May Death Do Us Part

179 Chapter 179 : Page two, line seven.

William was nose deep in one of his favorite books, ‘the rules of war’, when he saw his beautiful sister walk out the double glass doors of the palace onto the soft lush grass of the palace gardens. He watched her whip her head from side to side and guessed that she must have been looking for him. He closed his book and placed it on the small garden table in front of him, and then rose his right hand in the air.

“Your highness!” He shouted tauntingly at the woman who turned to him and immediately frowned at the name he had used to call her.

Melissa briskly walked towards William who stood up and bowed mockingly at his sister. He looked up at her with a taunting smile and uttered, “I am humbled to be graced with your presence your highness.”

Knock!

William chuckled heartily as rubbed his head that Melissa had just knocked in annoyance. The redhead sat down on the garden chair across from him and folded her arms over her chest.

“Good morning to you too,” William spoke with a smile.

“Are you ever going to grow up William?” Melissa complained, “you’ve been teasing me since we were children. We’ve grown now and should put childish antics away.”

“It’s talk like that that will have you frowning all day,” William responded as picked up his book. “Don’t ever let the child in you die Melissa, that’s the part that keeps you from slitting your own throat when life gets you down.”

Melissa instinctively rubbed her neck at her brothers words, his choice of wording was dark but she knew what he meant. Her blue eyes trailed up to him and she cleared her throat to get his attention away from his book.

.....

“Sir William Morrell of Greenhill,” Melissa spoke, “I am here to heed your call. You said you have something of importance to discuss with me?”

William chuckled at her attempt to be funny, he leaned forward and nodded his head. “As a matter of fact I do your highness.” The man pushed his book towards his sister, and she took it feeling a bit confused. “Turn to page three and read the last line,” William instructed, “do you remember when we’d read this book together when we were younger, you loved it.”

Melissa knitted her brows at her brother, what was he talking about? She had never read this book with him. But knowing William’s cunning ways, she knew his words had an encrypted message hidden somewhere. She turned to page three and trailed her eyes to the last line. ‘We are not alone, they are watching us.’

Melissa glance back up at William who had a flat expression, of course, the last time it was William who told Melissa of Elric’s true nature through a note hidden in a book. The day she had returned from the jewelers, she had found the note crumpled up, Elric had probably found it and was now taking precautions so as to prevent William from sending her anymore massages. There were probably gaurds hiding out somewhere just waiting to see what would happen between the two siblings.

“Oh right, ‘the rules of war'” Melissa responded casually, “I was quite fond of this book wasn’t I? One of my favorite lines is right on the next page, line four.”

Melissa handed the book back to her brother who took it and read the line. ‘Has he arrived?’ William burst into laughter as if whatever he had just read was funny, “Oh you always have been the naughty type little sister, Bahram would have a heart attack if he knew.” William flipped over a few pages and then passed the book back to Melissa. “Page seven lines three and two, page twenty seven line two and line nine.”

When Melissa read through the lines, they formed an elaborate statement. ‘Aye, he is. An army moves with him, he is here for what is his. We must find a way to prepare for him. We choose to be his allies. All of us.’

Melissa couldn’t help but smile at her brother’s wits, he had definitely gotten his keen mind from their father and Melissa was grateful for it. “I have to say, this book brings back so many memories,” Melissa muttered as she closed the book, “thank you, for letting me read it for a bit, do update me if any new version of this masterpiece will be written. I look forward to them.”

William didn’t need two seconds to know that his sister was thanking him for telling her about Gareth’s arrival and that she would appreciate any updates on his movement. “The pleasure is mine Melissa.”

“Well then, I best go prepare to leave,” Melissa spoke with a sigh as she rose from her seat.

“Where are you going?” William asked. He could see from her expression that wherever it was, she didn’t want to go.

“Didn’t you hear?” Melissa responded, “the king wants us to go on a honeymoon to Guria.”

A honeymoon? William clicked his tongue and leaned back on his chair, that sly silver haired bastard was trying to get his sister pregnant wasn’t he? But wait. As Melissa turned to leave he noticed that something had changed about her. “Melissa..”

The blue eyed woman turned back to her brother, “yes?”

“Have you gained weight?” William asked, skepticism heavy in his tone.

Melissa immediately wrapped her arms around her stomach and blushed, “I suppose I have.”

He knew it. That reaction confirmed William’s suspicions, the small antics of newly expecting mothers were very evident to anyone with an eye as keen as William. He noticed how when she sat down she moved her stomach away from the edge of the table, he noticed how her hand would rest on her stomach as she spoke, and now when he mentioned her weight, her stomach was the first place she hid as if that was the place she was expecting to be bigger than usual.

“It looks good on you,” William responded and dove right back into his book.

“Thank you,” Melissa mumbled before leaving the garden.

After Melissa disappeared back into the palace, William rose from his seat and walked in as well. He took slow strides down the hall to the quarters where he and his brothers slept. When he opened the door, he found Alexander, Jonathan and Bahram sitting and anxiously waiting for his return.

After William closed the door and made his way to his seat, Alex walked to the door and placed his ear next to it. He lifted two fingers in the air at his brothers indicating that two gaurds had followed William, and were standing outside the door.

Jonathan who was standing by a window, nodded and then flinged a small rock that hit one of the gaurds outside down in the courtyard, rendering him unconscious. A mini panic broke out in the courtyard and the two gaurds who were standing outside their door left their station to see what the commotion was all about.

“Alright we’re clear,” Alexander announced, “they’re gone.”

“So did you tell her?” Bahram questioned William.

“I did, now all that’s left is to wait I suppose.”

“Then why do you look like that?”

William gazed at his oldest brother and sighed, “Elric is taking Melissa on a honeymoon today, to Guria.”

“That bastard!” Bahram rose from his seat and balled his hands into fists as anger coursed through his veins. “He’s trying to get her pregnant! The little coxcomb!”

“He wont be able to,” William responded. “And that may complicate the situation.”

“What do you mean?” Jonathan and Alexander asked in unison.

William clamped his hands together and knitted his brows. If Melissa was pregnant with a lycan, Elric would have noticed it by now and wouldn’t need to take her for a honeymoon, so if she wasn’t pregnant for her husband, it could only mean one thing.

“Melissa is carrying prince Gareth’s child,” William responded.

The room went silent as the men digested the information that William had just shared with them.

“But how are you so sure?” Alexander and Jonathan asked. They had seen Melissa around the palace countless times and she didn’t look pregnant at all.

“If any of you had wives you would know that spotting a woman with child is not all that difficult,” Bahram chided his brothers, “but you waste your lives flirting with anything in skirt.” The man then sat down and ran his hand over his face, “there are two things that may happen when Elric finds out about the baby,” Bahram explained, “either he’ll have a mental breakdown and hurt someone..”

“Or he’ll think the baby is his,” William responded.

“Gods, Melissa will be the death of me,” Bahram sighed and sunk deeper into his chair. After a few minutes of silence Bahram jolted upright and turned to William, “did you say they are going to Guria for their honeymoon?!”

“Yes, Melissa told me that herself,” William responded.

Bahram got to his feet and walked behind Jonathan and Alexander whose shoulders he held firmly. “Gentlemen, we may still have hope.”