CHAPTER 3: THE WOMAN WHO STOLE A PRINCESS
CHAPTER 3: THE WOMAN WHO STOLE A PRINCESS
Lady Beatrice's composure shattered.
"She's lying!"
Elena looked confused.
"I've never lied."
King Adrian slowly turned toward Beatrice.
"I wasn't speaking to her."
His voice became cold.
"I was speaking to you."
The chamber doors opened.
Captain Rowan, commander of the Royal Guard, entered carrying an ancient leather journal.
"We found it exactly where Your Majesty ordered."
The king accepted the journal.
"This belonged to Queen Isabella."
He opened its final pages.
Inside was a hidden letter.
Written the night before the palace nursery burned.
"If anything happens to me, never trust Beatrice."
Gasps echoed beneath the chandeliers.
"She has been meeting secretly with Lord Cedric."
"They believe removing our daughter will place their blood on the throne."
Lady Beatrice's face turned pale.
"That letter is forged!"
Captain Rowan quietly shook his head.
"We also found payment records."
"And testimony from the surviving palace nurse."
The king closed the journal.
"For nineteen years..."
"I mourned a daughter who was alive."
He looked directly at Beatrice.
"You did not merely steal a child."
"You stole a father's life."
Royal guards surrounded her.
For the first time...
May you like
The woman who had ruled the palace through fear...
Could not command a single voice.
