Page 87 of Bewitched

“Don’t worry about me, Medea,” said Henriette. “Don’t give up everything you ever wanted just for my sake.”

“Henriette! I don’t want you to die,” cried Medea. “This can’t be happening.”

King Osric leaned on his crutch and chuckled.

“There is nothing you can do to help me,” said Henriette, weeping. “King Osric killed my daughter and the man she was to marry, and now he’ll take my life as well.” Henriette seemed to give up hope. Medea didn’t like this. The woman had been so kind to her, and also had lived through some horrible things brought on at the hands of the King. She didn’t deserve to die. She didn’t deserve this at all.

“Oh, but there is something Medea can do,” said Osric. “She can marry me right now, and I’ll spare your life,” he told the handmaid.

“B-but if I do that, I can’t marry Rhys,” said Medea, tears streaming down her face.

“That’s right,” said Osric. “So what will it be? Will you choose Sir Rhys or Henriette?”

“What about my daughter?” cried Medea. “What will happen to her if I marry you?”

“You can bring her to live with us, it’s fine with me,” said the King. “If she has magic, that will help me and be even better. Plus, I’m counting on your magic returning as well. I’m guessing in time it will. Then, we can have that army of magical babies I wanted after all.”

“Nay. I can’t marry you. I won’t!” she said through gritted teeth.

“Your choice,” said the King with a shrug. “Kill the handmaid,” Osric ordered his guard, terrifying Medea even more. She looked down to the gown she wore, thinking about how Henriette lost everything when the King killed the daughter she loved. The poor woman didn’t deserve this. Medea didn’t want her to die.

“Henriette, I want to help you, but I don’t want to give up the man I love,” Medea told the handmaid. “Plus, I don’t want to lose everything I ever wanted. This is my one chance at happiness.”

“I understand,” said the woman calmly. “You are under no obligation to save the life of your friend, even though you promised me you would do anything at all for me, if I ever needed your help.”

“I did say that,” said Medea, thinking back on their conversation.

“I would do the same for you,” added Henriette.

“She won’t keep her word,” said Osric. “She’s an evil witch who cares about naught but herself. I’ll bet she won’t even flinch when she watches my man slit your throat and you bleed to death,” he said to Henriette.

“Nay, don’t say that.” Medea felt her heart about beating out of her chest. Her knees knocked together. So much confusion clouded her mind that she could no longer even hear the voice of her mother. She was all alone and had to make a decision that she would have to live with for the rest of her life.

“Medea?” asked the handmaid, looking up with longing in her eyes. “I don’t want to die. I know I told you I understand, but I really need your help right now. Won’t you help me?”

Visions of Medea’s mother dying because of a decision she made, swarmed through her head. The guilt from that still ate away at her. If she let Henriette die, it would only add to the weight on her shoulders. But if she broke her promise to Rhys and married Osric instead, she would be letting him down as well as giving up her chance to finally be happy. She didn’t know what to do, but she did know that she couldn’t have both.

“I want to help you, Henriette, you know I do,” said Medea, her entire body trembling now. “But it would mean giving up Rhys and having a family with him, and I already promised to marry him. I have to think about Lily-Rae as well. Still, I don’t want you to lose your life.” Medea couldn’t keep her tears from flowing. She was scared and confused and so alone. Without her magic, she was vulnerable and couldn’t stop the King. She never felt so helpless as she did right now.

“Then your answer is no?” asked the woman, making Medea dig deep into her soul, trying to figure out what to do. She’d never had a true friend before, and now that she had one, was she really willing to let the woman die? There was no reason for Henriette to die. She had done nothing wrong. Medea struggled hard with her decision. She wanted a new life with Rhys and her baby. She didn’t want to be married to an evil man whom she despised. She loved Rhys. She loved Lily-Rae. The last thing she ever wanted was to lose them, when all she ever wanted was the love of a man and to have a family of her own.

“I- I’m not sure what to do,” said Medea, wishing someone was there to tell her the answer. She had always listened to her mother and never had to make a decision on her own. But now, even the voice of her evil mother in her head was silent. No one was going to help her. She needed to know how to save the handmaid’s life and still be able to be with the man she loved, but there didn’t seem to be a way to do it.

“Kill the wench,” snapped the King. “I’ll wait no longer for her answer.”

“Yes, my lord,” said the guard, turning his knife inward. Henriette looked up with sad longing in her eyes. Medea realized that she just couldn’t let the woman die, even if she had to sacrifice her own happiness to stop it. She was once again put in a horrible position, and had to make a choice that would determine if someone lived or died. She’d been responsible for her mother’s death and she couldn’t go through this again. Even though it was done to save another’s life, Medea never forgave herself for it. She decided she did not want to have to watch someone die because of her. Nay, she couldn’t do it. This woman was innocent, and Medea would not stand there watching as Henriette was killed.

“Nay! Stop!” she shouted, closing her eyes and biting her bottom lip that was still trembling. “I will marry you, King Osric. I will do it if you promise to never hurt Henriette or threaten her life again. You have already taken everything from this woman, including her daughter. No mother should ever have to endure that kind of pain. Please do not kill Henriette, because she has done nothing wrong. I am the one who has been bad, not her. She does not deserve it.”

“So, let me be clear on what you are saying,” said the King. “You would give up your happiness for a friend? You would sacrifice everything that you’ve ever wanted and give up the man you love, just to save a simple handmaid?”

“Yes,” said Medea, feeling her heart break. “I don’t want to lose Rhys, since with all my heart I love him and want to be his wife and raise a family with him. But I also don’t want to see an innocent woman go to her death because of my selfishness.” She nodded slowly. “I made a promise to Henriette that I would help her if she ever needed me. I told her I would do it, no matter what I had to sacrifice, and I will not go back on my word.”

“Why?” asked Osric. “I need to understand.”

“Henriette deserves happiness in her life. I, on the other hand, have let the darkness within rule me. I have done some horrible things in my life. I have been very bad at times.”

“But you couldn’t help it, Medea,” said Henriette. “It was the darkness inside you making you act that way.”