Chapter 184: Threat

Freya and Alaric's Chamber

As soon as she heard the king's footsteps approaching their chamber, Freya stopped pacing. The door opened and Alaric walked in. One look at his face told her he was beyond furious. As he stared into his wife's eyes, he no longer saw the beautiful woman he had married. Instead, he saw the traitor he now believed her to be.

"I know what you're thinking, but I can assure you that all of this was set up by someone. I am not a traitor, nor am I having an affair with your cousin. You should know me better than this," the queen pleaded, desperately trying to defend herself.

It seemed, however, that every word she spoke fell on deaf ears because the king was not interested in hearing anything she had to say. He had already made up his mind that she was guilty.

"I will not listen to you or anything you have to say. As of now, until I have made up my mind, you will remain under house arrest. You will not leave this chamber until I say so," the king ordered. Freya stared at Alaric with a confused expression. She could not believe he was doing this to her without even listening to her side of the story.

"My king, you cannot do this. You're not being fair to me at all. You are..."

"I am the king, and what I say is law. I do not care what you feel or what you think is fair or unfair. My decision is final. You have betrayed me and that is all I need to know," the king yelled so loudly that his voice echoed throughout the entire chamber, leaving the queen frozen where she stood.

Freya remained rooted to the spot, unable to move. The only thing she could do was breathe heavily. Fear gripped her heart because, judging by the anger burning in the king's eyes, whatever he had planned for his cousin would undoubtedly be painful. She knew she had to stop him before he made the mistake of harming his own cousin.

"As for your lover... my cousin... I will make sure he pays for embarrassing me and touching something that does not belong to him and that is you," the king said, so much rage filling his voice that the queen could no longer recognize whether he was the same man she had married or someone completely different.

Just like that, the queen watched the king turn around. As he was about to leave the chamber, he paused before looking back at her one last time.

"Until I figure out what is true and what is not, I will not be sleeping in this chamber anymore because, honestly, if I must say it... I'm disgusted that you could go behind my back and sleep with another man."

"I've told you, my king, I have done no such thing. Someone is trying to frame both me and your cousin. Think about it," she cried, raising her voice.

It seemed, however, that nothing she said reached the king because he had already convinced himself that she was guilty. Without another word, he turned around once more and exited the chamber, slamming the door shut behind him.

Henry's Chamber

Henry poured himself a cup of liquor as he celebrated the plan he had carefully put together. For once, it had worked exactly as intended. Unlike his previous schemes that had failed miserably, this one had succeeded. He had managed to convince the king that the queen and his cousin had betrayed him, and he had done it so carefully that it would never lead back to him.

Just as he was about to take a sip, the chamber door suddenly swung open. Lord Preston barged inside and slapped the cup straight out of Henry's hand. The liquor splashed across the floor as the cup rolled away.

In the past, Henry would have been shocked that the old man had entered his chambers without permission. Perhaps he would have even feared what consequences awaited him for such disrespect. But now, Henry was no longer afraid.

Instead, he felt the thrill of power coursing through his veins as he slowly lifted his gaze to meet Lord Preston's furious eyes.

"I know that you are behind all of this. You are the one who set up Freya and my son in order to gain Alaric’s favor. You think I don't know it was you?" Lord Preston angrily pointed his index finger at Henry, who did not seem fazed in the least.

"Well, Lord Preston, you can't blame me. You need to blame your son for all of this. If he had not gotten in my way, then he certainly would not be in this position, would he?" Henry asked. He spoke with confidence, but beneath it all was nothing but hatred for Lord Preston's son.

"I am ordering you to go to the King and tell him that this was all a mistake. I do not know how you are going to do it, but you had better fix it," Lord Preston scolded. With that, the old man turned on his heel and was about to leave Henry's chambers when he heard Henry's voice behind him.

"Unfortunately, Lord Preston, I will do no such thing. Your son will be punished and I will watch along with everyone else as he is paraded throughout the kingdom before being put to death." Henry's voice was filled with certainty.

Lord Preston slowly turned around, unable to believe what he had just heard from someone he had always considered nothing more than his obedient servant.

"What did you say?" Lord Preston asked.

Henry rolled his eyes at the old man. He was no longer afraid of him. Henry knew too many of Lord Preston's secrets and if the old man dared to threaten him, he no longer felt any need to defend or protect him.

"You heard what I said, old man. I will do no such thing. And if you want me to repeat it, I might have to say it a little louder since you're so old and can barely hear a single thing I say."

"I have seen that you've grown quite bold." Lord Preston responded as the corners of his lips curled into a scheming smile. He had dealt with many men like Henry before, and he was certain he could make Henry disappear with the snap of a finger.

"Yes, Lord Preston... I have grown bold. You no longer scare me. Remember... I know many of your secrets. If I were to tell the King everything, your life would be ruined forever. I wonder what Alaric would think if he found out that you were the one who helped Iris sneak into this castle during the Full Moon Festival celebration?" Henry asked.

At that moment, Lord Preston realized that Henry was no longer afraid of him. If he was not careful, the young man would no doubt reveal every one of his secrets to the King.