Chapter 9 The King's Watch
King Magnus sat behind his massive oak desk, staring out the tall window of his private study. The morning sun cast long shadows across the room, but his mind was elsewhere, replaying the events of last night's feast over and over again. His son's reaction to the maid's humiliation had been... unexpected.
Magnus had ruled the Northern Kingdom for thirty-seven years. He had survived three assassination attempts, put down two rebellions, and eliminated countless threats to his throne. He had learned long ago that survival depended on one crucial skill: reading people.
And what he had seen in Adrian's eyes last night troubled him deeply.
A soft knock interrupted his thoughts. "Enter."
Captain Thorne stepped into the study, his scarred face serious as always. The man had served as Magnus's personal guard and trusted advisor for over twenty years. If anyone could be counted on for discretion, it was him.
"You summoned me, Your Majesty?"
Magnus gestured to the chair across from his desk. "Sit. We need to discuss something important."
Thorne settled into the chair, his weathered hands resting on his knees. "What troubles you, sire?"
"My son." Magnus turned from the window to face his advisor. "Tell me, what did you observe during last night's feast?"
Thorne's brow furrowed slightly. "Prince Adrian seemed... tense. More so than usual."
"And when the maid spilled the wine?"
"He defended her." Thorne's voice was carefully neutral, but Magnus caught the underlying concern. "Quite forcefully, actually. The entire hall fell silent."
Magnus nodded slowly. "Indeed they did. And what do you make of that?"
Thorne was quiet for a moment, choosing his words carefully. "The Prince has always had a strong sense of justice. Perhaps he simply felt the nobles' mockery had gone too far."
"Perhaps." Magnus stood and began pacing behind his desk. "Or perhaps there's something else at play here."
He had been watching Adrian closely for months now, ever since that night when his son had publicly rejected the maid as his mate. The rejection itself hadn't surprised Magnus, Adrian understood his duty, knew that royal bloodlines couldn't be diluted with servant stock.
But Adrian's behavior afterward had been... curious.
"Tell me about the maid," Magnus said suddenly. "Janelle, isn't it? What do you know of her background?"
Thorne straightened slightly. "She's from the Crimson Moon Pack. One of the few survivors of the massacre three years ago. She and her younger brother were taken in as servants."
"The Crimson Moon Pack." Magnus's voice grew cold. That pack had been harboring rebels, plotting against his rule. Their elimination had been necessary, though he'd made sure to cover his tracks well. "And she's been serving here for how long?"
"Nearly three years now, sire. She's worked her way up from the kitchens to the upper floors. The head maid speaks well of her work."
Magnus stopped pacing. Three years. Three years of this girl living under his roof, serving his family, perhaps plotting revenge for her fallen pack. And now his son was showing signs of... what? Attraction? Protection?
"Has she ever caused trouble before?" he asked.
"Not that I'm aware of. She keeps to herself mostly. Quiet, hardworking." Thorne paused. "Though there was the incident in the forest a few weeks back."
"Ah yes." Magnus's eyes narrowed. "The bear trap. How fortunate that Adrian happened to be in those woods at just the right time."
"Indeed, sire."
Magnus resumed his pacing, his mind working through the possibilities. Adrian had claimed he was simply out for a ride when he found the girl. But Magnus knew his son's habits better than anyone. Adrian never rode alone in those particular woods. They were too far from the usual hunting grounds, too remote for a casual outing.
No, Adrian had been looking for something. Or someone.
"And since then?" Magnus pressed. "Any other... incidents?"
Thorne hesitated. "The Prince has been asking about her recovery. He sent his personal physicians to tend her wounds."
"His personal physicians." Magnus felt a cold anger building in his chest. "For a servant."
"Yes, sire."
The pieces were falling into place, and Magnus didn't like the picture they formed. Adrian's behavior, the girl's convenient presence in his life, the growing signs of... attachment.
"Captain," Magnus said, his voice taking on the tone of absolute command. "I want you to arrange for discrete surveillance of this maid. Every move she makes, every person she speaks to, every place she goes. I want to know about it."
Thorne's eyes widened slightly. "You suspect her of something, sire?"
Magnus returned to his chair, leaning back with the casual confidence of a man accustomed to absolute power. "I suspect her of being exactly what she appears to be, a survivor of a pack we destroyed. And survivors, Captain, have a tendency toward revenge."
"You think she means to harm the Prince?"
"I think she's already harming him." Magnus's voice was cold as winter steel. "Whether she knows it or not."
He had seen the look in Adrian's eyes last night. The protective fury, the instinctive need to defend her. Those were the reactions of a man who cared far too much about someone he claimed to have rejected.
"But sire," Thorne said carefully, "if the Prince has rejected the mate bond.."
"The mate bond cannot be rejected," Magnus cut him off sharply. "It can be ignored, suppressed, fought against. But it cannot be truly broken. Not without destroying both parties involved."
And that was the heart of the problem. Magnus had hoped that Adrian's public rejection would be enough, that the girl would accept her fate and fade into the background. But clearly, that hadn't happened.
"You want her watched to see if she's planning something against the royal family," Thorne said, understanding dawning in his voice.
"Among other things." Magnus steepled his fingers. "I also want to understand the extent of her influence over my son. Last night proved that his attachment to her is stronger than I anticipated."
The memory of Adrian's reaction still burned in Magnus's mind. The way his son had silenced an entire hall of nobles with a single word. The fury in his eyes when they had dared to mock his mate.
His mate. Despite the public rejection, despite everything, Adrian still saw her as his mate.
"What are your orders, sire?" Thorne asked.
"Choose your most discreet men. I want them to follow her, but she must never know she's being watched. I need to understand her patterns, her relationships, her plans."
"And if we find evidence of treasonous activity?"
Magnus's smile was sharp as a blade. "Then we deal with the problem accordingly."
But even as he spoke the words, Magnus knew the situation was more complex than simple treason. If the girl was plotting revenge, it would be easy enough to eliminate her. A quiet accident, a sudden illness, these things happened to servants all the time.
The real problem was Adrian. His son was fighting a battle he couldn't win, torn between duty and desire. And losing that battle would make him weak. Vulnerable.
Magnus couldn't allow that. The Northern Kingdom needed a strong ruler, not one compromised by misplaced affection for a servant girl.
"There's something else," Magnus said after a moment. "I want you to research the girl's family line. Go back several generations. Look for any unusual bloodlines, any connections that might explain why the mate bond formed in the first place."
Thorne nodded. "You think there's more to her heritage than we know?"
"The mate bond doesn't form randomly, Captain. There's always a reason. And I intend to find out what that reason is."
After Thorne left, Magnus returned to the window. The castle grounds spread out below him – his domain, his kingdom, built on strength and careful control.
He had worked too hard, sacrificed too much, to let it all crumble because his son couldn't control his desires.
The maid represented a threat on multiple levels. If she was indeed planning revenge for her fallen pack, she was dangerous. If she was innocent but continued to influence Adrian, she was equally dangerous. And if there was something special about her bloodline that had triggered the mate bond...
Magnus's jaw tightened. He had eliminated the Crimson Moon Pack because they had posed a threat to his rule. If this girl carried some hidden power in her blood, some legacy that made her more than just a simple servant, then she was a threat that needed to be handled with extreme care.
But first, he needed information.
Within the hour, Magnus's most trusted spies would be watching Janelle's every move. They would catalog her habits, her conversations, her relationships. They would search for any sign of rebellion, any hint of the power that might lurk in her bloodline.
And when they found what he was looking for because Magnus was certain they would find something, he would decide the girl's fate.
The kingdom came first. It always had. And if protecting the kingdom meant destroying the one person who could make his son happy, then so be it. Love was a luxury that royalty could not afford.
Meanwhile, somewhere in the castle, Janelle went about her daily duties, unaware that her every step was now being watched. Unaware that the King had marked her as a threat. But Magnu
s suspected she would learn soon enough. Survivors, after all, had good instincts. The game had begun. And Magnus intended to win.