Chapter 169: Shadows Of Deception
Lorraine’s lips curved into a knowing smirk. The mention of the ring was no coincidence. It was deliberate, a thread meant to entangle Leroy in a web of suspicion.
How subtly and cruelly the Queen had threatened him... She spoke of Gaston’s ring as "lost," and hinted that Leroy must "verify the details," implying he was expected to conceal Gaston’s involvement.
Heh! Leroy had to hide Gaston’s role in the plot to kill him because his mother wanted to protect Gaston.
And if he refused, the Queen and her family would gleefully let the "found" ring, now almost certainly in the hands of someone connected to the scheme, be revealed as Leroy’s, making him the scapegoat for everything.
What a woman. How could she call herself a mother? Or had she been forced, her pen trembling under the King’s demands?
She knew that Leroy’s family didn’t care for him much ever since he was sent as a hostage prince. But do they realize that by letting Leroy take the blame, it would affect them, too? Did they think that she would let Leroy take all the blame while they were left unscathed?
Heh!
Lorraine’s smirk was not amusement. It was the fire of resolve, the sharpened edge of a mind calculating the stakes. The game was no longer merely political; it had become profoundly personal.
She needed to know who truly held that ring. She hadn’t overheard any whispers until now, but she had been occupied with... other matters, and perhaps some clues had slipped past her.
Or... she could let Hadrian take the blame entirely, making it appear as if Leroy had simply followed his mother’s advice. Would that sway the Queen’s favor toward Leroy... or merely draw more suspicion?
Her fingers flexed, restless, as she weighed the possibilities. Every option carried danger, yet every choice revealed more about those around her.
She decided that she would speak to Leroy first. Before any move, before any trap could be set, she needed to know where he truly stood.
Just as she was about to leave, Sylvia entered, clutching a small piece of parchment. Lorraine’s hands trembled slightly as she unfolded it, and for a moment, the world seemed to stop.
"Are you sure?" she asked, her voice taut with disbelief, the usual composure faltering.
Sylvia blinked, wide-eyed. The princess had always hidden that she could speak and hear Aldric, but now, in his presence, she had revealed herself. Had she forgotten he was there? She never was this careless!
Lorraine’s lips curved into a knowing, almost amused smile at Sylvia’s reaction. She turned to Aldric, who stood silently, his posture calm, but his eyes sharp, fixed on her. "He’s not very surprised, is he?" Lorraine asked, a teasing lilt in her voice.
Sylvia pressed her lips together, caught between shock and awe. Once again, the princess had demonstrated that she knew that Aldric knew her secret. How had she seen it all so clearly?
"Is this... true?" Lorraine’s voice sharpened as she stared at the parchment once more, the tension in her chest threading through every syllable.
Sylvia nodded. "I will verify it again for your sake, but yes. This information is correct," she said, her voice steady now.
Lorraine’s knees wavered, and she exhaled sharply, scanning the room for a place to sit. Why would her husband meet the Dowager? Didn’t he repel her agents just this morning? Why now...?
Her eyes widened as the realization struck. Of course, what other reason would there be? "Aldric... Leroy is planning to hand Aralyn over to the Dowager," she said, her voice dropping, urgent, trembling with barely contained fear.
Sylvia gasped, covering her mouth. The thought was outrageous, terrifying, but it also carried the weight of a terrifying possibility. And Lorraine wasn’t confiding in any ordinary steward; she was speaking to someone she trusted to act, someone who had already shown himself capable in the shadows. Had she already deduced Aldric’s role in the tunnels?
Aldric drew a slow, deliberate breath. "What do you suggest I do? The Prince isn’t going to listen to me. I’m no longer his tutor," he said, trying to veil the tension threading through his words.
Sylvia’s eyes tracked him carefully. Clever! He presented the princess’s directive as a suggestion to her husband’s old tutor, not as a secret call to arms from her shadow guardians.
Lorraine laughed, warm, unrestrained, and resolute. "I am not asking you to reason with my husband. I am asking you and your four companions to don your black attire and protect Aralyn at all costs."
Aldric’s brow lifted briefly, a shadow of surprise crossing his face, but then he rubbed his forehead and bowed, letting out a quiet, almost rueful chuckle. "I never should have revealed myself in front of you..."
He had thought she was distracted, unaware of his secret, but Lorraine had noticed every detail.
"You had to reveal yourself sooner or later, didn’t you?" she said lightly, masking her satisfaction. She had pieced it together from his unwavering loyalty to Leroy; no one else would act without her permission. Only one could. Aldric. And only when it came to Leroy, the man she loved more than anything.
She wasn’t completely certain, but now, a warm certainty settled over her, a quiet glow in her chest. She knew he would do anything to protect her, her household, and those she cared for. Surrounded by that devotion, she felt gratitude rise, fierce and unspoken, curling through her chest like a protective flame.
"Thank you for everything, Aldric," she said softly, her voice carrying the weight of both acknowledgment and trust.
Aldric inclined his head slightly, his blue eyes flickering toward Sylvia with a barely perceptible warmth that only she would notice. The promise in his stance was clear: they were both bound to protect the princess, and each other, no matter what came next.
But Sylvia’s brow furrowed with worry. What if the princess asked about Aldric’s true intent? Aldric had begged her not to let Lorraine know... She knew how fragile the situation was.
The oppressive silence hung in the air, each second stretching longer than the last, until Emma’s cheerful voice burst through, completely oblivious to the storm brewing beneath the surface.
"Your Highness, the Prince has returned!"
Lorraine’s gaze lifted. Without a word, she stepped out of the study and stood beneath the grand staircase. Her posture was calm and regal, but her eyes, sharp and unreadable, were fixed on the approaching figure.
Her heart beat steadily but heavily.
Would he tell her the truth?
Or would he let the shadows of deception deepen between them further...?