After brunch, they retired to the bridal suite. Delia sat at the back of the room, refusing to help Laurel, though it didn’t seem as though she was expected to help. It didn’t matter to her other than to irritate her. There should have been news about Adolph being ill by now, but since there wasn’t, she could only imagine that Adolph would fall to the poison before the ceremony. She’d used the entire vial after all. She didn’t know what Tina was planning, but she doubted that Laurel would make it long after the ceremony either. With both of them out of the way, she would be the luna. Basil would be king, but the entire plan would be complete. Would Eden be happy? Would he reward her? She grimaced, thinking of Tina. There was no way the woman wouldn’t remember her hint about Basil’s heir. Maybe she should have saved a bit of poison for her as well. Raven watched Delia out of the corner of the mirror as she helped Irene do Laurel’s makeup. Lily and Sarah managed the curling of Laurel
“Laurel!” Adolph screamed, drawing her close. His voice trembled as she remained limp in his arms. “Laurel!”Chasel’s blood ran cold as panic and fear rippled through the room. He let the fear pass over him and turned to the nearest knight who seemed frozen in shock. Lynn looked like he was going to be sick. Sam’s teeth were bared, furious and helpless.“No one leaves the castle ground,” Chasel said. Sam’s head snapped to look at him. “Everyone from the guests to the lowest stable boy is to be confined on-premises. Close the gates and every path out of the castle.”“By your order,” Sam said with a stiff nod before running to spread the order. He turned to Lynn who was tense and staring at him, awaiting orders. “Spread the word, the Imperial City is on lockdown. No one leaves the city until the culprit is caught. Don’t spook the citizens. The culprit may attempt to escape during the panic. I want barricades erected and guard posted on every major and minor road out of the city within
A shudder went through the room at the mention of treason. The kingdom’s law regarding treason was one of the harshest laws they had: death by drawing and quartering. The last time someone had been accused of treason, the king left their body scattered until the wild beasts consumed every piece of flesh and refused to let the traitor’s family hold any form of funeral rites. In that man’s defense, the traitor had murdered his luna. Chasel knew that if Adolph had to follow in his father’s footsteps in that way, he wouldn’t stop at drawing and quartering. The late king had been a fearsome man, but he had come into the war a lot older than when Adolph had gone in. He hadn’t been so steeped in blood that his aura and scent had begun to smell of it. Chasel shuddered.“So says His Majesty,” Chasel said, calling forth a resounding salute of acknowledgment from the guards in the hall.Chasel approached Adolph slowly, taking stock of how he shook and the glints of red light in his eyes. It
Delia and Tina had retreated to Delia’s room after the ceremony, but Delia wasn’t sure how long they had before being brought in for questioning. Tina panted and wrung her hands as Delia tried to figure out where she would manage to hide the empty vial she’d been carrying all day. It might not be poison since Adolph seemed unaffected at the ceremony, but she wasn’t going to chance being caught with it if she could help it. *Eden’s grey eyes glinted through the shadows as he followed Adolph and the priestess up the stairs and Delia rounded the corner trying to reach the stairs to her room.*His expression had been neutral, but his eyes had been furious. She worried her lip. What if he decided to pull her from the mission? It wasn’t her fault! He would understand once she explained the situation. She had no idea what was going on or how Adolph was completely fine! Maybe it hadn’t been poison, and she’d misunderstood what he meant by advance in which case none of this had anything to d
Adolph walked into the room where they brought Maria and took a steadying breath, hearing her weep. He sat across from her and offered her a handkerchief. She took it with a little whimpering cry. “Y-Your Majesty… Is she okay?”“The priestess has said she will recover with time.”She nodded stiffly, “That’s… That’s good. I… After this I… I wish to tender my resignation.”Arthur tilted his head, “Have you passed on the recipes?”She sniffled, looking up at him with confusion, “The imperial jam’s recipe is recorded in the archives, of course.”“Not the imperial jam,” Adolph smirked, “*Your* petal jam recipes.”She blinked as he relaxed into his seat, “I’m not prepared to start eating someone else’s petal jam, Maria, so I can’t allow you to resign.”“B-But…” She sniffled. “I… Someone… I… I didn’t see it.”“I’m not worried about what you didn’t see. I’m worried about what you did.”She nodded, “I-I understand. W-Where should I start?”“The poison has been determined to be crimson oleande
Adolph stopped at the door of the west parlor and forced himself to take a deep breath before entering. The first thing he noticed was that Tina was nervous. Everything about her movements and the shifting of her eyes said she was nervous. Adolph observed her as he walked to the table and sat across from her. “Tell me what you did today, starting from this morning.”“Y-Your Majesty, for all the years of my service—”“Spare me,” Adolph hissed. “Do not speak if you don’t intend to tell me what I want to know.”She nodded and seemed to steady herself, starting with her duties in the morning. She’d reported to the kitchens and was assigned to manage the food delivery to the lunar and azalea rooms. She’d taken the cart meant for Laurel’s room and pushed it there before serving the food. After brunch, she’d returned to the kitchens and helped with the banquet preparations.“Then, I returned to my room.”Adolph tilted his head, “And?”“That’s all, Your Majesty.”“My knights reported that yo
Basil looked at his father in horror as Tina was dragged into the hall and put before his throne. Tina curled up, sobbing pitifully. “Pl-Please have mercy. I don’t want to die. I don’t want to die….”“Father,” Basil said. “Does she not deserve leniency for all of her years of service? It’s probably just a mistake!”Adolph looked at Basil, “Tina. Do you confess to the crime of attempted murder?”Tina sobbed, “I-I… Y-Yes. I…”Basil’s eyes widened. He paled and he closed his mouth in shock. Adolph was grateful that he didn’t need to keep Basil on his list of potential threats. For all of his stupidity, Basil was still his son and heir.“I… I only did it for Luna Olivia,” she cried. “Please, you have to understand!”“What say the ministers for sentencing?” Adolph asked, and looked at Gavin. “Minister Mirabelle as she was once a servant of your house, you may speak first.”Her eyes turned bright and hopeful looking up at Gavin. “No true servant of my family would ever have attempted murd
The knight cried out in agony as he landed with a hard crash. Adolph’s chest heaved as he looked down at the man who curled up on his side, clutching his left shoulder. “Your left side is weak.”“My apologies, Your Majesty.”Chasel shook his head as he walked onto the training pitch. He had only taken his eye off of Adolph for a few hours. He had expected him to go and sit by Laurel’s bedside as he had been doing, but of course, he hadn’t. He’d have to apologize to the knights later for his oversight.“Your Majesty,” Chasel called. Adolph turned his head stiffly, his eyes narrowed and too alert.They were sleepless and agitated. Chasel had been lucky to reach him so quickly and know exactly where Raven was in the castle. “Lady Raven would like to speak to you,” Chasel said. “She awaits you in the rose parlor.”Adolph was tense, but he nodded stiffly and excused himself from the training pitch. He watched everyone on the pitch let out a solemn breath of relief. “My apologies,” Chas