Chapter 142
CAMILLA’S PO.V
Ryker and I went for a walk around the palace all afternoon before finally deciding to pick Audrey up from school by ourselves. She was so excited to see us by the and
gate let out a shriek that had my ears ringing for minutes after. She was so excited to see us and chattered on about everything that had happened with her at school. It felt good to be able to have a normal day with my daughter and I wanted to cherish that moment for as long as possible but the goddess had other plans because I got to the front of the palace and saw s=a strange man that I had never seen before.
He was tall and dark as if he spent so much time under the sun. From his demeanor, it was obvious that he was a free spirit, his hair was reaching his shoulders and blew in the wind behind him, his sleeves were rolled up and the top of his buttons undone. He held up his hands to show that he wasn’t a threat but he seemed like the kind of person who could hold his own in a fight.
I placed my hands on Audrey’s shoulders. “Why don’t you go wait inside for us? We just need to handle this.”
If she was disappointed, she didn’t let it show. She just nodded and I watched her sk ip away into the palace. Once I saw that she was safe, Ryker and I made our way to the stranger. He looked at me first and his eyes ran down my body. It wasn’t in a sexual way, it was more analytical, as if he were trying to get a reading on me.
“Who are you?” I asked finally and that seemed to snap him out of his thoughts.
“You look like her,” he said simply and I immediately knew who he was and what he was referring to. “She told me about you, you must be the Queen.” He bowed slightly and offered the same courtesy to Ryker. “She doesn’t know I’m here but I heard that an execution was taking place and I figured it was the right time.”
“Am I missing something?” Ryker asked and I remembered that Christine had only told me about the handsome stranger so I gave him a quick rundown via the mind link. As soon as I was done, Ryker assessed the stranger with a frown and crossed his arms over his chest. “If she doesn’t know you are here then why are you here?”
“I want to make things right,” his explanation was cryptic and that didn’t sit well with Ryker who hadn’t reduced his glare one bit. “She left abruptly last time and I just thought that maybe we could-”
“If she left abruptly, doesn’t that stand to reason that she doesn’t want to see you?” he asked harshly and I turned to him with wide eyes. I had never seen Ryker’s protectiveness up close and I wasn’t sure whether to be embarrassed on Christine’s behalf or to smile knowing that he thought of her as family that needed protecting.
“I understand that you are protective of her but I mean her no harm. You can ask her yourself, she stayed with me while she searched for proof against Alara. If I wanted to hurt her, I would have done it a long time ago.”
Ryker hesitated and I was sure that he would send the stranger packing. After everything that happened, trusting new people didn’t come easy to any of us. Just as he was about to speak, I heard a gasp from behind me and I turned to see Christine. Her eyes were wide and her cheeks were a bright pink color as she stared at the man in front of us. She looked like she was unsure of whether she wanted to run to him or run away from him.
“Juan?” she asked and he gave her a soft smile. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to watch the execution of the woman he killed my father,” he explained and I saw sadness creep into her expression. “I also came to see you.”
She blushed harder and I slightly nudged Ryker who was taking in the entire exchange but not the same way I was. He looked hesitant and a little unsure but I was just happy that there was someone who could have her blushing this hard. Christine had always been the strong one and it was a relief to see her looking not to strong.
“Perhaps we should take this inside before we give anyone a show,” Ryker announced before turning to Christine. “I need a word with you first.”
While they walked away, I turned to Juan. “Come with me please, I will have the maids show you to a room.”
Once Juan was settled, I went in search of Ryker and Christine. I found them in her room, she was seated cross legged on the bed while he sat on the chair facing her. She looked mildly annoyed while he looked proud of himself and I braced myself before walking in. Once Christine saw me, she let out a sigh of relief.
“Please tell your mate that I am old enough to handle myself. I don’t need anyone watching out for me or trying to protect me.”
“Please tell Christine that I don’t exactly trust strangers who show up at my door.”
Christine let out an audible growl and I couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled out of me. They watched me with varying looks of shock and concern until I managed to calm down.
“Ryker, cut it out. He seems like a decent guy but if it makes you feel any better, you can do an in depth search on him,” I told him and although he started out frowning, he seemed to like the second part of my sentence. I turned to Christine. “After everything that happened, I think his protectiveness is warranted, don’t you?”
“You have a point,” she mumbled. “I just don’t know why he would come here.”
“He already told you why, he came for you. Is there something you’re not telling me?” her cheeks heated and I got my answer. I turned to Ryker. “I’m going to need leave us be for a while. We have some girl talk to attend to.”
you to
He mumbled something inaudible under his breath and disappeared. The moment the door was shut, I turned to Christine who pulled me to sit next to her. I could tell it was a big step for her to even consider telling me. She was the kind of person who kept her cards awfully close yo her chest.
“It happened the night I got there. After he gave me a place to stay, I don’t know how it happened. It was almost like I wasn’t in control of myself. One minute I was thanking him for giving me a place and the next minute, I woke up in bed next to him,” she exclaimed and my mouth fell open. “Don’t give me that look, I know it was irresponsible.”
“It isn’t that, I’m just shocked is all. Was it good?” Her cheeks heated before she nodded once. “That’s all that matters I guess. I’m not going to tell you what to do or how to do it but I think you need to be a little less hard on yourself. You had fun, if you want it to end at that then let him know but he wouldn’t come all the way here if he thought it was just harmless fun.”
I gave her shoulder a small squeeze before walking out of the room. She needed space to think about what I had just told her and I needed to get ready for the execution.
I had never attended an execution in my life so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I promised I would make it easy for her so instead of being hung like we originally planned, she was going to be executed using a guillotine. It was much bigger than I expected and I tried to stay as far away from it as possible. The turnout of people was also much bigger than I expected. I didn’t think so many would come to watch her die.
Aurora and Audrey were in the palace with some maids. I didn’t want them seeing this at such a young age. Christine was by my side while Juan stood to the side with the guards from the palace. His eyes never left Christine while she tried to pretend like she couldn’t see him.
Alara was brought out in silver chains and immediately, the people began to yell. Some went as far as to throwing rotten food at her but she never once faltered. She had her head held high like she was a Queen in front of her kingdom. I couldn’t help but be impressed. It wasn’t easy to face a crowd of people who wanted you dead. She was led to the guillotine and forced to her knees.
“Alara, you have been sentenced to death,” I had been given a script by the elders. It wasn’t long but it was still hard to say. “Do you have any last words?”
“I do, actually,” she announced and she turned to face the crowd with a cruel smile. “It was an honor watching you all burn and I hope that in my next life, I get to see it all over again.”
To say that people were stunned would have been an understatement. She looked around and her gaze locked on Juan. She looked shock to see him but she quickly recovered and smiled before speaking. “I’ll say hi to your daddy in hell.”
Juan wanted to go after her but the guards held him in place. I could see the pure and undiluted anger on his face. He realized that the guards were not going to let him go to her, so he turned on his heels and stormed out. Christine had turned to him an she was itching to go but I grabbed her wrist. She could go after the execution.
I turned to the executioner and nodded. I watched as he put the bag over her head and positioned her but I turned away when the guillotine fell. I knew that until the day I died, I would never forget that sound.
I turned to Ryker who I realized watched the entire thing without flinching. I released Christine and she didn’t wait one second before taking off after Juan.
“Is it over?” I asked and he nodded.
“She’s gone.”
