AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter 18
The Rhine King
“Y
our Highness,” Wimfred announced himself in a soft tone as he stepped into the dark throne hall. The red silk drapes had been kept shut ever since Mina had vanished. Only a few candles and the fire in the enormous fireplace illuminated the room in a soft, orange light. It reminded the king of when the queen had died so many years ago. The whole castle had wept for their king’s pain back then. This time, while there was pity and sorrow for the king, there were no tears for the Night Queen.
Slowly, as if woken from a slumber, the Rhine King looked at Wimfred.
“She has still not been found,” the king said.
Wimfred folded his hands. “No, Your Highness.”
The Rhine King rubbed his throbbing temples. The agony he had been through since Mina had been attacked and disappeared was just as much as when his wife had died—maybe even worse, as this time, the unbearable suffering of guilt was present as well. All these years, he had pushed her to the side, treated her like a stranger because she reminded him too much of her mother. He had created the Night Queen, and now he had sent her to her death in an attempt to undo his own mistakes. The thought of losing her now was driving him mad.
What would he give if he could see her smile just once more? What would he give if he could turn back time to change the past few years? He would drown his daughter in love and affection.
“But the North has written, Your Highness,” Wimfred said. “King Algar has promised to leave no rock unturned in the search for the princess.” Wimfred held the note out for the king to read for himself, but instead, he briefly glanced at it and slowly rose to his feet.
“How kind of him,” the Rhine King said in a tense tone.
“Does His Highness suspect King Algar of wrongdoing?”
The Rhine King walked to the hearth and stared into its flames. How many hours had he wasted staring into a fire with a grief-filled heart when he could have spent this time with his daughter? How little she’d been when he had abandoned her. When she needed him the most, he had prioritized his own sorrow over his only flesh and blood.
“I have no proof,” he said, “but it’s what I would do if I were him. Power-hungry and rotten to the core. Without a marriage to the North, I would have no reason to interfere in his senseless war.”
“What about Louis the Great? Might he not fear his future grip on the North might be diminished if Princess Mina marries into it as well?”
“I fear his plans are bigger than taking over the North. That is just a temporary target. And with my daughter dead, he’d have to contend with the fact that I might remarry and bear an heir beloved by the people and worthy of this throne. No, my daughter running the Rhine Kingdom into the ground after my death is worth more to him than her corpse.”
Wimfred sighed. “What does Your Highness want us to do?”
The mighty king straightened his spine and approached Wimfred. He towered almost two heads over his loyal servant.
“Ready half of my army.”
“To send north?”
“Yes.”
“But we have no proof that King Algar is behind any of this.”
“That is why we’ll stop at the border and send a messenger to announce that we are there to assist in the searchandthat we are aware of his drained resources.”
Wimfred scratched his chin. “King Algar will still see the move as a threat.”
“Exactly my point. King Algar will understand my message. The one at his doorstep, not the one on paper.”
Wimfred bowed. “Well played. May I assume that His Highness will stay here in safety?”
The king shook his head. “You may not. I shall lead the men.”
“But—”
“My daughter is not dead yet. I can feel it. Until I hold her lifeless body in my arms, I shall not tolerate any talk of a new marriage. From anybody.”
Wimfred bowed again. “Of course, Your Highness. It shall be as you wish.”
“Tell my knights to meet me in the library, and have my armor brought to my chamber.”
