The only time he ever saw his mother was at meals or at events where the presence of the entire family was required. She never tucked him in at night as a child. Never attended sporting events where he competed. Other than calling him once a month, he never heard from her.
“Ronan!” his father snapped. “You will not speak to your mother this way over some…some…female!”
His eyes narrowed as Ronan stared his father down. He was sick to death of pretending to let them manipulate him. Especially since they had done nothing but try to make Dominique uncomfortable since she arrived. A woman who cared about what happened to him and to them. She didn’t wantthem dead and had actively tried to fight her own parents in order to protect them.
“You will use her name when you speak of her. Dominique was willing to die for you,” Ronan murmured, his voice quiet and rough. “She was willing to die for me and for your daughter as well. So, you will speak of her with nothing but respect from this moment forward.” He flicked his gaze to his mother before focusing on Caden. “I warned you before, so this will be my final one. If you can’t be kind to her, you will at the very least be civil or I will burn this family’s legacy to the ground. Am I clear?”
His father nodded once. Just a sharp jerk of his chin. Ronan shifted his stare to Bronwyn, who looked nearly green. He wondered if it was because she realized how horribly she’d treated a woman who had tried to protect her or if it was because of his threat to ruin their family’s legacy. While Ronan hoped it was the former, experience told him it was likely his threat that did it.
“Now, the wedding will happen tomorrow afternoon. You will both be there, smiling and saying all the right things. She proved her loyalty to this family today, not only in front of me but in front of Aisling and her guards. Word is already spreading through the castle about what she did to keep us all safe. Beyond her status as a fairy godmother, this will cement her as worthy of the title of princess in the eyes of our people. You won’t do anything to damage that.”
They both nodded again.
“That’s settled, then,” Ronan said. “It’s time to discuss what we’re going to do about the Proxas.”
His father’s expression hardened. “The punishment for treason against the crown is death. No exceptions.”
“I agree, Jurgen and Graciella must die. But what will you do about Frederique and Monique?”
Ronan hated saying their names, hated the sliver of compassion he had for them. But if they’d been treated as Dominique, they deserved the benefit of the doubt.
“What about them?” his father questioned, his tone unyielding.
“They may have been complicit against their will. It seems Graciella and Jurgen have a history of drugging their daughters in order to force them to do what they wanted.”
His father’s answering look said he didn’t believe that. Ronan didn’t either, not based on the way they treated Dominique the day before. But he didn’t want to eradicate Dominique’s entire family without being certain that they were all guilty.
“We will interrogate them,” Caden stated. “And if they were partially or completely unwilling or didn’t have knowledge of their parents’ plans, they will be banished to the human realm.”
“Even if they are completely innocent?”
His father sighed. “This is one of those things you’re going to hate about leading the kingdom. Even if they’re innocent, we can’t allow them to remain in our realm if they’ve been involved at all. It is for their protection as well as ours. Some of our subjects might try to harm them, thinking they are doing the right thing. And allowing them to stay, especially since they are related to your fiancée, will make it seem as though we are weak. It will embolden our enemies, especially those among our bloodlines.”
Ronan echoed his father’s sigh. He didn’t like the resolution, but his father had a point. Dominique’s sisters would be safer in the human realm, even if they were innocent of any wrongdoing.
“Very well,” Ronan said. “I’m going to check on my fiancée. We will be dining in my rooms tonight.”
He turned toward the door, ready to walk away, when his mother’s voice stopped him.
“Will she…”
Bronwyn stopped speaking when he turned around. Ronan knew his expression wasn’t welcoming, but it couldn’t be helped. After all that had happened today, he maintained his patience by the thinnest thread.
“Will she be okay?” Bronwyn asked.
Ronan nodded. “I think so. But she was rightfully upset after nearly being poisoned by her own parents today.”
His mother’s mouth thinned. “I actually understand that feeling better than you realize, son. And I hope you understand that I would never want you to experience that either.”
He wanted to know what she was talking about, but he also didn’t trust that it wasn’t another of her attempts to manipulate him. So, he settled with, “I believe you.”
His mother’s chin jerked down, but her eyes didn’t leave his.
Ronan gave another nod to his father, unlocked the door to the study, and left the room. When he’d come to see them, he had walked, needing the time to calm down and gather his thoughts. Now, he just wanted to get back to his fiancée.
Gathering his magic, Ronan transported his body to the hall just outside his room. It was blessedly empty. He’d expected his sister to show up, demanding to see Dominique, but she seemed to understand his need to have time alone with his woman.
Or so he thought until he stepped into the bedroom. There was a folded piece of parchment on the floor just inside the door. Ronan shut the door behind him and locked it before he leaned down to grab the paper.
