by Leslie North
“Zara mentioned that when they moved to Quabeca, her mother was pregnant with her sister, but never mentioned any of this.”
“Well, she was young. She might not have known about it or maybe she blocked the memory. It was not a particularly wealthy kingdom. Some land and horses.”
At the mention of horses, the King smiled. Zara had talked about riding as a child. But for her to be a princess? This was too good to be true, as it would make the battle to come much easier. The King remembered Zara’s mother telling him that Zara was important. Maybe this is what she meant. “Are you certain?”
“As I said, waiting on final confirmation, but so far, yes, I’m sure I’m right. Now…the bad news.” Taking a deep breath, the King nodded for him to proceed. “As you know, your dessert tested positive for opiates. We had to be careful as we didn’t want to draw suspicion, but we think we know who did it.”
As the King sat forward in his chair, James took a deep breath. “As you know, we did a thorough search of the entire palace, as well as fresh background checks on everyone.”
“And?”
Taking a deep breath, “Does Lady Tiana know of your allergy?”
“I’ve never had reason to speak of it with her,” the King replied. He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, unsure what else to say. “Are you sure?”
“If it isn’t her, then perhaps it was one of her retinue, but we found a small mortar and pestle, which still had trace poppy elements in it in a small box in her dressing room. And as you know, attempted regicide carries a penalty of death.”
Sighing heavily, “This I know. But are we sure that it was intentional?”
“Well, there’s more, your Majesty,” James said. “Do you know what Rohypnol is?” As the King shook his head no, James sighed. “It has many nicknames, but the one you might know is ‘roofies’.”
The King was too speechless to respond. Taking a deep breath, “And this was in my system too?”
Shaking his head no, James added, “You would have had to consume it within seventy-two hours for us to know for sure; it tends to leave your system fairly fast.”
Speaking slowly, “But you found some? In the palace?”
Nodding grimly, “Yes, your Majesty.”
“Where?”
“The queen’s quarters.”
“What? How could this be?”
“If I were to guess, I would say that your women are tired of waiting on you and have decided to take matters into their own hands. It’s not as if they can get pregnant by osmosis. Your refusal to consummate either relationship seems to have taken its toll on both women.”
“I don’t love them.” Sighing deeply, “It seems as if I’m a major contributor to all this unhappiness and it’s time I did something about it. I’m going to need your help, my friend.”
“Anything, your Majesty, but whatever you do, I would suggest that we proceed with caution.” Nodding, the King waved his friend out, as he sat back in his chair.
His mind was awhirl as he contemplated the news. He had to admit that he hadn’t really considered either of their feelings in all this. His reasons for marrying Amira and bringing Tiana in as his mistress were purely political. And while producing an heir was considered the next step, the King simply wasn’t interested in having children with either woman. He could almost understand their willingness to take such drastic measures, but not at the risk to anyone’s life. Changes would have to be made and soon. Turning his mind away, he thought of Zara. A princess. While she didn’t come with any dowry, her title alone would be sufficient to stop the gossip that was bound to ensue in the coming days and weeks. And after watching her with her mother and little sister, he couldn’t help but imagine how beautiful she would look pregnant with his child; she would make an excellent mother.
Oo00oO
Alma went to the King's office. She gave him a deep bow before she spoke. She told him that everything was done. She had finished the preparations. The King thanked her and told her to carry out his last instruction.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” she asked him.
“I am.”
“You know that this will unleash war in the palace.”
“I am aware.”
Alma nodded. She bowed her head and left his office. The King knew it was going to be trouble, but given the recent turn of events, he knew that now was the best time to act
Oo00oO
Zara walked into the palace doe-eyed. Alma had shown up on her doorstep and asked her to return to the palace with her. She told her that it was the King's command. As Zara walked into the palace, the maids were looking at her. Some of them were from the laundry and remembered her being fired by the queen. The others had heard about her through gossip. Zara felt uncomfortable with all the stares.
Alma led Zara into a large and beautifully decorated suite. There were three maids waiting in the living room. Alma turned to Zara, “These will be your quarters,” she said to her. Zara's eye flew open.
“What?” Zara was not sure she had heard her correctly.
“The King had these quarters especially prepared for you. Those will be your personal maids; they will serve you and provide you with anything you may need.”
“What is happening? Why do I have maids and my own quarters?”
“The King will dine with you tonight and he will explain everything.” Alma bowed her head and left. Zara looked at her new maids. They bowed their heads to her.
“I am Maria, this is Sabrina and Farrah. Please let us know if you need anything.” Zara nodded absently as she began to wander around.
The place was large. She could easily fit the home she shared with her mother and sister and still have plenty of room. The bedroom was spacious and decorated in the same colour scheme as the living room. The bathroom was heavenly. The shower was big enough to fit ten people, the tub was similarly large and the sinks were white with gold inlay. The walk-in closet was already filled with clothes, shoes, bags, coats, accessories and jewellery. There was a door in her bedroom leading to a balcony with a beautiful view. The whole place was beyond her imagination.
Rumours of Zara's return flooded the palace within the hour. The queen dropped her glass when she heard. Her body became paralysed with shock and anger. Why had he brought her back? The King clearly had a cruel sense of humour. The queen was fuming.
“Find out where she is and why he brought her back,” the queen ordered.
“Yes, your highness,” the queen's head maid, Dina, nodded before she left the queen's quarters to find out what was going on.
The King went straight to see Zara after he was done in his office. He practically rushed over to her. Her maids bowed their heads to him as he entered. He asked where Zara was. Maria quickly left to summon Zara from her bedroom. The two of them reappeared moments later. The King smiled when he saw her and gestured for her to come to him.
“Your Majesty,” she said as she approached him. He took her hands in his and kissed her on both cheeks.
“How are you, habibti?” the King asked. Zara felt warmness fill up inside her when she heard the word habibti. She couldn't help but blush.
“I'm confused, why am I here?”
“I wanted you here, by my side,” the King ran his hand through her hair.
Zara blushed even more. He wanted her there; he wanted her by his side. His words sent ripples of warmness and butterflies around her body. She squeezed his hands tighter and asked about Tiana and Amira. Surely, they were not going to take it kindly. She did not want to cause any trouble.
“Do not worry about them, it will all be sorted out soon enough,” the King said to her and kissed her forehead. “Now come, let us eat.”
Zara followed him to the dining room. Zara had been too preoccupied with what was going on that she hadn't realised that she was hungry and the food looked so delicious and tempting. She picked up her cutlery and dug into her meal. She had a burning question that she had to ask the King.
“Yes, and anything else you desire.”
I desire only you, she thought. Zara looked at him with a face full of questions. She was still not grasping the situation. She needed more information.
“I can only protect you if you are close to me,” he said, but that was not the real reason for him having her move into the palace. He wanted, needed her to be there. He needed to see her, touch her, talk to her every day. “Do not worry about your family, they have been taken care of,” he added.
The King had seen that her family was moved into a bigger house closer to the palace. The house was already furnished and there were servants to see to their needs. Her mother was to receive the best care from the best doctors while Ruby had the opportunity for a better education. The King had made sure that they had everything they could need.
“This is all too much,” Zara protested.
“It's not enough. You deserve more, princess.”
“I don't.”
“Ruby does,” the King joked. Zara burst out laughing.
“Yeah, she would definitely love to be spoiled,” she said. Ruby loved the King and everything royal. She would definitely be happy and excited. “Wait, what did you call me?”
The King eyed her over the table. “What do you remember before moving to Quabeca?”
Zara eyed him suspiciously. “I remember mountains. Lots of hills. We had a big house. And there were always horses.”
“And your father?”
Zara shrugged, “He really wasn’t around much. The only thing I really remember was riding with him. Your Majesty, what is this about?”
“Do you remember your mother telling me that you are important?”
“Well, yes, but she’s my mum, why wouldn’t she say that?”
“Has she not spoken to you about your father?”
“No, why would she? What are you getting at?” Zara couldn’t figure out where this line of questioning was going.
Taking her hand, the King looked her in the eye. “Zara, we ran a background check on you.” He raised his hand as she was about to interrupt. “Let me finish.” At her nod, he continued. “After the incident, we ran background checks on everyone here. You weren’t singled out. But. Are you familiar with a very small country called el-Quaseem?” As Zara shook her head no, the King continued. “Well it doesn’t exist anymore. About twelve years ago, there was a coup in the country and the King was brutally murdered. The queen and princess disappeared and were never heard from again. Turmoil continued for years before the country was absorbed by a much larger one.”
As Zara continued to stare at him, he watched her eyes grow wide as she realized what he was telling her. Squeezing her hand, “Yes, Zara, you are that princess. From reports we were able to find, you and your mother were smuggled out by those close to the family and never heard from again.”
“Until now,” Zara responded slowly.
“Yes.”
Zara started to laugh. At the King’s quizzical look, she tried to calm down, but continued to snort. “I’m sorry, your Majesty. This is all too much to take in. Does Ruby know yet? She will be overjoyed. A princess!” The King joined her as she laughed.
Oo00oO
“My lady, please calm down,” Miriam said to Tiana. Tiana was breaking things in her quarters after finding out that Zara was back in the palace.
“He gave her new quarters!” Tiana screamed as she picked up a vase. She smashed it against the wall. Miriam gasped, she had never seen her so angry. Tiana was practically shaking with anger. “That bitch!” she shouted.
“Please, calm down, we will figure it out.”
“Wait until I get my hands on her.”
Tiana had warned Zara to stay away from the King and she clearly did not listen. She was going to drag her out of the palace by her hair. She could not wait to get her hands on her. Tiana felt disrespected as her anger continued to boil over. She always feared that the King would take another mistress and it seemed like it was happening. She was going to do everything she could to stop it.
Chapter 13
The next morning, James walked into Tiana’s quarters followed by two of the King’s trusted guard. She was getting ready to go see Zara and she frowned when she saw him. “I have matters to attend to,” she said to him. She did not want to speak with him at that moment.
“That will have to wait, my lady,” James said to her. She frowned even more. She knew he was close to the King, so he must have been sent by him.
“What is the meaning of this? Speak quickly.”
“It is a delicate matter, we must sit down.”
“James, spit it out!” She was growing impatient.
“I’m to inform you that the King has elected to terminate your relationship. You will be expected to pack some belongings and the rest will be sent to you at a later date.”
Tiana almost blacked out. She was not sure she had heard him right. She looked to Miriam. Her maid stood there wide-eyed with her jaw open. Tiana held her stomach and stumbled backwards. James caught her. She pushed him away. “You're lying!” she shouted at him.
“My lady, I speak the truth.”
“Why would he? No, I don't believe you. Get out, GET OUT!”
James bowed his head. “I will give you some time to get yourself together,” and left her quarters. He had already known that she was not going to take it well. However, the queen was going to be harder. It was not hard to remove a mistress but divorce a queen? Her people were going to protest. She was from a powerful family. However, the King was adamant. While the recent turn of events was cause for great concern, the King did not wish to see any of these events made public if it could be avoided. He simply wanted them gone from his life.
The queen slapped James when he told her the news. “How dare you say such words to me!” the queen screamed. His words were not true, they could not be. There was no way the King was going to dethrone her.
“My apologies, your highness, but this is the King's wish,” James said.
“Then let him come here and tell me himself.”
“In due time, he will come and speak to you but he sent me to break the news. You should start making preparations to leave the palace.”
The queen laughed sardonically. “Your impudence knows no bounds.”
“My apologies, your highness.”
“Is it because of that bitch? He will really divorce me for a mere maid?”
“His Majesty’s decision has nothing to do with Miss Zara.” James bowed his head and left her quarters. The queen watched him leave. She flipped the table over as soon as James left causing her maids to gasp. No one had ever seen the queen that angry. She was furious. She left her quarters immediately and went to find Zara.
When the queen finally got to her quarters, Tiana was in there waiting in the living room. Zara emerged and her eyes widened when she saw the queen. Maria had told her that Tiana had come to see her but had said nothing about the queen.
“Your highnesses,” Zara said and bowed her head.
“And she's smug,” Tiana said. She walked toward Zara and tried to slap her but Zara ducked the slap and took a step back. She was not going to be slapped around by either one of these women any longer.
“What may I help you with?”
“Stupid bitch! So you've grown smug and over confident because you have his Majesty's favour.” Tiana's tone was filled with disgust and hate.
“She does think she is special now,” the queen said and approached them. The two women loomed over Zara.
“I only wish there to be peace,” Zara said.
“Peace?” Tiana laughed sardonically. There was no peace here.
“Yes, I understand my presence is an uncomfortable imposition. However, it is the King you need to speak with, not me.”
“You need to leave the palace whilst we are asking nicely,” the queen said.
“I am sorry but I cannot do that. The
King brought me here, only he can ask me to leave.” Zara summed up as much courage as she could.
“Insolent bitch,” the queen said and slapped her. “LEAVE NOW!” she shouted.
“You would have to drag me,” Zara said.
“That can be arranged,” Tiana said. Miriam grabbed Zara's arm. Maria and Zara's other maids looked at each other. They felt helpless. There was nothing they could do to the queen or his mistress.
“His Majesty will not be pleased,” Maria said. Her voice was shaking. Tiana raised her eyebrows and looked at her. She quickly bowed her head. Tiana grabbed Zara's other arm and the queen slapped her. They threw her to the floor. Zara winced in pain as her back hit the edge of the table.