“That may not be possible,” Milly said. “Both your parents are asking to speak to you as a matter of urgency to find out what happened.”
“Well, they’re not here, are they?” The words burst out of her mouth before she had a chance to think about it.
Milly’s eyes narrowed. “I understand you’re upset, young lady, but you will need to relearn how to hold your tongue. All of your training will not be undone in one night, if I can help it. You are tired, and it’s causing you to act irrationally, but you’d better restrain yourself when you meet your parents.”
Ana lowered her eyes. Maybe Milly was right. She sighed, allowing herself to settle back into that void of emptiness. She was too exhausted to maintain any real fight, and what was the point?
In the end, Milly collected a hat with a wide brim for Ana to wear over her messy, seed-clumped hair, and she paired it with a conservative evening gown that showed barely any skin. The result allowed only her face to be exposed.
After she was escorted back to her room, she sent Milly away—much to Milly’s protesting—then took a long, hot bath. She scrubbed herself vigorously and lathered and rinsed her hair more times than she could count.
Afterward, she slid into bed, intending to sleep, but as she did a rough knock sounded against the door. She ignored it for as long as she could, but then a voice called through the door.
“Ana, you will open this door now.” It was Father.
Ana took a breath. She couldn’t exactly ignore him. Padding to the door, she opened it to find both her parents waiting outside.
“I am really tired, I need to get some—”
Her parents both swept into her room and surrounded her with a double hug. They’d never done that before. Ana rested her head on her mother’s shoulder, taking comfort from both of them reassuring her and blinking away the flowing tears. It was as though time slowed for an endless, comforting moment.
The queen pulled away first. “I know you want to sleep, Ana,” she said, sitting down on the chair in the room. “And you will. But it is imperative that you tell us everything that happened first.”
“Where is he?” Ana asked, suddenly realizing that she didn’t know where Maddoc has gone once he’d left the room.
“Don’t worry, Ana,” the queen said quickly. “He’s left the palace.”
Ana stared at them in disbelief. “So he is permitted to leave and reenter whenever he pleases?”
The king ground his jaw, his anger clear, but then queen gestured for Ana to sit down. “We will explain everything, Ana. Let’s talk first.”
The king stood next to the queen while Ana sat on her bed. She tried not to move as though she was in pain but she was sure her father could tell.
“Nothing good happened,” she muttered. “I didn’t find out anything new, and I didn’t… escape him.”
She didn’t miss the look her parents exchanged.
“Did he say anything about the situation?” the queen asked. “Anything at all?”
Ana thought back to her exchanges with him. “He said I should know why he is doing this. He told me I should know more than I do about the kingdom and that I am a fool.”
The queen stiffened. “Anything else? Anything about the promise or about any plans he has for the kingdom? Anything about his men or where they are based?”
Ana shook her head again, annoyed this time. “We didn’t exactly chat much, Mother. Why would he tell me that?”
“You are an Omega,” the queen said pointedly. “He is an Alpha.”
Ana stared at her confused. How did that explain anything? “There was nothing like that. He mocked me and then…” She shifted uncomfortably on the bed, averting her eyes. “… used me. Repeatedly.” The mortification of having to say this to her parents nearly made her break down in sobs again, but she pushed it back sharply as something occurred to her. “There was a crowd on the edge of the royal grounds. I think he arranged it.”
Her father’s fists clenched and he exhaled. “Yes, we know. It wasn’t discovered until it was already dark.”
“How did it happen? I thought the grounds would be secure, especially there.”
“There was a significant disturbance at another part of the grounds that drew the attention of many of the guards. There weren’t enough remaining to disperse the crowd. We suspected he would do something, even organize two disruptions at the same time, but not that we would need such significant resources at both.”
“We’re sorry about that, Ana,” the queen said, gently. “It won’t happen again.”
Ana nodded, but the outlaw’s words floated back to her. Do you think I don’t have people in the palace? She doubted it was true, but if he did, none of them were safe anyway.
“This is one of the reasons he can come and go as he pleases,” the king added, his face dark. “The commoners are aware he has earned the Royal Promise and they enjoy seeing him enter and exit the castle.”
“It’s like a morbid fascination for them,” the queen added, somewhat disgusted. “Seeing the kingdom’s worst outlaw have access to the palace like that.”
“It sends a terrible message to the people,” the king growled.
The queen took his hand in her own and pressed it against her cheek. The action calmed him immediately, and Ana couldn’t help but smile.
“The wider kingdom doesn’t yet know what he asked for as his payment,” the queen said to Ana. “There are rumors circulating of the rewards he may be receiving—”
“Things he should have fucking asked for,” the king thunderously interjected.
“—but it seems at the moment, nothing is dominating.”
“But, how can that be?” Ana looked between them. “There were commoners and nobles in the assembly hall. There was the crowd at the window yesterday. How can no one be speaking of it?”
“The crown still has a lot of sway, Ana,” her mother said. “And so do the houses. At the moment, we’ve been able to keep it quiet, especially as we haven’t confirmed it, so among the commoners it is all just rumor and hearsay. With the palace allowing Maddoc to come and go, looking well fed and satisfied, it doesn’t hurt us right now, as many think we are treating him with respect. Even that trick he orchestrated with the crowd yesterday, no one is certain it was you. The ‘woman’ they saw had your unusual rose-copper hair, yes, but she wasn’t wearing a gown typical of your style. Besides which, it is too outrageous for the commoners to believe that something of that magnitude could truly happen.”
Ana’s eyebrows were so high she was in danger of straining a muscle in her forehead, and the relief pounding through her made her breath unsteady. “So no one knows yet?” Since this morning, she finally took a full and deep breath.
“Well, the houses know, since they were all in attendance and part of the discussions,” her mother replied, evenly. “And the upper nobles.”
“Oh.” So all the important people. Her flood of relief was choked to a trickle. “Are you still going to kill him?”
The king didn’t hesitate to answer. “It will look like an accident.”