The Cursed Prince's Strange Bride

"What are you doing here?" The Queen asked with displeasure when she walked into her chamber and saw Ivan standing by the window.

"Isn't it obvious? I was waiting for you," Ivan said as he looked at his mother.

"What for?" She asked, sounding annoyed. She was still reeling from the disappointment of her aborted plan to kill Princess Amber, as well as Tyra's inability to remember what happened.

"Mother, are you hiding something from me?" Ivan asked, and the Queen raised an eyebrow.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"How could you not inform me that Tyra was awake? How could you go in there to see her without me?" Ivan asked, still feeling pissed that he had heard of this from Benedicta.

He felt insulted that everyone else around the palace had known that Tyra was awake and he had been the last person to know.

"How could I go to her chamber without you? Are you my eyes or legs? Why can't I visit my daughter without you? Since when did I need your permission to visit her?"

"That is not what I mean. I'm just trying to say you should have asked someone to inform me. Do you know how I felt hearing about it from someone else?" Ivan asked, and the queen scoffed.

"Your feelings are the least of my problems right now. And just so you know, you were not on my mind when I heard that your sister had regained consciousness. Perhaps if you hadn't run off so cowardly, you would have found out for yourself that she is awake," the Queen said with disapproval.

Ivan eyed his mother for a while, not impressed by the way she was speaking to him so disrespectfully. Even though she was a queen and his mother, she seemed to be forgetting that she was a woman and needed to accord him more respect.

He decided to not pursue the subject since he needed her right now to get what he wanted. After he was king he was going to have to put her in her place and make her understand that queen or not, she was still just a woman.

"What did you discuss with Damon?" Ivan asked, and the queen looked at him incredulously.

"If I wanted you to know about that, would I have asked you to excuse us?" She asked, feeling irritated by his stupid questions.

She wished now, more than ever that she had another son. If only that evil Harold had not killed her first son, she wouldn't have been forced to deal with a senseless son like Ivan. She often found herself wishing that it was Ivan who had died and not her first son.

She reminded herself that now was not the time to cry over spilled milk. She needed to come up with an alternative plan, she thought with a sigh as she turned her back to him and walked over to stand by the window.

Once again, Ivan tried to calm himself and not let her words upset him. "What are we going to do about Princess Amber now?" Ivan asked, and the Queen turned to look at him.

"What about the people you sent to enquire about Princess Amber? Have you heard from them?" She asked without answering his question, and Ivan shook his head.

"Not yet. We should hear from them in two or three days," Ivan said, and the Queen sighed once again.

What were the chances that Harold wouldn't regain consciousness and be out of bed before then? They would lose the opportunity to rid Harold of his bride the moment he awoke, not to mention the need to find the person behind everything and hand them over to Harold, or else he would believe they were behind it in the same way she was certain he believed they were behind the previous attack on his life.

"What about Harold? Is his guard still not letting anyone go close to his chamber?" The Queen asked, and Ivan gave her a nod.

"Although I noticed some of the king's top guards guarding the door," Ivan said, and the Queen pursed her lips.

"Does that mean his guard has finally left his side? I'm surprised that he hasn't done anything to help Harold's wife when just days ago he attacked you for her sake," the queen said thoughtfully.

"I will find out if he has left Harold's side. Maybe this is the chance we need to get rid of him once and for all."

******

Susan would not be called Susan if she didn't know how to do the impossible. She was the type that could sneak out of their residence under the watchful eyes of countless guards. She was the type that could sneak around the palace even after the last bell and also get into the dungeon. So getting into Tyra's chamber was not a big deal for her. She only needed to say a few words, glare or look at them sweetly before the guards stationed outside Tyra's chamber could risk their jobs and lives to let her inside.

As soon as Tyra saw her, she tried to sit up but cried in pain when the side of her stomach that had been stabbed began to hurt.

"You don't have to sit up," Susan said quietly and moved closer to help her adjust. She helped Tyra sit up and looked at her sadly when she noticed tears clouding Tyra's eyes.

Susan gently hugged her and began to pat her on her back. "You are going to be fine, don't worry." She assured Tyra, who began to sob in her arms.

Tyra sniffed and slowly pulled away to clean up her tears. Susan quickly used the other side of the handkerchief her brother had given her earlier to clean Tyra's tears.

"I heard you cannot remember what happened that night," Susan said in a hushed voice after looking at the door. Since the queen's guards were outside, she had to be careful about the things they said.