The Cursed King

Loriel let Elise cry on his chest for as long as she needed. Time seemed to stand still and there were only the two of them in the vacuum of space. The hospital staff left them be. They knew the daughter must need time to process her grief.

"Uncle! What happened to Uncle Danny?!!"

The gloomy atmosphere was suddenly ruined by the voice of Tessa who just arrived. The hospital staff called her parents to inform them that Mr. Daniel York had just passed away.

So, they immediately came to see him one last time.

Loriel winced in displeasure when he saw the wicked woman he hated appeared by the door. To his ears, her voice sounded like a rat screeching for getting stuck in a cheese trap. So annoying.

Tessa arrived with her father, Daniel York's brother, and mother. They all looked sad and had tears in their eyes.

"Where is my brother now?" Edward York asked the nurse with an urgent tone. "What happened?"

"Mr. Daniel York passed away two hours ago," said the nurse patiently. "He was talking to his daughter. That's Miss Madeline."

She pointed at Elise who was still crying silently in Loriel's embrace in the corner of the room. Edward York, his wife, and Tessa immediately turned toward Elise, and an expression of contempt immediately filled their faces.

"That's not Madeline York, my niece!" Edward roared angrily. "That is an impostor!"

"That's right! She is a criminal who lied and claimed to be my cousin with the sole intent of stealing from our family...!" Tessa gritted her teeth in anger. She walked toward Loriel and Elise with brisk steps.

She pointed her finger at Elise. "How dare you...! How dare you came here and pretend that you care about Uncle Danny!! You impostor! You already saw the DNA test results. I have outed you and we know your scheme! How dare you still try to claim you are Madeline!!

Elise, who was feeling devastated by her father's passing, was shocked and angry by the wicked accusations. She looked up and see Tessa with tears dripping down from her eyes.

"Tessa...! My father just passed away... please don't do this now..." she bit her lip, trying so hard to hold back her anger. She didn't want to lash out here.

Her father just passed away and people were taking care of his body. She didn't want to be provoked and attacked Tessa.

"Can't you shut up?!" Loriel couldn't stay still when he saw his wife was bullied by the woman he despised. He immediately stood up and threw Tessa a murderous glare. His killing intent was so strong that Tessa unknowingly stepped back.

She felt shivers rand down her spine and cold sweat dripped down her back.

What was this? Why did she feel her knees turn weak? She lost her strength and suddenly fell to the floor.

Loriel's intimidation was so great that Tessa thought she was going to die. It was so horrifying.

"Oh my god... Tessa, honey.. Are you okay?" Her mother screamed and immediately ran to get her. "What happened to you? What did this man do to you?!!"

"Mom... I-I'm scared..." Tessa cried to her mother and she struggled to get up by holding on to her mother's arm. "That man is threatening me..."

"Oh my god..." The older woman looked at Loriel with fury. "Who are you? Are you her accomplice? I will report you to the police for assault!"

She helped her daughter get up and quickly took out her phone and called their lawyer, who was also Julian's father.

"James, where are you? Come here quick. We are already at the hospital and someone is trying to attack Tessa." She closed her phone and pointed her finger at Loriel. "Watch out, you criminal. My lawyer will be here soon. He will throw you in jail and make you pay for what you did to my daughter!!!"

Loriel smirked when he heard the threat. He was looking forward to meeting all these cockroaches who had made his wife's life miserable.

"Good! I can't wait to destroy all of you in one swoop," he replied, looking disgusted. The man crossed his arms on his chest and stared at the old woman and Tessa with his murderous glare. He was thinking of ways to make them suffer.

"Loriel..."

The man was moved when he heard Elise's soft voice from his side, and she tugged his sleeve. He turned to her and his gaze instantly changed and he looked at her dotingly. "Yes, Elise?"

"Please... can we get out of here?" she whispered. Her eyes were filled with tears. "I don't want to see them."

That was the difference between Loriel and Elise. The former would destroy people he hated so he didn't have to see them, while the latter would choose the non-confrontational way and left to avoid seeing the people she hated.

"But your father is here," Loriel replied. "You have all the right to be here. Don't you want to be here for him?"

Elise shook her head. "My father is gone. I don't want to stay here and see these people..."

The expression of contempt on her face was something that Loriel had never seen before. His Elise was the sweetest and kindest woman he had ever known who never hated anyone.

During their married life in the past, Loriel had never seen Elise hate anyone to show this expression of contempt before. Even toward Emmelyn, Elise never showed such hatred. She was only sad whenever the topic of Emmelyn came out.

This was enough to make Loriel understand that Elise really, truly hated Tessa and her family, together with Julian and his family. She didn't want to see them because it would only spark her anger even more.

He looked at his wife attentively and he realized Elise might not want to see those people because she was afraid she would unleash her power and kill them.

He already knew what his wife was capable of. In the past, Elise was much more powerful than him. Did she know her powers? Could she use them?

Loriel only witnessed Elise created fire when they first met, so Elise must know that she could conjure fire. But, did she know that she could do many other things? Was that why she was afraid that she would kill people?