The Thread Of Fate

Chapter 40

I slept till noon. I would've slept more had my stomach not been growling like a wild animal. With sheer force of will, I freshened up and went down to hunt for some food.

Dominic was nowhere in sight so I assumed he was working. The man rarely stopped working. He put me to shame. Although, there was no real comparison there.

I heard laughter from the dining hall and wandered off to look for the source. What I saw shocked me to the core.

A woman was hugging Dominic.

That wasn't even the most shocking part. He was hugging her too. Placing a kiss on his cheek, she stepped back. The woman had her her hand on his shoulder. They were talking and Dominic had a small smile on his face.

"That is Lady Jessica." Beluh said, making me jump.

"Who?" I frowned, studying the woman. Her hair was black and curly. She was short and quite plump. Her back was turned to me so I couldn't make out her face.

"She looks over Jacinta." Beluh explained.

"A minister." I concluded.

"They go way back. His highness has known her ever since he was a child." Beluh said. "His highness saved her life when he was a boy. She is the closest thing he has to a mother figure."

Mother figure. Relax.

I sighed, realising how absurd I was being. Dominic had just hugged the woman, it didn't mean that he was going to run away with her into the sunset.

"I'm very hungry." I said, getting to the matter at hand. My stomach was complaining, demanding all my attention.

"His highness is going to have lunch with her." Beluh said, "Will you be joining them ?"

I thought about it for a brief moment and decided otherwise. Dominic was probably meeting her after a long time. Whoever the woman was, clearly meant something to him. Giving them time to catch up was the decent thing to do and so I shook my head.

"Should I have the food sent up to the room?" Beluh suggested.

I nodded, feeling weird. I didn't want to sit in the garden and I didn't want to go to the library. It had been a while since I'd eaten alone. I wondered if Jace or Leo were free.

"I'll be in the room." I said to Beluh and went to look for them.

I found out soon enough that Jace had gone out with Ariadne and Leo was busy working. I resigned to my fate and ate my meal alone. I did grab a book though. Even after I'd had the meal, I didn't feel energised. In fact, I felt sleepy. Since I had nothing better to do, I dozed off.

Whispers and murmurs woke me up.

"She has been sleeping all day." A woman said. "Do you think she is sick?"

"His highness has called for her. Should we wake her up?" Another one replied.

"If she is sick, we shouldn't wake her up." The first woman said.

I didn't know what they were doing in the room and I didn't know how long I'd slept. I tried to move but my body hurt.

"We should tell his highness that she is asleep." The first woman suggested.