Chapter 133

Liam’s pov;

I glanced at her pale form on the bed, her lips were shut tightly and her chest rose and fell slowly, lije she was struggling to breathe.

A bowl of water sat on the table, cloths already stained from the constant wiping of her forehead.

My eyes darted to the second bed where Princess Ellie laid and I clenched my fist tightly.

Others who had collapsed at the feast were already awake and going about their day. The poison had left their system, but for some reasons, Ellie and Raven were still unconscious.

I moved closer to Raven and sat on the edge of her bed.  I clasped my hand tightly around here and sighed. Her hands were too cold!

“You promised me,” I whispered, stroking her forehead. “You promised me that you wouldn’t leave me alone in this place.”

She didn’t move. I wasn’t even sure that she could hear me.

I wanted to shake her, to demand that she open her eyes, but instead I pressed my forehead against the back of her hand.

Someone behind me coughed and I turned around to see that it was one of the healers.

“We’re doing all we can, Your Majesty,” he said softly. “But the poison… I believed that it has seeped into their bloodstream,” he was quiet, but I knew that he had more to say and so I kept quiet, waiting for him to continue.

“Dare I say, your highness. I think the poison is meant for them and no one else.”

Meant for them.

I stood up immediately, the words ringing in my ear.

“Keep them alive,” I sId as I walked towards the door. “If either of them…” I stopped, unable to finish the words.

Then I turned to him. “They will not die. Do you hear me? They will not.”

The man bowed and I took his silence as an answer.

^^^^^^^^^

The council chamber was noisy when I arrived. They sat around the great table and spoke about the recent happenings in the court. The poisoning and the consequences of what had happened.

Few of them were quiet as they drank and watched the other lords and ladies arguing.

Lady Joanna was at the middle, she wasn’t drinking, she just sat straight, her eyes bright as if she had been waiting for me.

I took my place at the head of the table and the room became quiet immediately.

“The poisoning at the feast nearly killed half this council,” I began. “Some of you will never forget about it. You still feel it in your stomach or your throat. And   one person has been accused.”

I glanced at lady Joanna and I realized that others were also looking at her.

“She sits in the dungeon,” I continued. “Accused of spreading poison, although she claims to be innocent,” I leaned back in my chair. “I called you all here as my advisors and respected lords and ladies today to decide what punishment suits her crime.”

The murmurs started, and I raised my hand to silence them.

“If she is guilty. But also, to decide how to proceed when Belgravia asks questions about their princess.”

“I’ve already sent words to king Alaric that Princess Ellie has fallen sick with a fever. That will buy us time, but not forever. If they learn she was poisoned under my roof…”

“It’s not your doing, your majesty. It was Annalise’s doing,” Lord Gerard interrupted.

“….they will not forgive us so easily,” I finished, ignoring him.

Lady Joanna tilted her head back and laughed. It was a mocking laughter. “And there it is.”

I could feel every eyes in the room on me. They were waiting to see my reaction. To see if I’d dare punish lady Joanna.

I clenched it jaw tightly, trying so hard to compose myself before I did something to her. “Do you find something amusing, my Lady?”

“I find your weakness amusing,” she spat out. “A king who cannot protect his own guests. You let her to disrupt the feast. And now you ask us to sit here and pretend you still hold this kingdom firmly in your hand.”

Several gasps and murmurs. A few of them dare called her, but she didn’t respond, didn’t even act like they had spoken to her.

I stood up slowly. “You dare accuse me…”

“I dare to speak the truth,” Joanna cut in. “You allowed her to stay in the council and do what she liked and  now you seek to blame her downfall on poison, when you are to be blamed, Liam.”

What? I couldn’t believe that she was this braven as she spoke to me.

“You speak of tyranny,” she went on, “yet here you are, trying to decide one woman’s fate alone. A king playing judge and executioner, when it should be the council who rules.”

The whispers didn’t stop and I was bev king scared that they were all in support of her.

General Aguni cleared his throat and stood up, avoiding my gaze. “Your majesty,” he bowed. “Perhaps Lady Joanna is right. Perhaps the council must take greater responsibility in these matters.”

Someone else spoke again, openly supporting Joanna. Several others did too.

I was in a daze as I watched them and then finally, after what felt like hours, I slammed my hand against the table and that silenced them at once.

“You dare strip me of my authority when half of you here suffered from what she did? If I wanted to do this on my own, would I have called for a council meeting?” I shook my head in disbelief. “I called this meeting to bring justice, not to defend myself against lies.”

“Justice?” Joanna sneered. “You call it justice when you have already planned  Annalise’s punishment, before she’s had her fair chance to prove her innocence?”

“She is guilty,” I snapped. “She burst into the feast uninvited by the ways, she exposed her supposed parentage in front of everyone, and moments later the poison spread, so if she isn’t guilty, my lady, are you?.”

Silence.

I moved forward. “Let’s not forget that she was accusing you of decieving everyone…..”

“Annalise isn’t in her right senses. It’s the reason I’ve been trying to shield her from the public these days..”

I scoffed. “Oh, now you’re admitting to the council that you wanted to have a mentally challenged person take my place.”

She muttered something under her breath and was about to speak when  Lord Valiant spoke.

“There is a vote to be made about this, your head highness. Not on Annalise’s guilt, but on the matter of power. The King has acted rashly by torturing a noble woman.”

“What are you saying?”

He ignored me and continued. “Until the princess and her highness wakes up, we must decide whether His Majesty should hold all his powers.”

“Do you mean to strip me of my crown?” I asked, my voice dangerously low as I moved towards him now.

“Not the crown,” Gerard said. “But some of its weight.”

Lady Joanna smiled. “A temporary measure, of course. Until stability returns, I know how much your love your wife, That’s why we have to do this, to prevent you from doing something you shouldn’t.”

They voted. One by one, a few protested, but it washt enough.

Wheh they were she, I already knew what would happen.

By the council’s decree, my powers as king were to be limited. Certain decisions would not ne made by me alone, but by the  vote of the council until further notice.