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“The Dowager Queen.”
“Well, let’s not confuse those two, Lord William.”
I assumed this was one of the Dowager Queen’s henchmen if the girls’ story was to be believed. I admitted that the timing was suspect if they were delusional.
“Sure,” I said.
I followed the man into the house, arriving in a large drawing room filled with too many cats. I loathed cats. They were never to be trusted. In my opinion, women who had more than two cats were immediately suspect. The dear Dowager Queen was one of those women. She sat in a high back chair with a cat on her lap purring, as if a supervillain.
“Prince Rikard, I wanted to check in. Ignore me. Octavia will never leave my lap and I loathe to disturb her.”
“No, wouldn’t want to do that, would you?” I chuckled nervously, dodging cats.
“How was the tour?”
“Her Majesty showed me the sights. We spoke. I enjoyed it.”
“What were your thoughts of her? I warn that she might not look like much at present, but if she is like her mother, she can be buffed into quite a diamond with a bit of work.”
It was an unkind statement—below the belt. She may not have been my type, but Alexandra was far from hideous. “She’s a perfectly nice young woman. She was very kind. I ran into the other princesses in the garden. You have four interesting granddaughters.”
“Interesting is putting it kindly, Rikard.”
“They are. Cannot be easy growing up without your parents in a word like this.”
“That is why I shelter them so much. To hear our Alexandra or—God forbid—Astrid tell it, you’d think I kept them under lock and key and tortured them! The truth is that young women are wilful if not properly controlled. And I am looking out for their best interest, Rikard. That is it. I hope they haven’t told you otherwise?”
“They have said you are very much looking after their health and well-being, Your Majesty,” I smiled. “Yes. They say you’re strict, but I can understand why.”
It was uncomfortable. At this point, I was lying. If the girls weren’t crazy, I was saving them from her admonishment. If they were lying, then what was another lie? Why would she bring it up? Alexandra and Astrid were both grown. Why did she need to keep them under lock and key? Maybe Alexandra was right, Celeste was the madwoman.
Either way, I was called to defend these girls. An hour ago, I thought they were nuts. Now, I wanted to help—at least as much as I could without stepping too much into the fray.
“Good. So you met before?”
“We met at the ball in Belgium for the Duke.”
“Oh yes, she was all aglow I am sure. She can clean up nicely. I dressed her myself.”
Of course you did!
“She tried to help me speak to someone in French. I didn’t… I didn’t think much of it.”
Alexandra couldn’t win. She was dressed like a pensioner anywhere she went. It dawned on me that in another set of clothes, I might feel differently about her. I doubted it, but a wardrobe refresh wouldn’t hurt.
“I am glad the two of you spoke and took a walk. Dinner will be divine. Please let me know if I can help with anything else.”
“Sure.” I nodded at the old woman.
I stood because she wouldn’t and left.
This whole place was odd if not slightly cursed. Perhaps all the rumours about it were true? Maybe Neandia was a backward hell hole? At best, the Dowager Queen was strange and the place too conservative. At worst, the womanwasa tyrant. Alexandra and her sisters were in danger.
Nine
Alexandra
“Iam jealous you get to go,” Ingrid whinged. “And not me? And you get to eat dinner with the grown-ups?”
