Author's note:

So I want to add trigger warnings to my story, because I am so grateful for them when I am reading and I can do it myself too. I want to say that I am not that experienced in it, but we are working on it; feedback is more than welcome.

TW

one mention of blood, vague description of murder and death

"I think I saw him, down Bleecker Street, if you're fast you might still catch them."

The man couldn't have shouted harder if he had tried. It was more than hard enough for Russ to hear him screaming to the Royal Guards.

He was fucked.

Quite literally, but that was beyond the point he was trying to make here.

"Thank you, go back to bed, we'll make sure that man won't be walking around by tomorrow morning. You can be sure of that."

Now it was the captain of the Royal Guard talking way louder than was necessary during a food chase around the back alleys of the capital. Not that he was complaining but Remy was never very subtle when angry.

They really needed to talk about that, if they wanted to pull this off successfully.

The voices were slowly fading away in the background noise as Russ continued to run down alley after alley, pulling Pete with him. Trying, but probably failing to get as far away as possible from the looming castle in the distance.

They needed to leave the capital, but the enormous number of guards stationed by all the regular exits was astounding. That way they would never be able to make it out alive. Which was exactly the point of them being there.

No kingslayer would make it out alive. Or in this case would be king's and slayer's.

Russ had no problem being prosecuted for his crimes, though he would prefer it being done by someone else than Remy, but one he hadn't committed. That was a bit too much.

It truly didn't matter though if he did or did not do it. It mattered what people believed he had done, and the public opinion at the moment was not in his favour.

Remy knew better than to believe he would commit murder, the prince knew better than to think he would commit murder. Well, if you didn't look too closely at that statement.

Remy had too much faith in his good character and the prince knew Russ would never harm him.

The details in the court system were of the utmost importance, especially when it came to kingslaying.

Hammering footfalls announced the Royal Guards' nearing their hiding place. With some luck Remy would ignore his presence and lead his men farther away. Unfortunately he couldn't trust on that, there was more than one tattletale in their presence.

Sneaking away and running over rooftops didn't go too well together, but alas, the past is done. Nothing you can do about experiences gone by. Pete had never been too subtle either nor willing to learn the secret arts of staying unsee.

He had two options, hide out in the palace or go so far away no person even knew about the existence of the kingdom he came from. Neither option was a good one, bad he was on his homeground inside the palace; he knew it better than many servants that had worked there for longer than he had been alive.

The perks of being close to the royal family, they tell you all their secrets at some point in time.

It was a long road back to the palace gardens, and many a time they almost ran into a patrol of the Royal Guard, but at long last he was once more within the safety of the palace walls.

"Do you think they'll find us?"

Pete also was not the best at staying unheard, if he had shouted it might have been at a less higher volume.

"No, and keep your mouth shut, or do you want us to be found."

Russ knew the answer to that question already and Pete kept quiet as they moved through the hallways.

The hallways were empty apart from the turmoil he could hear coming from the kitchen. It certainly didn't sound like the crown prince had almost been assassinated, further proving his theory that someone had tried to set him up.

The walls in the palace had running ears, eager to gossip, but none of their knowledge would ever leave those same walls. The servants knew too well the price they would pay, if one would reach the city below. The city where people were running around fearing an assassin the palace servants knew never existed to begin with.

It truly was a game well played.

A servants' door opened in the wall before Russ and after said servant had disappeared past the next hallway did he slip inside. The labyrinth inside the palace that few knew about, well few important people who would care about him being there.

He had a mission to complete and Pete could come along or shut it. He didn't have time to play games with the Esquire of the king, nor did he care to be subtle anymore.

They had made their move, now it was his turn.

The road to the king's bedroom wasn't long, though, because of the many twists and turns it made, was Russ more than convinced that Pete didn't know where they were going. Exactly like he wanted it to be.

With some luck were the Royal Guards back in the palace and on their way to the king's rooms, but it was honestly a blind bet. He needed witnesses, but not during the actual crime taking place. They would only be bothersome.

-

Remus knew something was off that night. First the alarm that someone had tried to kill the crown prince and then the identity of the would be killer was revealed.

None of it made sense.

But he had a duty to do, so he went outside, down to the city and looked around. His regiment had less qualms about the identity of the killer and were more than happy to catch him more dead than alive. They were more than ready to believe Russ had tried to kill the crown prince, despite the total lack of evidence and the fact that he had successfully stopped assassination attempts before.

There was no reason why Russ would do what he was being accused of.

Nothing, and yet here they were, walking back to the palace after a night on the road with very little to show for.

The crown prince was waiting for them at the entrance of the palace and led them through the halls to the king's rooms, they had much to discuss.

"You didn't find him, did you?"

"No, didn't even see him."

Before Remus could ask the crown prince what had actually happened the sound of clashing metal echoed through the halls, prompting Remus into a run to the king's rooms.

The scene that greeted him there, was straight out of his nightmares.

King Albert lying dead in his bed.

A bloody dagger in the hand of someone he trusted fighting the king's bodyguard.

"Russ! We need him alive."

"I di—"

Russ took advantage of the distraction that the arrival of Remus and his man had created and killed the traitor.

Pete dropped the bloody dagger he had used to break his oath of loyalty to his king and fell to his knees.

-

August 17, 2023