Chapter 55
Chapter
Fifty-Five
Gerard gaped. Since the beginning of the peace assembly, he’d been in charge of protecting his family, most importantly his father, the king. And that entire time, there had been a secret passage leading straight into the king’s bedroom. His father had been vulnerable this whole time.
But where is my father now?
The lanky figure lit a torch. He led the way, lighting the tunnel. The queen consort followed. Gerard and his escorts tugged him towards it.
The robed figure watched them enter the tunnel. Gerard looked them over, trying to pick out some identifiable feature. The robed figure did not follow them and shut the wall behind them.
The tunnel was wide enough that the two behind him could walk side by side. They gripped his upper arms. Two more walked behind them. His stepmother walked directly in front of him. And the lanky man with the torch led the way.
The light flickered along the dark stone of the tunnel. The air grew stagnant and stale. It smelled of dust and cold. Cobwebs congregated amongst corners and crevices. The ground angled steeply downwards. No one spoke.
Gerard tried to keep track of the way they went, trying to work out where they would be in the monastery. But the tunnel twisted and turned, and he soon lost his bearings.
Finally, the queen consort glanced back at him. “I am truly sorry, Gerard.”
Gerard bit into the cloth gag.
“I hate to see you like this. Truly I do. Please do not think this is personal or that I wish harm to befall you. It isn’t that at all!”
Gerard tried to speak. But the cloth muffled his words.
He needed answers. He wanted to know why she was doing this, what she had planned, and if she had been the one working with Warden Flint. But most importantly, Gerard had to find out where the rest of his family were. He doubted this plan involved just Gerard.
Had they been attacked? Taken? Were they already dead and he was the last alive? And what was happening to Elias at that moment?
Gerard forced himself to breathe as best he could through his nose. Panicking would not help the situation.
They walked for several minutes. Or he thought it was minutes. It was hard to keep track. His hands, shackled behind his back, grew numb from loss of blood flow. The tunnel angled upwards.
Finally, they stopped at a large, heavy-looking wooden door. The tall, lanky man at the front unlocked it with a large key and opened it. A cool breeze brushed Gerard’s heated face. Fresh air filled his nostrils.
They exited into a small, darkened alley. Two carriages waited outside. But otherwise, the alley remained empty. Gerard looked around. Were they still in the upper monastery?
The two men pulled him inside one of the carriages. One sat on either side of him. Adelina got in and sat opposite. She clutched her hands together. The lanky man got in beside her. Still, no one spoke. The other two climbed onto the front of the carriage.
After a moment, they lurched forward. The carriage rattled through the cobblestone streets. Gerard glanced out the window, trying to identify something. Anything. But he recognised none of the buildings they passed.
After several moments, the queen consort spoke, “Do you think we can remove the gag? It does not look very comfortable or easy for him to breathe. Perhaps if he promises not to yell or scream, we can remove it.”
The lanky man glared at him. “Do you promise not to scream?”
Gerard nodded.
The man tilted his head. “If you yell, I’ll smash your mouth up so bad you won’t be able to speak ever again. And then I’ll shove the gag back in. Understand?”
Gerard nodded again.
After several long moments, the man untied and yanked the gag from his mouth. Gerard took several deep breaths. He moved his lips and swallowed. He considered asking them to remove the shackles too but doubted they’d be so obliging.
“Adelina, what is all this? What are you planning and why?”
She didn’t answer straight away. And after several moments passed, he began to doubt she would. She stared at her lap.
“Your father has never been a good husband. He’s always been … negligent as a spouse. Not that I expected a great deal of attention,” she rushed on. “He is the king. He is busy and has his duties. But …” She trailed off and looked out the window.
“But he always treated me like … cattle to be bred. I was meant to give him children. That was all the use he had for me.” She licked her lips.
“And I gave him children. Strong dragons. I did everything right. I was loyal. I was attentive. I mended his clothes by hand. I ensured his favourite meals were always prepared by the kitchen. I tended to all his needs.”
Her chest heaved as she took a deep breath. “I ignored all the women he bedded. Every single one. No matter who they were or how many. I never commented on his numerous bastards.”
She closed her eyes. “I never even said a word when he took my sister to his bed. She was my only sister. My closest friend in the whole world.” Her voice wavered. “She gave birth to his son a year and a half ago, and she is pregnant again with his next child.” She sniffled and wiped her nose.
“I’m sorry, Adelina.” And Gerard meant it. Even if she was a traitor who had betrayed him, he did feel sorry for her. He’d always pitied Adelina because of his father’s treatment of her.
“And I didn’t know about …” Gerard had seen his young cousin once. Maybe the boy had even been presented to him. But he’d not known that the baby was his half-sibling as well.
There were always new names being added to the registry that kept track of his father’s offspring. He didn’t always pay attention to them. But he had known of his father’s philandering ways and obsession with producing offspring.
Perhaps Gerard should have said something to his father on his stepmother’s behalf.
Stepped in in some way. But of course, his father’s behaviour had started when Gerard was but a boy.
Probably even before his birth. Still, he’d stood by and watched his father treat his stepmother terribly and done nothing.
“I’ve tolerated so much. Too much.” Then she shook her head. “But that isn’t why I do this. I would not do this for my own sake.” Her voice grew steadier. Her shoulders straightened. “I do this for my children.”
“Your children?” Had his father treated his half-siblings poorly too?
Gerard had never had much to do with them. They were younger than him. His years training and time fighting in the war had not allowed him much opportunity to develop close relationships with any of them.
“He never cared for my children. He ignored them.” Her voice grew strained. “He only ever cared about his four eldest children, the heir, the spare heir, the dragon warrior, and the spare dragon warrior.
“He barely acknowledges my children! He pays as much attention to them as he does his bastards. They may as well be illegitimate for the care he shows them!” she spat. “And I may as well be one of his many sluts for the consideration he shows me!” Her voice rang loud in the small carriage.
“I’m sorry,” Gerard said again.
Adelina said she wasn’t doing this because of his father’s treatment of her, but Gerard doubted that it didn’t play some part in her willingness to turn against him.
“So this isn’t about the peace treaty?” Gerard asked.
“What? Oh no. I have no problem with the treaty.”
“So you weren’t working with Warden Flint?”
“No. I barely ever spoke to the man.”
Gerard tried to think. So this had nothing to do with destroying the peace treaty, and she hadn’t been working with Warden Flint. But she was clearly not working alone. There was the robed figure and the woman he’d heard speaking to Adelina.
“In fact, Emmeline says this will not harm the treaty at all,” Queen Consort Adelina said.
Gerard tensed. Emmeline. Empress Emmeline Aella of Zephyrias. Elias’s stepmother. That was the voice that had sounded familiar.
And she despised Elias.
His breath came quicker. He tugged against the shackles pinned behind his back. But of course, they didn’t give.
What will she do to Elias?
Adelina looked out the window. “Emmeline says that when you, your father, and your siblings are all killed, the treaty will go ahead without any issue whatsoever.”