The Broken Prince's Love

“It's alright, Cedar. We are perfectly fine. We will go now and sit down a bit. I'm right here with you.” Lucille gave her best to calm her lover down, but she doubted that it would work. After all, Cedar had just needed to break his mother's arm. It didn't help that the dowager empress kept spouting nonsense from the sidelines either.

The guards were currently trying to bring Camille to her cell, but that was rather hard with her yelling at them. But it was quickly resolved when one of the knights lost his patience and just dragged her to her feet before shoving her forward. When Camille refused to walk, he didn't care much and pushed her with so much force that she almost fell onto the floor.

Camille just kept yelling about being the dowager empress, but she remained unsuccessful in convincing anyone. So, she changed her strategy after a few seconds. She whipped her head around to her son and screamed. “Cedar! You have to help me! Do you see how they are treating your mother? They will hurt me if you don't speak up. Cedar, do something! I'm going to be mistreated because of you!”

It almost looked like Theodore wanted to yell at her again, and Lucille also considered doing it.

But Cedar slowly lifted his head to look at his mother. This time, a faint smile appeared on his lips, but it only left behind exhaustion and maybe something a little colder. When he spoke, he did it without any emotion and yet it sounded bitter in some way. “I'm the cruel monster that broke your arm, aren't I? Why do you want my help?”

Now Camille noticed that she had messed up. She opened her mouth, and her eyes widened. “That's not... I...” Now she suddenly seemed rather unsure. But as always, she quickly convinced herself that she wasn't responsible here. “Cedar, that doesn't change the fact that I love you! You need to help me! I'm the only one on your side here. Can't you see? That woman made you hurt me! Do you understand why I told you to stay away from her now? She is a threat to me and you. She will try to use you and lie to your face, but she never loved you. Not for one second! That is obvious, isn't it? Why would she care for someone unlovable like-” She didn't get to finish that sentence.

The guard behind Camille stopped in his tracks and just gave her a harsh shove so that she stumbled forward. No one bothered to catch her, so she crashed onto the floor.

It had to have been very painful since Camille had tried to cushion her fall with her arms. She let out a loud pained cry and lay on the floor while pulling her legs closer to her. The noises that left her mouth sounded horrible.

But once again, no one seemed to care. Except for Cedar, who flinched again and tightened his hold on his lover.

Lucille wrapped her arm around his neck again and whispered to him. “It's perfectly fine. We'll-” She didn't get far.

Camille already spoke again. This time, she was much quieter and whimpered more than she actually talked. “Cedar...” She almost choked on her sobs as she looked up from the floor with tears all over her face. “It hurts... Help me...”

Cedar tensed even more than before. For a moment, Lucille feared that he would let go of her to walk over to Camille. But then he averted his eyes and stared in the other direction while that smile grew on his lips. Apparently, his reflex had kicked in now, and he was already covering up his uncertainty again. His voice sounded much more cheerful than he was when he replied to Camille. “Do you remember that I broke my arm while I was six? Back then, you told me that it wasn't ‘that bad at all’. And yet, you are sitting here and complaining about your arm? Do you really think you have the right to do that?”

Camille wasn't very happy about that comment. She stared at her son with wide eyes and then tried to sit up while resting part of her weight on her unhurt arm. It took some effort since she was shaking the whole time, but she kept looking at him. “Cedar, you can't...leave me. Because...you need me. You can't live without me. This...will hurt you more than it hurt me. You'll hate yourself if you leave me to die. I love you, Cedar. And you love me. There is no one else here that will...ever take your side. Do you think that wench over there will dare to touch you...when she finds out what you did? You can't betray me for a useless piece of garbage like that. She and Theodore and everyone else will only use your temporary weakness to hurt you. They'll use all of your triggers against you and make sure that you're nothing but a-”

Theodore interrupted her this time. “What are you doing? Bring her away already. I don't want to hear her voice any longer, or I might really cut off her tongue.” He waved his hand while already focusing on Cedar. He didn't turn to Camille, who raised her voice as soon as the guards touched her. “She will sit in a cell until we deal with this. I promise you that today will have consequences for her. I think it's fine if we take the first step toward her ending now.”

The dowager empress probably hadn't heard him, but she yelled anyway. “You can't do that! I'm the victim here! Cedar, Cedar, you have to help me! Cedar! You can't abandon me! My sweet baby, please look at me! Cedar!” She did all of that for naught.

Cedar kept his eyes on the terrace behind Lucille and refused to look at his mother again. His lover did her best to calm him, but that was hard when a hysteric woman kept yelling in the background.

Thankfully, it seemed like the guards had enough too. They dragged the dowager empress away without caring for any complaints. Camille's cries sounded pitiful. If one didn't know her, one would have wanted to help her.

But Lucille knew exactly who that woman was. She couldn't bring herself to feel even the slightest bit of sympathy. So, she focused on stroking over Cedar's head and pressing small kisses onto his neck whenever she could.

At some point, the yelling in the distance got quieter and was drowned out by some guard who screamed back at the dowager empress.

Theodore waited a few more seconds before he spoke again. “She's finally gone. I apologize for allowing her to cause such a scene. And...” His expression was grim while he resumed. “I sincerely apologize for not ensuring that she wouldn't have any weapons with her. I should not have expected her to be sane enough to know that attacking someone here is suicide. We'll make sure that she can never bring anything dangerous inside anymore.” That sounded more like he would make sure that Camille didn't live long enough to try it again. Theodore scanned the couple with great care before adding another sentence. “Is the injury bad?”

Lucille had already prepared to thank him, but the last comment surprised her. “We were lucky, and no one was injured. Only-” Her gaze fell onto the dagger, and a pit of fear formed in her stomach.

The blade was colored in red.

But the dowager empress hadn't been cut, and Lucille didn't feel any pain. She whipped her head around to her lover and panically searched for wounds. She took a moment before she noticed that the back of her dress might feel a bit warmer and wetter than it should. She reached behind herself and carefully made Cedar let go of her.

Her lover obeyed and immediately let his arm sink. He balled his fist, as if that would veil the fact that his hand was stained red.

Lucille assumed that it wasn't a dangerous wound if only his hand had been affected, but she still panicked. “Your hand is bleeding.”

Cedar was silent for a moment before he replied. “I...didn't pay attention to where I put it. I just wanted to...get the knife away from you.” He didn't dare to make eye contact with her. Was he seriously still worrying about her reaction, even though he had grabbed a blade to protect her? “I'm sorry for dirtying your dress. I will make sure the tailor takes care of it.”

Lucille felt her heart clench at the dejected tone he had spoken in. “I don't care about a stupid dress. I worry about you getting hurt. It's painful, isn't it?” She reached for his hand.

Cedar was unwilling but gave in after a few seconds and lifted his hand. “It's not bad. I barely feel it.”

Lucille doubted that. She brought his hand up to her face and scanned the red slash that ran across his palm. It was pretty deep. He had probably grabbed that knife in complete panic to keep Camille from stabbing her. She pressed her lips into a thin line and cursed Camille in her mind. “It looks unpleasant. We need to take care of that.”

Cedar opened his mouth, without a doubt to refuse, but he didn't get the chance.

Theodore, who stood directly next to them, quickly chimed in. “You're going to see the royal doctor immediately. We don't want that getting infected. He will clean it and put a bandage around it. I can and will check whether you let that man treat you, Cedar. No more lying about you not being hurt just because that damned woman couldn't even show some compassion. From now on, you will deal with your own wounds as if Lucille had them. So, you will allow the doctor to take a look at it and will allow the following treatment as well while being careful not to reopen the injury. Understood?”

Cedar let out a quiet huff. Then he smiled at his brother with a mix of an honest smile and one that was faked to cover up his resignation. “If the emperor orders that, I can't refuse. We need to check whether Lucille is hurt as well.” Why was he thinking about her first? She wasn't the one bleeding.

Theodore spoke before Lucille had the chance to point that out. “No, no. You won't do it because I'm ordering you. You will do it because I expect you to take care of yourself from now on. I don't want to see you get hurt, and no one else here wants that either. We need to deal with any ailments you could have quickly, so you won't refuse to see the doctor for regular check-ups from now on. You will go to the doctor now and relax after that. I will deal with this mess, and we can discuss everything later.”

Cedar nodded and did his best to seem cheerful again, but he didn't manage to convince Lucille in the slightest. After all, he held onto his lover with way too much desperation. He probably didn't notice it anymore, but she did.

Lucille already pondered how she would get him to the doctor's office without letting go of him. She quickly had an idea and put that into action. She kept her arms around Cedar and leaned against him while gently pushing him toward the building. It was unpleasant to walk like this, but there was no way that she would take her arms off him now.

Cedar's acting skills became much more apparent with each step they took. If one looked at him, no one would guess that something bad had happened at all. He was smiling as brightly as the sun and just held his lover while walking through the palace. But she could see past that facade. It was obvious that he kept looking around and was even more on edge than usual. It was almost like he expected an attack, but at the same time, he was still thinking about the incident. He refused to make eye contact with anyone they met and just scanned their environment.

When they reached the doctor's office, Cedar still put on his happy face. “Good afternoon. There has been a little issue, and I ended up hurting my hand a bit. It barely hurts, but Theodore insisted on it getting checked here.” Why was he understating it like that? This hadn't been a little issue.

Lucille looked up at him and quickly turned to the doctor to add something. “He didn't cut himself. The dowager empress tried to kill me, and he stopped the dagger. Please disinfect the wound and put a bandage on him.” She tried to sound calm, but she had probably been unable to hide her shock.

The doctor, who had set aside his book and jumped up when they entered, quickly rushed to their side. He was much more agitated than the injured person was. “What? That insane woman really-” He cut himself off when he saw the wound. He lifted his gaze and glared at Cedar for a moment. “Hurting your hand a bit? Your Royal Highness, you're still as unteachable as before!” He ran to the other side of his office and began rummaging in one of the drawers. “Sit down. I will be there in a moment.”

Cedar watched that for a few seconds before he walked over to one of the beds, still without letting go of Lucille. He refused to loosen his hold on her and just sat down before carefully pulling her with him.

Lucille was fine with that. She leaned against him and took his uninjured hand in hers. She only noticed that she was shaking now. It seemed like she was much more nervous than she admitted to being. That was probably normal when she had almost been killed, but it wasn't helpful when Cedar needed her support now.

The doctor came to the bed with a small suitcase. He plopped down on a chair, which he had moved directly in front of the bed, and opened the suitcase to pull out what he needed. Then he took Cedar's injured hand and inspected the cut for a moment. He muttered some curse word under his breath and began his treatment quickly. He retrieved a small bottle with a clear liquid. “Please endure the burning for a moment.” He carefully tilted the vial to pour a bit onto the cut. He had seemingly been ready to hold Cedar's hand tighter to keep it in place, but that wasn't necessary at all.

Lucille had waited for her lover to flinch because of the burning as well, only for it not to happen.

Cedar remained completely still. His smile remained as radiant as before. He looked like he hadn't felt anything at all. But most likely, that wasn't it. He was just acting once again.

The doctor narrowed his eyes and glared at the wound before making eye contact with the prince. “You can flinch if it hurts, Your Royal Highness. There is nothing wrong with showing some reaction to being wounded.”

Cedar let out a small laugh and replied as if nothing was wrong. “Please do not exaggerate. It is merely a small cut. This will heal in just a few weeks, and it probably won't even scar. I got away quite well.” He hid it well, but his mood deteriorated when he added the next part. “Mother was the one truly hurt. She...needs the treatment more than I do.” Nonsense.

Lucille already prepared to tell him that that wasn't true.

At that moment, the doctor let out a loud huff, which might have been mixed with a dry laugh. His expression was unusually grim for someone who normally looked like an affectionate grandfather. “I don't care what happens to her. I have refused to treat her for the past ten years, and I will refuse until the end of my life. That woman attacked you, so she has to deal with the consequences now.”

Cedar remained silent for a moment before asking his question. “Ten years? That would be before the first assassination attempt, correct?”

The doctor still stared at the wound while replying. “Indeed. Due to numerous discussions, I treated her less and less often. Then I completely refused to see her at some point.” He took a small piece of cloth in his hand and carefully wiped away the remains of the blood around the wound. “Back then, there were a few problems, but I managed to go without treating her.”

Cedar scanned the other man's expression. “Why did you do that? If the assassination attempt had been the reason, I would understand. But I'm pretty sure refusing the empress without having a significant reason is difficult.”

The doctor lifted his head. “I had many significant reasons. Her hysteric fits and how many people she hurt during those were half of it. The other half was connected to that and even worse. I lost all respect for that woman when she kept bringing you here with wounds and acted like you were overly sensitive when you hadn't even cried once despite the extremely painful injury. When I told her that a child had every right to cry about a broken arm, she just ignored that by saying that you would need to be strong. But that was ridiculous. I remember the broken arm, the mirror incident and all the times that you had allegedly been hit by a vase on accident. She always found a way to blame you or someone else, but the perpetrator was obvious. It got worse each time, and I was too reckless and let it go.”

Hearing that was enough to make Lucille even more upset. She pressed her lips into a line while cursing Camille with all the sicknesses she could name on the spot.

The doctor wasn't even done though. “I drew the line when she argued because I insisted on seeing you even though you didn't want treatment anymore. I told her that I wouldn't just stay quiet if she kept hurting her own son. Then I threatened her with going to your father, and that upset her a lot. I did talk to the esteemed previous emperor a few times, but I should have talked about this in more detail. After all, it seems like that woman was so strict that you don't even react to pain now.” It seemed like the doctor was fuming. He had never spoken so much in Lucille's presence, and now he couldn't hide his disgust for Camille.

Lucille was on his side here. That woman truly deserved the worst this world had to offer.

But of course, Cedar didn't see it that way. He just smiled at them and explained in a calm voice. “I have to agree that Mother used quite harsh methods. Witnessing her lose her temper was never nice either. But there was no way for you to do anything about that. Father wouldn't have cared either way, so don't feel responsible. If you had discussed with Mother any more, she might have hurt you at some point. This was for the best. After all, I'm able to patch myself up in an emergency and can easily deal with most people in a fight now.” He was still defending his mother.

The doctor just cursed Camille a few times after hearing that. He only whispered that part, and when he spoke loud again, he was still upset. “That woman didn't do anything good for you. I hope that His Majesty finally eliminates her.” He threw aside the bloody cloth with a bit too much vigor. Then he took another cloth and gently put it onto the wound. He allowed most of the blood to seep into it before throwing it away too. After that, he took one of the bandages from his suitcase and began wrapping it around Cedar's palm. It didn't take long for him to finish that with great skill. He fixated the bandage and then withdrew his hands.

Cedar moved his hand around a bit until he seemed content knowing that his bandage didn't obstruct his movements. Then he showed the doctor a bright smile. “Thank you very much for the treatment. I am sure that this will heal in no time.”

The doctor crossed his arms. “If you let it heal, it will have disappeared completely in a few weeks. If. So, you will not do anything to reopen that wound any time soon. If you have to train, you will not use that hand. Understood? I will seriously get angry if you do the same you did with your wound before you came here. Don't over-exhaust yourself, Your Royal Highness.”

Cedar just beamed at him. “Of course. I will be careful. From now on-”

The doctor cut him off. “And you will come here this evening so that I can exchange the bandage. I want you to let me take care of this wound for at least one week. I will look at it once a day. I won't discuss this.”

Cedar opened his mouth. He would definitely refuse.

Lucille knew that, so she spoke up first. “Cedar, you will let him treat you. This is important. He is much more skilled than we are, and it will be faster than us doing it too.”

Cedar glanced at her. He remained silent for a moment and scanned her expression as if he wanted to figure out whether he could get out of this. He quickly saw that she was absolutely serious and gave up with a sigh. “Fine. During the first three days, we can come here.” He was still reluctant to accept help. Camille had probably implanted so many strange things in his head that he would still take a while to let go of it.

Lucille gritted her teeth while wishing death upon the dowager empress in her mind. That woman was on the spot number one of the people she hated. She didn't dare to say that though. Right now, Cedar was worried about what had happened. She didn't need to unsettle him even more.

For a moment, everyone was silent before the doctor spoke up again. “Then it seems like there is nothing else I can do for now. Or was some other injury sustained during the struggle?”

Cedar turned his head to scan his lover before replying. “Maybe it would be good to check whether Lucille is hurt. Just to be sure.”

Lucille immediately refuted that. “I would have noticed the wound by now. I'm not hurt. I was just a bit scared when that woman suddenly lost her mind, but I'm fine now. We should go back to your room to sit down there a bit.” She wanted to give Cedar a chance to calm down. She knew that he would only let down his guard when they were alone, and he needed that.

Thankfully, no one complained. Cedar nodded, even if he would have liked her to get examined, and the doctor wished them well before they left.

Walking through the corridors while clinging to her lover felt odd, but Lucille didn't think about letting go even once. She held onto him until they reached his room. When the door closed behind them, she felt more relaxed, and the tension fell off her. But she knew well that Cedar wouldn't forget what had happened so quickly, which created a completely different issue.