The Cursed Prince's Strange Bride

Three pairs of eyes looked at the older man, waiting for him to answer. Williams had been referring to the incident his mother had told him about. The one involving the late king's family. So what was their father talking about?

"I was referring to the same person. The king's brother was also the first prince," Williams' father said, sounding a bit flustered before turning his harsh gaze at the three of them. "Stay out of this!" He warned them.

Williams and Susan exchanged a look, obviously not buying it. But that was not the main issue now.

"Father, we understand that the Queen is your sister and you don't want to get involved in this, but we really have to do this. We need to find the person behind it," Williams said calmly, but Susan was done with being calm.

"You can choose to support the queen. But we won't stand back like you did and let them kill our friend—"

"YOU---!" Their father exclaimed in disbelief as he looked at Susan with wide eyes.

"How dare you talk to your father like that?!" Their mother shrieked angrily, going to stand in front of Susan, but Williams pulled her behind him.

"That is the truth. How long are you going to sit on the fence for?" Susan asked and Williams turned to glare at her, but she didn't stop.

"Everything is pointing to the fact that someone else is behind it. I am sure you know that too! Isn't it suspicious that the kitchen maid who testified against Princess Amber is dead?" Susan added, and their mother's eyes widened again.

"The maid is dead? Where did you hear that?" Their father asked since he was yet to hear of it until now.

Susan gave him a nod. "I heard it from someone reliable. Her body was found in the village river. We know that you don't approve of our friendship with Princess Amber because of the Queen, but even Tyra, who is the queen's daughter, is friends with her. And I know that Princess Amber would have done the same for me if I was in this situation," Susan said, and their parents exchanged a look.

Seeing how far they had gone in this made their parents worry.

Even though they were worried and didn't support their decision, they knew that there was nothing they were going to say or do to change their children's minds, especially now that sending them away from the palace was out of the option.

********

Harold looked at Alvin, who was waiting for him to tell him the secret he was hiding about Princess Amber, without saying a word. What was he supposed to say to him? Where was he supposed to start from? That she was from the future? Or that she was from a line of witches? And they didn't know where the real Amber's soul was? It was too complicated, and this was not the time for that.

Harold headed for the door. "I want to see Tyra,"

Although Alvin was disappointed that Harold wasn't telling him anything yet again, he pushed that thought aside. Harold had said he would tell him, and if he wasn't saying it now, it meant that this was not the right time. They had more pressing issues to take care of.

"Your highness," Alvin called in a tone that told Harold that he was about to receive advice he wouldn't like.

Harold paused and looked at him as he waited for him to speak. As much as he liked doing as he pleased, he valued and trusted Alvin's counsel.

"It's late already. I think you should rest for tonight and stay with her instead," Alvin advised.

"You can meet Princess Tyra at dawn. And I will make sure no one leaves this palace tonight. You should stay with her," he said, looking at the bed where Alicia was sleeping. She seemed to be a lot more comfortable now compared to earlier.

Harold glanced at her. He also didn't want to leave her for even a second. After pondering it for a minute, he gave Alvin a nod as he returned to the bedside.

He could always attend to other matters tomorrow. For now, he had to stay with her. He also felt tired. He had never used so much energy before in his entire life. Just like everyone else, he had no idea what had happened to him earlier either. But one thing he knew for sure was that it had something to do with Alicia.

So with Alvin gone, he climbed into bed with her, hugging her as she slept in his arms. He tried not to hold her tight because she seemed to be in pain everywhere.

"Harold?" She called, surprising him.

"Are you awake?" He asked softly as he tried to look at her face, but it seemed like she was still sleeping.

When he was about to give up, she called his name again, as though trying to be certain he was still there.

"I'm here," he assured her when she said his name a second time.

"Thank you," she said before falling into a deep sleep.

He was exhausted, but he could not sleep. Why would he? He had been sleeping for the past few days, and also, he had a lot on his mind. He wasn't only thinking about what had happened to them all, but something entirely different. How had she been able to get into his head?

He knew she was from a line of witches, but he hadn't had a personal encounter with one before her. So he wasn't sure how much of their abilities would come as a surprise to him or his kind. But that had surprised him.

With her in his arms, he tried to test out what he had done before. To get into someone's head. If this could work out, then he was a lot closer to catching the real culprit. But then again, what if Alicia had truly done it?

"It... wasn't me," Alicia said in her sleep, causing him to look down at her in surprise.