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“Gunther,” His Holiness called out. Briefly, Gunther exchanged worried looks with King Algar.
“Y-yes, Your Holiness,” he finally mumbled and fell into step with his superior.
Chin held high, I smiled at the group surrounding me. Most didn’t understand the nuances of what was going on, but most didn’t matter. The people who needed to understood the invisible slap perfectly well, and the reflection on their faces was proof of it. King Algar looked as if someone had just landed a punch to his gut, and Yutrik reminded me of a child who’d just lost his sweets. Louis the Great, on the other hand, smiled right back at me, as if he had deep respect for the political card I had just openly played.
I almost hollered out to the crowd to see if any other man wanted to see a weak woman’s mind at work, when loud mutters broke out. King Louis and the rest of the party surrounding me turned to see the cause of the disturbance. I followed the others’ gazes to the doors leading into the ballroom.
It was Alrick.
He was followed by a small group of rebel noblemen. Some of them I recognized from my birthday, a memory which shamed me dearly now. With proud, confident steps, Alrick led the way.
He looked stunning, tall and fearless. He was dressed in a formal dark leather military uniform—without his sword, as my guards did not allow for them in my presence. And yet still, he seemed so powerful.
The ballroom parted to make way for him and the rebels, mutters intensifying with every inch they claimed.
Wimfred stepped close behind me. “Do not show emotion,” he whispered into my ear. “Treat the encounter casual and without interest.”
I placed my hands across my chest to prevent them from shaking.
Casual and without interest? How? How could I possibly do that? Seeing Alrick here in front of everybody—walking toward me as if he were about to take me in his arms and protect me from the whole world. How could I possibly act as if nothing was the matter? I was on fire.
King Louis and the group surrounding me had turned to watch with great interest. As their backs were now facing me, it was hard to get a glimpse of their faces, but I could only imagine what King Algar and Yutrik must look like.
Alrick threw Algar a hateful glare, then walked straight past him and stopped in front of me.
“My Queen,” Alrick said and bowed. The others followed suit. “We thank you for the great honor of your invitation. Let me apologize for arriving late to such a wonderful occasion. Our journey to the castle was interrupted.”
I wanted to throw myself into his arms. It was pure torture to stand this close to him and act as if nothing was the matter.
“Nothing important, I hope?” I looked straight at King Algar. His face darkened.
Alrick stared at King Algar as well. Emotionless. “No. Nothing important at all.”
With both hands clenched into fists, King Algar looked as if he was about to attack Alrick in front of everybody—or at least try.
There was a brief moment in which Alrick and I stared at one another in silence as the whole room watched in great anticipation for what would happen next. Yet, to me, it was as if nobody else was here, just us, finally together again.
Wimfred cleared his throat. “The Rhine Kingdom welcomes you,” he said.
“Yes indeed. Please enjoy the celebrations,” I added. Alrick smiled at me, then the group left and made their way to the buffet tables. The cheerful atmosphere in the room was gone, entirely replaced by confused and shocked mutters. Alrick kept turning to look at me, concern in his eyes. Gunther had outdone himself in spreading the lies about the rebels killing my father. To have them here at the ceremony was a statement that I believed otherwise. But it was a very dangerous game. I needed to prove that Algar was behind all of this. And I was running out of time.
I was about to smile at Alrick once more when I saw the dark shadow of a tall figure in the corners of my eyes.
My head turned toward it. There, in the far distance, right by the entrance doors to the ballroom, was the tall and mighty warrior the world called “monster.”
Rune.
He was casually leaning against the doorframe as if it was a tavern, not the Rhine Castle. There was a darkness in his eyes, which were fixed on me.
A strange feeling overcame me.
Was it fear? Worry? Or far from that, a sense of feeling safe now that he was here with me?
But what was he even doing showing himself in public like this? I thought our meeting with the rebels was supposed to be kept a secret.
“Well,” King Louis said to the still mumbling crowd. “Let’s not waste another second! Let’s drink and dance!”
He was met with cheerful applause as the mood in the room shifted within the blink of an eye. The orchestra started playing a jolly waltz, inviting the first couples to make their way to the dance floor.
