Royal Chronicles of Denmark, Books 1 & 2

by Kiki Leach

  “Why must I?” she asked.

  “Because she would indeed realize something were rotten in Denmark if I were to ask her to serve a man I demanded she stay away from just hours before. Now, our goblets will be served on separate trays. Or perhaps yours and Esme’s as I don’t drink.”

  “It’s possible you should start tonight.” She took a sip of water and eyed me curiously. “Who shall serve the first tray of wine?”

  “Brigita. I will explain all to her prior to the dinner so she will be keenly aware of how to place them. Esme shall not be informed of a thing, aside from knowing to serve John. She would be the first to disbelieve and inform him of all before sundown.”

  Eliza came over to me and looked straight into my eyes. She tilted her head and grinned. “Have you ever done something like this before, Cinderella?”

  “You mean, poison a man, so to speak?”

  “Yes. So to speak.”

  I smiled wide and blinked twice. “Never,” I replied. “Though, I’ve been aware of a man in the village all my life who is quite capable of creating the very serum we are in need of.”

  “And how shall we retrieve it from him?”

  “Brigita, once more. She will go to him and retrieve a bottle, a small one for a small amount, and return to the palace no questions asked. Perhaps we should send her for fruit and bread as well, to evade the often curious interlopers and gossipers.”

  She stood back and rested her fingers against her lips. Then she soured.

  “Are we certain we wish to do this, Cinder?”

  “Yes! It is the only way, unless you do in fact wish him dead and for me to take the fall for it.”

  “I don’t wish anyone dead,” she snapped. “But perhaps there is another way.”

  “There isn’t. Not unless you wish to take your chances, only to awake next to a pool of blood in the name of your husband!”

  “Alright!” she hissed. She straightened her robe and gulped. “Send for Brigita, inform her of all. I shall speak with the servants regarding the goblets, serving only three to the first tray, sending only one man out at a time, and so on.” She moved about and twisted her fingers around one another. I don’t think I had ever seen her so worried. “How long will it take for the serum to work?”

  “A few hours. Once he goes to sleep, he will not awake until possibly a day or two later.”

  “What if Esme chooses to join him tonight?”

  I groaned. “Let me worry about that. You should have men prepared to carry him from the palace no later than midnight. We must finish dinner prior to that time.”

  “Fine. Inform Brigita, I shall inform the men and servants.”

  As I went to the door, someone began knocking quite hard. I could feel the blood draining from my face as I feared who stood on the other side.

  The queen swiftly moved up next to me and cleared her throat. “Who’s there?” she asked in a harsh tone.

  “Mother.”

  We both breathed out in relief when we realized it was Norvack. She moved back to the other side of the room.

  I pulled back on the door and he peaked his head inside. “Mo --” He turned to me and smiled cautiously. “My favorite girl. What are you doing alone with her?”

  “Well…” I paused and wiped the sweat forming at the edge of my brow. “We were discussing tonight’s dinner. Your mother wishes for poultry and I wish for something a bit more filling. But perhaps as it is your dinner and not ours --”

  “Neither mine,” he stated in a stern manner. “John’s dinner.” He came inside and closed the door behind him. “At least according to my father.”

  “What were you discussing with him on the lawn?” asked Eliza. “Esme informed me of your meeting.”

  “Politics, as always. Though informal, we discussed the great political debate of eastern Denmark. John wishes to go about this country as he did England. He’s yet to understand the proper dynamics of our country. As well as how to address me.”

  “I’m certain the latter is purposeful,” I mumbled.

  “As am I.” He puckered his brows and looked toward the ground. “But speaking of his dinner, perhaps his favorite meal shall be served. I was informed he enjoyed a stuffed quail.”

  “Quail? Where in God’s name are we to find a quail this time of year? He would have better luck shooting down a bird from the sky!”

  “Perhaps a stuffed crow would suffice,” he said. We both snickered like children.

  The queen slapped her hands together twice as if to discipline us.

  “That’s enough,” she stated. “He is our guest and we should do our best to please him as we know how.”

  She and I looked at one another and arched our brows.

  “Please him, of course. However, we are not going to find a quail this time of year,” I said. “We would be better off serving the poultry as you desired.”

  She arched a brow and then nodded. “Very well. Now I must prepare myself for the dinner. You should prepare as well, Cinderella, with something more appropriate, elegant.”

  I sneered and squint. Then shook my head and curtsied in spite of myself. “Yes, your Majesty.”

  As Norvack and I left the room, he took my hand inside of his.

  “Your hand is freezing!” I hollered. “Where have you been? It can’t be that cold outside.”

  “I believe more winter is coming.”

  “Oh.” I rubbed my hands together and placed them in front of me. “I should prepare for tonight.”

  “Just a moment.” He pulled me to him and leaned down to kiss my lips. “What were you truly discussing with my mother?”

  I smiled and leaned away. “Dinner, as I said.”

  “Truly?”

  “Yes, truly.”

  “If she spoke ill toward you at any time --”

  “She didn’t. In fact, we were on the same page about a lot of things, minus the main course. Overall, it was fine.” I placed my fingers on his lapels, pressing them down. “What about you and your father in the library? Was it the same as the lawn?”

  “More or less. He wishes for me to allow John to have more of a say than is normally allowed for a right hand. He wishes for John to voice his opinions more than a right hand should.” He sighed and looked toward the ceiling. “It’s only the beginning of the end for me, Cinderella.”

  “Don’t speak in such an ill manner, Norvack. It is only the end if you allow it to be and I know you would never do that. John Devereux shall never take your place. He shall never take your crown or throne. We are going to make certain of that.”

  “We?”

  “Yes.” I lifted to my toes to kiss him deeply. As I pulled away, his eyes remained closed. “I must find Brigita. Your mother wishes for me to send her to the village in search of good fruits and bread. And then I must prepare for tonight.”

  “Shall I help you dress?” he asked, grinning mischievously.

  “You would not be of much help to me, my prince. Not as much as to yourself.”

  I kissed him one last time before heading off.

  The Unforeseen Circumstance

  Norvack and I arrived for dinner at promptly six o’clock in the west ballroom as ordered. The king, queen, John and Esme were all speaking and laughing rather loudly with one another as they stood near the blazing fire across the room. The moment Eliza saw us enter, she rushed over to greet Norvack with a swift kiss on the cheek. Then she looked at me for a split moment, as if to indicate some sort of signal, before smiling back at her son.

  “Your father and John seem to be in much agreement this evening,” she said.

  “Regarding?”

  “The politics of this country. And perhaps others as well.”

  “Others?” I asked.

  She nodded.

  Norvack breathed in deeply, agitated, and leaned his head, glaring at them. “I’ll take note of that. Excuse me.”

  He released my hand and headed over to the men, and Esme. He greeted his father with a
stiff handshake as Belarus pat his back. But he ignored John’s gesture to shake his hand. He pulled back and smiled to himself. I snickered a little, which both John and Esme noticed. As Eliza moved before me to discuss something, I noticed Esme charging toward us like an enraged goat.

  “You are the most inconsiderate person I have ever met, Cinderella!” she snapped.

  I peered and lifted my brows in surprise. “Excuse me?”

  “The nerve of you to laugh in the face of a General.”

  “My God!” I whispered. “He cannot be that good in bed.”

  Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. “How dare you -- !”

  “How dare I? You charge toward me with such an absurd accusation and how dare I?”

  “That is enough,” interjected Eliza.

  “And it’s former General,” I said, raising my index finger toward her face. “He’s no longer at the right of the King of England, he shall serve my husband now.”

  “Alright!” she interjected again. “That is enough.”

  “Perhaps if she --” I started.

  “No. Finished.” She turned to Esmeralda and I folded my arms one over the other, feigning annoyance. She smiled at her and slipped her fingers beneath Esme’s chin, turning the focus onto her. “I am quite aware of how difficult it is to be civil with Cinder,” she said in a soft tone, “but you must respect her as your princess and I as your queen. You mustn’t flutter about the room and make such snide remarks, not if you plan to become much higher in status.”

  “How much higher shall she plan to go?”

  Eliza looked around at me and nodded. “Marriage, of course.”

  “Marriage! Am I to believe that she would in fact marry him? Or he her?”

  “Yes, he would!” said Esme. “I am to be his wife --”

  “Well in that case, perhaps you should inform his current wife of this news as well.”

  “Cinderella,” snapped Eliza. She smiled sincerely at Esme and brushed a strand of hair away from his face. “We are to respect her as the probable new wife of John. If she is to be the wife of your husband’s comrade, you must treat her as such.”

  “I shall treat her as I always have.”

  “Nonsense. You shall treat her as your equivalent.”

  Esme made a face at my seeming defeat. She looked like a cat that had managed to catch a scurrying mouse from across the room, right between her teeth.

  As Brigita entered with the goblets of wine, Eliza rushed over and grabbed the one placed furthest from the others before anyone seemed to notice. She handed the goblet to Esme, who appeared hesitant to take it.

  “What is…?” she began.

  “Take this to your future husband,” Eliza answered in a calm, almost serene manner. “He shall appreciate it evermore in coming from you as opposed to Cinder or I.”

  Esme looked down at the goblet and then into my eyes.

  I frowned.

  “Perhaps you should take it instead, Cinder. It’s certain you believe you own him as well as Norvack.”

  “He’s not to be my future husband,” I told her.

  She tilted her head and grinned wide. “Very well, then. I shall serve it to him, your Majesty. And he shall be ever so grateful.”

  “And so shall we.”

  Eliza looked at me as I started to smile, and glowered.

  “That was quite the clever approach,” I said.

  “Yes, well, it took some thinking on my part. I had planned to always inform her of something similar, but your sudden sniggering only made it seem more conspicuous at this very moment.”

  “Apologies, Queen. However --”

  “Shh.” She raised a hand at me and nodded toward the other side of the room.

  We watched with keen interest as Esme handed the goblet to John. Brigita came forward with goblets for Belarus and Norvack, handing each to us.

  “The serum was placed in the bottom of the goblet and mixed in,” she whispered. “It dissolved quite quickly once the alcohol was added, which means no reside shall be left behind once he’s finished drinking.”

  “You purchased the correct bottle?” I asked.

  “Yes mistress. The one with the lettering, as asked.”

  “The yellow lettering. You were specific, yes?”

  She nodded. “Yes, mistress.”

  “Good. In that instance, he shall fall into the deepest of sleeps, and --”

  “My, my, aren’t we the gossiping hens.”

  We turned to see John walking toward us, grinning as he held his goblet close.

  Brigita lowered her tray and curtsied to all of us before quickly exiting the room.

  “It seems I may have interrupted a quite profound discussion with the queen and your handmaiden,” he said, taking a sip of wine.

  I smiled and looked to a now nervous Eliza. “No. No, in fact we were discussing the wedding anniversary for the King and Queen. The banquet shall take place within a few weeks or so, correct?”

  She gradually nodded. “Yes. Although we must find time to finalize the details.”

  “Of?” asked Norvack, approaching. I casually handed him the goblet of wine and he soured before taking it. He looked down inside and puckered his brows a bit, then took a small sip.

  “We were discussing your parent’s anniversary,” I said.

  Belarus approached with a cheerful Esme at his side, and Eliza handed him his goblet. He took a large gulp of wine, no questions asked. Norvack still appeared curious, despite drinking.

  “Ah, yes!” the king stated enthusiastically, which seemed odd, considering. “The banquet shall take place on the very same day in which we married. On the twenty-ninth of January.”

  The queen grimaced, and appeared to be remembering something. Then she took in a breath and smiled. “I’m so grateful you have managed to recall that day with such ease,” she told him. “What memories we have shared together all of these years.”

  “Yes, well…” As the servants entered, Belarus’ attention was turned elsewhere. “Dinner!”

  He headed for the table without looking back and for a moment, I could see the light dimming from Eliza’s eyes.

  I leaned into Norvack and spoke softly. “The twenty-ninth? I was certain it was much sooner than that?”

  “It was. The twenty-ninth of January is the anniversary in which he met Willem’s mother, two years before. Not mine.”

  “Gather around,” said the queen, making her way over to the elegantly decorated table.

  She and the king sat at their respective ends, as Esme and John were placed alongside one another. He pulled the chair for her and she looked into his eyes with much hope and desire. All I could manage to do was suppress my displeasure and rattle my head.

  I headed for the table, but Norvack softly clutched my arm.

  “The wine,” he started, looking down into the goblet once more. “Why did you serve it to me?”

  I feigned perplexity and laughed a little. “You’re my husband. And I did not wish to stand out from Esme and the queen on tonight of all nights. You understand.”

  “I don’t believe I do, but I am certain I will soon. Shall we?”

  I squint as he attempted to evaluate my face and read between whatever lines I had drawn.

  I nodded to him and curtsied. “We shall.”

  As the king and John laughed with one another throughout the hour, both eating heartily on the poultry and bread served, Esme continued to take sips of wine while glaring at me at the same time. The queen stared off into the distance and Norvack seemed to ignore us all.

  John suddenly broke away from conversation with Belarus and tapped the table with his knife, demanding our attention.

  “A toast!” he said, rising from his chair.

  His balance seemed to wobble a bit, as if he had had more wine to drink, instead of only a single goblet. I became a bit concerned as it didn’t seem to coincide with the serum given.

  “To such wonderful hosts,” he continued. “Kin
g Belarus. Queen Eliza” -- he bowed to both -- “I…” He stopped to clear his throat and loosen his collar. And then he drank the remainder of his wine and bellowed. “Perhaps I should opt for water now instead!”

  The king and Esme laughed heartily. Norvack appeared befuddled at his behavior.

  I noticed from the corner of my eye that the queen began staring at me, but I kept my eyes on John as he seemed to become a bit erratic, and began sweating profusely. Water dripped from his face to his clothes and napkin.

  “The freezing weather seems to be turning rather swiftly,” he said with a slight chuckle. “It feels more like summer instead of winter. Is anyone else beginning to feel as such?”

  He blinked a few times and unconsciously dropped his goblet to the table. It tipped over and rolled toward the edge near Eliza. She managed to stop it with the tips of her fingers before it could hit the floor. She lifted the rim to her nose and sniffed it a little, presumably making sure any residue of the serum would in fact not be found as Brigita had stated. Norvack noticed his mother’s actions and looked over at me, but remained silent.

  “Are you alright, John?” she asked.

  “I don’t know.” He chuckled again and blinked even harder this time. “I feel a bit of a chill coming on, and quite dizzy as well. My eyesight is… it seems my appetite may be getting the best of me.”

  Esme stood up beside him and placed her hands on his face. “My God, you’re as frozen as an icicle.”

  The king called for his men, but John raised a hand. “I’m alright,” he said. “Just a bit too much wine, I suppose.”

  “A single goblet of wine would not force your bones to feel like ice beneath your skin!” she screeched. “Call for your men once more, king! Please!”

  John looked into my eyes for a split second and then grabbed his head, which began to throb uncontrollably. He became pale, his eyes watered as if he were in tears, and as he turned from the table, he vomited on the floor behind him. The queen jumped up and ran over to me. Before I could speak a single word, she reached for my hand and yanked me out of my chair to stand aside her. Chaos erupted rather quickly as John fell to the floor. The king hollered for his men once more and rushed to his side. Norvack got up from his chair and greeted one of the men at the door, ordering for the physician to be brought to the palace as soon as possible.