AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Better than the alternative,” I snapped.
She lifted the cup to her ruby lips and took a long sip. I waited patiently, my stomach too twisted in knots to participate in the teatime ritual. “Leo is charming in a rugged sort of way. I understand the appeal, though I’d always expected you to fall in love with my Augustus.”
I swallowed a thick ball of emotion. “It’s about doing what’s right. He was an asset to the royal guard.”
“He was a liability to the queen. It’s not just your neck on the chopping block, Christine. I helped you clean up that bloody mess and escape.”
“Please,” I begged. “He’s proven his loyalty. The king is dead.”
“What will you do to bring him back? How much are you willing to give?” She leaned over slightly, somehow maintaining her perfect posture as she did.
Everything was a transaction in the kingdom of Aldrich.
“What do you want?” I choked out.
“You’re not leaving here, Christine.” Her words were even and laced with authority.
My spine turned to steel. “What?”
“I’m ordering you to stay. Your passport has been flagged. All the money in your accounts, frozen. As we sip tea, the university in Harvington is being informed of your withdrawal. I’m so sorry to do that, by the way. Just one semester to go. We can look into online courses if you’d like.” She spoke as if she were discussing the weather.
My skin felt tight, the frown on my face stretching so deep that it burned. “Why? I can’t come back. If someone found out—”
“Exactly, Christine. It would be incredibly easy for me to tell the world that you killed Lord Geralt and covered up his murder.”
“Why?” I asked. “Why now? What do you want from me?”
Isabelle smiled politely, though I knew she had brimstone for teeth. “The House of Rose is a very influential family. Though you don’t have access to your trust fund until you’re twenty-five, the title attached to your name has been there since you were born. Many people respect your father’s legacy and adore your mother’s gentle heart. You’re the darling of the kingdom.”
I shook my head. “But I don’t care about any of that. I want to live a normal life.”
“Women like us don’t get normal lives, Christine. We get power struggles and polished bodies primed to be fucked and bred by royalty.”
Her words made me flinch. “You’re going to marry me off.” My mind instantly went back to the king’s sinister words. He’d handed me over to the lord with a grin on his face, convinced my worth was only tied to the pleasures my body could give another man and the title my father had earned.
“My husband limited your potential. An arranged marriage with a lord was well beneath your station. I have much bigger plans for you.”
I started to shake, the idea of being forced into another wedding without my consent made me sick to my stomach. “Who?”
She preened excitedly. “Augustus. You will marry my son, Christine.”
My reaction was conflicted. All I’d ever wanted was to end up with the boy I fell in love with. If I’d had to pick anyone to marry in this godforsaken kingdom, it would have been him.
But the traumas of my past made me reject the idea of being queen. I didn’t want to be a pawn for the Crown. I didn’t want to trap myself in the scheming or abuse the court offered. Fleeing this kingdom was the best thing I’d ever done, the taste of freedom too sweet to give up. “No,” I whispered.
“I once thought I had a choice, too, darling.”
“I don’t want anything to do with this kingdom. You know what happened to me. You know how I was raped by a man twice my age here. Why would you want to chain me to a castle that holds all my grief? My mother would be rolling in her grave. After everything,” I said while shaking my head.
“Your mother would understand. As parents, we have no standards of morality when it comes to the safety of our children.”
“Why me?” I asked.
“There are many who don’t think my son is up for the job. They think he’s wild and reckless—”
I scoffed. “He is.”
Ignoring me, she continued, “There are enemies waiting in the wings to tear him down. I need him married to an obedient girl beloved by the public. Someone who will help keep him in line while he settles into his role. That girl is you.”
