CHAPTER 65: THE PRICE OF THE GAME

It had been a few days since the physician brought by King Rollo of Aerthwyn worked on the Queen. By his knowledge and skill, the poison had been drawn out little by little. She was still weak, and unable to rise from her bed or even speak clearly, but her life was no longer in danger. The worst had passed.

One fateful evening, King Tharyn sat in her chambers and watched over the Queen on her bed. The chamber was very quiet, and for once there were no guards, no healers, no attendants, only the King and his wife.

He sat on the edge of the bed and stared at her fragile form. His thoughts weighed heavily on him, and after a while, he reached out and held her hand gently.

"After all these years," he whispered, leaning closer, "this is how far we have come. I thought by now we would be living in peace, with no enemy left to fear or fight. But no... we still fight. Always fighting, for the throne, for our family, for our kingdom." He shut his eyes and let out a long, weary breath. "I am tired. I am so tired."

For a moment the room was quiet. But then, to his shock, a voice spoke. "You have no right to be tired. Not when no one is safe."

King Tharyn opened his eyes immediately. It was the Queen. The woman who had been sick and almost lifeless for days now looked at him, with her lips moving, and her voice faint but clear.

"You are awake," he said, with his face full of relief and joy. He even smiled, but she did not return it.

Instead, she spoke again despite her weakness. "Your family is not safe. Your palace is not safe. Most of all, your kingdom is not safe. So, Tharyn, you have no right to be tired."

The King gave a bitter smile. "If you do not want me to be tired, then you must promise never again to keep me in such worry. Be well, and spare me this torment, my love."

Slowly, with visible effort, the Queen pushed herself upright. Her body was still very weak and yet she forced herself to sit. When she had caught her breath, she whispered, "I am sorry."

The King frowned. "Sorry? For what exactly? For allowing yourself to be arrested by my command? Or for poisoning yourself and leaving me in this torment of unrest?"

The Queen’s eyes widened, and her lips parted. "How do you know...?" she asked.

The King looked at her with a steady gaze and said in a low voice. "You are clever, my love, but I am not a fool. I know you. I know what you are capable of. I know how far you are willing to go when pushed, and how far you are not. Do not think me blind. This did not come upon you by accident. You saw it coming. You, in fact, placed yourself in its path. And you allowed it to happen."

The Queen turned her weak eyes toward her husband. "I am sorry for not telling you. But since you know I did this, then you must also know why I did it, Tharyn. And you must know what you are meant to be doing right now."

The King shook his head slowly. "I decided not to move, not to act, until I saw you awake. Until I heard your voice, just like now. But why, my love? Why would you go to such lengths? Why would you put your own life in danger for this? All of this, only to trap Voryn Vanýr?"

The King’s jaw tightened. "First, you gave him the letters, letters that were false, but convincing. He took the bait and claimed it as truth. Then, you made him start seeing fallacies, made him move to arrest you, and now, he is the prime suspect of your poisoning. Are you that cunning and reckless?" He asked

The Queen’s lips curved in a faint, bitter smile. "You see it clearly. Since you know all this, will you allow my sacrifice to be wasted? This is why you must move now. I have set the head of the cow before you, placed it on the platter. All you need to do is take the blade and strike. Do not let my suffering mean nothing."

Tharyn rose to his feet and began pacing the chamber in frustration. "Have you thought what this could bring? More strife. More blood in the palace. The court is already on the edge of division. And have you also forgotten the threats coming to us by the day? From the west, from the borders, war awaits us. And you would have me start a fire within my own home?"

The Queen’s eyes followed him, hard and unyielding. "That is why you must act now. End Vanýr, end him once and for all, and focus on the coming war. You will not find another chance like this. Do you not see? All of this I brought upon myself, but if I had not, Vanýr would have done it soon enough. He has always plotted against me, against the royal family. Sooner or later he would have struck. I simply struck first, using myself as bait. So you must finish it. You must have to finish what I’ve started your Majesty"

Before the King could answer, a voice spoke from the doorway.

"What?"

They both turned, and their daughter, Nyella, was standing there. Her eyes were wide and her face pale with shock as she had heard everything.

"You did this?" she cried, as she stepped into the chamber. "You gave them false letters, false information. Because of that, they arrested Aeron. They arrested you. You put him in danger. And then you went even further to poison yourself, risking your own life. Who are you, Mother?" she screamed.

The Queen’s face softened as she looked at her daughter. Her lips parted, and her voice lowered. "My dear Nyella..." she said.

"..."