Senna Aldorban

An envoy arrived not too long ago asking for me. The woman with long, blonde hair that convinced me to have dinner with the Hollands told me so. She had fidgeted awkwardly and slipped out the room faster than she came in.

A part of me wondered why she was so hesitant. I wasn't a bad person; at least, I thought so. Kace would disagree with that statement.

Throwing my hair up with one hand and rifling through more files about Lord Astley with my other, questions only grew. Idrice Astley was in the northern ports exchanging in some kind of illegal trade that King Lius supported. Illegal weaponry was one. The Dark Warrior Program between us was another.

What could possibly be worse than those two?

More importantly...

Who the hell was Lord Idrice Astley? Why was Kace so interested in him?

I supposed it didn't matter. After all, I'd find out one way or another. If I had to pry Kace's head open to find out, then I would. Using me to get Rafe on our side was a terrible move.

Then I was reminded of Kace trying to make the Kandose-Entorre alliance fall. He obviously knew about the Dark Warrior Program, so did that mean he disagreed with it? He had to be smarter than that—without this alliance, the dark warriors would attack Thaeleck. It would kill innocents.

Kace was either incredibly stupid or incredibly evil. My blood burned at the thought of him using me. No matter how many times I glanced at him, my hand itched to throw a punch at his face. I wanted him to tell me what the hell he was doing. Why was he doing this?

My eyes traveled to the umbrella leaning against my dresser. He had it remade for me—why? To use that against me, too? I couldn't believe I forgave him for destroying my father's gift to me.

My head pounded at the recollection of Odaya. That little—

I jumped when the door jeered open. On the other end, Mallor stood, waiting patiently. All my thinking made me forget that I requested his presence.

I might've been stubborn, but I wasn't stupid. I would not walk around unprotected. Mallor was the best option I had.

"An envoy requested for you," he said, stepping into my room.

"I know." I pointed my hairbrush at him. "But thanks for the reminder. You should be my assistant here."

He leaned against the wall and smiled. "I'm afraid I don't have the eloquence for business, but I appreciate the recommendation."

"You're Kace's friend, so if you can handle that, you can handle anything I throw at you." To prove my point, I tossed my hairbrush in his direction and he swiftly caught it. "See?"

"I don't think the two are comparable, Princess Sen—"

"Just call me Senna, please. I'm not like Kace."

"That's highly inappropriate—"

"Are you going against a royal's orders, Mallor?" Narrowing my eyes, I handed a file to him and ignored his denials. "When you get the time, please give this to Kace. And thank him for my umbrella."

"Your..." He glanced at the umbrella-shaped spear leaning against my dresser. "Never mind. I'll be sure to give the file to him."

"Excellent." I tapped his shoulder and gestured him to follow suit. Though he was following me, I couldn't ignore the several other sounds of guards keeping up with me.

This meant Kace was still paranoid. Fair enough.

Speaking—or rather thinking—of Kace, I passed by him sitting in the dining room by himself eating eggs. We ate earlier this morning, so why...

Kace never ate with us. He sat still, occasionally picking at his food, but never ate. I tried to remember a time I saw him chew something and nothing came up.

He couldn't possibly be shy of me. The thought was amusing, though. Perhaps I'd stop by his room later with a jar of the finest pickled sheep's feet.

Mallor guided me into the conference room, holding the door open for the other men that lined in. The envoy sat by a window seat, his foot rapidly bouncing.

"Good afternoon, Princess Senna," the envoy said, quickly rising from his seat.

I nodded in acknowledgement and took a seat across him. His eyes strayed around the room, refusing to make eye contact with me.

I wasn't Kace, but I was someone who demanded respect. That was a strike against the envoy.

"Is there a message?" I addressed him, crossing my hands on the table.

I found myself rolling my eyes at his hesitation. Finally, he flipped his duffel bag and pulled out a file filled with flimsy parchment. "Your father wanted you to know that this"—he slid a newspaper my way—"was circulating around Kandose."

I read the headline.

I glared up at the envoy. "Is this a joke?"

Milk prices rise in response to the new mandate issued by Prince Adrie

The envoy nearly fell off his chair as he grabbed the newspaper and flipped it over. Then he pointed at the headline again.

My body was a million times heavier as I read it. Reread it. Glanced at Mallor.

Mallor was right behind me as I read it. He saw the headline. Nausea built inside me and yet my muscles shut down.

"Men, stand outside the door," Mallor commanded. His voice sounded fainter than I needed it to. All of them exited without a second to spare.

I knew why Kace hated me now.

Prince Thresan in chains after found responsible for Garbade fire

Thresan killed Manea and Nicholyn?

This had to be fake. There was absolutely no way my brother would do something so vile.

Yet it made perfect sense as to why he would. Kandose needed the alliance with Thaeleck so the dark warriors weren't needed. He'd need to somehow get all the royals to agree on an alliance, and since there was no possible way to get through to them, he needed to marry the only one that gave him a chance.

So he killed Manea and Nicholyn, made Kace's and Valarya's marriage unattainable, and went after Valarya when she was vulnerable.

I folded the newspaper and tucked it into my bag. This was why Prince Kace hated me. This was why he refused an alliance with us.

That knowledge wasn't the worst part. My brother killed someone. He killed—

Mallor began speaking to the envoy, but his voice was far away. My breaths became ragged and harder to control. Was I going to cry?

The audacity I had to cry when my brother killed Prince Nicholyn.

Time either slowed or quickened. When I finally managed to look up again, I wasn't facing the table, but Mallor, who was knelt in front of me with his hands on my knee. Was he talking to me?

Why would he talk to me after what he just read?

Did Prince Kace even know my brother was the one behind his brother's death?

I thought I was crying because my clothed thigh was soaked. Mallor kept speaking to me as if I wasn't drowning him out. Was he comforting me?

Mallow's mouth stopped moving as he stood up and brought my head to his chest. His arms tightened around my body. I was shaking, and I brought my arms up to pull him closer.

"I'm so sorry," I rasped, shoving my face harder against him. "I didn't know, I swear. I'm sorry. Mallor, please—"

"I know," Mallor whispered, as if he understood what I was feeling.

Even when I wanted to shove him away, I couldn't bring myself to stop crying. How was I going to tell Prince Kace about this? He wouldn't ship me off to a murderous island—he'd kill me himself. Would I blame him? 

It might've taken years for the tears to stop, but they eventually did. The heaviness didn't go away, though. Pulling away from Mallor, I wiped away my remaining tears with my sleeve.

"Do you want water?" he carefully asked, his arm still pressed against my back.

The only response was a shake of my head.

"I'll get you water." I went to yank him back, but he was too quick. One second he was in front of me, the next he was outside telling a guard to fetch water. A minute later there was water in my hand.

"Why aren't you running to Prince Kace to tell him?" I mumbled, handing back my water.

He swallowed and knelt again, his hands going back to my knee. His blue eyes quickly glossed over.

And what he told me next tore my soul to shreds.

*~⚜️~*
Kace Holland

Some guard handed me the file from Princess Senna. That little vixen had all the information I needed about Lord Idrice Astley and his son Rafe. I'd coordinate with Mallor what our next plan of action was tonight.

In the meantime, I had business to tend to. In particular, King Lius business. Without warning, I flung open my insufferable father's door and watched Mother flinch.

"Who do you think you are marching into my room—"

I laughed and slammed the door behind me. I was sure the guards were accustomed to what it meant when I stormed here.

"Who do you think you are?" I simply said.

"Excuse me—"

"Answer my question. Who the hell do you think you are?" I repeated, leveling my steps beside my mother.

King Lius scowled and pointed a finger at me. "Watch your mouth with me, boy."

"For fucks' sake." It didn't take more than three strides for me to stand in front of him and slap his finger down. "Answer my question or I'll—"

"You will talk to me as if I'm your king," King Lius yelled, his hands going behind his back.

"And as king, don't you think you should have Prince Thresan and Princess Senna sign a confidentiality contract?"

The cogs behind his eyes got stuck at that question. Mother squirmed on the bed and stared out the window.

"Are you questioning my decisions?"

This time my laugh was rougher to force. My body quickly reacted to that question as I shoved him on the bedside table. "I'm questioning your authority, you worthless piece of shit. You are letting the Aldorban's have confidential information on our country? Are you fucking insane?"

My world was red as I heard him say, "I'd rather they control the country than you, Kace."

"You're ruining our country as a ploy to get back at me?"

"Your brother could've ran the country better than you. A damned donkey could, too. You think I'd hand the Crown down to some disabled, mental child?"

"Lius, enough." Mother got up from her pretty perch and rounded the bed to us. "He's your blood—"

"Bold coming from the woman who has absolutely no backbone." I quipped my attention to her. "Tell me, Mother. Did Nicholyn and I's screams keep you up at night, or did you use us as a lullaby?"

"Nicholyn was never my son and never your brother."

"Father killed Nicholyn many years ago and you know that. He killed him along with his wife who cheated on him."

Mother crossed her arms and gestured to my legs. "So whose fault was it that your father uses your disability as an insult? Who was the one that gave you the disability?"

"You're useless, Mother. The only reason I don't despise you is because you're wrapped around Father's finger like a leech. Get a fucking life, please."

"You're starting this drama like a pitiful little girl, Kace. You need to be a man and quit being so emotional," Mother said. "Though Nicholyn wasn't my son, he wasn't an emotional mess with constant outbursts."

"You're hilarious, Queen Nillaj. Honestly. I pity you more than anything," I retorted. All the things she said were the same things she always did.

"Damn it, Kace. Listen to your father," she yelled.

The guards outside definitely heard that.

"No. You can continue to kiss his ass, though. Spineless as shit." This time, I took a step toward her and watched her step back. "You only have power because you married into it. I have it by blood. You cannot get rid of me from the throne, but he can get rid of you just like he did with Queen Tanna."

Now her eyes glued to the ground. Good. It was tiring to listen to her try to dictate my birthright. What say did she have? What power? She couldn't even control her husband. The thought of a wife not able to put her husband in place was not what a marriage should be.

"And because King Lius, your husband, can get rid of you, what do you think is holding me, Prince Kace—the future king and your son—from doing that?" I added.

King Lius's silence was enough to confirm my assumptions. Marriage or not.

Mother didn't act correctly around him. She bended to whatever he willed and never thought anything through. She was smarter than that; I didn't care how rough I needed to be to remind her.

Without another word, I left the room. The guards weren't standing directly outside the door, but at the end of the hall. Did I blame them? Of course not.

Walking through the corridors of the palace to the east wing felt like I was drowning. Memories flooded back, each one worse than the former. My hand traveled to my bracelet and then to my marriage ring.

Both held me down in different ways. Both were useless. Nicholyn might've not died in the Garbade fire, but the man that protected me did.

My brother did.

My family broke and he never came to help. He never came for Mother or me. He just left and became some vigilante. That thought should've comforted me, but it only hurt worse next to my ring.

They chose who and what they wanted, and I chose this life.

I paused by the ajar conference room and sighted Mallor knelt in front of someone invisible behind the wall. All I heard him say was, "Because I was the one who told him to kill him."

He was probably comforting a guard that made his first kill. It wouldn't be the first time I'd seen that; some poor fool accidentally stabbed himself after killing someone and got an infection. 

That was quite the conversation. Hopefully that guard could move on afterward.