Monarchy (12 page)

“You’re wearing yours too?”

“Yeah, well, I thought that you shouldn’t be the only one making a statement tonight.”

“A few light curls, out of my face and keep the paint natural” Gwen said to the assistant as she sat down in front of the mirror. Gwen saw Elsie sneak to the wardrobe in the reflection. “Don’t think about it.”

“It’s too late to change your mind now about it” Elsie said and zipped open the bag.
 
“Oh my God, Gwen!” she cried.

“What? Is it awful?” Gwen asked, chewing her lip.

“Heavens no, it’s beautiful.” Elsie touched the dress, jealously. “You’re going to be the belle of the ball, my sister.”

“Yuck, I hope not” Gwen laughed.

“I’m going down to stand in for you so long. How do I look?”

“Like my little sister. Beautiful.”

The King and Queen were already waiting on the couch next to the stairs.

The Queen was wearing the same color dress as Elsie with a diamond necklace around her neck.

“Your tiara” the Queen exclaimed.

“It was Gwen’s idea.
 
You look stunning mother.”

“Thank you, so do you.”

“And you, Father. You look so handsome. Better hold on tight tonight mother” Elsie taunted her parents a little.

“Thank you” the King said pulling down his pink waistcoat. “Elsie? Have you seen Gwen’s dress yet?’ he asked, anxious.

“Have I?” Elsie moaned. “She’s once again going to be the talk of the town tomorrow…”

The King grinded his teeth.

“…for all the right reasons this time.” Elsie added making the King relax his jaw.

The ballroom was starting to fill with guests. Its size amplified the chatter making one believe that there must be hundreds of people inside instead of only a few dozen.

“Shall we go and greet the guests so long?” Elsie asked the King.

“We should actually, but I…”

The sound of heels on the marble echoed towards them and as if she was floating, Gwen came into view.
 
Her long ivory gown almost touched the floor as she stepped down in front of them. Long gloves extended to her bare shoulders and the pearls gleamed in the dim light.

“Oh, my…” the King gasped.

“You look smashing yourself, Sir.”

He smiled and offered his arm to Elsie. “We can go and meet our guests now” his chest was growing like a balloon.

“I have a gift for you, Mother.” Gwen said and sat down on the couch. She produced a small plastic box from her clutch.

The queen frowned at first then tears streamed from her eyes at the sight of what was inside. “Is it…?”

“Yes, from your own Vendela tree” Gwen smiled.

“How?” the Queen asked taking out the corsage.

“I saw the bud a few days ago and nurtured the bush trying to protect it. I feared for it survival at some point but, here it is. Shall I put I put it on for you?”

The Queen handed Gwen the large ivory rose that formed the center of the corsage and Gwen fastened it on her mother’s dress.

“I think we’ve kept our guests waiting long enough, shall we?” Gwen helped the Queen to her feet and they slowly walked to the ballroom.

Rose pink draping hung from the ceiling and the four round tables that lined the walls were adorned with huge arrangements of the Queen’s other roses. An orchestra played background music from the gallery.

“It’s beautiful” the Queen gasped. “Thank you.”

“No, thank you” Gwen said squeezing her mother’s hand as they walked through the guests. They reached the King waiting on the other side of the ballroom.

“Congratulations, once again” he said to Gwen.

“Thank you but I’ve had a lot of help to which I must give the honor, including you.”

“It was nothing” he bent forward and kissed her on the cheek before leading the Queen away to a group of waiting guests. Gwen looked around the ball room.

“It’s really gorgeous, Gwen” Elsie said behind her.

“I couldn’t have done it without you, sis” she put her arm around Elsie’s shoulders and pulled her closer playfully.
 

She heard the orchestra notes turn into a familiar song and looked up amazed. Slowly, the violin quartet melted together in a dreamy harmony.

“It’s my favorite song” she whispered and swayed to the melody.

“I know” Sir Windsbury replied next to her. He was a vision in his white jacket suit and combed back hair.

Gwen looked at him in shock. “I thought it was your night off? What about your important event?”

“This is it” he smiled. “May I have this dance, Your Highness?” he bowed and held out his hand invitingly.

With a slow and gracious bent of her knee Gwen accepted and they walked onto the empty dance floor.
 
Suddenly Elsie understood all the sarcastic remarks, the secretive smiles, why they never addressed each other by their titles and why Gwen felt offended by the bachelors’ attention. As her sister and the knight glided as one over the gleaming floor it became as clear as crystal through the tenderness of their touch, the way he held her back and the way she leaned into him. Elsie looked towards the King who smiled proudly as he watched them waltz. Gwen had her knight all along.

The guests just looked at them at first and then they joined in. The colorful gowns waving over the floor was dreamlike.
 
She kept watching Gwen and John dancing in and out of view. With each turn they danced slower until they were almost to a complete halt. John was looking into Gwen’s eyes. They were oblivious to the guests around them. He held up her chin to make their courtship official in a true fairytale manner.
 

A shattering glass caught Elsie’s attention and the dream dissolved in shards.

“DOCTOR!” the King cried kneeling over the Queen lying on the floor.

“GWEN!” Elsie cried not taking her eyes of the scene but Gwen was already next to her. She ran up to her mother and knelt next to the King.

“What happened?” she asked wiping the hair from the Queens face.

“She just said she felt tired and then she fell. I don’t know what happened, it was all so fast” the King rambled.

The Queen groaned and tried to sit up. The doctor was also by their side now and immediately urged the Queen to remain still.
 

“We need to get her to her chamber so I can do a proper examination” the doctor demanded.

“What’s wrong doctor?” Elsie asked, tears of shock rolling over her cheeks.

The doctor looked around at the other guests and then at the King before looking down silently and shaking his head.

The Queen reached for the Kings hand. Her breathing was shallow and raspy. He wanted to hold her hand but she drew away, desperately gesturing something. He leaned down so she could talk in his ear.

“Just…as…we…discussed” Elsie could just make out her mother’s breathless words. The King nodded and took something from the Queen as she was lifted into a wheelchair. She was rushed from the room leaving the King with his hand held out to Gwen still kneeling on the floor. At first she looked puzzled at the gift in his hand and then she nodded silently to King before getting up.
 

“I don’t understand. What’s happening?” Elsie cried.

“Go and be with mother, Elsabeth . I’ll tend to our guests” Gwen ordered.

Elsie looked at her sister, speechless and then noticed the Queen’s diamond encrusted seal in her trembling hand.
 
Her mother had just, unnoticed and without any ceremony, made Guinevere, Queen.

Chapter 18

Elsie was pacing up and down the corridor in front of her parent’s bedroom. The King sat in one of the chairs in the pajama lounge, his head buried in his hands.
 
She could hear cars departing from the palace and the ballroom growing silent.

“What are they doing in there?” she asked emotionally.

 
The King held his head and looked at the door in anticipation.

Eventually the doctor opened the door and shook his head sadly walking to the King.

“Your Majesty, I fear there’s nothing I can do. It’s only a matter of time now.”

Elsie fell down in the chair opposite her father, gripping the edges for support. “But you said two months?”

“At the most, Your Highness but the cancer has been very aggressive and unpredictable. I suspect that it has spread to her bone marrow and brain I would only be able to confirm this through testing but it won’t be of any use now. I’m sorry to say but Her Majesty is now on her death bed.”

The King burst out crying and crumpled to a heap on the floor. The doctor too seemed emotional while Elsie sat waiting to wake up from the nightmare.

“I..I received her living will a few weeks back. Were you aware of it?” the doctor asked sitting down next to the King comforting him.

“Yes” the King sobbed.

“Then you’ll know that the Queen has requested not to be hospitalized. She wanted to sedated when the time came which I’ve done.
 
She is still awake but not for long, I suggest you say your goodbyes. I’m once again extremely sorry, Sir.”

Elsie got up and ran to her mother’s room falling on her knees crying at the bedside. “No, mother, I’m not ready yet.”

“I’m sorry you had to find out this way that fairy tales weren’t real, my princess? I wanted you to stay a child as long as possible.” the Queen said from behind an oxygen mask. The King took a seat on the bed on the other side of the Queen.

“My love, do you mind drawing the covers up a bit, I’m a little chilly” the Queen asked the King.

“Let me close the doors…”

“No, I love the way the moonlight is shining on the garden tonight.” The Queen drew a raspy breath that set the tone for other deep and hoarse sounds that started to flow from her.

“My dear?” the King asked but the Queen’s eyes became glassy as she kept staring down at the garden, her breath a horrible gurgling sound that carried through the quiet palace.

Chapter 19

“You will keep us informed if there is any news.” The Countess of Struce held Gwen’s hands trembling.

“I will Ma’am” Gwen said.

“You’re such a good girl. Your mother was truly proud of you” the Lady said and squeezed Gwen’s hands.

The lady was the last of the guests to leave. Sir Windsbury closed her car door for her before joining Gwen in the doorway.

“This is going to change everything, isn’t it?” Gwen said watching the last car disappear out of the gate.

“I think enough has changed already” he replied.

“I always thought that I would wake up the morning I would take up principality knowing that the day had come. This morning I woke up thinking that I wanted five more minutes sleep.
 
How’s that for a royal thought?”

“I woke up this morning fearing you were going to stab me in the heart if that rose had withered and died.” Sir Windsbury said.

“I probably would have” Gwen joked.

She reached up and took off her tiara.

“You know that you can’t take off your crown in public now, don’t you?”

“But you’re not the public now, are you, John?”
 
She handed him her gloves and tiara. “Thank you.” She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

“It was a pleasure, Your Majesty” he said respectfully.