What Love Can Cost

The next two days of casing the church complex and what is known as ‘the holy courtyard’ around it, Lorelei determined that getting to the Bishop would be more difficult than she initially realized. His rooms were on the third floor of the main complex and guards were everywhere. However there were servants and nuns and for the most part they were allowed access to most places and few guards ever bothered to look at them. The nuns were covered up mostly save for their faces and the servants wore a similar type of garb though only white. She did also have a few chances to talk to a few of the servants and learned that the Bishop likes the younger servant women and occasionally puts his cock in them when the mood strikes him but the pay was good so they just put up with it even though some were married and had children. She would find getting hold of a uniform surprisingly easy and he would be holding mass that very night.

The evening had a chill to it but it was difficult for those who attended the bishop's sermon as they were unsettled by all of the protesters outside in the courtyard. Every now and again a shout either by a protester or a guard was heard over his voice and as a result he cut the mass short. Musketeers were here and there about the main hall while those that attended the mass moved out in a orderly fashion. However as they came out, the guards had a difficult time with protesters who came in and that’s when the violence broke out.

Lorelei had managed to assume a post as a servant earlier that evening and she had been tasked to scrub the floor in one of the side rooms on the second floor. The supervisor hadn’t noticed she was new, women came and went often, and set her to work without a pause or care. Fortunately she left Lorelei there with the pail, water, brush and drying cloths. With those she could go anywhere and tell the guards she had been tasked to clean something. As she scrubbed she heard the commotion down below her, it seemed to be getting louder by the moment and she also caught a glimpse of four guards that escorted the bishop up the stairs not far where where she scrubbed down upon her hands and knees.

Lorelei wanted to get this over with...and quick. She knew that if she got caught there would be no escape and her death would not be quick. She also knew that the sooner she got this taken care of, the sooner she would have her pardon from the Cardinal. She began to wonder if Armand would see her. She doubted he would....and if he did he would never trust her. She spent the next two days around the church complex gathering any information she could. Getting to him would be difficult, except for in his rooms. However, she couldn't figure out a way to get herself into his rooms until she learned that the Bishop had an eye for pretty young servants. Sex always seemed to be the way with men. She had some poison that when properly administered would make it appear that he had had a heart attack. If she could just get into his rooms and poison some wine no one would ever suspect he had been murdered.

Lorelei easily managed to procure a servant's outfit. It unfortunately wasn't revealing so she hoped that the Bishop would see her and a little flirtatious smile would be all it would take. There were protesters outside that night and due to the commotion the Bishop was led in by guards. Lorelei knew the route they would take so she positioned herself in one of those pathways. She was on her hands and knees scrubbing. She made sure her backside would be presented to him first. Then as he walked past a smile. She had the poison portioned out and in a small vial in her clothes. She heard the footsteps drawing closer so she scrubbed harder...making sure her backside was well into the air.

As she suspected he had paused, 5 sets of footsteps all paused and she could feel the Bishop, maybe all of them, were looking at her backside appreciatively. She heard whispers then after a moment 4 sets of footsteps continued on up the stairs. The other moved up behind her. As she continued scrubbing she felt him lift up her dress to see what was underneath. He dropped it back down again after a moment. “You...come with me, the Bishop wishes you to ‘attend’ him,” he said gruffly and smiled. However i want to see how you might handle him,” he said and once more a flaccid, small cock was presented in front of her face.

A few minutes later, as she wiped the corner of her mouth clean with her finger he escorted her up the stairs. The other guards were in the hall and they grinned knowingly as their fourth rudely grabbed at her butt and shook it for them. They all grinned like fools at that. Obviously this was some sort of game with them. She was let into his rooms and the door was closed behind her.

His room was gaudily decorated. Gold gilding was everywhere and white plaster. Gold, fringed painting frames depicting holy scenes lined the walls and he had two desks lacquered white, gilt with gold as well. “Come in my dear and don’t daughtle!” she heard him say from the other room. He was an older man and, thin and boney and when she came to him he was naked and held his bone in his hand. “Well? Get on the bed, don’t make me wait!” He said irritably though after looking at that thing he held she doubted he’d be ready anytime soon. Nor was it likely she’d feel it much if it ever did get hard enough to do anything. He chuckled for no apparent reason as his gray eyes watched her hungrily. His eyes also were unkind...though not so cruel looking as the Cardinal’s were.

Lorelei heard the footsteps pause and she knew then that she had him. She could hear the whispers and watched as the four guards continued on, leaving the Bishop alone with her. She suddenly felt him lift up her dress to see what was underneath. He seemed pleased...very pleased. However, before she could get to his rooms she found herself still on her knees servicing him in the hallway. He held out longer than she thought, which meant that this was something he was used to. However, he finally came and he seemed pleased enough to lead her down to his rooms. She had to pass by the guards and they all grinned at her...knowing what had taken place and what was to come. She followed him into his rooms and felt her stomach turn at the gaudiness of it all. However, she simply smiled and followed him to the bedroom. She was surprised to see he was already naked...though clearly not ready for anything. She smiled at him a little.

"How about a little wine first?"

“Pfft..no wine now, on the bed...on all fours mind!” he said. As she complied he knelt behind her and flipped up her skirts. His tongue felt like a cold noodle that was being slid around all over her ass. Once in awhile he stuck his tongue in her butt but he clearly had no idea what he was doing. He found her pussy to but he managed little else than to make the entire ordeal awkward and uncomfortable. She also saw how frail he was. If she wanted to, she could overpower him in a moment. Then an opportunity arose when he shifted so he was below her, his face under her and he bade her to drop down onto his face. When she did he licked and sucked at her hungrily but still he was all over the place and the coldness of his tongue, his body was so thin and boney he could hold no body heat, it felt like a slug wriggling around her folds. From this vantage it would be easy for a few drops to end up in his gaping mouth if she so desired. (ooc: Eww! I’m disgusting myself!)

Lorelei did as the Bishop commanded. She hoped he would get this over with quickly. The longer she was here the more likely it was that she would get caught. She had to keep from pulling away from him as he began. He was clearly not skilled with any of this and none of it was at all pleasurable. She tried to think of something else, but it was very difficult. After a while he slid beneath her so she was sitting on his face. She closed her eyes and tried to just take it, but finally she had enough. She pulled the vial from her pocket and uncapped it. She moved quickly and before he realized what she was doing she had his mouth open and was forcing the liquid down his throat. She then clamped her hand over his mouth while he thrashed. The poison thankfully took effect very quickly and he was soon dead. She got up and got a bottle of wine and a glass and uncorked it and put it on the table beside the Bishop. She then poured a little into a glass so it appeared that he had been drinking it. She then began to scream. She screamed hysterically and the guards quickly burst in. She was crying and told them that the Bishop had just lost consciousness while they were together in bed. She put on such a great act that they actually comforted her and escorted her out while they figured out what to do. She immediately fled. She wanted to get away as quickly as possible. She knew with the protesting going on outside that she would be able to slip away. She changed out of the servant's outfit and back into her clothes and made her way outside.

She opened the doors to pure chaos. Men and women, most dressed up like a mockery of the Bishop flung rocks, horse dung and rotten fruit or vegetables at the guards and the Musketeers that held them back from the door. Many of the protesters were on the ground and unmoving, some by the blood beneath them would never get up again. The courtyard boiled like a hot cauldron that was about to burst. She could see it happening, feel the violence surge all around her. “Lorelei...what are YOU doing HERE!?” She heard Armand say in surprise. “How did you...you didn’t escape...you couldn’t HAVE!” He said as he backed away from the others to pull her aside. She could see he was wounded but not badly and then that familiar look of suspicion crept back into his face toward her. He had that look more often than not now and how could he not? “What are you doing here...what do you do woman!” he said harshly and his hand went around her wrist like a metal clamp and he jerked her further back away from the front mass of people. Everyone furious and angry, shouting and cursing.

Lorelei was shocked by the sight that greeted her as she made her way outside. She was overwhelmed at the scene happening around her and did her best to stay out of the way. She wanted to just get away but before she could really start to move she heard an angry, familiar voice. She looked over to see Armand staring at her in complete shock. He grabbed her arm and began to pull her away. She noticed he was injured, but seemed to be alright. He held tightly onto her wrist as he pulled her aside.

"I was granted a full pardon by the Cardinal," she told him, which was completely true. "He's given me a second chance and let me go." She tried to pull her wrist away from him.

He held fast to her wrist, though her words as greatly confused him. That she knew by his expressions. “The...the Cardinal!...What…” He was about to say more when a guard fell out into the courtyard. She recognized him as one of the four but he did not seem to even notice her.

“The...the Bishop is dead!” he exclaimed loudly though his voice had gotten lost in the din. The Musketeers heard him though and they began to look at one another. Two stepped back and ran inside, most likely headed upstairs to find where the Bishop was. “No! Not the…” And then his eyes turned toward Lorelei. Slowly he shook his head as he looked at her and she felt his hand release. “Damn you Lorelei!” he said loudly. There was far too much coincidence for his assumptions not to be the truth. “Damn you!” he said as he shoved her backward between two round pillars of stone. He was so angry at her right then he ignored the fighting that began behind him. Lorelei lost her footing and fell backward. As she came up to get up she saw that Armand had half drawn his sword. She held up her arm to him as if to blow it if he did attack her and the sight of her like that removed what strength he had left. So much so he had to lean up against a pillar just to stay upright.

“Why!?” he asked with tears in his eyes. He didn’t love the Bishop by any means, he knew the man was scum but the murder itself. Just more killing and for what a few coins? Wait...had she mentioned the Cardinal and a pardon? Now she had the Cardinal involved? His head wanted to spin like a top. Behind him one of his brethren ran a man through. Armand could not understand it. Did she have everyone under her spell? “All the lies!” he cried. He was inwardly relieved she was not dead but outwardly he was so confused his head hurt. Behind him two men had a Musketeer down but two others moved up to gut them and forced them back. “Did I mean ANYTHING to you? What was between us...what we shared...was that all a lie to?” He asked uncaring about the bloodshed just a few yards away from him. He wondered if she faked all her orgasms, all her emotions toward him she displayed and she could tell he was close to just breaking. She had done that. Even though she did all of these things his heart still cared for her and it was breaking him apart before her eyes.

Lorelei was about to continue to speak, but before she could say anything one of the guards rushed out into the courtyard and announced that the Bishop was dead. Of course it would appear as nothing more than a heart attack, but the timing was inconvenient to say the least and she saw Armand's eyes shift over towards her in horror and then accusation. She didn't know what to say, but she wanted to try and explain. However, Armand shoved her backward and she fell to the ground, ripping her dress in the process. She looked up at Armand and saw him towering over her with his sword half drawn. She sincerely feared he would kill her and she raised an arm to try and shield herself. Tears were now streaming down her cheeks. She waited for the blow but it didn't come. She finally looked up and saw Armand leaning against a pillar in emotional defeat.

"Armand please...you mean everything to me! Please...just let me explain...""

“Armand..we need you!” he heard from behind as the protesters surged. Armand winced feeling sick but he was angry to by her attempts to explain. He didn’t understand why that would make him angry, didn’t he want her to explain? “Explain what!?” He asked. “Explain what Lorelei, that your life was more important than all those you’ve killed? That you had no choice? That someone forced you to do evil and hurt people? I could have loved you Lorelei. I could have been yours...my heart is yours but you’ve carved it out of me and left the rest for the crows to feast on. We could have been happy you and I...or was that just me being the fool for you again?” He asked but it wasn’t really a question. He knew full well he was a fool. A big one, the biggest. He saw her stand and his tear filled eyes just followed her. “God you are so beautiful Lorelei,” he told her as he drew his blade and parrying dagger then pivoted to defend his brothers. As she watched him deflect a sword, parry another then thrust into a man who attacked them she saw another man in the same mocking costume as the others raise up his mask. She saw his face and knew it. It was Severin and he pulled a small pistol from under his smock. First he pointed it at her then he pivoted and pointed it at Armand! The few he was engaged with were forced back and he was alone though his back was to her and to Severin. As if in slow motion She saw Severin smile wickedly as he turned his pistol toward Armand’s back and cocked it. She knew what he was going to do. He was going to kill Armand because ‘she’ loved him and for no other reason. Unfortunately he was to far. Armand was closer than he was and he had not heard her shout of warning.

Lorelei was practically sobbing now. Why had she opened her heart? Why had she let herself fall in love with him? 'This is what you get' she told herself. Even with the pardon from the Cardinal she would never be happy. She should have just refused the Cardinal and let herself be hung. It would have been far less painful than what she was experiencing now. The look in Armand's eyes would haunt her forever. She didn't try to speak anymore. She knew it was of no use. She watched as he turned to begin fighting again. She just stood there watching him.

She didn't know why but she suddenly looked out into the crowd. She didn't know what she was looking for, but she had a strange feeling in the pit of her stomach. Then, she spotted him. Severin stood in the crowd and was looking directly at her. He grinned and then she saw him pull out a pistol. She watched as he aimed it first at her, but then he shifted it and pointed it at Armand. Lorelei's blood ran cold with fear. He was going to kill Armand! She tried to yell a warning to him, but he didn't hear her shouts over the crowd. She saw Severin cock the pistol and knew she couldn't get to him in time. Then everything went into slow motion. As Severin fired the pistol she lurched forward towards Armand. She shoved him out of the way and felt the bullet strike her in the chest. The yelling of the crowd turned to screams and everyone began to flee. Lorelei stood there for a moment as her face grew pale. With a trembling hand she touched her chest and when she pulled back her finger she saw them dripping with blood. She staggered a few steps before collapsing to the ground. The world began to spin around her, but she could see Armand's face. She looked up at him as tears slipped down her cheeks.

"I-I'm so sorry Armand....I..I love you."

Her eyes then closed as darkness took her.

Both Athos and Porthos saw the man and saw him take a shot at Armand’s back. They also saw Lorelei jump in front of the shot. Such things were rare in their experience but when you saw something like that you knew it for what it was. Armand held her to him and he cried out for someone to bring him a coach or a horse. “No!” he said mournfully. “Not her, not like this!” He said as he held her limp corpse to her. Athos worked to stem the loss of blood as Porthos ran. The crowd burst out into the courtyard, no one wanted to die today it seemed. “You have to let her go man...the coach is here!” Athos barked. Armand shook his head, he did not want to let her go. He feared….he fear he’d never hear her beating heart again and then Athos took her from him harshly.

The surgery took a very long time but the doctor was able to remove the small ball that entered her chest. It had not broken up into pieces as he feared. If it had, she would surely be dead he had said. Armand held her hand as other Musketeers talked softly by the hallway to her room. “Armand would surely have been killed,” and “I saw the man, would have shot him in the back,” and “A woman like that is worth keeping for certain sure,” another said. There were murmurs about their failure to keep the Bishop alive but it was now believed he had had a heart attack. The guards had left out the bit about the maid in his bed.

Days went and came and though Armand didn’t want to leave her side he had to. When she awoke he was not there but D’artagnan was. He was reading to her with his hat off and it sat there on her side table. Fresh flowers were everywhere, Gardenias and others to but mostly Gardenias. He paused to stand up so she could see him. “Well, it was about time that you opened your eyes mylady, be at ease, you are in the hospital under the protection of the Musketeers. You are safe and I am called D’artagnan,” he said and bowed to her.

The first thing that Lorelei noticed was the smell. It was her favorite smell...Gardenias. It was warm and almost comforting. She then began to fell pain. It was mostly in her chest, but her entire body ached. At first she was afraid, but then she heard a voice. Was it Armand? No...that wasn't his voice. It was unfamiliar but soothing at the same time. What was he saying? He didn't appear to be talking to her...No...he was reading...but why? Where was she?

Her eyes suddenly opened. It was early afternoon and the bright sun poured through the window beside her. She blinked against it as her eyes slowly adjusted. She was in a strange room, but there were flowers everywhere. She looked over and saw a strange man sitting in a chair beside her. He was clearly a Musketeer, but she did not recognize him. However, it was obvious that he had been the one reading to her. There was no one else and panic filled her eyes.

"Armand...where is he?"

The corner of D’artagnan’s mouth curled in a smile. He was older than the others and his eyes were kind and filled with experience. Her exclamation of worry reinforced what the others had said. She was a woman who had used her own body to shield her man from harm. His eyes softened to her.

“He is alright my dear but as always his duty calls him away. He will return tonight and he will be happy to see your eyes,” he said kindly. “All is well mylady and the doctors have told us you are healing nicely. Be at ease and talk with me a while, yes?” he said and sat back down.

D’artagnan was no fool, he knew the hearts of his men and Armand had been troubled by her a long while. But he is not their father nor hers and every man has the right to trouble himself if he wishes it.

“I tried to find information about you but what records there were, if there were any have been...destroyed for some reason. Armand has told me everything which is to say we know very little about you. I will say this though. I’ve only seen a man truly broken once in my lifetime and Armand was close to it. For good or ill he has settled his heart upon you and though there have been other women before and after he has never been the same. Now I can’t confirm what he has told me about what he does know about you but he is a good man mylady. One of the best Musketeers I have ever known. To Armand when a man...or a woman,” he gestured to her, “Lies they are murdering a part of the world somewhere. Truth is easy to remember mylady, when you next speak with him...do give it a try, you may find a peace you’ve never felt before if you do,” he said as he smiled warmly at her.

Lorelei looked visibly relieved to know that Armand was alright. She had feared that Severin had come back after him. She could only assume Severin was still alive as well and had escaped. That meant that neither of them were out of danger just yet. She wouldn't be able to live in peace until she knew Severin was dead. He would find her again...he would always find her.

She listened quietly as D'Artagnan spoke. There was some embarrassment and a little shame in her eyes and she looked down slightly. She wanted to see Armand again, but at the same time the last words he had said to her still rang loudly in her head. She feared telling him the truth. She feared it wouldn't matter. But she was tired of hiding and running and Armand deserved to know the truth, even if he told her he never wanted to see her again.

She ate and drank a little and rested for a while. She was roused by the sound of voices speaking softly just outside the room. One of them was D'Artagnan's and the other was Armand's. She felt her heart beat a little harder in her chest as she waited for him to enter.

After a few minutes Armand entered and he took off his hat. His arm was filled with more Gardenias, the white flowers were everywhere and he had difficulty finding a place to put those he had just brought. Finding place, he scooted two to make room he set them down, picked a bloom for her and brought it to her. He looked...embarrassed as he gazed around the room and then at her.

“I...I find comfort having them around...I guess. I hoped,” he said but his words died at feeling silly but her look of interest made him go on. “I hoped they would bring you back to me,” he said as he looked down at the floor. He felt very guilty for saying what he had said to her. He owed her his life and the knowing was difficult for him to translate into his mixed feelings for Lorelei. She wasn’t his he knew but he loved her and so he brought them for her.

Finally the door opened and Armand stepped inside. She was surprised to see more Gardenias in his arm. Just seeing that brought tears to her eyes. She said nothing but watched as he found a place to put them. He then seemed to realize just how many there were. She remained quiet as he spoke. A few tears slipped down her cheeks.

"I was afraid you were going to die in front of me."

Armand licked his lips, they were dry as he contemplated all he wanted to say to her. He had experienced a great deal of ribbing over her then and now especially.

“Lorelei...you don’t owe me anything...you’re..uh,” this was difficult for him to say. “You’re who you are and I am just a man, not your judge,” he said and furled his brow. “I’ve spent so much thought judging your actions I...when I should have just stepped away.” It was hard but he was looking into her eyes. Her wonderful, beautiful green eyes. He hadn’t realized it but his hand drifted over near hers and his fingers touched hers and she saw how difficult it was for him to say these things to her right then.

“But...uh,” he stammered and she could tell he was going to tell her something she was not going to like, that she would not see him again? His mouth worked but he had left her an opening.

Lorelei kept her eyes on Armand's as he spoke. She could see how difficult this was for him. She could see all the pain she had caused him and it broke her heart. She felt his fingers touch her own as he moved closer to her and suddenly realized he was going to say something that she probably wasn't going to want to hear. She waited, but he paused and hesitated. She looked down and then back up at him.

"Armand, I meant what I said when I told you I loved you. I told myself that I would never allow myself to fall in love with anyone, but I couldn't stop it with you. I never wanted to hurt you...I hated lying to you. I hated seeing the pain in your eyes and the look of disappointment. You are a great man and I don't deserve you." Tears were now streaming down her cheeks. "You deserve a woman you knows what she has when she has you and never breaks your heart. I will leave Paris....you'll never have to see me again."

Even as he heard her words the sudden shock of it all seemed to salt his stomach. It wasn’t what he wanted at all he discovered. He wanted to know why, to alot of things.

“So you’d...leave paris, why? To protect me? From who, you? From you hurting me? That is what you’ve come up with? I meant what I said when i said I won’t judge you. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to know why. If I mean anything to you, and I think I do, you took a bullet for me after all,” he said and he did take her hand in his this time and sat down beside her. “Please?” He asked as sweetly as he could manage and he cupped her hand in both of his now as if he had no intention of letting her go.

Lorelei felt a wave of relief come over her when she realized he didn't want her to leave. What he did want was the truth. Lorelei hesitated a moment before taking a breath and looking up at him.

"If the truth is what you want I will give it to you."

He stayed with her all evening as she talked. He fed her, helped her drink and helped her sit up when she wanted to. He cared for her, rubbed her hands and even kissed her more than a few times though she tried to pull him down onto her bed. She told him everything, her humble beginnings, to her being raped a 12 to her being shot and saved by Severin who later turned into a wolf. She told him about how he groomed her for thieving and killing and skullduggery. How he made her have sex with him when he wanted, that had started when she was 16 and how she had enjoyed her successes. Her choices were to wallow in what she could not change or take pride in doing what he told her well be it thieving, killing or seducing in order to get what he wanted her to get. To not succeed was to bring his ire and his anger. Armand learned that crossing Severin was like crossing a Cobra in tall grass. His anger went unseen until it happened and she had learned quickly that she never wanted to see it again though sometimes she had done her best and still failed. That night Armand finally started to understand her. Finally she had told him the truth and he found that he could accept where she had come from. However he also was honest with her in that who she was did not have to be who she is now and what he needed her to be. The real truth between them was that if she couldn’t be a woman of honor, of truth and one who would stand beside him in all things than he would not be with her no matter how much he cared about her.

“I want a wife to love, children and a house in the country with...horses and chickens,” he said as he kissed her hand softly and smiled. "And I don’t expect that tomorrow either. But someday,” he added belatedly.

Athos and D'Artagnan joined them when Lorelei was ready to talk. It was extremely difficult talking about her past. It was clear that she did not like to think about the past, nor the things she had done. More than once she very nearly broke down while talking about Severin and all of the things he had made her do. She had admitted to robbing and murdering and admitted to Armand that she had been the one who had murdered both women in the Inn. The men would be able to tell that Severin had dominated her, controlled her, and made her fear him. He had turned her into what she had become and she told them that Severin had forced her to steal the painting and then had betrayed her. She wanted to stop that life...to start another one, but it was clear that it frightened her. She didn't know what to do other than steal, spy, and kill. However, she was willing to try because she knew it was the only way she could be with Armand.

Once she was done talking about her past, Athos and D'Artagnan left them to talk more privately. As Armand spoke about having children and a house in the country tears filled Lorelei's eyes once more...but this time they were tears of happiness.

"That sounds wonderful."