the haunted kingdom by Charles E.J. Moulton (snow like ashes txt) 📕

that?”
“Because you seduced him. I have not reprimanded him for getting close to you, so he does.”
”We say hello and goodbye. I fell on him by mistake. I have never and will never seduce him.”
“Good.” The two girls looked separate ways. “Keep it that way, Moecha.”
Morgana sniggered. “You and your vulgar Latin phrases.” Morgana shook her head in disbelief. “Why are you always suspicious of me, Belinda? Stop flouncing your linguistic talent.”
She shrugged and smiled bitterly. She spoke softly, “You kiss Steven every time he walks by you in my presence.”
“I kiss a lot of men on the cheek. It does not mean I sleep with them.”
“What about what happened in April?”
Morgana laughed. “You heard Steven. I attacked him. Let us just leave it at that.”
Belinda turned her head to Morgy. “How do you know what he said?”
“I overheard your conversation, remember. You spoke to me about that.”
Belinda took up her glass, gulped the wine down, poured a little more wine in her glass and stood up. “If I had any mind of my own, I would throw this wine at you. Unfortunately, my mind is too clogged up with protecting my future marriage. I intend to get drunk today and you aren’t invited.”
She took the bowl of raisins and threw it at her sister and walked over to her father who was telling the people around him a story. Morgana shook her head, not being able to believe how fast the mood of her sister could change, one moment flirting herself silly and the other throwing raisins at her sister. In a way she felt sorry for her, but she also felt sorry for herself for not being as determined and committed as her sister, moody or not.
Belinda sat down a few feet from her father.
"Oh, Alexander ... Please don’t tell them that story. You will bore them stiff! “
"Come on, Zeddy," Alex said. "They want to hear it! “
Zedrick shrugged, giving them his suit yourself look.
Mrs. Johnstone had been entertaining Patrick's son Lancelot Winsletenna for a while now when Lance ran off to listen to the king's story. The children Fabian & Lance, Maria’s & Erica’s boys, came over as well and sat down on the grass. Mrs. Johnstone heaved down her heavy body and sat down beside them. She was petting the Cocker Spaniel Henry, a very lovable little chap with a bouncy temper. Belinda now looked over to Morgana who was still sitting on her blanket, drinking wine by herself. Patrick walked over from his conversation with his wife Erica and his mistress Roberta to join his sister in order to cheer her up, but she waved him off, throwing a few raisins at him as well.
He shook his head and left, sitting down by Marie-Louise and her boyfriend who were playing backgammon a few feet away from Patricia and Richard. Morgana was morose. Belinda could only shake her head at this. She had the feeling that Morgana always wanted to tell everyone how many men she devoured. When nobody cared, she was sour.
"This was back when we were children,” Alexander began. “We have been kids, too, you know. We were about twelve or thirteen maybe and performing a play written for us entitled Sisyphus and Ariadne by the royal playwright at the time here at the palace theatre." The king pointed toward the palace culture residence and although they'd all seen the theatre wing countless times before looking over to it was a reflex, maybe an automatic sign of respect. "Only loosely related to the Greek myth," Zedrick laughed. "Anyway, I was Sisyphus and Zeddy here was my best pal Herakleit. It was a wonderfully ludicrous mixture of historical facts. I think.” Alex said and looked at Zeddy. “There was even a pharaoh in there named Etnach-Ra.”
Zeddy nodded. “Needless to say that this pharaoh never existed.” That brought on a laugh.
“Ariadne, my wife in this masterpiece, was played by a girl I used to know named Rebecca, a name commonly known as one for seduction. Everyone I know that has that name is feisty, so was she. She considered herself a really fine little actress, but in fact everyone just looked at her hair."
Alexander laughed.
"Lovely flaming red hair she had, that girl," Zeddy agreed.
"Anyway, the story was basically this, the king of a mythical land who would do anything for his oldest son. He had decided that without question he would become the greatest ruler of all time and wrote wills for and named cities after the son. His hubris thereby evoked the anger of God who sent a storm wind all across the nation that devastated it completely. Sisyphus was condemned to roll this stone up and down a mountain for eternity until Ariadne and Herakleit prayed for Sisyphus pardon and received it, restoring the land. Eventually the son grew up to become the greatest ruler of all time, but on God's terms. The moral of the story?" Zeddy and Alex looked at each other and laughed.
“The will of God cannot be forced!”
This brought on applause.
“Wait!” Alex mused. “That was not the story!”
“It was truly a moral tale for the very young,” Zed mused. The girls around them were chuckling. Belinda did so, as well, and looked over toward the sister she had left behind. Now Morgana stood up and walked over to Richard, leaving the blanket with food behind her. Belinda at once felt bad about treating her as she had done and looked down, melancholy over her own mood swings. Alex looked over at his daughter and registered that she was melancholy.
"Carlos Gartuela, the writer," Zeddy continued, "Really was very good and had a wonderful ear for stories. But his opinion of himself as an artiste was extremely high. “
"The motto was really good, in fact." Alexander inserted more quiet this time.
"In fact, very true." Zeddy agreed.
"Sisyphus' goal was reached. But not on his terms." Alexander raised his finger and shook it, but Zeddy managed to speak before him.
“God made the son a great ruler…"
“But punished Sisyphus for wanting to force the natural progression of time!" There was a bit of silence before Alexander continued. "Anyway, we had about twenty performances of this marvellous work, and back then Zedrick was not exactly used to public appearances. In fact he was scared to death. Only because of all the rehearsals did he feel comfortable."
Zeddy laughed. "I was very scared, to say the least. None of that later renowned courage."
"Carlos was there every time and every time he wanted to change something. We always said no. I was a future king and a main player so I could say no. But toward the end of the run we granted him a last performance addition. Sisyphus and Herakleit were standing on the hill looking over their land and saying: "What a fine land this is." Zeddy was given the line: "And although your sacrifice has been big, my brother, thy reward must exceed that everlasting burden. Am I not right?"." Alexander smiled. "Of course good old Zeddy was a nervous wreck. When the moment came he just stared at the audience, they were all family and friends and people from the palace staff, and could not say a thing. He grew absolute scarlet in the face. As I looked at him I saw his face was red as a cherry. I could not help but laugh and that made the whole audience laugh with me. They laughed and laughed and poor Zeddy stood there not saying a word, just feeling horrible."
"I've never been so humiliated in my life. No grand defeat in war with Adnicul could've been more degrading." Zeddy added with a touch of humour. He shook his head and laughed.
"Shall I tell them the end?"
"I've come this far." Alex giggled. "Might as well end it now, Zeddy, my boy." By now, around fifteen people were gathered around the king to listen to his story. Through his laughter the king continued. "Above all this noise Zedrick actually had the courage to speak and everyone stopped laughing to hear him speak." Alexander tried to speak although he was laughing very hard. "But the poor boy said it all wrong." He imitated Zeddy's stuttering. "He said: "A-and although your burden has b-been big, my ruler. You s-sacrifice the werard."." He bellowed with laughter, displaying his gums and stretching his black-bearded mouth widely, eyes gleaming. “Not reward, werard!” These were the times the king was at his happiest, his charisma radiant and his humour on high. Good friends by his side, speaking of old times.
And yet, the sight of his sweetest daughter not seeming to join the fun worried him. Now the entire assembly of courtiers were laughing themselves silly, most of all Zeddy, who was holding his stomach and trying to cope with the pain of a bellyache through too much laughter. Alexander shook his head. "The best thing was that Zeddy himself started to laugh after having said all that and then there was no turning back." The king bent over with laughter. "The boy just lost all control and started shrieking." Alexander sighed. "What a scene."
"You remember how Gartuela looked through all of this?" They both made this very overly serious face and tried to hold it, although they were breaking up underneath. "He was raging inside. Felt like a thundercloud I would imagine. Oh, my word. He was angry for three months after that."
"His work of art ridiculed to bits."
“But come now, we were children. He shouldn’t have asked so much of us.”
“Well, it was a grand premiere, you know!”
“Oh, I see! Was it now, was it?”
Alexander gave Belinda a questioning look to see if everything was all right and she nodded and smiled. Richard, who was embracing Patricia, had Bantrard’s soprano Roberta in his lap. Belinda gestured toward that group and her father at once saw Morgana walking toward Roberta. He smiled, as if understanding. At least, he understood that Belinda was irritated at her sister’s ways.
Someone asked Alexander a question and he nodded and smiled and began to talk. Obviously, it was about the merger, because he was very serious and pleased at the same time.
Steven all this time had been conversing with Rolf and Louis about eventual arrangement for the wedding party. He came and sat down next to Belinda.
“Penny for your thoughts.”
She smiled and stroked his cheek.
“Mmmh.” She kissed him and looked down. “Nothing.”
“I know you, Lind. Something is on your mind. Tell me.” She shook her head and looked over at Morgana. He looked over as well.
“Oh,” he said, half-smiling cynically. “I see.” He shook his head.
“Still suspicious, are you?”
A breeze tossed one of Belinda’s locks around and it landed across her right eye. She brushed it off. “This morning, when Carlos measured my waist and legs for the new corrections, I deliberately flirted with all of his male assistants to get back at you.”
Steven giggled. She looked at him hurt. “I know.”
She looked at him, wounded. “You know?”
Tears were in her eyes.
”Carlos told me you were talking about your breasts.” He chuckled. “You shocked Harald.”
Belinda looked at Steven for a long time and then looked down, biting her nails.
“That’s funny to you?”
He sighed. “Belinda. I don’t know where this comes from, but I kiss Geena on the cheek all the time as well. I embrace Patricia all the time. Hell, I even flirt with your mother.” Belinda looked at him, her left forefinger in her mouth. “Stop that. You are not a baby, so don’t act like one.” The hand