Garden Of Poison-Chapter 31: Blessing of being sick

Soon the trusted Vizier of King William, along with Mr. Gilbert, started to interrogate every concubine, courtesan and servant, who could have come in contact with this intruder named Tasia Flores.

After questioning the concubines, Zion, the Vizier, moved to question the courtesans one by one. He probed one of the courtesans, "Do you know who Tasia Flores is? Have you heard anything about her before?"

The courtesan shook her head, saying, "I saw the woman last night for the first time and haven’t seen her after that, Sire."

Marianne, who stood to the side, could feel the blood drain from her face little by little as the Vizier moved to question them, until it was finally her turn. The Vizier questioned,

"Where were you last night?"

"I was at the celebration with the other courtesans, Sire," Marianne’s voice was calm as she said those words. The courtesans were trained to speak calmly even during stressful conditions, and she maintained her composure.

One of the courtesans suddenly asked Marianne, "Marianne, isn’t your last name Flow or Flores?" Though the woman had joined the Paradise Tower before Marianne, she had failed to get recognition like the latter and was more than keen to take Marianne’s spot.

The Vizier’s eyes narrowed on noticing the lush brown hair similar to that of the woman named Tasia Flores, who had danced with Prince Dante last night at the celebration. He took a step forward and demanded,

"Is your last name Flores?" The Vizier didn’t allow her to speak, and he grabbed hold of her neck before threatening her, "How dare you try to deceive the Blackthorn family members?! Lying your way to get close to the royal family while you are nothing but a whore who has been sullied more than a hundred times. You thought you could get away with it?!"

Marianne could feel the air entering her lungs turning scarce. The Vizier glared down at her, wanting her to confess, and though she had a hand in turning her sister into Tasia Flores, she wasn’t Tasia Flores.

"Zion, let go of the woman!"

The Vizier turned around, while still holding Marianne’s neck in his grasp. His eyes fell on the second Blackthorn prince. Prince Maxwell stepped inside the wide room and stated,

"Marianne was with me the entire evening and night. So release her right now."

The Vizier released Marianne’s neck, and she coughed hard while touching her neck. Zion stated, "Her name is similar to the woman we are looking for. Who is a sham."

Prince Maxwell frowned at the news before a soft chuckle escaped from his lips. He then said, "The woman you are talking about is definitely not this one. Firstly, Marianne is not a Flores but a Floyd. Secondly." He turned to look at Madame Minerva and asked, "What was Marianne doing this noon and in the evening?"

Madame Minerva responded, "Marianne was serving tea to the guests on Mr. Kostas’s and Mr. Ryker’s word." She added to the Vizier, "You had ordered to send the top two courtesans today." free𝑤ebnovel.com

Prince Maxwell clapped his hands and said, "That is right. Because Lady Tasia Flores had come to ride around the city with us at that time."

The Vizier stared at Marianne before giving a nod at the prince’s words and responded, "The fraudulent woman had a similar hair colour, and I jumped to conclusions. It was my mistake, Prince Maxwell. We will go to inquire with the other people in the palace," offering a bow, the Vizier and Mr. Gilbert left the Paradise Tower.

Marianne stared at the doors of the room, worried and scared for her younger sister. Last night was meant to be fun, not turn into a witch hunt.

As all the guests had retired to their rooms, it made it easier to get a hold of the servants in one place before questioning them at the servants’ quarters.

When it came to Theresa’s turn, the tall Vizier towered in front of the servant as his hollow eyes tried to spot anything out of the ordinary. He questioned,

"Did you serve a woman named Tasia Flores?"

Theresa bowed and replied, "No, Sire. Me and Anna were assigned to Lady Amara Lumbard."

"I am questioning you. You don’t have to speak for the other servants," the Vizier’s words were curt enough to have Theresa nod while she stared at the ground. He noted, "It looks like you are a lower maid and not one who works in the inner part of the palace." The man then gave a side-eye to Mr. Gilbert before asking, "Are these the only servants we have?"

More than the old maids, the Vizier was interested in the young maids who could have pretended to be a lady while the palace was busy celebrating. He believed it was better to first check the palace before searching the kingdom.

Mr. Gilbert, who first shook his head, remembered one maid, and he informed, "There’s one more."

Theresa’s hands pressed against her sides at the nearing end of the inevitable. The Vizier gave him a stare before he raised his eyebrows and questioned, "Then why isn’t she here with the rest of the servants?"

"The maid has been ill since this afternoon, which is why she is resting," Mr. Gilbert answered.

"How convenient," the Vizier remarked with his eyes narrowing before he continued, "That the princes and princesses took a ride to the city today during the same hours the maid fell sick. Bring her to me."

Mr. Gilbert pursed his lips before he stated, "But, Sire... I don’t think she is of any use. She’s a mute." This caught the Vizier’s attention, who frowned.

"A mute?" The Vizier repeated. Mr. Gilbert nodded and said,

"She’s a disabled woman who cannot speak."

The Vizier, as well as Mr. Gilbert, were aware of and had witnessed the lady in the emerald dress dance and talk not only with the prince but with the Mother Queen too. Before more could be discussed, one of the servants suddenly appeared and informed,

"Minister Zion, you have been summoned to the courtroom by His Majesty."

Back in the long royal courtroom, the centre of the room held a small fountain-like stone, but instead of water, fire burned in it. King William sat on the throne, while the Mother Queen and Queen Sophia sat on either side of the King, only three steps below him.

The Mother Queen seemed genuinely upset at being lied to, as she had placed her hopes and wishes on this woman, who was now exposed to be a sham. The Vizier entered the royal courtroom and bowed, "My King."

"Have you found the woman or the one whose sketches were stolen by the dead maid?" King William questioned him.

"Every person in the palace was interrogated, but we haven’t found any leads. The woman who was posing as Tasia Flores has fled the palace," the Vizier replied.

"She can’t have fled that far," King William remarked.

At the same time, Prince Dante stepped into the courtroom, his footsteps softly echoing as he made his way to where the King sat on the throne. He offered a slight bow when he heard his father demand,

"Where have you been, Dante? I was waiting for you to join us."

Dante replied, "Forgive me, I was with my mother."

King William questioned, "This woman that you danced with last evening; she seems to be fake and had not been included on the guest list. Zion and Norrix had every one of them questioned. Did she mention anything to you? We suspect that she might be a spy from Brovia."

"Nothing of relevance that caught my attention, my King. She appeared to be like any other woman of her age, who was much interested in her dress, the food and drinks," Dante replied before he asked his father, "Would you like me to have a second search party sent through the kingdom to find her? It could be beneficial."

"I agree with Prince Dante, Your Highness. A second search would be more thorough," the Vizier agreed.

"Do what needs to be done," King William ordered them.

When King William ended the small discussion and left the courtroom along with his wife, and once the Vizier took his leave, the Mother Queen came to place her hand on Dante’s hand, but her hand touched Dante’s wet coat that he picked up from the servant who was carrying it before. Her eyebrows furrowed,

"Did you jump into a pool of water while fully dressed? Not that I wouldn’t have if I had the chance, the weather is hot and now this issue with the woman." She then sighed before saying, "I am sorry it turned out this way, Dante. I thought she was the one for you, and I liked her. What a true pity."

The Mother Queen stared at Dante and asked, "You are okay, aren’t you?"

"I have you next to me. Everything is good," Dante responded.

"Of course, you have me for a good hundred more years," the Mother Queen responded before a yawn escaped from her lips, and she said, "I should retire to bed. I will see you tomorrow. Goodnight, Dante."

"Goodnight, Grandmother," Dante leaned forward and kissed his grandmother’s cheek, who did the same before leaving the courtroom.

Dante had already heard about Tasia Flores being searched for in the palace, and his eyes briefly fell on his wet coat. A while ago, he had caught a servant carrying it, and he had stopped the servant to take it back. He had asked the servant,

’Where is the lady who gave you this coat?’

’She went inside, Prince Dante,’ the servant had answered.

Dante himself was curious about this young woman who said she didn’t want to be here. She had attended the celebration as if, given the opportunity, she would have chosen not to be there. He looked in the direction of the open double doors and wondered where she was hiding.