Chapter 48 - Getting Married To The King

Silvia stood in her living room helpless on what to do. She tried pacing around the room but that too offered no solution to her predicament. She had a big problem with her hand and she was stressing out because of it.

She watched the door constantly to see Francis return but he too was not arriving. Which gave her more time to think and made her even more stressed. She walked up the stairs and went to her room and packed her clothes in her bag and set out on the door. She then proceeded to Francis's room and packed his belongings as well. She took both the bags with her and went down. She placed the bags on the table.

Time was passing by but her husband was nowhere to be seen. Her palms were sweaty and sweat was trickling down her forehead from worry.

"What are you doing?" Francis asked entering the room. He could see how stressed she was and got worried."What is the matter why are you so worried?" he asked her getting her to sit down.

"W..we h..have to go on a trip," she said nervously looking everywhere but at him.

"Trip? To where?"

"Ar.Arim.Arimelari," she said and the room went completely silent. It was so quiet that you could hear a needle falling to the ground.

"Wh..why do we have t..to go there?" Francis asked with his voice breaking.

"Malia, her family had arranged for her to marry a man in Arimelari. You and I had promised her that we would support her and go with her since her mother is unwell and can't travel and her father has to stay back and look after her," She said in one breath.

She knew how sensitive the subject of Arimelari was with Francis and if possible she would never want to bring up that place ever in their life but she had no choice. They had given the girl their word and it would be wrong for them to go back on their word. Moreover, Francis can't run away from his past forever, he would have to face everything once again so the sooner the better so that he doesn't regret anything.

"Why there?"

"I don't know Francis. I was surprised too when I found out where the groom's family is from but there is nothing we can do about that. And also just because we are going back there does not mean that we have to go to the palace. We won't even see anyone from the palace during our visit," she said to assure him.

"I don..."

"Don't refuse please, the trip will be good for us and the baby," she said using her ultimate weapon to have him agree. Francis couldn't disagree that getting out would be good for the child and he couldn't say no to Silvia so he agreed.

"But we won't go anywhere near the palace, " he said sternly. They got their bags into the chariot and left the house. Francis had made sure to pack some food and herbs for her for the trip. They rode into town where they picked up Malia and her aunt Celeste and began their journey to Arimelari.

Francis closed his eyes, he didn't want to see the same road he was forced to walk on three months ago by the man that he had given his heart to. Just thinking of returning to Arimelari brought back the awful memories of the last time he saw and spoke to the dragon king.

Tears couldn't help but flow from his closed eyes from the hateful words he has to hear that day. The words that have long since haunted his mind and dreams for the past three months.

Thinking about him makes it difficult for him to breathe and at times causes him massive headaches. The dragon mark doesn't help him as it at times shows him glimpses of Alexander and what he is doing making his wound grow deeper and deeper.

He wiped his tears away and folded his hand into a fist, he dug his nails into his palm. The pain from his hand kept him distracted from all the pain in his heart. It allowed his mind to stop thinking about Alexander.

"How can I live with someone who puts my son's life in danger. You created a child that is to kill my son yet you claim to love me. What is this love?" Alexander's words rang in his with the same bitterness as he had uttered them. Francis took a deep breath to calm the tears that were about the flow from his eyes. His heart shattered again recalling those words.

"Francis are you okay?" Silvia asked him with a worried expression on her face.

"Yes, I am okay. I just had a bad dream that is all. Don't worry," he said and laid his head facing away from her. 'I want to forget everything but the harder I try to forget the more I remember,' he thought.

He took a hand knife from his pocket and held it in his hand. He folded his hand tightly around the knife and it pierced through his skin. He bit his lip and held back a screech from the pain. He closed his eyes to sleep and tried to concentrate on the pain from his hand to occupy his mind.

But the memories fought past his physical pain and replayed in his head over and over again. No matter how hard he pressed his hand on the knife he couldn't stop himself from thinking about it. None of the good memories came to him but only the bad ones to haunt him. It kept him awake when all he wanted to do was sleep and forget even for just one second that he was going back to that land where he was rudely asked to leave.

"Let's have lunch."

Everyone took a break and got down from the chariot to have lunch and midday. He was too occupied with his thoughts he hardly realized how fast time was flying.

"We will be in Arimelari by sundown," Malia's aunt informed them.

Francis didn't have much to eat, he wasn't feeling hungry and his appetite was lost due to his troubled mind. He took only a bottle of water and returned to the chariot.

The others ate their food and talked. Malia was very worried about meeting her new groom and having to start her life far away from home but Silvia was there with her and she assured her that all will be fine. When lunch was over they all got back to the chariot and the journey went on.

"I wish my husband is just like Francis, he loves and cares for you so much," Malia commented.

"I hope that every wife is blessed with a husband like him. I can't wish for anything more as I have him," Silvia said proudly but her heart was breaking in her chest. She was going back to the land that owns her husband's heart and risked losing him to not just the land but its ruler.

It was evident in Francis's behavior that he was thinking about Alexander all through the journey. She left him to his thoughts in the hope that he finds peace of mind after thinking about the matter after so long.

"It's true. If I find a man just like him then even I won't ever yearn for anything in life. No amount of wealth can ever buy the happiness in one's life," she said. Her words pleased Silvia very much but her aunt seems to disagree. She didn't voice out her objection but she showed her disapproval in the frown she wore on her face.

"I am sure that your husband will love you just as you deserve to be loved. I wish that you have the best married life," she said to her and hugged her.

"I pray that it happens as you wished," she replied.

"We are here," the driver of the chariot announced for them.

The chariot pulled to a stop and the doors were opened. Malia and her aunt were the first to come out to meet the groom and his family waiting outside for them. Silvia and Francis got out next and looked up.

Francis's eyes met with Alexander's eyes and he froze in his tracks. Silvia was shocked upon seeing the very familiar walls of the palace and the members of the royal family standing outside that palace. She took hold of Malia's hand and pulled her close to her.

"What are we doing in the palace of Arimelari?" she asked her in a hushed voice.

"Didn't I tell you? I am getting married to the king of Arimelari," she informed her. Silvia could hear lighting and thunder in her ears from what she said even though the cloud was clear.

She looked away from the girl and looked over to Francis who seemed to have turned into a statue.. She took a step closer to Francis and held his hand squeezing it gently making him look away from Alexander.