AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Malick cleared his throat. “Let me guess. They dripped a clear liquid on your stomach and said if it runs to the left, you are with child, and if it drips to the right, you are without?”
I nodded.
“Well, they might as well have asked chickens for an answer. You are with child, my dear. But to be absolute certain, I shall take a sample of Her Majesty’s urine and inject it into a mouse to see if its ovaries grow. It will take about a week—”
“Please stop,” I cut him off, cringing. This was unbelievable. With everything else that was going on, how could this be happening? It seemed like the entire universe was against me.
“Pregnant.” I threw my face into my hands. “Pregnant, pregnant...pregnant!”
This was bad, bad, bad. Given the right circumstances, I would have loved to celebrate having a baby. But now, all I saw were the millions of problems this would cause. The father of the child had just abandoned me, my crown was on shaky grounds, and I was supposed to marry a man I didn’t love.
“I need to write Alrick,” I mumbled into my hands.
Wimfred cleared his throat. “My Queen, that would be a bad idea.”
My head shot up. “But he needs to know.”
“He can’t.” Frida came to Wimfred’s rescue. “If this came out, your image would be ruined. After everything that has happened, you have to show them that you are the queen who ended the war. The queen they can look up to.”
“And not the queen who bore her lover’s child,” I said.
Wait. Suddenly it hit me. Rune! Would he still marry me? If he didn’t claim this child was his—I would be ruined.
“Where is he?” I asked.
Wimfred nodded out the door. “He has refused to leave the hallway. Only Frida was able to keep him out of this room.”
For a brief second, the bizarre image of the tiny woman shaking her finger against the giant in front of her appeared. I pushed it aside.
“As long as he doesn’t know and will hear it from me, I still have a chance. I need to talk to him.”
It grew silent in the room again. God damn it!
“He knows?” I blurted.
“My Queen, forgive me, but he had me by the chest, literally lifting me off my feet,” Malick said. “He thought you were dying and threatened me if I didn’t tell him the truth.”
“It’s all right, Malick,” I said in a calm tone. I had no doubt about Rune’s ability to make someone talk.
“Damn it,” I cussed again. If Rune knew, maybe everything was lost. But then, he was to be king in name only anyway. The same could be said for a father—until I found a way to tell Alrick the truth and let him claim the role he deserved—if that’s what he even still wanted.
“I said stop right there!” a guard yelled from the hallway.
“Make way or you’ll regret it!” Rune’s low growl rumbled through the door.
“Stop him for Christ’s sake!” another guard shouted, but a moment later, the door to my room was torn open, and Rune appeared in the doorframe, guards dangling from his arms.
He looked straight at me, his eyes widening at the sight.
“You’re awake,” he said softly.
I frowned. “Would you all please excuse us?”
“But, Your Highness—” Wimfred tried to protest.
“Please,” I said firmly.
The guards let go of Rune and the room cleared. Only Frida stopped for a moment in front of Rune.
