Lord Richard noticed the guilt and confusion on Alexander’s face. He knew how it felt to be in such a situation. The things that had happened to him these last few days had tortured his soul to death. Queen Victoria. She was his happiness and everything he wanted in this world. How would Alexander take it when he knew he was having an affair with his mother? He threw a quick glance at him and he had to admit that Alexander had really grown. He smiled wryly at that thought, and this didn’t go unnoticed by Alexander.

For some odd reason, Alexander felt that Lord Richard was acting somehow different. The way he switched moods really made him worried. He had never seen Lord Richard in such a condition before. The Lord was always composed no matter the circumstances, even if they were going for war. But something was really disturbing him right now.

"Are you alright?" He asked. Lord Richard was alarmed by the question. He shot a quick gaze at Alexander and sent a coy smile at him.

"Everything’s alright boy," he said and placed his hand heavily on Alexander’s shoulders. "I just need some time alone," he added followed by a meek smile. Alexander just nodded though he was genuinely worried for Lord Richard. He watched as Lord Richard exited the hall with his head low, a sight he had never seen before. Men, and he was one, liked hiding and masking their feelings with those meek smiles. Behind those smiles was unspeakable torture and pain that they went through. He could only sympathize with Lord Richard.

Alexander left the throne hall shortly as well. He had many things to do but first, he wanted to check on Elle and his mother as well. It had been a long time since he interacted with his sister and he could imagine his ears being pulled. He rubbed his ears nervously as he walked through the hallways. But this particular hallway was super quiet. Only the sound of his footsteps could be heard echoing in the empty space. He halted on his tracks and sensed a strong presence behind him. This aura, how could he fail to recognize it? Turning around slowly, he came face to face with the person he was expecting all along.

"You never get enough or what? Sir Gareth, the adopted child and brother of Isadora," he said adding fuel to the already blazing inferno. Gareth stood still on the same position trying to calm himself down. Gods! He was leaking imminent danger. Even Alexander who was always calm under such circumstances swallowed nervously. The guy could make a cat ran away in fear with just his mere look.

"Say whatever you want crown prince. I’m here to take your head," he said acidly. Alexander grinned nervously but immediately turned serious when he saw the ’no nonsense’ look on Gareth’s face. He searched for his sword and noticed he didn’t have one. Well, they say death comes without knocking!

"Take this," Gareth said and threw a sword to Alexander, surprising him. "I hereby challenge you to a duel. Whoever who makes it out alive is the winner." Alexander caught the sword and chuckled darkly. He was not in the mood to fight today but seems he had to.

*****

Lord Richard shut the door behind him and slouched on the floor. He took a fist of his dark hair in his hands while he stared at the floor in disbelief. Why would this happen to him of all the people? He knew it would only be a matter of days before his secret was uncovered. But why did he even fall for the queen in the first place? No, he didn’t fall for her, she fell for him and forced him to have sex with her! That was the beginning of their secret affair.

Lord Richard remembered that day like he would his own name. That night, the queen had refused to eat, and not for once but three times a day. This was because she was afraid of her husband’s failing health. The maids had tried their best to feed the queen but all effort bore no fruit, so he personally visited her in her room that night. After dismissing the maid who was present, he urged the queen to eat her supper to no avail. Instead, she began sobbing uncontrollably like a little child.

"My husband is going to die in a month’s time," she had said with a broken voice. And as inexperienced as he was with women, Lord Richard felt confused when he saw her sob even more. She was wearing a night gown and was seated on her large bed. Lord Richard raked his fingers through his hair as he contemplated on what he should do. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"Look. I’m sorry Your Majesty. It just can’t be helped," he said but that only turned the sobbing queen to a crying machine. By saying that, he only added salt to her healing injury, and it pained her, a lot. And now Lord Richard was more confused. Was he supposed to coarse her? He inched closer to where she sat and held his had mid - air. Damn! He cursed for the nth time. This was proving to be more difficult than he had thought. Embrace her, that was the thought that crossed his mind.

He sat on her bed and he could see her stiffen when the soft material sank beside her. It was a taboo for a man to sit on a married woman’s bed. He could guess why she acted this way. But he didn’t care for now. He wanted to see her calm and relaxed. He had been the cause of this after all. And as if she had read his thoughts, she continued with her sobs.

Lord Richard gently patted her hair before he drew her into his strong embrace. He had expected her to stiffen or act surprised but she did neither. Instead, she continued to sob under his embrace until she eventually mellowed down.