Prince Giannis and I get to the conference room earlier than the others. Not long after we arrive, the Betas, who are all wearing their formal, white military uniforms, arrive too. The last one who comes in from the gilded double doors is Queen Esther.
Queen Esther pauses the instant her glare lands at me. Though she’s not speaking, her sour expression and stiff body posture say it all - she isn’t expecting and she doesn’t want me in this meeting.
Everyone stands up at her arrival as a custom to give her respect. The men bow down, except Prince Giannis, and the women curtsy, including me.
Queen Esther’s movement is graceful, though her aura and her face aren’t. Her chin is up and her back is straight. She then takes a seat on one of the deep-buttoned, high-back chairs opposite to whe
