An Invitation To Love

Chapter 16

It was a month now since Allora had left them. He woke up on her bed, again, his face buried in her pillow. He had forbidden the servants to change the sheets. Everything was still in its place. He was going to wait for her. One year, two years, three years, even thousands of years. She would come back, after all she loved him too.
A knock on the door could be heard "your majesty, we received a letter from the southern king" Ezar's voice rang through the walls and Davian quickly got up to open the door still half-naked.
He didn't even ask before taking the paper from Ezar's hands and ripping it open.
Davian read the letter three times.
"I'm sorry to convey to you, that Allora is not in the southern kingdom but we will gladly help you search for her."
"Is he joking with me" his angry voice rang through the room. Davian was hoping on finding her there, that was the last straw for him.
After that letter Davian indeed got mad.
If he wasn't going to find happiness, nobody would.
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In the southern kingdom
After four days of sending the letter, Ciel and Lily found Allora unconscious in front of the castle entrance.
They brought her to a chamber and took care of her.
The couple was terrified of Allora's appearance. She looked weak, pale, and exhausted.
Ciel felt so sorry for her, especially because he knew, what she went through.
"Ciel, what should I do? Allora is ..." Lily couldn't speak as she started tearing up and Ciel hugged her from the side "it's alright, we will take care of her."
Ciel knew he had to tell Davian they had found Allora, he promised him. But it was too early for any action. Allora was at the average of dying, and he couldn't risk Lily's health. She was pregnant and nowadays she would get too emotional. Anything could make her cry and Ciel didn't like her crying. Lily was the love of his life, the only woman he would risk his life for.
She was his wife, his queen and his one and only. His sweet little wife.
"Lily you should take some rest too" Ciel gently whispered.
"I will, but after she wakes up" Lily responded.
She sat on the chair next to Allora's bed.
Ciel massaged his temple and quickly lifted Lily who gasped surprised at the sudden action.
"What are you doing?"
"I cannot sleep without you and don't worry the physician will take care of Allora" he whispered in her ears and kissed her neck.
Lily went red "if you say so."
Ciel smiled "I missed you, Lily."
"Stop exaggerating, you're always near me" she jokingly slapped him on the chest.
"I still missed you" he kissed her forehead.
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Two months later

Lily and Allora were over the moon having each other again. Lily would even force Ciel to sleep alone because she wanted to be with her sister.
Allora was happy too, she felt accepted, everybody in the castle was treating her as if she was made of glass.
Even Ciel was super sweet to her, letting Allora have Lily most of the time.
She even met Asena, who was a ball of energy just like Nikolai.
They hit it off pretty quickly. They took nightly walks through the flower garden together and Allora felt safe, not for a minute did she think that anyone would harm her.
She felt alive.
She wanted to stay here forever.
Lily was happy, that made Allora even happier.
Lily deserved that.
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On the other side Davian felt miserable, he couldn't bear a day without being drunk.
He didn't hear or get any information about Allora and that broke him from the inside.
He slowly felt like she wouldn't come back.
These thoughts killed him.
Davian did his usual work, attending meetings, and discussing important things with the nobles but the feeling of emptiness never left him.

He was sitting in his room when the doors of his chamber suddenly opened and his son, Nikolai came in. His eyes were full of tears, and he was sniffing.
"Dad" he said and ran to his father, who just opened his arms.
Davian was sitting on the sofa with tons of empty alcohol bottles on the table.
"What is wrong Nikolai?" He softly asked lifting his son up.
"Is Allora never coming back again?" Nikolai asked between his sniffles.
"Who told you that?" Davian frowned his eyebrows.
"Mama said we are better off without her, and that she will never come back" Nikolai murmured his tears streaming down like two waterfalls.
Davian sighed, his eyes softening "don't worry, she will come back, now go to sleep" Davian was drunk and tired, he needed to be alone.
It was nothing new, Vivian did that very often and Nikolai came to him every time as if he knew his father was the only one who could understand that.
"Dad please let me sleep here tonight" Nikolai pleaded, which was out of his character. He normally was very energetic. He would just jump onto the sheets and sleep.
"Nikolai, do you want to tell me something" Nikolai nodded, fear in his eyes.
Davian frowned, was he that ignorant that he didn't notice what was going on with his son?
"Is it about Allora?" Davian asked attentively and Nikolai answered "No."
"My dear, tell me what is wrong?"
"Dad, mama keeps talking badly about Allora, saying that she destroyed our family and that she hopes Allora would just die" Nikolai's face went pale "she said if I mentioned Allora ever again, she would burn me alive" his voice shivered.
"Did she hurt you?" Davian tried to stay calm. He would gladly kill that woman if she dared to threaten his son.
Nikolai slowly rolled up his sleeves and showed his father the marks of the so-called punishment.
"Oh god Nikolai, I'm so sorry" Davian hugged his son caressing and kissing his head.
"Dad, I'm afraid" Davian wanted to kill Vivian. How dare she?
He embraced his son tighter and tried to speake in his softest voice "that will never happen again, I promise."
It was time that Davian put everything under control, and he would start with his mother.
A few days later, news spread that the former queen was found dead in her bathroom and the queen Vivian had been deposed. She was sent away from that castle.
People counted one with one and came to the conclusion that Vivian killed the former queen which was why the king deposed her.
It was just a rumor, but Davian didn't care about correcting them.

He began purging the royal family. Anyone who was against him or thought about causing harm to his family was dead.
The cruel king, that's what everyone started to call him.
But it was just for Allora.
If she was to ever come back, she should feel safe and accepted here.
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Ciel knew what was happening in the Sanctus kingdom and as an alliance and a friend he had to help Davian.
The older one was going out of control, forgetting that he was a king and that he should protect his people and not kill them.
Since it was early march and the 'Carnival Season' started, Ciel wanted to plan a masquerade ball and maybe invite Davian.
'Carnival Season' was a period between Christmas and the beginning of Lent. In those two months, the Christian populations use their holidays as an outlet for their daily frustrations. The event was usually prepared by the church.

"Send an invitation to Davian too" Ciel told Lily who was going through the list of people, who she wanted to invite.
"No" she simply said.
"Lily, my queen, he needs that" Ciel looked at her and then to the papers in front of him.
"No, I don't want him here" to show that the conversation was finished, she stood up and gave the list to Rawon.
"I am done with this, don't invite anybody else" Lily said glancing at her smiling husband and went outside.
Ciel loved it when she behaved like this, it meant she felt safe enough to say what was on her mind.
"Your majesty"
"Do as she said, I will do the rest."
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"He is going crazy, his actions are uncontrollable, we are unable to kill him. The folk would turn against the government if we did."
The nobles were having a meeting and discussing stuff.
"Let's just say you didn't say the 'killing him' part" the duke of Corswood said jokingly.
"We don't want to see you dead in your bed tomorrow."
Everybody froze in their place.
Suddenly he placed his glass of wine on the table and nodded to the guards besides the door.
A group of soldiers entered. Screaming, crying and pleading were the only thing you could hear.
The room was full of blood and the duke took his glass again "you weren't supposed to make a mess."
Ezar coldly glared at him "Shut your mouth before I decide that you are next."
"We both know you can't, Davian will kill you for killing his friend" his eyes darkened.
"Oh, you think that, maybe I should find that out myself" Ezar hated people who challenged him.
The duke of Corswood, Ariston was a noble man with a twisted mind. Maybe that was why he was a friend of the king.
"Oh my god, what happened here" a feminine voice rang through the room and both men turned to her.
There was a beautiful woman with gold blond hair and light brown eyes.
"Ezar, you are here too, can anybody explain why there are dead bodies in my gust-room?" nobody spoke, and Ariston walked towards her "my dear, no worries, I was doing some business."
"Brother, care to explain?" her husband was now besides her, touching her neck with his hands and leaning to kiss the skin.
"Corswood, don't do that in front of me!" Ezar growled and Ella pushed Ariston away, to which he groaned.
"The king wanted me to clean the way for him."
"In my gust-room?" she rose an eyebrow.
"Ariston offered to help me."
"Oh no my dear, he pleaded and even though he doesn't look like you, I had pity and couldn't say no" Ariston said sarcastically, and Ezar walked to him to throw a fist into his face.
Ella stood in the middle and gazed at her husband "stop that."
"I did nothing" he shrugged his shoulders and held Ella's hand pulling her towards him.
"All joking aside now, I want to stay alone with my wife" his voice was serious and Ezar went out.
"Don't be like that to my little brother" she slapped him on the chest.
"He is your twin not little brother" Ariston said annoyed.
Ariston loved his wife over everything, and Ella and Ezar were twins and looked very similar, which always made it hard for him to turn Ezar down.
That was why they had to deal with all the blood in the room now.
Just because the son of b**** had the same eyes as Ella.