Chapter 17
1005 Words
DIANA
The question was simple.
Everyone was watching, waiting for me to answer.
I lifted my gaze directly to meet hers. "It was eventful, Your Majesty."
A flicker crossed the Queen's eyes, but it was gone so quickly I almost missed it.
"Oh? A terrible tragedy." She smiled gently, though her eyes were devoid of warmth.
I smiled back, keeping my tone polite. "Fortunately, Prince Draven's men are exceptionally competent."
The First Prince's jaw tightened at the praise. The Queen's serene smile didn't waver. Across the table, the Second Prince hid a smile behind his cup.
Apparently, I had just said something very interesting.
The Queen tilted her head to her side, her jewelry clinking softly. "The Commander does inspire... unique loyalty."
There was something highly deliberate in the way she chose to say Commander instead of son.
I filed that toxic detail away in my mind.
The First Prince reached for his wine, swirling it. "I must admit....I am surprised." he drawled, his eyes locking on mine.
I looked back at him without blinking my eyes. "By what?"
His smirk widened with malice. "That the monster hasn't killed you yet."
The room became utterly still.
Not a single person at the table looked shocked by how Roderick had just called Draven a monster, which meant this was normal here. They spoke about him this way openly.
For some reason, I found that deeply irritating.
I set down my cup with a click. "My husband has been nothing but honorable toward me."
The First Prince laughed . "Honorable?"
His wife smiled into her tea while the Second Prince looked fascinated as he leaned back in his seat.
"I have known Draven for decades. You have known him for a mere month." the First Prince said with a patronizing tone.
I met his arrogant gaze head-on. "Then perhaps I have had a better month than you've had decades, Your Highness."
Prince Cassian nearly choked on his food beside me.
The Second Prince laughed outrightly. Even one of the nearby servants looked alarmed by my boldness.
Roderick's smirk disappeared, but I pretended not to notice as I took a bite of my food.
Conversation across the table resumed after a tense moment. For a while, they left me alone. Then Roderick tried again, refusing to lose face. "You must find Volkar terribly unpleasant."
I glanced at him. "And why would that be, Your Highness?"
He smirked, swirling his wine again. "The cold. Humans are notoriously fragile creatures."
There it was. The blatant reminder of my mortality. I wondered how long he had practiced that particular jibe in the mirror.
"I suppose so," I replied smoothly.
His smile widened, thinking he had won a point.
Then I continued. "Though I have learned something interesting during my short time in this kingdom."
His eyes narrowed. "What?"
I bent my head, smiling a little. "Everyone seems to get cold the moment they are around my husband."
The Second Prince froze while the Queen slowly lowered her porcelain cup back to its saucer. Beside me, Prince Cassian chuckled.
The First Prince's brow furrowed in a deep frown.
I smiled at him, saying, "So perhaps the shivering isn't merely a human problem."
A servant in the corner suddenly developed a serious cough fit to cover a laugh. The Second Prince looked moments away from losing his mind with amusement. The First Prince just stared at me, his face flushing with anger.
The Queen, however, gave me scrutinizing look. I took another bite of fresh fruit, acting completely innocent.
Her lips then curved into a smile. "You speak of Draven often."
The observation made me pause, even as the princes locked their gazes on me.
Wonderful. I had walked right into it.
"I do?" I asked, trying to keep my voice casual.
"Repeatedly," the Queen noted.
I opened my mouth to defend myself, then closed it. Because now that she explicitly mentioned it... I realized she was right.
I had. Several times.
She leaned back into her chair, her smile deepening with satisfaction. "How very interesting."
"Well..." I straightened my spine and cleared my throat. "He is my husband, Your Majesty. It would be rather strange if I did not speak of him."
The Queen's smile softened, though her eyes remained sharp as glass. "Of course."
She stirred her tea, the spoon clicking against the cup, then she looked up. "Then you must miss him terribly."
I froze, air leaving my lungs.
"I was informed that the commander departed the day after your wedding. He has been absent for over a month now, has he not?"
I didn't answer immediately because the answer was a humiliating yes, and apparently, the Queen already knew that.
"You defend him quite passionately, Diana, for a man you have spent less than two days in the company of." She said again.
The words hit me like a blade.
Across the table, the Roderick smirked triumphantly, but I kept my facial expression neutral, refusing to give them the satisfaction. Inside my head, however, my thoughts were racing.
She knows. She knew the exact day he left. She knew he has not returned to Volkar. She knew exactly how long he has been gone, which meant the Queen was receiving spy reports from inside Volkar.
"Perhaps," She muttered, her tone dripping with mock sympathy, "you humans are simply a very loyal creature."
I met her gaze across the table. "Or perhaps, Your Majesty's information is incomplete."
She lifted one brow. "Oh? Humor me."
I placed my cup down. "You said I have only spent two days in my husband's company."
The Queen nodded. "I did."
"That would be true if spoken conversations were the only way to truly know a person."
Roderick snorted again, but I ignored him this time and kept my eyes on his mother.
"So while I may not know every single detail about Prince Draven....I know enough."
For a second, the Queen's perfect regal mask cracked before she managed to pull off another bright smile.
- Writer
