Page 145 of Kingdom of Betrayal and Unknown

Everyone believes it was an accident, but only a handful of us know it wasn’t. I want to scream in the middle of town that the prince killed my father, but what good would it do? I would surely get whipped for accusing him of something I can’t prove, and I know Flynn won’t risk his family to back me up.

“What did you say?” Avira turns to me.

Shaking my head, I take a step back. “It was nothing.”

Her eyes narrow, but I don’t waver.

“I’m going to talk to Adeline outside for a second. Do you need anything before we go out?” Avira turns to Mother.

“I’m fine for now.” She smiles before turning to me. “Be good and try not to get into too big of an argument with your sister.”

Forcing a smile on my face, I give her a curt nod before heading outside, Avira following close behind.

“What do you want to talk about now?” I ask, folding my arms over my chest.

“What did you say in there about the prince killing Father?” she quietly asks.

“Exactly that. The prince killed Father while he was out in the forest,” I state.

“No, he wouldn’t do that,” she brushes it off.

I thought she might have been one of the people who would know the truth. She does work closely with both of them. She would have had to hear them talk about it. Unless she really doesn’t want to believe them and that they are bad.

“I wouldn’t lie to you!” I raise my voice. “He told me himself. I talked to another person who saw it.”

Warning bells go off in my head after I say those words, but I push them down. She needs to know who she is working for, who she wants me to marry.

“No, I’m not going to believe it. He wouldn’t have killed him for no reason. He is interested in you.” Avira moves her hands in the air as she talks. “We are done talking about this. You need to get it out of your head that he killed Father because he didn’t.”

I open my mouth, but before I can say anything, Avira turns her back and walks off.

CHAPTER 44

Awhole week has passed since Mother had the baby, and since I’ve seen Kieran. So much has changed in only seven days. There are more guards in the town, patrolling up and down the streets. The prince has come to our house once a day to see how the baby and Mother are doing.

Weird.

Unusual.

Terrifying.

I don’t know what Prince Archie is up to, and I can’t figure it out to save my life. Maybe he isn’t up to anything and there is a threat to our town.

“What do you think is going on out there?” I ask as I look out the window.

With each passing hour, it seems like more and more guards are coming into our town, but by nighttime, they are mostly gone.

“Maybe someone important is coming to town. You know there are other rulers over Hellhollow, Hollowtone, and the other towns. They could be preparing for all of them to come into town and want to make sure they are safe,” Mother explains.

“They have never come to town before, so why now?” I turn to her.

Mother looks at the wall as she feeds the baby. “They came when I was a little girl, but they don’t come often. Just when things need to be talked about.”

Are some of the Fae in the other towns retaliating, and they are trying to figure out what to do with them?

I hope it’s not that.

I take a deep breath in as I watch them walk down the street in a line.