Heartless

by Zizi Cole

  “I’m sending you to Tiven. We have two jobs there.”

  “Who are the marks?” I was already calculating how long the trip would be and which guise I would use to blend in.

  “Tobias,” Declan looked at me. His eyes were unreadable. He studied me for a moment before continuing. “You may enjoy this one. It is the King and Queen of Tiven. I know how you have felt about royalty since you came to us. King Luquin is an evil bastard. There is talk that he has access to some of the old technology and he is working on using it to overthrow the other kings. He wants to use forbidden tools. I hear he is cruel to his entire household.”

  “I don’t care what they are doing or have done. What do you know about the queen?”

  “She doesn’t care about anyone or anything in the land. There is talk that she is helping with Luquin plan. She has yet to produce an heir and there is a lot of talk about that. Other than that, the queen is rather elusive. She is rarely seen or heard from.”

  I smirked. It sounded like a challenge. I liked challenges. “What are her habits?”

  “She spends a lot of time in the church. At least that is what my sources tell me. She isn’t known to attend services and if she does she stays isolated from rest of the congregation, but she spends more time there than most. She goes to the confessional frequently, even though I haven’t heard of her actually confessing anything. When she is seen, she is usually dressed in all black, with her face covered and kneeling before the Mother Mary statue. They believe that she is praying for an heir to save her neck, if the rumors are true.”

  “Is there a time limit on this assignment?”

  “They want it done as soon as possible. They made sure to stress that they want both king and queen gone. They are paying four times our fee for this one, with a possible bonus after it’s done, if it is completed quickly.”

  I stood. “I’ll head out now then.”

  “Safe travels, Tobias.”

  “See you soon, Declan.”

  I walked out of the sanctuary, heading toward the rectory to pack my bags. If the queen visited the church than I would stay at the church. It would be easy to convince them that I was a travelling priest.

  As soon as I packed, I headed out for the journey to Tiven. I would start to plan how I would end them on my week-long journey. I slipped out without a sound and started to head to the west. It was going to be a lengthy expedition and I wanted to get a head start there.

  It didn’t take much to convince the priests that I was a weary travelling priest that needed to stay for a few days. I settled my stuff in my room, changed into the robes that were provided for me, and headed out into the church to see what I could find out about the nobles of the land.

  As I roamed around the grounds, I heard plenty of talk about the queen and suspicions of why she was so elusive. After hearing all the speculations, I found myself fascinated by a queen I had yet to lay eyes on.

  I entered the sanctuary and stopped in my tracks. There she was. The queen. It couldn’t be anyone else. She was kneeling in front of Mother Mary with her head bowed. She was wearing a black dress, with a black silk veil on her head, effectively covering her face. She appeared to be in mourning, but I hadn’t heard anything about recent deaths.

  I was entranced just watching her. I didn’t know what it was about this heartless queen that caught my attention, but I couldn’t pull my gaze away from her. She never turned her head, just stared straight ahead. I could hear her speaking, yet her voice was so soft, I couldn’t make out the words. She was speaking barely above a whisper.

  She started to turn, so I slipped into the shadows before she noticed me. I couldn’t have her realize that she was being cased and increase her security. I went back to the rectory and settled down in the main room, thinking about how I wanted to do it. I knew I needed to be quick and efficient.

  I was joined by Father Lopez. He was the main priest at the church, so he had extended the invitation for me to stay. He also seemed to like to talk a little more than he should. He settled in a chair and faced the fireplace.

  “Tell me about the queen.” I said carefully.

  “What about her?”

  “What is she constantly praying about?”

  He shrugged an exaggerated shrug. “She has never told me. She just sits there for hours on end, kneeling in front of Mother Mary. She cries occasionally while there too, but won’t tell me what is wrong. I have tried to tell her that this is a safe place for her to release her demons, but she doesn’t.”

  “So . . . does she attend services?”

  He nodded. “She does, but she does them alone. Sometimes the king accompanies her, but not usually. I believe he prays privately with the Cardinal, who visits him frequently.”

  The plan began to form in my head, I knew what I could do to dispose of the queen without arousing suspicion that there was an assassin in the area. I continued to chat with him for a while before I took my absence.

  Once in my room, I pulled out a little vial and set it on the table. I then changed out of the robes into black pants and shirt. It would help me blend into the shadows. I took the vial and slipped it into my pocket. Once I saw the light from under my door go out, I opened the door and slipped out into the hallway.

  I made my way to where they kept the wafers and wine for communion and found the stash reserved for royalty. I poured a drop of the contents of the vial onto the wafer. By time that the priests got the wafer out for communion the next morning, it would have dried and be ready for her. Lethal. It would appear that she became suddenly ill and she would die from the illness. If anyone questioned, it would be assumed she had developed pneumonia and died from complications.

  After I laced the wafers, I slipped out and made my way to the palace. It was time to get eyes on both the king and queen. Scope out his routines before I figured out what to do with him. I wanted this to be done so I could head back to my sanctuary as soon as possible.

  I quickly crossed the courtyard to the palace. I walked in through the servants’ doors and found the stairway that led up to the upper levels from the kitchen. I slowly and quietly made my way up the stairs. I didn’t want anyone to see or remember me. I stepped out of the stairwell on the third floor. I knew from my previous experience in the other castle, that royalty tended to have their rooms on the third floor. I stepped into the darkened hallway and stood there for a moment, taking in the layout. I made my way to the large double doors at the end of the hall.

  I was surprised there wasn’t anyone posted at the door. As I approached I found out why. I could hear yelling through the door and quickly slipped into the next room. In the closet, I found the latch to the secret doorway that led into the passageway in the walls. From the details I had gleamed, I knew there was a peep hole, used to make sure that the marriage was actually consummated. It would give me an unobstructed view of the room and bed.

  When I found it, I slipped the panel open and watched the fight that ensued in the room. The queen had her back to me. King Luquin stood facing her. He was twice her size and he loomed threateningly over her smaller form. She stood her ground, shoulders squared.

  “You will produce me an heir, wife,” Luquin commanded through gritted teeth.

  “I’ve been in this hell for five years now, husband. What makes you think that I will be able to produce you an heir. If I could have, I would have by now,” The queen said calmly. Her voice was vaguely familiar, but it couldn’t be who it sounded like. It had been so long; it must have been my imagination.

  “I know you are able to bear children, woman. There better be an heir in that belly within the year or it’s your head.”

  She lifted her chin, exposing her neck. “Take it. Put me out of this misery that I am in.”

  He stepped closer and grabbed her by the neck. Leaning down until they were nose to nose, he said softly, “You haven’t seen misery yet. I can show you misery. Now undress and let’s make an heir.”

  Even though I couldn�
��t see her face, I could see the integrity radiating from her. She lifted her chin a bit higher, despite the hand around her neck. “Why don’t you have one of your mistresses produce you a bastard and name him your heir? You take such pride in parading your harem around, what is one more slight? No one would question you, or why you are naming a bastard your heir.”

  The sound of his hand connecting to her face was resounding and it knocked her out of his grip onto the floor. She landed with a thud and rolled. When she sat up she shook her head as if to stop a ringing. When she turned to stand, I saw her face which caused my heart stopped for several long beats.

  It couldn’t be. There was no way. I hadn’t seen her in five years, but I would never forget that beautiful face. I stood there frozen, while memories flashed through my head. Her sweet smile, the way her beautiful eyes would light up when she laughed. Her touch, gentle as butterflies.

  It felt like she looked straight into my soul, even though I knew she couldn’t see me. She stood, smoothed her skirts, dabbed away the blood from the corner of her mouth, and turned back to look at King Luquin again. Her brown hair was duller than I remembered, but that could have been from being away.

  “I am feeling ill tonight, husband. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to take my absence and return to my room.” She attempted to walk past him and he shoved her down on the bed.

  He leaned over her, glaring down at her. “You are not going anywhere until I say you can.”

  His hand slid up her skirts as he kissed her neck. She lifted her head and looked back toward the wall, tears filling her eyes. I turned my back away from the scene before me and took a deep breath. I couldn’t let him go through with what he had planned, but if I did anything, they would be onto me. I rushed through the passage until I found my way to the exit.

  Once outside, I slipped into the stable and let all the horses out. Once it was empty, I pulled a flint out of my pouch and struck it together until it sparked. The spark jumped to the hay. The hay smoldered, smoke and flames began dancing under the hay.

  I stood back and watched as the barn erupted into flames. Yelling and chaos ensued. I saw the king look out the window and rush away. Moments later, he came out of the palace, and I knew that Malina would be safe from him, for at least this one evening. I slipped back to the rectory to determine what my next step was going to be. Her being the queen threw a major wrench in my plans.

  Chapter 2

  I paced my room, trying to decide what I needed to do. My Malina was the queen I was supposed to kill. How could I kill the love of my life? There wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t think of her angelic face.

  It wasn’t possible that she was involved with anything dark and underhanded. Having the hit out on her, and the fact I was the one assigned to it, brought up more questions than it answered. Why would someone want to kill Malina? Who put the hit out?

  I paced for hours, and only realized the passing of time, when I saw the sun rising through the window. I shook my head at the church bells. A thought occurred to me. I had poisoned the wafers that Malina would take during communion. I had to prevent her from taking the wafer.

  I quickly dressed in the robes and started to head out of the room. I stopped. She would recognize me like I was. I couldn’t let her see my face as is. I turned back and pulled a kit out of my bag. Opening the kit, I used make-up and colored contacts to alter my appearance enough where she may find me familiar, but I didn’t look like myself.

  I rushed out of the room, down to the sanctuary. I found where she was kneeling by herself, head down in prayer. I walked up and casually took the wafers and replaced them with untainted ones. I slid the wafers into my robes just as she looked up.

  Frowning, she stared at me. “Do I know you?”

  I bowed to her and spoke softly to the floor. “I don’t believe so, Your Majesty. I am a weary travelling priest just passing through.”

  Disappointment laced her voice. “Oh. You reminded me of someone I once knew.”

  “Are you alright milady?”

  She sighed and I could feel the weight of the sound. She shook her head no as she responded, “I’m fine, thank you Father.”

  I nodded and slipped silently out of the room. She had recognized me, too. That meant that I hadn’t completely been out of her mind over the past five years. This was going to be more difficult than originally planned. I needed to find out what was going on. The truth of what was going on in the castle.

  I no longer believed that they were both in on something with the technology. I knew Malina wouldn’t stand for it. After what I had witnessed the night before, there was no way that she had anything more to do with the king than absolutely necessary. The disgust that had been on her face was obvious to someone who paid more attention to her than just in passing.

  The memory of him striking her and knocking her to the ground was seared in my brain. The thought of it made my blood boil and heart race. I wanted to tear him into pieces until there was nothing left but a fingernail or maybe a tooth.

  I went back into my room and sat down, forming yet another plan.

  I had followed both Luquin and Malina for days, and learned one thing. She definitely wasn’t involved in anything shady. She had no desire to live or to thrive. Malina spent all her time in her room or the church, avoiding Luquin at every opportunity.

  I was sitting in the confessional thinking, since it was the only place no one roamed around, when I heard the curtain on the other side open and whisk shut. Frowning, I opened the little window and tried to see who was in the other side. When I couldn’t see anyone, I sat silently waiting for the other person to start speaking.

  “Forgive me Father for I have sinned,” the voice on the other side started. I knew it was Malina immediately. “It has been, well, a long time since I have made a confession. I am not sure where to start.”

  “Start from the beginning, child,” I told her softly. I hoped she didn’t recognize my voice.

  I heard her sniffle and my heart broke for her. Feeling emotions again was a strange sensation. I didn’t have time to dwell on it however, since she started talking and all my attention was on Malina.

  “I haven’t confessed since I’ve been here. But I can’t hold it in anymore.”

  “Then tell me, my child.” The words felt foreign even though I had spoken them before.

  “I was sent here to wed Luquin five years ago. I was sent here because my father was angry. He wanted to punish me for my actions. I had fallen in love with one of our guards. I knew that it was wrong, and we could get into a lot of trouble for it, but I didn’t care. I believed that I may be able to convince Father that it was okay for me to be with him. I never had the chance. Tobias asked me to run away with him and I agreed. It seemed the best option; that way I would be able to live a normal life and be a normal wife. I would have made a good wife to Tobias. Anyway, the day we were supposed to run away together, somehow my father found out about it. He called me to him and struck me until I confessed all. Father then had Tobias taken into custody where he was tortured and lashed to death. The last time I saw him, he was tied to the flogging post and he was being lashed by the head of the guard. He will never know how sorry I am that it happened or how much I loved him.”

  Her breath caught in a sob and I heard her bite it back. I knew she was struggling to keep herself together. After sighing, she continued. “I was wed to Luquin as soon as I arrived at the palace. They whisked me over to the church to say my vows. Things were okay for the first few months that I was here. Luquin wasn’t attentive, but he let me do as I pleased, for the most part anyway. That was when we found out about the baby. I had suspected I was carrying, but I wasn’t sure right away.

  I had Luquin convinced that the baby was his. He did not seem as pleased as I had thought he would be, but he wasn’t upset. I’m not quite sure exactly when he found out the truth about the baby’s paternity, but he knew it wasn’t his when it was born. The midwife placed him i
n my arms, and Luquin burst through the door and —”

  My heart was pounding in my chest. I couldn’t believe what she was telling me. She hadn’t come straight out to say it, but I believed that she was telling me the baby was mine. I closed my eyes while I waited for the rest of the story.

  “What happened next?” I asked. My voice was strained and I knew that I couldn’t let her know how much this story was affecting me.

  “He took the baby and had the guards drag me from my childbirth bed down to the gardens and the fountain. He forced me to stand there and watch as he drowned that poor innocent baby. He told me that he wasn’t going to raise a bastard and a bastard would never become king.”

  She became silent and the implications of what she had told me sunk in. The bastard had killed an innocent baby, my son, because it wasn’t his baby. He made poor Malina watch her child drown just for the sake of being sadistic.

  I wasn’t sure she was going to continue speaking, but she did. Her voice was strong and full of conviction. “It was then, I decided that no matter what happened, I wasn’t going to give him an heir, if my life depended on it. I knew he would end me if I did produce an heir, and I wasn’t going to leave an innocent child in the hands of that monster. I also know that he will eventually kill me if I don’t produce an heir, which is what I hope for. I’m tired. I have had more than one abortion and now my handmaid brings me serums that prevent me from becoming pregnant. I will not have a child with that monster. I’d rather him end me and my guilt than suffer his hands and touch again. I just hope that when I die, that Tobias forgives me for everything. I wish that he knew that I never meant for any of this to happen.”

  I sat there, stunned with her revelations. It made sense that she hadn’t told anyone everything before. I was glad that I was the one she told, not one of the priests. Even though they believed in confidentiality, they would probably go to the king with some of what she admitted to. Her admission to abortions would be ground for treason and a death penalty.