Ana frowned at the distinction. “So even if we as a family fall, there must still be a king and queen?”
Her father nodded. “That distinction is important, Ana. It signifies that even if we have to give up the rule, for any reason, the crown will survive. One of my brothers could be crowned or, more likely, one of the houses would be elected to stand, if their bloodline is pure enough, but the kingdom itself will remain relatively unscathed by this, and therefore the crown remains strong and in power.”
“But how can the houses be satisfied with that kind of result?” Ana asked bewildered. “How can they be fine with your demise?”
“My demise is not necessarily bad for the rest of the houses,” the king said carefully. “For years some of them have been looking to gain more power so they can command the throne. This is an opportunity for many.”
Ana’s stomach dropped. “So they are in agreement that this… man should have me for three nights?”
“No, they’re not outright saying it, but some of them are not fighting as hard as I would expect them to,” the king said, his jaw hard. “But, it makes no difference. We will not fall because of this.”
“We won’t?” Ana asked. For the first time since she saw Maddoc, hope kindled in her. “Everyone seems to think this is the worst thing that could happen to us.”
“Ana,” the king began. “There is always a way to gain an advantage. You will be in this man’s presence for three nights. I very much doubt that he will be resistant to your beauty and your mild manner.”
Ana flushed, surprised by the sudden compliment, but not missing the underlying message the king was saying. “You want me to get information from him?”
“If you can,” the king said, watching her carefully. “You will be with him for three nights only—not the days. Which means you can tell us whatever you discover. If you are able to get anything to help us immobilize his men and prevent any further attacks by him on the kingdom, you will have made a significant contribution to his demise.”
Ana nodded, but she doubted he would be so foolish. So far he’d proven he was smarter than most thought he was.
“It would be foolish to expect you to have the skill to extract information from a man like him without any training,” the king added. “He won’t simply offer the information. But just be observant and remember what you can. Ask questions when it feels appropriate, but do not do or say anything that will provoke him, Ana.”
Ana inhaled slowly nodding again.
Her father’s eyes drifted to the window as apprehension nudged across his face. “Maybe I should have let you take those combat training lessons you wanted to do when you were younger.” He said it with a chuckle, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
Ana placed her hand on his, knowing even that wouldn’t have protected her. Maddoc was a huge Alpha with considerable skills he’d honed over the years. “What will happen after this is over?”
“He will be killed at dawn after the third night.” Her father spoke so firmly, his tone sent a tremble along her spin. “He won’t be able to get out of the palace. His life is over with this request, Ana. It will be worse for him than for any of us.”
“Will it? I will still be tainted by this. I will have lost my purity and perhaps my ability to marry and successfully rule.” It seemed like her father wasn’t thinking about the consequences to her, and possibly being naïve about this, although she would never directly say it to him. But from everything she had observed of Allandis society, these “incidents” did not simply slide away unnoticed. It would sit with her for the rest of her reign.
“Not necessarily,” he said. “We may be able to keep what is happening quiet from the commoners, but if not, there are ways you can use it to your advantage. Lets see what happens first. He may not touch you at all.”
Ana snorted. “That is unlikely,” she said dryly. “Not with what I’ve read about him.”
“You studied his files?” the king said in surprise.
“A while ago, yes. He’s mentioned in one of the topics I read when I was studying civil disobedience and society of Allandis. It’s not particularly pleasant reading.”
Her father nodded. “I know, but don’t worry, Ana, there are ways we can handle this situation. Remember at all times what you are, who you are, and how you’ve been raised. Being with him for three nights does not change any of that—it will not change the history of your bloodline and the rights you have as a royal. Nothing he does will change that.”
Ana nodded as the tension in her muscles finally dissipated. Her father was right, and that was what she had to make all efforts to remember, no matter what this Alpha did.
4
The queen insisted Ana wear her full royal dress to meet the outlaw. She wanted him to be forced to remove every piece of clothing that signified Ana was royalty before he got to any part of her body, but the king didn’t want to give him any jewelry or royal insignia that he could sell or use as proof that he’d been with the princess. So in the end, she was prepared in an elaborate, full-length dress, but not as formal or distinctive as what she would wear for royal events. Satin slippers adorned her feet and her red hair was neatly braided back into one long braid.
“Don’t provoke him,” Milly had said, fussing over her much more than normal. She prepared Ana on her own, with no handmaids assisting this time. “In fact, don’t say anything to him at all. Let him talk if he wants to. Don’t give him the satisfaction of hearing your voice.” When she stepped back to assess her, tears glistened in her eyes. “I’m so sorry you’re having to go through this, Ana,” she whispered. “It’s not right. No woman should have to go through this.”
Ana smiled, her own tears threatening. “It is the burden of being princess, isn’t it?” She tried to pull on the comfort of her father’s words from earlier, but a coarse gloom had settled into her bones. And seated deep within it was an anger she struggled to control.
Over the past hour, she’d been prodded and examined by the royal medics, and given foul liquids to drink to protect her from disease and pregnancy. It had been one of the most uncomfortable situations in her life, yet she knew the worst was yet to come. Of all the circumstances of her life she’d felt helpless about, nothing compared to this. All that discipline she’d proved she had, all the time she spent showing her parents that she could be such a great asset to the royal family, none of that helped or protected her now. And that infuriated her more than she thought it would. This outlaw was using her to punish her father, and it didn’t matter how good she’d been as a princess, it only mattered that she was his daughter. She’d been so close to some sort of freedom, under a month until her wedding, but now, and for the first time, she had no idea what the future would hold for her. And it was terrifying. Some small part of her felt liberated by it, because it meant she had some measure of control—what she did in that room with the outlaw would make a difference—but it wasn’t the kind of control she wanted. It wasn’t like the odds were in her favor to fight him off or to escape him. Even if she wanted to leave, like Ryden suggested, it would be detrimental to her father, and she couldn’t do that. So even though she had some small measure of control, she was also more helpless than she’d ever been—and that made her furious.