not chained up and confined to be the President's wife, but as just a woman- just Elisabeth."

She walked to where her strand of pearls lay on the floor and picked them up. She was furious that she had allowed her husband to make a fool of her and ashamed that she had almost succumbed to Death's enticing proposition. Fury written all over her pained face, she spun and threw the pearls at Death. As he easily caught the necklace, Elisabeth screamed:

"Now, get out!"

Death knew in his hand, he held Elisabeth's love for her husband. She had held tight onto the little love and admiration she had had for her husband for years, and now she threw that love away. With that small fact, Death knew that he was one step closer to winning. With a mocking smile, Death turned and walked through the door, leaving Elisabeth broken and, once again, alone.

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