Page 69 of Bloom
“I wouldn’t be surprised if you were a bastard child, and your Mother slept with someone else,” Zacharie suddenly said. “I bet you’re a whore too.”
Aleric paused, and a few courtiers nearby who heard the words went dead silent.
Too?
He damn near saw red as he turned around. Fuck no. If Zacharie thought he was going to get away with insulting Mother…
“Aleric-”
Jaime said something and tried to grab his arm. Aleric almost forgot about everyone else watching as he lunged for his little brother. He’d beat down the little shit for daring to say a word about Pearl. Shock flashed in Zacharie’s eyes like he hadn’t thought Aleric would do anything.
Before Aleric could slug him and hopefully bust his nose, a fist flew into his face. It wasn’t the first time Aleric had felt it, and he was pretty sure he heard bone crack as the force snapped his head back. Someone gasped in the entrance hall, and a man swore as Jaime grabbed Aleric.
“Get the fuck away from him!” yelled Gautier as talk and exclamations burst from the rest. “How dare you-”
“What the fuck?” Jaime yelled as Aleric instinctively grabbed at his nose. The last time he’d felt Gautier’s fist, nothing had broken, and he was positive his nose was busted. His eyes watered uncontrollably at the pain, and hot blood gushed through his fingers.
A woman asked Gautier if he was insane. The thought to run flashed through Aleric’s mind in case Gautier tried to hit him again. Jaime pushed him back and got in front of him.
“I think you broke his nose. What the fuck is wrong with you?!”
“He was going to hit Zacharie!”
“So? You just fucking slugged the lord’s son!”
Aleric could see well enough even though his eyes stung. Gautier had plastered on a faintly surprised expression, like he couldn’t believe he’d hit anyone. Liar. He’d hoped for an opportunity, and Aleric had stupidly walked right into it in his rage.
“What was I supposed to do?” Gautier moved a little to block Zacharie as if Jaime was going to do something to him.
Jaime made a frustrated noise, took his handkerchief, and pressed it against Aleric’s face. “Hold it.”
The rest of the courtiers were babbling, and a couple stepped back like they were afraid. Zacharie appeared stricken, and others from the Hall were coming out at the noise. It didn’t matter if Aleric’s nose had been broken. Gautier would make himself look like Zacharie’s protector and twist it.
“What’s going on?!” Lord Monet’s voice carried over the others, and several by the door entrance of the Hall moved aside to let him through.
“Lord Gautier hit him!” Jaime said first, and others echoed him. Some in the Hall had likely only caught the last few seconds of the event, and it would look as though the lord had snapped.
Quite a few others broke in by saying Zacharie had gravely insulted his older brother, Aleric had attempted to attack him, and Lord Gautier had punched him. They seemed to be split with some thinking Aleric had every right since his dead Mother had been called a whore. Others didn’t because a man shouldn’t physically attack his brother.
“Silence.” Lord Monet came closer with his cane. “I can’t listen when you’re all talking at once. Alex, what happened?
“How about if you ask your son first?” asked Jaime.
“Be quiet.”
“Your son’s the one with a broken nose,” Jaime snarled at him.
“Just stop.” Aleric’s voice sounded funny, and he pushed past him to get to the stairs. Screw dinner. Gautier got what he wanted, and that was to humiliate and hurt him again. Damn it. A man asked where the physician was, and another said they hadn’t seen him.
Jaime followed him upstairs as Gautier started telling Lord Monet that he was only intending to protect Zacharie. Aleric had snapped.
Jaime turned on the stairs. “Aleric was only going to hit him because he insulted your dead wife. This is Zacharie’s fault, and a man with that much heft shouldn't have punched Aleric.”
Everyone involved was at fault, but it was especially Aleric’s. He continued up the stairs and burned with shame because Jaime had just told him not too long ago that he shouldn’t react to his brother.
Aleric had been about to rearrange Zacharie’s face.
“You need to see Olivier.” Jaime was at his side again.
