“I’m not intending to skulk.” Allegra checked her watch. “The council will be finishing the weekly meeting and about to start on the food and drink. I intend to confront them and demand answers.”
“Not so great if one of them shoots you,” Isabella said.
“We should stay together.” Dylan reached for Allegra’s hand. He squeezed it, and everything in her melted. Their relationship had happened fast but having him at her side seemed right.
Allegra’s heart pounded fiercely as though it might burst out of her chest. Her breaths came in quick, shallow gasps, betraying the sheer magnitude of the emotions raging inside her. Intense energy emanated from her breastbone, where the runes and ring rested.
“My gut tells me I need to hustle and confront them.” Her words were a mere whisper compared to the thundering beat of her pulse. But it was an understatement, a paltry description of the fierce urgency that consumed her. Every fiber of her being cried out for action, for resolution, for justice.
10
Allegra led them through the chateau, past the gaping servants and a sole guard who appeared perplexed by their sudden appearance. She marched up the spiral staircase, her footsteps ringing in the enclosed space. At the top of the stairs, she turned toward the Octagon Room. When they arrived, the large oak door was closed, but her wolfish hearing caught the shouts coming from within the chamber. She inched the door open with care, holding her breath and releasing it when the hinges didn’t creak.
The Octagon was a large, circular room with eight sides, each representing a unique part of the kingdom. Tapestries and majestic portraits of past rulers lined the walls, and mid-room, the large table was the hub of activity. Currently, the six council members argued loudly about Allegra.
“Where is Allegra?” Maria Rossi demanded. “I know this illness is a fabrication. Where is she now?
“Rubbish,” Gabriel Andersson said. “She is in her room, and the doctors wish to keep her isolated if she has caught the virus circulating in Europe. A pandemic is the last thing we want.”
“I don’t understand any of this,” Andreas Lindström said. “Allegra is right. All is not right in the kingdom. She was right to call us out.”
“That has nothing to do with Allegra’s illness,” Sophia van der Meer stated.
Yeah, Allegra just bet it didn’t. Impulse had her removing the ring from the pouch and sliding it onto her right hand’s middle finger. At first, the golden band holding the emerald stone was too large, but it pulled tight until it fit her finger snugly and was in no danger of slipping off.
With the runes sending out pulses of confidence and power, Allegra boldly stepped into the room. She cleared her throat, causing the conversation to cease abruptly. All eyes turned toward her as she stood before them, her friends flanking her on either side.
“I’m here for answers,” she said calmly but firmly. “Werewolf hunters killed my parents and brother. While I was with my friends in Middlemarch, a hunter tried to kill me. I believe one of you organized the hit.”
“Us?” Maria asked, her eyebrows rising and her tone disbelieving.
The council members exchanged uneasy glances, and tension rose in the room. This confrontation could turn ugly, but she was determined to get answers.
“Princess Allegra,” Gabriel Andersson said, his voice thick with patently false concern. “We’re so glad to see you’re feeling better. We were discussing the best way to handle this situation.”
“What situation?” Allegra asked, her eyes narrowing.
“You’re the last surviving royal in our kingdom. If you’re not well, we need to make alternative arrangements,” Sophia van der Meer said. “Someone to step into your shoes. You’re so young and inexperienced.”
“And you want to take over. I am the ruling royal, and that won’t change,” she said, with a snap in her voice as she observed each council member’s reaction. “This pushing me around will cease. Doing your own thing without seeking my permission will halt. I am the princess, and this is my realm. Mine. You assist me. Nothing more.”
One or two of the council seemed genuinely perplexed, while the rest displayed various stages of anger. A blood vessel pulsed at Gabriel’s temple, and his face turned red. Allegra stared him down when she would’ve acted with diffidence in the past. The runes tingled, and the emerald ring glowed. It was subtle, but she noticed because of the heat accompanying the radiance.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Sophia said, snooty expression back in place. “You’re feverish and rambling.”
“You’ve lied to me,” Allegra snapped. “And spread rumors about my health and whereabouts to the kingdom, causing unnecessary fear and panic. One or more of you colluded and arranged werewolf hunters to kill the rest of my family—”
“We would never,” Maria said, her rapid blinking and pale cheeks showing shock.
“You used my absence to undermine and prepare for a coup. You thought you could easily take over my kingdom by getting rid of me.”
The room fell silent as Allegra’s words hung in the air. The council members shifted uncomfortably in their seats, unsure how to respond to the accusations.
“Princess Allegra, you’re paranoid.” Gabriel tried to regain control of the situation. “We simply wanted to ensure the kingdom’s stability in unforeseen circumstances.”
Allegra laughed bitterly. “Unforeseen circumstances? You mean my sudden disappearance and the subsequent rumors about my illness? Arranging my parents’ assassination. My brother’s assassination. Paying someone to shoot at me when I was running in the forest.”
Indignant objections broke out.
