The Villianess story: A 100 ways to kill your husband-Chapter 352: The bitter truth

"Hope is still alive. The attendees of the culling were investigated, and it was confirmed Hope is alive but far away," she said, leaving the princess stunned.

It was meant to be good news but it left the room cold, the atmosphere filled with tension. Abrielle took a sip of her tea trying to calm herself. Her voice was calm. "Where did they say she was?" Abrielle asked.

Betty’s eyes were dead like her soul. The tea in her hand was growing cold as she had barely taken a single sip.

"The ladies of the moon," a single word successfully ruined Abrielle’s mood. "You want to go after the ladies of the moon," Abrielle repeated. Betty’s grip tightened on her teacup, and her jaw clenched.

"I won’t be able to live with myself knowing she is alive somewhere," Betty stated she would not go weak in the slightest despite the odds.

Abrielle saw the look in her eyes and a tired sigh left her lips. Some people were beyond saving that was a fact. There was nothing that she could say that would change Betty’s mind.

The ladies of the moon weren’t as pretty as the name sounds. It was a cult group led by witches that worshipped an evil entity others called a demon, but they called her a goddess.

Maledicta is a goddess that gives beauty in exchange for blood. She gives her worshippers forever youth and beauty in exchange for a beautiful lady’s life after a period. Their rituals are normally held once a year and never in the same place twice.

Finding them was close to impossible, and by the time Betty finds Hope, there is a large chance she would be long gone, and Betty might just be their next victim.

"Do you know what you are up against? Do you know what that cult entails?" Abrielle asked; she knew Betty was going through a lot, but fighting a losing battle was not going to help anything. It might seem like the only choice but there might be another way

What was she talking about? Abrielle felt like laughing at herself. She was here talking about lost cause when she was the one who so desperately wanted to kill a man who could get rid of her at the snap of his fingers.

"It doesn’t matter, I don’t care if you are not ready to help. I will find Hope." Betty raised her voice, her emotions were all over the place but it was directed at the wrong person.

"How dare you raise your voice at the princess?!" Evelyn barked, unable to stand by.

The guard standing watch, sensing a threat towards their princess, quickly unsheathed their weapons, ready to silence the offender.

Betty’s hands clenched, she will not be shaken. "Those with power would never use it. I heard the princess was kidnapped because she tried to run away. Why would anyone want to run from this." Betty’s words were provocative; no one in Cedric’s household could stand such disrespect for their mistress.

Abrielle, sensing things were about to get out of hand, raised her hand, stopping them in time. Tension filled the air, the guards ready to take Betty anything but the girl’s eyes shone with foolish determination.

Abrielle’s eyes were calm, she wasn’t angry or offended by the words Betty said. She understood her foolishness.

She places her cup on the table with everyone’s eyes on her every action. Despite the tension, her every move was truly dignified.

"Betty, as much as I don’t know your story the same, you don’t know mine, and I am in no place to explain anything to you." She stated, as a matter of fact, infuriating Betty.

Her blue eyes were calm and unaffected no one could read her thoughts. "I know you have faced a great loss, and I might not understand what you feel because I am not in your shoes, but it won’t stop me from telling you the truth."

Betty scoffed at Abrielle expecting her to tell her the same thing everyone told her. "You will say I am foolish to go after Hope."

Abrielle shook her head, her eyes going to the cup of tea before her which was reflecting her image as if searching for something the others could not see.

"Nope, that is not what I want to say. I understand you are desperate to find validation, to find peace, knowing that your sister wouldn’t be in the hands of those ritualists if you had listened to her from the start and stayed home. You are searching for Hope, not because of the love you have for her but as a means to justify yourself."

Abrielle’s words resonated with everyone. Betty gritted her teeth, "That’s not the reason; she is my sister. I have to save her, but you won’t understand." Betty said again with hostility to the princess.

Evelyn’s fingers twitched to cut her tongue, but despite everything, nothing changed. Abrielle was still calm.

"Your reaction says it all." Abrielle’s words struck a cord but Betty was not ready to accept the truth. She knew that was the truth; every night, she was haunted by that night when Hope desperately told her not to trust Lawrence, but she refused.

She had big dreams, and a small town is holding her back. "You are lying, you just want me to give up like the rest." She spat the truth to rebuke Abrielle.

"The truth is that you are selfish. Yes, you might try to find Hope. What power do you have if you find the cult? It is just signing your death warrant; before you think of embarking on a suicide mission, think of your parents, who might lose both daughters. Have your mother not cried enough."

Betty bursts into tears, her hands covering her face. She didn’t want to listen. Her sobs filled the room changing the lively atmosphere to a sober one.

"Take the guest to her room. She is exhausted after her ordeal." Abrielle instructed a maid feeling pity for the girl. It must be hard for her.

Betty’s sobs disappeared after the door closed, "so ladies, we were talking about your plans." Abrielle continued the discussion.