Lord Caius
"Damn it!" I exclaimed as I tossed my glasses of wine.
Nothing went according to plan. I needed Anneliese and her husband to take the Thorne so they could leave Erika alone.
This was the only way I could really target her. I am not going to lie; she is nice and good with people.
However, she doesn't come from a true royal bloodline, which is even worse.
According to Dulcinea, the rulers should be part of the royal bloodline, but it was a vote, and we lost.
It was then that I knew I had another enemy to take over, and I would have asked Preminger for help since he owed me a favor.
However, the idiot got himself discovered and locked in the cell, and there was nothing I could do.
"What was that noise?" Said a familiar voice as I turned to see the annoying woman in my room.
"Nothing, I just dropped something," I said as she looked at me confused.
"Dropped something? It looks like you threw something," she said, looking down as I rolled my eyes.
"Just get out of here; I'm not in the mood," I said as she looked at me concernedly.
"Does it have to do with the queen of Dulcinea?" She asked as I nodded.
"Apparently, my plan didn't go as I would have hoped," I said as she nodded.
"So, work around it. If you can't get Princess Anneliese to depart, then make her part of the problem," she said as I raised my eyebrow.
That didn't sound like a bad idea, but the question was, how would I do it?
"What do you mean?" I asked, and she smiled.
"I am not sure if you are aware of the problem that occurred at the kingdom before the princess was married," she said as I nodded.
"Preminger wanted to take the throne and kidnapped the princess," I said, and she nodded.
"Well, the queen of Dulcinea took the princess's place when the princess's husband was looking for her," she said as my eyes widened.
"She portrayed a princess, and that's how the king met her?" I asked as she nodded.
"Did you not know that?" She asked as I shook my head.
"All we knew is that he met her in Genova thanks to the princess but nothing else," I said as she smiled.
"It seems that they didn't want the real truth to come out, and of course, she is the queen now," she said as I nodded.
"This would be a great scandal," I said as she smiled and nodded.
"No one would trust the queen anymore," she said as I nodded.
"She will be seen as a woman who seeks power and stops at nothing to get it, even a portrait of something she's not," I said as she nodded.
"That, plus the fact that she's an orphan, would be enough to cause attention to the royal council," She said as I nodded.
"True, we could even make her advocate as long as…" I started but paused for a moment.
"As long as what?" She asked as I sighed.
"As long as she isn't pregnant," I said as her eyes widened.
"Why would that be a problem?" She asked, concerned as I sighed.
"Because the baby would be considered the next ruler of the throne…" I started, but she cut me off.
"But she isn't royalty," she said as I shook my head.
"Doesn't matter; the king is, and that is enough," I said as she sighed.
"Don't worry, though; I may have a secret that can help us," I said as she looked confused.
"What is it?" She asked as I smiled.
"I am about to send in a spy that will help us ensure that doesn't happen," I said as she smiled.
"What about the princess?" She asked as I thought.
"We could challenge the way she handles things," I said as she looked confused.
"Wouldn't that make her unfit to rule?" She asked as I shook my head.
"No, but it will force her to study more," I said as she smiled.
"Do it," she said as I nodded.
"I will be back, darling. Try not to get yourself into trouble," I said as she rolled her eyes.
"If you haven't noticed, I haven't been able to do anything since the rumor spread out," she said as I sighed.
"I will see you later then," I said as she smiled and nodded.
I made my way towards my carriage and decided to play a nice visit to the royal were mistaken if they thought I was going to cross my arms like nothing was wrong.
I should have been the better choice for Dulcinea; the king should have married the princess or another one.
He should never have married the village girl; the good thing was that I had someone who knew her very well.
Someone who essentially took care of this girl and has a big enough grudge to see her fail.
Once I arrived at the royal council, I was greeted by King Max and Lady Nicole. I needed to ensure I spread my venom with caution.
I told them about my concerns about the princess's liability, and they initially seemed a bit confused.
"Why so?" Asked King Max, raising his eyebrow as I sighed.
"Remember a while back when Preminger wanted to take over Genova?" I asked as they nodded.
"Yes, quite a scandal," said King Max.
"A disgrace is you as me," said Lady Nicole as I nodded.
"Well, there's more to that story than we know," I said as they looked confused.
"How do you know this?" Asked King Max, confused.
"Do you have a reliable source?" Asked Lady Nicole, raising her eyebrow as I nodded.
"I do. She used to live in Genova herself and knew about the scandal with the kingdom," I said as they thought for a moment.
"And how do you know she's actually truthful about what she says?" Lady Nicole asked as King Max nodded.
"Yes, the last thing we want is drama, Caius. We have enough already with what is going on," said King Max as I nodded.
"I understand, but this is truthful; I promise it's not a lie," I said as they thought.
"Could we meet this person?" asked Lady Nicole as I thought momentarily.
"I would have to ask her, but I don't see any problem with you meeting her," I said as they nodded.
"What do you propose?" Asked King Max as I slightly sighed.
"All I'm asking is that the princess takes extra lessons on punishments for lying peasants involved in crimes," I said as they nodded.
"Wouldn't hurt; it is part of the training anyway," said Lady Nicole as I nodded.
"Since she is already taking that course, I wouldn't push for more, but I will take her under my wing to ensure she is being fair," said King Max as I nodded.
"Thank you, Your Majesty," I said as he nodded.
"On the other hand, we're glad you're here. We have important business to discuss," said King Max as I nodded, and we began our meeting.
"King Dominick has been proposing many valuable things for the growth of Dulcinea," said King Max as I raised my eyebrow.
"What kind of things?" I asked as Lady Nicole passed me the file.
"He suggested we collaborate with certain kingdoms to ensure the growth of spices," she said as I looked at the sketches.
"They don't look bad," I said as the king nodded.
"It's a Good thing you guys like it because he already sent the letter to the kingdom," said King Max as I looked at him, confused.
"What are you talking about? Shouldn't he have asked us first?" I asked as Lady Nicole nodded.
"No, he could ask for advice, but we don't need to approve since he is the King of Dulcinea," said King Max as I sighed.
'Not for long,' I thought as we continued the meeting.
King Dominick
I was sitting behind my desk looking at all the political papers and couldn't help but was a lot to be done within the kingdom, and the royal council provided little help.
They seemed to reject my ideas and criticize everything my Wife is why I decided to take my own path, and the kingdom has been doing better so far.
Since the village is expanding, I have been building more schools and houses for the villagers.
Families are growing every day, and I can't help but wonder when we will be blessed with a little one of our own.
It was then there was a knock at my door, making me turn up to notice my Wife coming in as I smiled.
"Good news, I hope?" I asked as she smiled and nodded before planting a kiss on my cheek.
"This letter came from the kingdom of Denver, which has agreed to trade with us and is prepared to send the spices for our wood," she said as I smiled.
"This is terrific news," I said as she nodded.
"I will start the order, and have it sent immediately," I said as she sighed.
"At least one thing is going well," she said as I sighed, knowing what that meant.
"How are you feeling with that?" I asked, and she smiled.
"As best as I can," She said as I smiled and took hold of her hand.
"We will get through this, I promise. We are going to find out who's behind this and make them pay," I said as she smiled.
"The good thing is that I know who it can't be," she said as I raised my eyebrow.
"I am not so sure about that. She may be far away, but I still don't trust her and think she is behind something," I said as Erika nodded.
"Maybe she is around royals but is hidden. She doesn't do anything," She said as I nodded.
"Could she be a royal seamstress?" I asked as she shrugged.
"Maybe. Why else would she be around them and not starve? " she said and nodded.
Erika told me what the investigator had said about the results he had on Madam Carb, but they weren't convincing.
Something was telling me that she was behind this; who else would know all this information about Erika?
"Let's wait and see what the investigator tells us about the rest," I said as she nodded.
"There's one more thing," she said as I looked at her confused.
"What is it?" I asked as she looked a bit confused.
"Did you hire a new maid?" she asked as I raised my eyebrow, confused.
"No, not that I am aware of," I said as she looked confused.
"Then who approved of the new maid?" she asked, confused as I raised my new eyebrow.
"Could it have been Tina? The head of the maids?" I asked as she nodded.
"Must be if it wasn't you or me," she said as I nodded.
"Is there something about her, though?" I asked as she shrugged.
"I don't know. I passed by her, and there was something off about her, like... I don't trust her if that makes sense," she said as I nodded.
This was a bit off because Erika never had any problems with a staff member, so it was a bit off that she didn't trust the new maid.
"How about I give her a test? If she fails, she leaves. I can see what you mean this way," I said as she nodded.
"Are you sure? I wouldn't want this to become a big deal," she said as I shook my head.
"I am sure. I want you to feel comfortable and trust your staff; if you don't, I will ensure something happens," I said as she smiled.
"Is she here yet?" I asked as she nodded.
"She's with Tina right now, getting to know the palace," she said as I nodded.
"Have Tina bring her to me," I said as she nodded, giving me a kiss on the cheek before leaving.
"Thank you," she said as I smiled.
"I love you," I said as she smiled.
"I love you too," she said as she hugged me before leaving the door as I continued to sort through the papers.
A few minutes passed before I heard a knock at the door and was instructed to enter the room. I looked up to see Tina and a new girl; it must be the new maid who had been hired.
"Your Majesty, may I introduce you to Beatrice? She is going to be our new maid," said Tina as I smiled.
"Nice to meet you, Beatrice," I said as she curtseyed.
"The pleasure is mine, Your Majesty," she said, standing up as I smiled.
I could see what Erika was talking about; there was something about this girl, something that didn't sit right with me.
"How old are you, Beatrice?" I asked as she smiled.
"I just turned 18, Your Highness," she said as I nodded.
'She's a baby, two years younger than us,' I thought as I nodded.
"How did you hear about this position?" I asked as she looked a bit scared.
"It's alright," said Tina as I nodded.
"A man offered me a job here at the castle after he found me begging outside the kingdom," she said, a bit embarrassed as I nodded.
It couldn't have been any of my guards because they would have informed me immediately.
The other person it could have been was the one who entered and exited my kingdom regularly to make my life harder.
"If it was a mistake, I could go, Your Majesty..." she started, but I stopped her.
"No, no. We just wanted some information; tell me, Beatrice, have you ever been a handmaiden?" I asked as she shook her head.
"Alright, let's make a deal. I will put you on trial for two weeks; if you pass, I will let you stay. If you don't, you will have to go. Does that sound like a deal?" I asked as she thought for a moment and nodded.
"Perfect, Tina, have her settle with the rest of the maids and then come see me," I said as she smiled.
"No need, Your Majesty, Mary will escort her," said Tina as I nodded.
I saw Mary, my Wife's handmaid, enter and smile at the new girl as I gave Mary a look she knew well.
It was the look that no one was to treat my Wife unless it was her. We don't know who she is or if we can trust her.
Once they walked out of the office, I looked at Tina as she sighed, knowing well what I was going to ask.
"I don't know where she came from, Your Majesty," she said as I nodded.
"I know Tina. You would never hire anyone unless I approved it," I said as she nodded.
Normally, I would let her choose her own staff, but since my Wife was threatened, I had to approve every new employee.
"She just arrived and said someone from the royal family approved her to work here," she said, sad, as I nodded.
"We will give her a trial and see how she does here because there is something off about this girl," I said as Tina's eyes widened.
"You sense it, too?" she asked as I nodded.
"Even the queen does," I said as Tina looked concerned.
"Why don't we just fire her?" asked Tina as I shook my head.
"It wouldn't be the right thing for us to do, Tina; let's give her a chance and see how everything turns from there," I said as she nodded.
"The one thing is that she stays away from my Wife; I will test her personally and have her attend to me. Let's see her try to hide something from me," I said as Tina nodded.
"Of course, Your Majesty," said Tina as she bowed and left my office before another knock interrupted.
"Come in," I said as the door opened to reveal none other than Lord Caius.
"King Dominick," he said, smiling as I smiled.
"Lord Caius, what can I do for you?" I asked as he smiled.
"Care to share why you made a move without the council's knowledge?" he asked as I smiled.
"I acknowledged the Council, but the decision in the end is mine since it is my kingdom, after all," I said as he raised his eyebrow.
"Are you sure about that?" he asked as I nodded.
"The people tend to think so," I said as he nodded.
"Alright then, I do hope that goes well since you have the council's approval by now," he said as I nodded.
"Thank you. Anything else?" I said as he thought momentarily.
"No, just ensure the queen stays safe. Wouldn't want anything to happen to her," he said as I smiled, and he began to walk out.
"Lord Caius, a reminder," I said as he stopped and turned to face me as I walked to him.
"Next time you hire someone without my knowledge, I will ensure you report you to the council," I said as he smiled nervously.
"I don't know what you..." he started, but I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Save it; just know that I am onto you," I said as he smiled.
"Have a pleasant afternoon, Your Highness," he said. I raised my eyebrow and nodded as he exited the room.