The fact that she had forgotten the memory for so long did not sit well with her. It didn't seem like something that would have happened naturally.
How many more things had she forgotten?
For how long had this been going on?!
"Are you alright?" Lady Kestra's voice floated to her ears and it was at that moment, she realized that she had been holding her hand in a tight grip, pulling her away from reaching her hair.
She didn't even know when she had done that.
Alright? No, she wasn't alright.
She was realizing too many things at once, the pull from the depth of ignorance she had been sucked into was aggressive. The realization and knowledge that came with it, suffocating.
She wasn't alright.
They had done something to her. That must be it. Was it the King or Lady Kestra? She had to get rid of her, she had to be alone and figure this out herself. There must be something important about that dream and all the things she forgot, for them to have taken the memories away from her.
She had to get rid of Lady Kestra quickly before she would stay long enough for her to realize her memory recovery.
She wondered what had triggered it. Nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
The dizziness hit her again and the urge to just fall on her bed and sleep was strong.
"What did you say?" Belladonna yawned, letting her hand go.
Lady Kestra flashed her a blinding smile.
"You said there is something you wanted to tell me. Shall we go in and talk about it?"
"Yes," she nodded. "There is something I have to tell you." She looked up and down the empty hallway, then pulled her into the room. When Lady Kestra tried to lead them to the dressing table, Belladonna shook her head and placed around for a while before she stopped.
"Please, promise me that you will not tell anybody."
"I won't. What is it?"
"I need you to say the words."
"I promise I won't tell anybody. I swear."
Belladonna took in a deep breath, closing her eyes briefly before she reached a conclusion and went with it.
"The King hoards coffins."
Something flashed in Kestra's eyes, then shock followed.
"What?"
"Yes. It is very strange. Coffins of all the brides. Numbered too." She paused, her gaze observant. "Did you know about this?"
"No," she shook her head, her red lips slightly parted in disbelief. "I didn't. Is there anything else?"
Belladonna shook her head.
"You didn't see bodies in them, did you?" Her voice trembled with fear.
"No."
Lady Kestra let out a sigh of relief, before her brows furrowed into a line, confusion dancing in her silver orbs.
"Still, it is very strange. I didn't know this kind of thing existed in the castle." It was a whisper, a very quiet one. Enough for Belladonna to believe that her words were true.
"Please," Belladonna grabbed both her hands, pleading. "I don't want to disappear like the rest. If there is anything you find out, tell me. I will tell you anything I find, so you can help me. Please, help me." Her voice quivered and Lady Kestra wiped away the tears that streamed down her cheeks. Then she pulled her into a warm embrace, her aura oddly calming.
"Don't worry, put your trust in me and no harm will come to you." She patted her back gently, then pulled away to look at her. "You can rely on me, I will figure out what is going on soon."
"I'm scared." She whispered. "I'm so scared." Her lower lip trembled, her arms going around Lady Kestra, a desperate embrace seeking comfort.
"You pretty little thing. Don't be afraid, you will make it out of this alive. I promise you."
After that, Lady Kestra left, a smirk of triumph crossing her lips the second the door was shut behind her.
There was a wedge between the King and his so-called "Donna" now. The Bride trusted her more and him, less. She would make do with this however she wanted.
Belladonna turned the key in the lock, wiping away the tears she had to waste, aggressively.
Did she think she was stupid? How could she have gone with him for many rituals, be the King's right-hand woman and not know of his Coffin collection?
There was a really slight possibility that was possible.
Maybe she did, maybe she didn't. Belladonna didn't care. What she was certain of, was that there was no one worthy of her trust here. To play her cards right, she must fool everyone that she trusted them.
Ah, her head.
She should run away as one of the Brides in her vision had suggested.
Haha!
Stupid.
So impossibly stupid. Eli would not let her go.
He would never let her go.
She yawned again before she got to work. There were too many things she had to do and she didn't have time to waste.
She started searching through her drawers, finding her list of theories that she had started writing when she had just gotten to the castle, pushed to the back.
Why had she stopped her research?
Alaris' words crossed her mind, she remembered that he had talked about a memory hole.
A memory hole.
Her mind flashed back to Lady Kestra's routine of styling her hair, and that suddenly didn't feel like a kind act anymore. There was a time the King loved playing with her hair too, his fingers always toying with her curls. She had once thought it was affectionate but now, it was suspicious.
Were they erasing her memory?
Was it possible that way?
But why would they even have to do that?
Belladonna couldn't be so sure though. All she had right now were guesses, but from now henceforth, she would be styling her hair herself.
Besides, she couldn't trust the Bride Thief's words either. He might be playing at something too.
Everyone was guilty until proven innocent, everyone except her.