It Was A Judgment Day - 3. Part III

Brianna couldn’t find Amberly. He was not in the room when she finally went to bed the night before and he wasn’t with her now. She dressed and went to check on Bobby hoping to find him there, but he wasn’t.

“Has Amberly been in this morning?” she asked.

“Haven’t seen him. He don’t come very often or stay very long,” Bobby wouldn’t meet her eyes. “I’m broken.”

“You are not broken. He’s worried about Puck. He knows you have me. When you weren’t there for me he was,” she soothed Bobby with her voice as she caressed his face. The bruising was nearly gone.

“He was fidgety. Caged. He needs a good fucking,” Bobby laughed.

“I could do that.”

“No, not a good fuck. To be fucked.”

Brianna blushed. It wasn’t as if she didn’t know what Bobby and Amberly did in bed, she had watched enough and even participated, but to hear either to talk about it so openly still made her blush.

“So do I,” she admitted.

“Tell him. It might help. Loosen him up a little. You’ve seen me do it.”

“I’m not sure I could do that, Bobby.”

“It’s good for him, Bri. It’ll be good for both of you. Show him you can take care of him too.”

“He needs you. So stop feeling sorry for yourself and something you couldn’t help and get better. We both promised to take care of him. Both of us.”

“I’m not sure I can. The doctors said…”

“There was some damage, I know. I saw it while you were unconscious. There was some. I think it will heal in time. I’d like some different equipment, something I’m familiar with, but from what I can see everything appears intact.”

Bobby sighed.

“Go find our boy. Make him listen to reason. And don’t come back until he’s looser.”

Brianna laughed.

“I think I might be able to manage that.”

It took half the morning to find the guard that had been assigned to watch Amberly the day before. He had not been there when he slipped out, but he had seen the Princess Elmera come to visit. So Brianna went in search of the Princess.

She was directed to the Queen’s Solar.

Brianna walked forward and looked around. It was a nicely appointed room in soothing yellows and greens with a part of the ceiling and one entire wall made of glass. Living potted flora accented the space as did practical things like a spinning wheel and looms. There were several women there of all ages. Girls were receiving instruction from the young women and the older women were chatting quietly. She knew Princess Elmera was a year or two younger than Prince Anarix who was about Bobby’s age. That would make her about Brianna’s age.

There were several young women who fit the age, but only two who looked like Anarix and one was old enough to be his mother. However it was another woman who addressed her. She was the eldest in the room. Perhaps deference was given to age here.

“You must be Brianna. I understand your husband is better?”

“He is.”

“I believe we have been remiss in greeting you. But we know how worry for a loved one can consume a person. We were certain it is the same for your species.”

“My species?” Brianna asked with a little venom. “We aren’t all that different as I’m certain your doctors can confirm.”

“It was not meant as an insult, dear. But you must admit we are not the same.”

“We are not all that different either. Which of you is Elmera?”

One of the young women looked at her.

“I want to know why you were alone in our room with my husband.”

The other women looked at her. The eldest spoke again.

“An interesting question indeed.”

“The door was left open, my Queen. I would not dishonor my husband so. I only wanted to know if the dead man was my brother’s Bound. Who better to ask than his brother?”

“And his answer?”

Brianna listened to the exchange, positive Amberly wouldn’t cheat on Bobby, or her, but especially not Bobby.

“He says the man is not.”

There was a gasp from the other older woman; the one who looked like Anarix.

“But your father sent Anarix to the Temple,” the woman said with a shaky voice.

The eldest woman looked at Brianna.

“You are certain the Consort is not the man your husband, Robert, brought to us?”

“I’m certain if Amberly says the man is not Puck, then the man is not Puck. If Prince Anarix says the Consort is Puck Hanover, then the Consort is not the man Robert brought to you.”

“We will speak to my husband on this matter,” the Queen stated as she looked at the other woman who had spoken.

Brianna watched as the two eldest women stormed past her and wondered about their relationship for all of two seconds before turning and following them.

Elmera quickly caught up with Brianna as she walked several paces behind the older women. It wasn’t long before they turned left into a guarded hallway.

“Stop Brianna,” Elmera said, grasping Brianna’s arm, “Do not follow the queen or her handmaiden into her private quarters.”

Brianna turned sharply. “Her handmaiden? You look just like her.”

“She is my mother,” Elmera confessed, “and Anarix’s as well. Come, we will find Gilban, he will know where they tucked Anarix away.”

“And you didn’t think to ask him sooner?”

“I didn’t have confirmation he wasn’t insane before.”

“You spoke to Amberly yesterday.”

Elmera looked down.

“You didn’t believe him.”

“He sent a message to another in your party. I had hoped another would arrive and deny the family bond so that my father would have to listen.”

“In a rational world, that would work. I’ve yet to see any evidence of this being a rational world.”

Gilban opened the door to the Prince’s chamber. This was the last place everyone had thought to look. Thus he was not surprised to see the Prince and his two cohorts passed out in the bed. It was difficult to tell if they were clothed or not without flipping back the blankets. Gilban wasn’t sure if he wanted to know.

However, if he found them it wouldn’t take everyone else much longer to figure it out. He shut the door.

“So, this is what the lot of you were up to?” he said as mean as he possibly could as he flipped back the blanket exposing three bare asses.

Sleepy hands groped for the blanket. Matov managed to find the corner of another blanket; while Amberly curled into the warmth of Rix’s body. Rix opened one eye, squinting at Gilban.

“Go away.”

“No, you need to get up before his father,” Gilban poked Matov, “and his wife,” he poked Amberly, “get here.”

“Not crazy.”

“You will be crying insanity if you stay in that bed much longer,” Gilban told Rix as he rolled Matov out of the bed. The teenager was a bit easier to move than he expected. Then he jerked awake, clutched his stomach, and retched on the floor.

“Holy! What have you been up to?” asked as he helped the boy wipe up his face.

Amberly rolled over and slowly sat up, “Celebrating. What the hell was that stuff?”

Gilban looked around the room until he found the bottle. “Oh you didn’t!”

“Not so loud, please, Uncle Gilban,” Matov whimpered.

“Well obviously you did,” Gilban snorted. “And you couldn’t have called me first?”

Rix finally started to sit up. “You thought I was insane. These two were insane enough defy the priests in their belief I am not.” He clutched his head. “Oh, it’s still moving.”

Matov grinned shyly. “I can’t believe we got away with that.”

“I’m sure it was only because they wanted to protect your innocence,” Rix said with a grin as he tried to hold back his laughter.

Matov gave him a look.

Amberly groaned, “Oh, don’t make me laugh.”

Gilban looked from one to the other and shook his head. “I’m sure I would like to hear this story one day, but for now, you all need to be cleaned up and clothed.” He looked around. “Where are your clothes?”

They just burst out into laughter then and rolled back on the bed.

“Never mind I don’t want to know,” Gilban said as he moved toward the ensuite. “Come on, all of you need to bathe. I’ll find you something to wear while you wash up.”

The shower was large enough for the three of them, barely. Gilban made sure the water was hot and there was plenty of soap then left them alone to get cleaned up while he looked for something for Amberly and Matov to wear.

Three slightly damp and somewhat more sober looking men exited the bathing area. Gilban handed them clothing purloined from Rix’s collection and laughed as they dressed. Rix was not large by any stretch of the imagination. However, his clothing swam on Matov, who had not reached his full growth yet and Amberly filled the clothing out oddly, although Gilban was sure he was full grown.

“Feel better?” he asked them at the same moment his communicator sounded. “I hope so because I have the feeling time just ran out.”