Chapter 44: The Story Of The Past IV: The Fall
"No one believes me," Laura mumbled, sitting on the cold floor.
It was the day of Laura's execution. There was no way out of this situation; there was nothing she could do, mostly since she was behind the silver bars right now. Laura knew this was all Tine's plan, for her to suffer and disappear forever. Laura was in desperation and wished for things to be changed.
What fault has she done? Nothing.
One week before the fall, Tine had become the fiancee of Prince Winston. Meaning if you hurt or offend Tine, she could do anything because the royal family was by her side.
Knowing who Laura is, she didn't have any friends out of the estate except for Mary. Laura never made friends because she was always excluded from going to parties. After all, it would be a shame if her scars were to be seen by others.
Laura lowered her head in shame as she recalled how she ended up here.
Laura walked down the stairs as she was planning to go out and buy new dresses for herself. Since all her clothes were hand downs from Tine. And not all dresses had fitted Laura anymore.
On the way down, she met Tine smiling, admiring the ring given to her by Prince Winston. Seeing the ring on Tine, Laura was envious, but at the same time, she didn't care much about it.
All she could think of right now was to be able to get out of Tine's sight. Because once Tine starts a conversation, Laura can't fight back against her. But this time, Laura couldn't contain her anger and exploded.
"Sister! Where are you going?" Tine asked, placing a hand on Laura's shoulder.
"Shopping," Laura said, averting her eyes from Tine.
"Why? Aren't my clothes good enough?" Tine taunted.
"Your clothes don't fit me. They're too big," Laura whispered.
"So you're calling the fiancee of the prince fat?" Tine clicked her tongue, giving a disgusted look.
"N-no, it's just that I thought it would be nice to buy a new dress once in a while," Laura muttered.
Tine raised her brow, crossing her arms together. 'Is Laura in her right mind? Why go out to buy a new dress and waste our money. It's not like she's a part of the family, how inconsiderate she is.' Tine thought with hate.
Laura played with her fingers lowering her head, thinking of a way to get out and leave. But with what Tine said next, Laura couldn't hold in her anger any longer.
"Maybe after you go shopping, you should go to a salon and dye your hair," Tine snorted.
Not a second later, Tine felt pain on her cheeks and her head followed. She held her cheeks, glaring at Laura, who gulped and immediately apologized. Yes, Tine was slapped by Laura.
"Say that again and let's see what I'll do about you," Laura said as her voice trembled.
It was not a good thing that Laura slapped Tine, especially when the servants were around to witness what had happened. When Laura hit Tine on the face, all the servants present gasped and looked away from their direction.
They all didn't know what to do and were all witnesses of what had happened.
"Say what? I'm just telling the truth. Don't need to be so sensitive," Tine snickered, rolling her eyes.
"I'm not sensitive, Tine. As your older sister, I'm teaching you how to be respectful," Laura scolded. Despite that, she knew it was a bad idea to say that.
"Older sister? What's that. Do you think I ever wanted you in my life? I'm sorry to disappoint you, but the answer is no. Who wants you, anyway? No one does," Tine laughed. Then pointed to a maid nearby them. "Hey, have you considered this girl as your master?"
The maid was conflicted because she was one of the few people who didn't care much about Laura's rumors. But knowing what would happen if she had gone the wrong side, she answered.
"I don't."
"Hear that?" Tine laughed. "No one except for that stupid, airhead maid of yours cares."
"Mary is not stupid!" Laura roared and her voice echoed.
"Are you angry now? Finally. I've been dying to see you angry," Tine said while clapping her hands together.
"And so what are you going to do about it?" Laura answered back, clenching her fist as her nails dug down into her skin.
"This," Tine whispered into Laura's ears and leaned on the edge of the stairs.
Laura reached out to grab Tine's hand, but she missed. Tine screamed, yelling for help before she fell on the ground, unconscious.
The servants from the side came forward to check on Tine, but when they saw that she was unconscious, they panicked and immediately called for a doctor. And when they looked up, all they could see was Laura's confused face, which they mistook as feigning innocence.
'What is happening?' Laura couldn't understand. She didn't do anything wrong, all she did was try and reach for Tine's hand, but she couldn't grab her on time.
Helga ran down the stairs, calling Tine's name nonstop. And at that moment, Laura knew she was doomed. She ran back to her room and locked herself inside the room.
A week passed, and Tine had finally woken up. All the maids and Count Harrison were relieved that she was awake. But the moment she woke up, she cried out loud on her bed, accusing Laura, who, according to her, had pushed her off the stairs.
Tine didn't stop until Prince Winston entered the room, comforting his fiancee. He stroked her hair and hugged her, assuring her that everything will be alright.
"I don't know why she tried to kill me," Tine cried.
"It's alright, Tine," Prince Winston said. "I've helped you filled a case, and your sister will be punished there."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Mary hesitated to knock on the door because she knew that Laura locked herself in again. She wanted to comfort Laura but didn't know-how to, and her case was hopeless. The news had spread and reached the ears of many.
Most responded by calling Laura a monster and an evil sister. A girl who was jealous because Tine had everything, but she didn't.
Despite the endless rumors, no one knew the truth because there were only two people who knew the truth, and one of them decided to twist it. Moreover, the more influencers you have, the more power you have. It was obviously Laura who had a disadvantage, and it was apparent.
"Miss, I'm going to enter."
Mary said softly before slowly twisting the knob, opening the door. As usual, her room was dark, with all the curtains were closed. She looked towards the side and saw Laura sitting on the bed, not saying a word.
Mary's chest tightened, she knew that her Lady wouldn't be her usual self, but she wasn't prepared to see the sadness and pain on Laura's face. It was she couldn't get used to. Until now, it would pain her seeing the expression Laura made.
"Do you believe it?" Laura asked softly.
"I-I don't," Mary stuttered.
"Why the stutter?" Laura lifted her face, tilting her head.
Laura's question made Mary speechless, and instead, she dodged the problem by opening the curtains one by one.
Knowing that Mary was just avoiding the question Laura laughed softly and laid down on the bed. She covered her eyes with an arm and felt hopeless. She didn't care anymore, but she was still scared.
"Mary...I think it's the end of me. No one believes me."
"Don't say that!" Mary cried, looking at Laura.
"I'm sorry. Don't cry, come here," Laura said, sitting back up on the bed.
Mary walked towards Laura with tears dropping from her eyes. She sniffled, hugging Laura.
"You'll be fine. You won't die," Mary assured.
"Yeah...I won't," Laura frowned.
A week later, the trial started. But Laura didn't make it and resulted in a death sentence. An ending without anyone knowing the truth.
A tragedy.