Chapter 65
Chapter 65
Having a newborn has not been easy to navigate but Ryker was by my side at all times and he made it
easier for me. He helped out at nights and didn’t mind watching Aurora when I had to attend meetings.
I had hoped that being a new mum would reduce my workload by a significant amount but I thought
wrong. I was busier than usual especially with Aurora’s naming.
Everyone knew her name but ording to custom, a ceremony was supposed to be held. Thest
thing I wanted to do was go in front of the entire pce and showcase my newborn but I found that I
had very little say in the matter. Ryker didn’t like it either so I knew I wasn’t overreacting.
“You’re the Queen,” Christine mused as she helped me get dressed for the day. “You don’t have to do
anything you don’t want to do.”
“I think we both know that’s a lie. I did everything possible to get out of this and you know it.”
She sighed deeply and ced aforting hand on my shoulder. “It’ll be over before you even realize
and then you can go on that long needed trip that Ryker has been nning.”
“Are you going to tell me where he is taking me?” I asked and she pretended to zip her mouth shut.
Ryker noticed how stressed I was and dered that after the naming, we were going on a trip as a
family. The elders were against it but I learned that Ryker did as he wished because he canceled all my
meetings and the trip was staying despite everyone’s protests.
A loud gurgle snapped me out of my thoughts and I rushed over to Aurora. Unlike Audrey, she was a
frolicky baby and it was very easy for her to go from gurgling to full blown tears within the span of a
second. I picked her up and she peered up at me with wide eyes that looked too intelligent for her age.
As I gazed at her, I couldn’t help but feel like something bad was going to happen.
“Is it toote to get out of this?” I asked aloud and Christine turned to me.
“Are you having second thoughts?” she asked and I shrugged. “Cami, what’s wrong?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I just don’t feel right-about this.”
“You’ll be fine. You have the best guards in the kingdom guarding you.”
Somehow, her words did little to calm me down but there was nothing I could do about it at the
moment.
I was led towards the doors of the same hall I did my coronation. Ryker was standing there waiting for
me and he gave me a soft smile as he saw me. He took Aurora from my hands and she made small
gurgling noises. He was a girl dad through and through and the girls adored him. Audrey was clinging
to his pants and trying to get his attention as he held Aurora.
He was the epitome of ease and I tried to convince myself that I was overreacting. If Ryker didn’t think
anything was wrong then I was probably overreacting. His eyes found mind and he instantly knew
something was wrong. He opened his mouth to ask but he was interrupted by one of the elders who
walked up to us and started talking about the order of the ceremony.
I zoned him out because I already knew what was to happen. We were to go in, the priest would bless
the child and dedicate them to the moon goddess and the ceremony would end with the child’s name. I
had the same ceremony with Audrey although it was a more private ceremony because I was still in
hiding at the time. As I watched Ryker listen with rapt
attention, I realized the information was more for his benefit.
Once the ceremony started, I zoned everything out and went through the motions on autopilot. Even
when I delivered Audrey, I didn’t want to be around people but somehow, it was worse now. I got easily
irritated and I didn’t know why. Ryker stayed close to me as if sensing my unease and I leaned on his
calm emotions because mine were haywire.
I held my breath when Aurora was blessed because although it was rare, there were two cases in
history where the goddess refused to bless the child. In the first instance, the first child died before
reaching the age of five and in the second, the child murdered their entire family. A candle was lit and a
prayer was offered. If the candle stayed lit then the child was blessed and if it went out, then the
blessing was denied.
The priest was about to light the candle when the door to the hall opened. Standing there was a guard I
had seen around but there was something off about him. His eyes were wide and he wasn’t moving. All
of a sudden, a knife protruded from his neck and he fell to the ground. My first instinct was to grab
Audrey and shield her from the violence but it was toote, she
had seen it.
Standing behind the dead guard was a man I had never seen before. He had dark brown hair almost
the same shade as mine but his
eyes were a deep ck, it was almost like he didn’t have irises. He crossed the threshold of the room
and made a show of wiping his blo ody knife on his pants.
“Sorry to intrude but it looks like my invitation got lost in the mail,” he smiled widely as he made his way
forward. The guards were quick to point their spears at him but he merely nced at it and turned to
face me. “I think you’re in my spot.”
“Excuse me?”
He straightened up and took a piece of paper from his pocket. He held out the paper and I began
forward to pick it but Ryker grabbed my arm in a firm grip. He shook his head and I remembered that I
wasn’t just Cami, I was the queen and I couldn’t make stu pid decisions. One of the guards took it
from him and brought it over to me. I hesitantly took it and unfolded the picture. I had seen enough of
my father’s handwriting to recognize it on sight. He kept a lot of journals but it wasn’t the handwriting
that caught my attention, it was the small photograph.
It was of my father and a young boy. The boy couldn’t have been more than three years old in the
picture and it was dated the year I was born. I nced up at the man in front of me and allowed the
picture flutter to the ground.
“What is that? It’s just a picture, it doesn’t mean anything.”
He smirked. “I think we both know what that means. My name is Frederick the second, I was named
after thete king. I am his son and rightful heir.”
“Anyone cane out and make a im,” I nced at his picture on the floor. “That means nothing to
me or anyone else
here.”
“I don’t think you want your father’s infidelities aired out in public, Cami,” he spoke my name like a
threat and Ryker growled and stepped in front of me. “I only came here out of respect for the title. You
have one week to vacate my throne before I make it my business. I will not hesitate to take my crown
back from you, Cami/
People were beginning to whisper and I knew I needed to do something to discredit him and fast. There
were too many simrities between him and my father and it was clear to the naked eye. Regardless of
that, I was not giving up the throne to a nobody, much less someone who killed a guard in cold blood.
“Even if you are the king’s son, you are a ba stard and I would rather die than have a ba stard sit on my
throne.”
His jaw clenched and the next thing I knew, there was a knife being hurled my way. Ryker pulled me
out of the way just in time and the knife embedded itself in the wall behind me. Frederick stood there
with a snarl on his face.
“One week, Cami.”.
The guards rushed to grab him but he was quick. He turned on his heels and disappeared. There was
silence in the hall as people fought to grasp what had happened. I was breathing heavily and I had so
many things running through my mind but the predominant one was that the priest didn’t light the
candle.
“Finish the ceremony,” I instructed him. I could see him shaking like a leaf but he did as I asked.
Ryker looked at me like I was crazy but I wanted the ceremony over. I let out a sigh of relief when the
me burned brighter and I didn’t wait for the announcement of Aurora’s name before I grabbed Audrey
and left the hall. I didn’t stop moving until I was safely behind the doors of my room.
Ryker and Christine were close behind and as soon as the door shut, Ryker handed Aurora to Christine
and rushed over to my side.
“Are you okay?” he asked and I nodded. “What happens now?”
“Now, we have one week to prepare before that ba stard does something crazy.”N?velDrama.Org holds this content.