Chapter 41 QUEEN CASSANDRA
MERRIELYNN.
On the day we were supposed to go to the palace, I shoved all my baggage behind me as I settled into the passenger seat, sneaking glances at Cormac as he drove, his grip on the steering wheel tight.
The air in the car felt thick and suffocating, and I could practically feel the tension radiating off him.
“Are you okay?” I asked, hoping to break the silence, but he didn’t answer, just kept clenching his jaw.
I don’t even know why I bothered asking. It’s not like I cared anyway, I thought as I fought the urge to roll my eyes.
The whole ride felt off, with Cormac stealing glances at the side mirror like he thought someone was tailing us. It was making me uneasy, and with each passing minute, I just wanted to get to our destination already.
As we got closer to the palace, I leaned forward, taking in the sight. “Wow,” I muttered quietly.
Cormac didn’t say a word as he parked the car, his eyes darting around, which did nothing to ease the unease settling in my stomach. What was up with him? He was acting like we were about to pull off a heist.
Thinking about it, it kind of felt like that, but we were going to return the moonstone, so I really wished he would just chill like he usually does.
Once we stepped inside, I noticed something really strange. The staff was bustling around us, yet none of them made eye contact. They were so focused on their tasks that it felt like I was a ghost drifting through their world.
I shot a quick glance at Cormac, wondering if he noticed, but his posture was rigid as he carried himself with an air of authority and it was almost intimidating.
“Why is everyone acting like they can’t see me?” I murmured, trying to keep my voice low.
Cormac’s eyes darted around, and he shifted uncomfortably. “It’s nothing. Just… focus on what we need to do,” he replied, but the way he avoided my gaze only deepened my suspicion.
As I stepped into the safe room, my eyes were immediately drawn to a stunning diamond glimmering under the soft light. It was mesmerizing, each facet reflecting a spectrum of colors that danced across the walls. I couldn’t help but reach out, my fingers brushing against the cool surface.
“It’s beautiful,” I whispered, entranced by its brilliance.
While I admired the diamond, I noticed Cormac moving with purpose, his focus sharp as he retrieved the original moonstone. I barely registered the shift in the atmosphere until a guard burst through the door, his face pale with urgency. “Prince Cormac!” he shouted, breathless. “King Killian has just arrived at the Palace!”
I turned to Cormac, whose expression shifted from concentration to alarm in an instant. “What?” he replied, his voice low and tense.
The guard nodded frantically, and I could feel the tension in the room escalate.
“He doesn’t know you’re here. You have to hide,” the guard urged, glancing nervously at the door and throwing me one quick glance.
The tension in the moment felt so heavy that I completely forgot about the diamond. My heart raced as I turned to Cormac with worried eyes, sensing that whatever was about to unfold would change everything.
With the way my heart was hammering in my chest as anxiety twisted my stomach into knots, I knew I wasn’t prepared to meet or face the King of the realm. Just as I was gathering my thoughts, Cormac turned to me, and my breath caught in my throat when I looked at him.
There was fear written all over his face, and it was a stark contrast to the confident mask he usually wore.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper.
“Merrielynn, we need to go. Now,” he urged, his grip tightening around my wrist. The urgency in his tone scared me. I could see the tension in his shoulders, the way his eyes darted to the door as if expecting danger to burst through at any moment.
Without waiting for a response, he rushed me out of the safe room and into another room on the same floor. The door clicked shut behind us, and I leaned against it, trying to catch my breath.
“What’s going to happen now?” I pressed, searching his eyes for answers.
Cormac took a moment, his chest rising and falling rapidly. “The King is coming. We can’t be here when he arrives,” he said, his voice low and urgent.
I felt goosebumps as his words sank in, the reality of our situation hitting me like a wave. Judging by how Cormac was acting, this was more serious than I thought.
I looked at Cormac, my mind racing with questions. “Are you going to see your father?” I asked, trying to piece together the chaos unfolding around us.
His response was immediate and sharp. “Keep your mouth shut,” he said in a no-nonsense tone that left no room for argument. I was stunned. Too stunned to speak, so I swallowed the come-back that was just waiting to roll off my tongue.
What the hell has been going on since I arrived at the palace?
I thought back to the strange behavior he’d exhibited on our way here, the way the staff had reacted to me, and now this frantic hiding. It all felt like pieces of a puzzle that refused to fit together. I opened my mouth to whisper more questions, but the look in Cormac’s eyes told me he wasn’t in the mood to answer.
So I fell silent, my heart pounding as I chose to wait out the situation, confusion and fear swirling in my mind.
I turned around to check out the room, and my heart dropped when I saw a woman just sitting there, staring blankly into space. I soon realized it was not just any woman.
That was Queen Cassandra! Cormac’s mother! But it felt like she didn’t even notice we had walked in.
Cormac must have seen the confusion on my face because he leaned in and said quietly, “She doesn’t know we’re here.”
“Is she blind?” I blurted my question, still trying to wrap my head around everything.
Cormac sighed, clearly frustrated. “She’s sick.”
That hit hard.
I took a closer look at the queen, and it struck me how unresponsive she was, almost like she was just a shell of the person.
It was a tough reality to face, and my heart ached for both her and Cormac.