Chapter 185: Unexpected news

Lord Preston stared at Henry in shock. In the past, a few of his own men had turned against him, but never had he imagined that someone like Henry would betray him as well.

"You would not dare," Lord Preston said with the utmost confidence. Henry merely smiled at him before pouring himself another drink.

"Then I suggest you try me, old man, because I will ruin your life just like I did your sons'... and with you... I will have no mercy," Henry promised before taking another sip of his liquor.

Seeing that Henry was serious, Lord Preston knew there was no point in lingering. He needed to find a way to get his son out of prison as soon as possible.

The Dungeon

It had been hours and Kael had screamed himself hoarse, insisting that he was innocent, but no one cared to listen. Alaric had already ordered his punishment and Kael and it was final..

"Let me go!" Kael yelled again. The only thing that answered him was the echo of his own voice. Kael walked over to the cold bed in his cell and lay down, only to be startled awake by the sound of his father's voice.

"Kael... wake up." He quickly sat up and turned his head. Never before had Kael been so relieved to see his father. He hurried to the cell bars and wrapped his hands around them.

"Father, please tell me you're here to free me," he pleaded. One look at his father’s face told him that was not the case. His execution was finalised.

"I warned you, but you would not listen... that woman is nothing but trouble!" Lord Preston shouted angrily. He hated that Kael was paying the price for being close to Queen Freya, the one person he despised above all others.

"Father, that's enough! I have told you this is not Freya's fault. We were clearly set up by Henry," Kael defended firmly.

"Of course I know it was Henry who framed you..." Lord Preston paused, as though deep in thought.

"So what happened? I thought Henry was one of your men. I guess you let him off his leash," Kael replied. He expected an immediate response, but his father remained silent for a few moments.

"The king is planning to execute you soon... and once again I have to clean up your mess," Lord Preston finally said as he stared at his son. After a brief silence, he asked, "Did you really have an affair with the queen?"

"Father, the queen and I do not have that kind of relationship. Freya loves the king. She has always loved him, and she has always chosen him... every single time." Kael's voice trailed off. Anyone looking at him could easily tell that the thought of Freya loving the king instead of him had left a wound deep within his heart.

Lord Preston watched him quietly for a moment before speaking again.

"Prepare yourself. I will have someone break you out before long."

Without waiting for a response, Lord Preston turned and walked away from the cell, his footsteps gradually fading into the darkness of the dungeon.

As much as Kael appreciated his father coming to rescue him, he hated that escaping would mean leaving the kingdom while everyone believed he had committed the very crime he had spent hours denying. Worse still, history would remember him as the man who had betrayed his king by having an affair with the queen.

Elsewhere

Alaric stood at the castle window, sipping his liquor. He paused as he sensed Henry's presence.

"Greetings, my king."

Alaric heard Henry's voice, and if he were to be honest, he did not care to see anyone. All he wanted was complete silence and to be away from everyone. The thought of going back to his chambers made him sick to his stomach because then he would have to look Freya in the face.

"Hi, Henry," Alaric greeted his friend without even turning around to look at him. It was then that Alaric heard a sigh escape Henry as he walked up to stand beside him.

"I know this is a lot for you. But I will begin the process of having Kael executed tomorrow. An example needs to be made of him," Henry said boldly.

Alaric stood there frozen for a moment. Many times in the past, Kael had crossed him and in return, Alaric had punished him. However, this was the very first time that Alaric was considering putting his cousin to death. What Kael had done was treasonous and punishable by death.

"Get everything ready. Tomorrow morning, Kael must be put to death by guillotine," Alaric answered.

Upon hearing those words, the corners of Henry's lips curled into a faint smile. Once Kael was gone, Henry would have one less person to worry about in the kingdom.

"I will do just that," Henry said as he turned around to walk away, but then he paused. "And the queen?" he asked. Deep down, Henry wanted the same done to Freya.

"She is my wife and I know how best to deal with her. This is none of your concern," Alaric responded, his tone much firmer, adding a warning that the queen was off limits.

"Yes, my king," Henry answered calmly, but deep inside he hated that he would not be the one to punish the queen personally.

The next day

The throne room

Henry had gathered the elders early that morning, along with the king and they were all seated in the throne room. They had come to hear the accusations against Kael and the queen. The queen, however, was still under house arrest and would not be present at the trial.

Lord Preston was also seated among the group, looking pale. He could not bear to look up because everyone was judging him based on what Kael had been accused of.

"Silence!" Alaric yelled. Just like that, everyone in the throne room fell silent.

Alaric looked at every one of them. Deep down, he was ashamed that the woman he loved had made him stand before his subjects and admit that she had an affair with his cousin, Kael. Even worse, his uncle, Kael's father, was seated among the crowd with a gloomy expression, looking as though he had already buried his son.

"I have sent my soldiers to bring Kael because soon he will be paraded before the entire kingdom. His crimes will be read aloud as he is paraded and afterward he will be taken to the guillotine," Alaric announced. He paused for a moment as though gathering himself.

The crowd began to murmur among themselves. There was no doubt in Alaric's mind that they could not believe the queen had been having an affair.

"Let this be a warning to anyone who dares commit the same crime that my cousin has committed!" Alaric yelled.  The large doors suddenly swung open and the soldiers came running in before falling to their knees.

"What is the matter? Where is Kael?" Alaric demanded.

"Greetings, my king. We went to his cell, but Master Kael was not there," the soldier responded.