PRICE OF ROYALTY

7. Murder attempt

CHAPTER 7

 I chuckled realizing he was just fooling around judging from the smile on his face. Tightening the shawl around myself, I looked ahead at the fire that was begging to build up, right in the middle of the camp, a few paces from my own tent.

“We could move closer to the fire,” he offered.

“You know Prince Theo sometimes I really can’t get you. At one point you are the most arrogant and irritating bastard I’ve come to know of and at other times I just can’t figure you out,” I watched him smirk.

“Take it from me Princess. You are going to an enemy territory. Never let them see the real you. Keep them guessing. That is the only way to survive,” He stretched his palm and I took it as he led me near the camp fire.

The warmth of it seeped through me, warming me up as I assessed the men. They were twelve in number and they roasted a boar over the fire. My gaze puckered up at Theo with surprise.

“Where could they possibly have found a boar when we are in the middle of nowhere with no forest really within reach?”

“While you were sleeping, my men had hunted on the way. You never really know when you need food Princess. Don’t worry, I have sent two of my men to scout for a meal worth of your status in the next village ahead. They should be back in a short while,”

“Thank you,”

The men bragged about their fighting and hunting skills. Then soon after, they switched the topic to hoes they had f****d. It was refreshing to hear them talk and for a moment I felt like a normal person with no qualms whatsoever. As my gaze wandered from one man to another, smiling unconsciously at the pride in their tone, I noticed one of them, was awfully quiet. He gazed in the fire, not saying anything.

“Who is that?” I ushered with my chin at the man.

“Sir Raekwon Ballion. He is one of the thirty senior commanders in the kingdom,” Theo explained.

  “Why is he not joining the rest of the men in their talk?”

“He is a man of few words,” Theo answered simply even though I felt there was more to the story than he was letting on.

“Hmm,” I grunted while shifting my focus to the crackling flames.

The sound of approaching horse hooves filled the air and on impulse the men unsheathed their swords, surrounding me with Theo right next to me.

“It’s just our men, “Theo sheathed back his sword and so did his men.

Chatter among the men quickly resumed and the two men who had been sent to bring me food, came forward bearing a bag and a wineskin.

“Should I set your dinner inside?” Theo asked.

“No. I think I’ll have it here,” I answered. I saw a look of hesitation on Theo’s eyes but then he stood up, walking inside my tent. Almost immediately he came out with a gold plated plate and a chalice. He made a make-shift table from a log, placing the items on the table. As I watched with open keenness, he produced fresh white bread, steak, and soup. He carefully poured the wine into the chalice and ushered me to eat.

“What? You don’t like the food?” He asked when I didn’t make a move.

“As I recall every royal person has a food taster and a wine taster. I haven’t seen my wine nor my food being tasted. Forgive me for my bluntness though, Prince Theo,”

“Of course. My apologies,” The edge in his voice proved to me that he did not like to have his shortcomings pointed out so openly.

He summoned two men and instructed them to do the tasting. One can never be too careful in the company of enemies no matter how genuine their intentions appeared to be. When nothing happened, I relaxed visibly and proceeded to have a taste of the wine. However as the chalice was about to touch my lips one of the men, fell down, eyes widened as he grew pale suddenly. I sat frozen, unable to bat an eye lid and Theo had to snatch the chalice off my hands. Then soon after his partner made a strangled noise, both hands closing around his neck and soon after he fell down too. My brain barely registered Theo moving swiftly, checking the pulse of the two men.

“They are dead,” He concluded.

“They were poisoning me,” I muttered, standing up barely in a haze.

“Get back to your tent. I will deal with this,” Gone was the hunger in my belly, replaced with dread as fear pulled at my edges.

“So they can kill me while I’m all alone? Thank you but I will stay right here until all of this is solved. Your men are responsible for this and if I had not asked for my meal to be tasted then that would have be me, lying on the ground lifeless,” I pointed at the two bodies on the ground.

“Seize them,” He ordered and before they could elope, the two men who had brought me the food and the wine, were captured and tied with a pair of chains around their ankles and wrists.

“I ask that you bring them to me,” I ordered

“But Princess-“ Theo began.

“Soon I’ll be the official Queen of Varci. So when I say something you may as well do it without a second of hesitation,” I was barely having a grip on myself. He glanced at me and then turned around. With a tilt of his head, the men were dragged and made to kneel before me.

“What are your names?”

“We don’t answer to you,” One of them spat, malice and disdain sketched on the outline of his eyes.

“I asked you a question and as your Queen, you will answer me,” Authority flew through my veins in an explicable speed.

“We don’t answer to a bastard Queen,” The other answered and I had to ball my fists to avoiding lashing out at them.