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Back in the church, Jade continued to keep her distance from the rest of the witches. She laid back and rested on the same pew she had been on earlier, keeping her face from everyone’s view. She did not want to answer any more questions. She was simply not in the mood. She would much rather be asking them. But without even looking, she felt King Orleans standing over her and knew more were on the way.
As she sat up, she cursed silently to herself, “Damn it!” Orleans was the last wizard she wanted to speak with. But she greeted him with the best fake smile she could muster and invited him to sit beside her.
“How are you holding up?” He asked her as he sat down next to her, placing a cold hand upon her shoulder.
After a slight shiver, she answered him, “I believe I am better than most.” She trying to be as honest as possible about the storm. In fact, though, she was not even thinking about the storm, it being the farthest thing from her mind.
“I see. That is good to hear.” Orleans said to her with a polite smile, squeezing her shoulder gently.
Jade was growing more and more uncomfortable by the minute. She did not appreciate the way Orleans treated her, let alone the way he touched her. She never did. It was like a master stroking his pet, and she was no one’s frening pet. But with him being her superior, she could do nothing but smile nervously back at him and hope he just wanted to talk.
“So, what is on your mind, sire?” She asked him as calmly and respectfully as she could.
“Well,” his lips spilled forth the pride he felt with each word he spoke, the pride of being in control of things, and the pride that Jade was revolted by, “I was wondering if Jane has returned from the chambers yet. I do not like the idea of her being out there alone. Have you seen her?”
“Well,” Jade’s own lips stumbled to speak with respect, the respect that had to be projected at all times, and the respect that Jane had no problem in giving. And that was the difference between she and her, where Jane saw Orleans as a capable leader, Jade simply saw their inevitable downfall. But that was all being worked out, even as she answered herself proclaimed king. “Yes, I saw her not too long ago, but only for a brief moment.” She told him without hesitation, lying through her teeth. “She said that there was more for her to do, but did not say what. She did say that she would not be much longer, though.”
Orleans nodded, not knowing any better because he had been in the back room the entire time. “Yes, I see.” He said. “Knowing her, she is still probably trying to help those mortals. For the life of me, I cannot figure out why she likes to do that so much.”
“Yes, I am sure she is fine.” Jade confirmed without a stutter. “She knows how to handle herself.”
“That, she does,” Orleans confirmed, forcing a smile onto his face as he stood up. “Thank you, Jade. Just let me know whenever she returns, will you?”
“Of course, sire.” Jade told him with a forced smile of her own and happily watched him walk away.
After he was gone, she slid back down the pew to lie on her back again, knowing full well that she had just deceived her leader, their king, and did not at all feel guilty for it. She did not regret what she had done, the chain of events that she had already set into motion, not in the slightest. She knew that what she was doing, the steps she was taking all by herself, was for the betterment of her entire kind. While others saw this storm as a monster sent to destroy their world, a grim death sentence that could wipe away all civilization and take all life from this swamp, she saw it as an opportunity. Just as she had told Marigny, she saw a chance for change. And no one there, not in the church or out in the swamp, was more in tune to the future as she was, and that, she believed, allowed her to control it.
Chapter 11 - For One Last Time We Stand