The Courier Ch. 21

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Grand Prophet # 4 questioned the Grand Duke about his wife's activities and how much he knew about the abuse of her servants. He turned out to be fairly honest and was willing to recount various incidents that involved Anyia and Royal Servants. Dukov's assessment of him was accurate, that mentally he was very lazy and had no desire to confront the much more strongly-willed Duchess. It wasn't just that he loved her and wanted her to be happy. He knew what she was doing was wrong, but justified his inaction by hoping Anyia's treatment of the servants was a phase that would calm down once she became pregnant or had some other event in her life to distract her. The weeks and months passed by and the Grand Duke decided to ignore the problem instead of addressing it. He left the house more frequently so he did not have to deal with what was going on, taking with him his favorite servants so they would not fall victim to Anyia's temper tantrums. He treated his own servants well and became close to them, but ignored what was happening to the others.

Over the past year Anyia's influence over him and his ability to make decisions had increased because he was more concerned about his leisure activities than anything else. He vaguely realized what she was plotting but, once again, he procrastinated trying to deal with her. Over time Anyia began to convince him that he was indeed the person in Danubia most fit to make decisions because of the family history. Towards the end of the interview he admitted that at some point it was likely that Anyia would have persuaded him to dissolve Parliament. He would have committed such a rash action just to please her, barely paying attention to the consequences of what she and her advisors had planned.

During the interview Dukov realized that his son-in-law was totally unaware that Anyia's advisors were consulting with employees from Mega-Town Associates. He seemed genuinely horrified when he found out that Mega-Town was ultimately behind the advisors who had influenced the Grand Duchess.

Vladim Dukov felt that the Grand Duke should have been prosecuted for negligence and dereliction of duty, if nothing else. He had not willfully committed treason, but he was too apathetic and disinterested to concern himself with where his wife and her advisors wanted to take the country. Dukov commented:

"As Grand Duke, your duties aren't very onerous, but the Danubian people do expect you to love your country. Your father understood what it was to love Danubia, which is why he's now dead. As Prime Minister and as your father-in-law, I don't think I'm asking much, but I am asking you to use what the Creator has granted you for the benefit of the Danubian citizenry. I believe that by ignoring what Anyia was doing in your house, you neglected your duty to your servants, and you neglected your duty to Danubia."

"That is true, Prime Minister. I will not argue with you because I was indeed negligent. If you wish to say that against me in public, I won't dispute it."

Dukov changed the subject:

"Grand Duke, I'd like to ask you how much you love my daughter."

"I love her, Prime Minister."

"Do you love her enough to sacrifice for her?"

"Yes. I think that was part of my problem. I was willing to sacrifice for her. I still am."

"I love my daughter as well, but I have come to understand that she is untrustworthy. To be honest, she is also rash and stupid. I am concerned that she may commit some idiotic act in the future. I am determined that will not happen, and I am determined to place you and your household above politics. Your family and your heirs will remain an institution that is dedicated to linking Danubia's present to its past. My wish is to spare the Royal Family from scandal, because I believe such scandal would harm the Danubian people. However, if I am to spare your household from scandal, I will need to make changes in the constitution to protect your legacy."

Dukov handed the Grand Duke the same typewritten copy of the Danubian Constitution he had shown Spokeswoman Lee-Dolkivna. To his surprise, the Duke looked over the document and agreed that the changes were acceptable. He commented:

"If the Grand Duchess ever nags at me again about dismissing Parliament, I can just shrug my shoulders and tell her that clause was deleted. That'll make my life easier..."

Dukov said nothing, but inwardly felt disgust that the man sitting in front of him was his son-in-law. It seemed that everything the Grand Duke did was motivated by laziness. He even was willing to sign away his family's traditional powers if it meant he did not have to argue with Anyia. Oh well...at least in this situation this man's laziness will work to my benefit, Dukov thought to himself...

The Duke concluded:

"I will go along with your changes, Prime Minister, but under a condition. I will not allow any harm to come to the Grand Duchess. I do not want her put on trial or in any other way humiliated."

"Grand Duke, the Church will determine what is best for the Grand Duchess. I have failed to temper my daughter's weaknesses, and you have failed as well. We must accept the will of the Creator. Anyia must set aside the vices she has nurtured up to now and learn to assume a life of humble service. If she accepts the life the Church is planning to offer her, she will not face humiliation. If you love your wife and wish to spare her any further difficulties and anguish, you would serve her by convincing her that she needs to listen and obey when the Priestess speaks to her."

----------

Later that afternoon, Vladim Dukov went into the basement alone. The deputized Royal Guards opened up the cell where the Lord who had tormented Maria Elena was being kept. The guard closed the door behind him. The Lord stood up and saluted. Dukov did not return the salute.

"Lord, it is unbecoming of you to salute a man whose daughter you corrupted, whose son-in-law you attempted to turn into a tool of the Destroyer, whose household you have ruined, and whose life you sought to destroy. To salute me is inappropriate, because you are my enemy."

"Very well, Prime Minister. Have it your way. We are enemies."

"The decision for us to become enemies was yours, Lord, not mine."

Dukov shrugged and continued:

"Anyhow, you will be interested to know that earlier today; three Americans, a German, and four Brazilians failed in their effort to leave the Danubian Republic. A piece of news that I thought I'd share with you. Fascinating, is that not so?"

The Lord went pale.

"W...why would I care? Foreigners...they come and go...and..."

"True...foreigners come and go...almost all, but not quite all, are innocent tourists...a few...like the eight I mentioned, have other things on their mind than simply seeing the country, is that not so?"

"Maybe that is so, but...in the end...you can't win, Prime Minister. You are doing a disservice to the people of this country by fooling them that it is possible to fight against Mega-Town. They are the new reality. Mega-Town Associates is the future. It is foolish to fight the future. The planet will belong to them, and sooner or later their holdings will include Danubia."

"I am proud to be a fool then, because I will fight. I know what I want for the future of Danubia, and that future does not include Mega-Town. Anyhow, I'm not here to debate the future of Danubia with you. I am here to see if I might assist your family."

"Assist them? My family? And just how are you going to assist them?"

Dukov pulled out a small bottle of water from his pocket and a plastic cup. He also pulled out a small plastic box containing five pills. He set the items on the table.

"A dead man cannot be put on trial, Lord. I am giving you the opportunity to spare your family from the consequences of what you have done. You will understand that I am doing this for your family, not for you."

"And for your daughter, undoubtedly."

"Very true, but in your situation I wouldn't worry about that. I would worry about your children. I would worry about how the world remembers your ancestors."

Dukov turned away and left the room.

----------

During the final hour of his existence in the Realm of the Living, the Lord quietly stared at the water and the pills that would separate his soul from his body. The Danubians do not have any strong social taboos against suicide; if a person's situation is unbearable or threatens the honor of loved ones; then suicide is considered a reasonable choice. In the case of someone like the Lord, to attempt to go on living would not have made any sense.

Finally, after contemplating the futility of everything that he had done with his life, the Lord worked up the courage to do what was needed to spare his family humiliation and impoverishment. He unscrewed the bottle and filled the cup. He took the pills one at a time, following each with several sips of water. He took a few more sips to make sure the pills were completely washed down. He lay on the bed, already feeling deliciously relaxed. A few minutes later he was deeply asleep, as his soul began its journey into the Realm of the Dead.

----------

The sun already was low in the horizon when Vladik ordered the Royal Guards to go to the basement and retrieve two bodies. The guards dressed the bodies in black burial robes that were used exclusively by members of the nobility before moving them upstairs. They lay in main reception hall, awaiting transportation to their respective families. An envelope containing a death certificate was lying on top of each corpse. One of the corpses also had a suicide note to his family that read:

I have lived the last three years of my life in dishonor. Today the Creator confronted me with the consequences of my actions. Rather than continuing to dishonor and harm those around me, I have chosen to separate my soul from my body. Because of the final decision I have taken during this life, you will be spared knowing about the evils I committed and the consequences that you would have suffered as the result of what I did. I regret that I will never see you again. You were a gift from the Creator that I did not appreciate until it was too late.

----------

While Cecilia slept on a bed in the infirmary, Maria Elena nervously waited for the final order to leave the Royal Residence. That wait was briefly interrupted when Kim sent in a Ministry of Justice doctor to examine Criminal # 101025. The exam was a typical post-rape examination. The doctor impassively looked at the sores and abrasions on the Colombian's vagina, then rubbed antiseptic cream into her sphincter. As soon as the cream was covering her bottom, the burning stopped. He gave her a rectal exam, but was very gentile with his finger. He commented that she had been roughly treated, but that her pain was just from bruising. At the end of the appointment he gave her a bottle of antibiotics and told her that she should completely recover within a couple of days.

The doctor took a look at Cecilia and ordered Maria Elena to wake her up. Neither woman had noticed, but Cecilia's feet were in bad shape from the walk the night before. She did not have time to become used to walking barefoot for long distances and was suffering from the results of 12 hours of non-stop walking unprotected on pavement and dirt. As a result her feet were very dirty, the skin had worn off, and the soles were covered with broken blisters.

The doctor ordered Maria Elena to fill a large medical basin with water and dumped in a bottle of disinfectant. He handed her a sponge and a towel and told her to clean off her translator's feet. Cecilia winced as her housemate rinsed the dirt out of her blisters and covered them with bandages. Maria Elena decided to completely wrap Cecilia's injured feet, hoping the Priestess would not object to bandages that would serve as temporary footwear.

The doctor departed and Cecilia went back to sleep. Maria Elena once again was left alone. She was desperately tired, but did not dare go to sleep out of fear that her translator might disappear the moment her eyes closed. Once again she sat on Cecilia's bed, determined that the moment her translator left the room, she would go with her.

It was dinnertime before Spokeswoman Kimberly Lee-Dolkivna finally had time to get Director Sanchez and Criminal # 101025 out of the infirmary. Vladik's partner pulled up to the main door in a police van, ready to take Cecilia and Maria Elena to Victor Dukov's house. Kim pointed to the front and told Cecilia to help Criminal # 101025 to the door. However, Maria Elena turned out to be the one helping Cecilia, as she walked gingerly on her bandages. When the Priestess saw Cecilia painfully limping out of the infirmary with her feet covered, she held her tongue, realizing that she already had put the poor girl through a lot.

Maria Elena was desperate to get out of the Royal Residence, but before she and Cecilia got to the door she saw something that stopped her dead in her tracks. Near the entrance, positioned to be taken out, were the bodies of the two Lords that had been the assistants for the Grand Duchess. Just one day before, they were destined to become the next rulers of the Danubian Republic, but now they were lying dead. Maria Elena held her breath, unable to believe what she was seeing.

"Spokeswoman Lee-Dolkivna...did...they...I mean...were they...executed?"

"No, not executed. They would have had to go on trial to be executed. They committed suicide. They knew their ambitions had been thwarted; they knew that their lives had no further purpose, so they killed themselves. You need to understand that as well, Criminal # 101025. It's over. Everything that went on in this house, everything that you saw and experienced, stopped today."

Maria Elena trembled as she approached the grayish face of the man who had tormented her. Still not quite believing what she was seeing, she raised her hand...

"Touch him, if you want. He's nothing but an inanimate object. Nothing but a thing. That's all that's left. Touch him so that you can be satisfied, in your own heart, that his existence has ceased."

Maria Elena pushed her fingertips against the corpse. It already had started to cool and felt...different. She quickly drew back her hand.

"There's your proof your torment has ended and your task here is completed, Criminal # 101025. Not pleasant to look at, but this is the last time you'll ever see him."

Kim pointed at the waiting van.

"That's it, time to go home. I'll call Victor to let him know you are on your way. I'll see you tomorrow in my office at 7:30. We've got the court hearing at 8:00."

Cecilia and Maria Elena then knelt so the Spokeswoman could dismiss them.

"Good night, Spokeswoman Lee-Dolkivna, may the Ancients protect you."

"Good night Cecilia Sanchez and Criminal # 101025. May the Creator guide you and protect you on your journey."

Director Cecilia Sanchez and Criminal # 101025 exited the Royal Residence and boarded the waiting police van. The van pulled away from the Royal Compound, passed through the gate, and drove along a very dark road for several kilometers. The driver turned onto the main road, which was largely deserted because it was Sunday night. A couple of minutes later Maria Elena saw something that raised her spirits considerably, a sign that read:

Danúbikt Móskt -- nád 12 km.

That sign, more than anything else, assured her that she was indeed going home.

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