Chapter 46: Sly counseling
Jazell had both her hands crossed behind her, the night breeze swaying her short blonde hair, and her blue crystal eyes glistening under the reflection of the fire touch in the room as she walked side by side with Josiah.
Josiah was a sly man; he was among the small council. A man who was always neutral always liked to be on the winning side; as such, he was given the name the sneaky cat.
"You haven't congratulated Queen Tamina." Josiah started off as they walked down the dark hallway of the enormous castle. The corridor had open windows; when the wind blows, the fire touches on the wall and dances to its rhythm.
Jazell's gaze was icy, like a brewing snowball.
"I will…." She started off with her throat dry.
"When the time is right." She added, her footsteps slow and precise. Every step kissing the cold floor and echoing in the dark night.
"I came here to ask for a favor, but I believe you might need someone to talk to. Someone who knows their way around the politics of royalty." Josiah added, stroking his beard.
Jazell was reticent…too calm. Her lean fingers tapping on her crossed hands. As they continued to walk along the hallways, they came to a spot where a bench chair was placed.
The chair was spacious enough for two people. The moon, which had been hiding behind the clouds, languidly came out, casting its light on the bench through the open windows in the corridors.
The particular corridor they were walking through was located high up in the castle; servants hardly passed this route. Jazell took her seat on the chair, and the moon radiated on her face and half of her upper body; her lower body, from her feet to her waist, was hidden in the shadows.
"A king can always seem to be cruel, but never forget that, no matter how powerful a man is, only a woman has the closest access to bringing him down to his knees." Jazell's eyes darkened, her voice in a whisper.
Josiah peered into her eyes; he could see the moon in those blue eyes of hers. Right now she radiated a calm feminine attitude.
"Before I found my way into the small council…" Josiah began, looking away.
"I was nothing but a street boy, a thief…a beggar." He paused.
"The thing about life is that, wherever you go, your past will always hunt you. You can't run away from your past; you can only strive to make your future better." Josiah traced his thumb to the silver ring on his left finger.
"I found my way into the castle because I had value, and the royalty wanted to use it. I had knowledge about the web of spies across the kingdom, and I know the maps and sea roads like the back of my hand." Josiah said, then shifted his gaze to Jazell.
"What do you have to offer, Jazell? He asked, and the question stunned Jazell; the countenance of her face didn't change, but her eyes twitched.
"I only give what I have." She cooed.
"No…you only play little games to get what you want." Josiah added, his hands crossed behind his back, Jazell has been seated, but he was standing unswervingly.
"We all play little games, one way or the other, Josiah; we just don't take notice."
"Does it hurt? The fact that Tamina is pregnant? He asked, and Jazell scoffed; even if it did hurt, she will never tell anyone. She would let the feeling consume her, then channel it into getting revenge.
"Tamina hid her pregnancy for four good months. She must have known what she had gotten herself into. All eyes will be on her from now on; why should I be left out? Jazell questioned in a furtive manner.
"It could have been you in her shoes." Josiah had his eyes etched in her face to check for any change of countenance his words might impact in her. But Jazell kept a straight face; no one could read her emotions.
Jazell's gaze was straight ahead, but she finally lowered her gaze and then slowly raised it to gaze at Josiah.
"You talk as though you are on my side, Josiah, you sneaky cat." Jazell rose to her feet as she caressed the silver necklace on her neck.
"Do you know what I sacrificed to be here? She asked, her voice low, barely loud enough for Josiah to hear.
"I had a kingdom back in Vandamonth to rule; I should have been the next queen, queen of ice and snow. I forfeited my throne and gave it to my younger brother…. Jazell paused, a bitter smile etched on her lips.
"Such a touching sacrifice." Josiah said in a mocking tone. Jazell turned, then gave him a piercing gaze.
"I didn't just wake up one morning and decide to be Ragaleon's second wife. I weighed the obstacles, I strategized, sleepless night…I planned." Jazell's lips were barely moving, yet the words were slipping out with ease, as if she had recited that sentence.
"You told me that the past will always hunt us…?" Jazell shook her head from side to side elegantly as if disagreeing.
"The past makes the future, Josiah. What you do now, the actions we take now…will tell what becomes of us." Jazell, the queen of tactics, was beginning to sound like herself.
"You do not seem to understand the message I am trying to pass, Queen Jazell. Sometimes…the future might not always be as promising as it seems. The gods play games with fate and with destinies. We are like pieces on a board game, moved in any direction as the gods please.
"Then we humans should also play games, Josiah. When I came here I programmed myself to only understand one thing…destroy…or be destroyed!
Josiah smiled faintly, stroking his beard.
"A dynamite queen…" he commended.
"I came from nothing; I had no inheritance. Do you know what kept me going? Faith. Faith that one day things would be different."
"What keeps me going is my breath, Josaih Elvetan." Jazell called his full name, and the latter could see how serious the conversation was.
"The fact that I am breathing is the only reason I can't be stopped. That is why I must be vigilant, eliminate my opponents, and gather allies…" Jazell paused.
"And your value? Josiah added.
"What will make you different from any of the queens in the harem? You all are like weapons on the king's chessboard. If I were in a position to take a pick, why should I choose you? Josiah questioned sarcastically, a mocking tone in his voice.
Jazell smirked, then licked her lips, her eyes flashing with terror.
"Because I make the rules. I don't follow the rules of nature, and if the rules don't act in my favor… I bend the rules." Jazell said and then walked past him.
"The only difference between you and me is that we have different responsibilities that the crown demands from us…." Jazell paused in her tracks.
"No, Josiah..." she cooed, her tone heavy.
"The only difference between you and me is the thing that keeps us going. Yours is faith, mine… Just breathing—what can stop faith? Fear." Jazell answered her own question.
"And what can stop the breath of life? She asked rhetorically, then swallowed hard before saying…
"Death!!
.......
Racheal was asleep on her bed when she felt a shadow looming in on her. Although she kept her eyes shut, she was already awake.
She was raised like this, to be vigilant, to be at high alert. She had heard the noise the person made when he jumped into her chamber through the window.
The intruder must have gone through all the trouble of climbing the high castle walls. Spying and taking notice of each of the chambers in the castle. Sneaking past the guards, crawling up the walls of her room.
Racheal wasn't foolish enough to start screaming or shout for help; she was wiser than that. The shadow crept closer; Racheal's eyes were still shut, her instincts rising with each step the intruder took.
Just when the assassin raised his dagger to stab Racheal in the face, she caught his wrist. The dagger was now hanging in the air, a little distance away from Racheal's left eye, the pointy side of the blade threatening to penetrate into her eye.
Using her legs, Racheal hits the man in the stomach and tactically rises to her feet, her grip still firm on his wrist.
"Who are you? She asked as she began to struggle with the assassin. The man took the wine jug on a table in the chamber and used it to hit Racheal on the head.
Racheal groaned, she kicked him in the balls, and he crouched down in pain. She then snatched the dagger from his hands and pushed him away, and his back hit the wall before he slumped on the ground.
Racheal reached up to her head and touched it; her hand became soiled with blood.
When she finally tried to concentrate her gaze on the assassin, he…was gone!
Racheal turned around instinctively, but it was too late. The man used a knife that he picked from a fruit basket on a table in the chamber and ran it through the left hand of Racheal's gown, the knife grazing her, brushing her skin.
Racheal shrieked but didn't retreat. She acted vulnerable, so the assassin's approach became more bold. He sought to stab her in the stomach, and Racheal watched as he raised the knife to stab her.
Her eyes shone in shock, and she rolled away on the floor; the knife pierced thin air. Racheal stumbled a bit before staggering up to her feet. As she walked around her chamber trying to find an escape route, she started turning off the candles.
The assassin was confused; the chamber was getting darker. Racheal knew her way around her chamber, so she wanted to use this as an advantage. They were circling each other in the chamber, and as they did so, Racheal would push a candle stand, and it would fall down and then off.
When the man realized what she was doing, he lurched at her, but it was too late; the last candle just fell, and now everywhere in the room was dark.
The red curtains in the chamber blew and swayed in the wind; soon the moon peeked out. In the dark chamber the moon reflected on Racheal's face as she sneaked up behind the assassin and stabbed him in the neck.
She removed the knife and then stabbed him again in the back; she kept stabbing him until she was satisfied. Her breath was etched, a rivulet of sweat on her face, and her plain white gown smeared with blood.
When she opened the doors of her chamber, she found the two royal guards in front of her chamber asleep.
"Fools! She cursed and then walked past them.
A guard was patrolling to and fro in a corridor when Racheal saw him….
"Get the grand maester! She screamed, her voice etched. The guard turned around and saw Racheal making her way to him, her footsteps unstable.
Her head and hand were bleeding.
Ragaleon was making his way to his chamber when he heard someone scream. He retraced his steps and made his way in the direction of the voice.
It was then he saw Racheal making her way to a royal guard, her steps unstable. When he looked properly…he saw blood!
He made his way to her in big strides; he placed one of his hands on her shoulder, and she turned around. His eyes were filled with shock when he saw her condition.
She suddenly closes her eyes and slumps in his hands, unconscious. The guard had already made a run to send for the grand maester. Ragaleon didn't think too much about the situation….
He lifted Racheal in his hands, her blood dripping on his clothes as he made his way along the hallway in haste.
"I promise, whoever did this to you will pay with their life!