How To Tame An Empress (BOOK I)

Chapter 37 - What Absence Leaves Behind

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I had not slept. The realisation came to me only when the servant entered my study carrying a fresh tray of food and quietly removed the untouched one from yesterday. I could only stare at the movement without truly seeing it.

How many days has it been now?

Five. Five days since I returned from war only to find that my wife and son had disappeared. Five days since I realised that she picked the dangers of the world over my love for her. And five days since Claude left to go find her.

"Imperator. Perhaps you should eat something?" Julius spoke from a few feet away. I spared him a glance, but said nothing in response before returning to reading the scrolls at hand.

I am not the kind of man that wastes time on hesitation. Yet in this rare instance, I did not know what to do with this man who has so blatantly betrayed me. He was not only the trusted leader of my praetorian guard nor was he simply my brother-in-law, but I would go so far as to have considered him a friend.

"You have gone so far as to betray me by aiding the escape of my wife, why not go a step further by killing me? Though you may as well have accomplished that if Valeria succeeds in her escape." I smiled dryly at the man to which he could not respond quickly enough.

The war was over. The threat has been dealt with, and my people are now safe. I would usually celebrate, but there was nothing I could find worth celebrating this time. My wife and child are gone, and one of my most trusted men has betrayed me. I have never felt so miserable.

"I am aware that I have committed an unforgivable crime, and so I am awaiting your punishment, imperator... But please, remember that to me, she was not just an Empress. She was my sister. And you..." He hesitated, wondering if he should speak his next words aloud.

"...You are an Emperor fit for the throne. I have seen what you have accomplished in mere years what your predecessors could not do in their lifetimes; that is why I swore my loyalty to you... But as a husband, you are..." He could not bring himself to say anything more, but he did not need to, I understood enough.

Julius was usually a gentle man that believed in peace and mercy over cruelty; I often looked to him for guidance when I felt that I would not be able to make a justified decision. Who knew that my greatest ally could have become the one to take everything from me?

"And that is precisely the reason why I am not punishing you... Ria is already upset with me, and hurting you in any way, shape or form would only make it worse." I looked at him then, the dry smile from my lips falling to reveal a frown. "Be thankful to her. Any other man in your place would have had his head rolling long before he could even think to plead mercy."

His only response was that of his head falling in resignation, and not wasting another moment, I rolled up the scroll I had been reading before shifting my attention to the map which sat sprawled across the table near me.

Every road leading from the capital had been marked. Every village. Every inn. Every river crossing. I had ordered men to search all of them, but found nothing. It was as though Valeria had simply vanished from the world. And with her, Evander.

My jaw tightened at the mere thought. Valeria was many things, but she was not invisible; someone must have seen her, someone is bound to know something. At least, I kept chanting that to myself like a mantra, hoping that soon enough, it would be true.

A sharp knock interrupted my thoughts as I looked up, watching as the guard pulled open the door to reveal a familiar figure standing there. Claude, he's finally returned after nearly a week since I sent him to find Ria.