The Royal Romance - You Can't Uneat The Apple

Runnin' (Lose it all)

These four lonely walls have changed the way I feel
The way I feel
I'm standing still
And nothing else matters now, you're not here
So where are you?
I've been callin' you
I'm missin' you

                                      - Naughty Boy - Runnin' (Lose It All)

Chapter contains strong language. Trigger warning for mentions of sexual assault and suicidal thoughts. 

***

By now, Jen had lost track of the days since Rick had forced himself upon her. Maybe five, or six now? The good thing was, she hadn't seen him since. But this morning, of all mornings, she'd been summoned to see him.

Ray, who was currently accompanying her through the palace corridors to the interview room Rick had chosen for their meeting, had been her rock over the last few days. He'd been careful to ensure that Jen and her husband didn't have to come into contact, and she was grateful for that care.

Jen had mainly kept to one of the palace's guest suites over the last few days; she'd decided to move to a different one after the attack, for obvious reasons. She had soon set up a makeshift nursery in it for Bella, and she'd arranged for their meals were delivered there too. She had only left the suite to take Bella for walks in the palace grounds; the hot summer sun meant they couldn't spend too long out there at any one time, but Bella liked to play outside and see the flowers and breathe in the fresh air, and Jen was at her most content when they were outside the palace.

Although she felt less like a prisoner than she had initially, she knew there was no chance of her guards letting her leave the palace, or get any sort of message to Maxwell, so she had to take each day as it came. She'd just got on with being the best mommy she could be for Bella, putting everything else to one side; if she really was going to lose her little girl later today, she wanted to be able to say she'd given her all the love that she could.

The most upsetting thing about the last few days had been the fact that Rick hadn't asked to see Bella once. And Jen was under strict instructions now to come without Bella.

They arrived at the door of the interview room, and Ray paused. "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "I can handle him."

Ray seemed satisfied with that, and the two of them made their way into the room, where Rick and Bastien sat on the other side of the table, facing them.

"Could you give us some privacy, please?" Rick asked, glancing first at Bastien, then Ray.

Bastien got up and left the interview room, but Ray lingered, glaring at Rick.

"It's okay, Ray," Jen reassured him.

"I'll be right outside," Ray warned, and followed Bastien out. Once the door closed, Rick stood up, and came to sit next to Jen. She felt her body tense up, and mentally made an effort to relax her posture. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing he was getting to her.

"My queen, I have news. I recently travelled to Auvernal, where I was granted an audience with the former Duke of Karlington."

She gasped, having not expected this development. "Oh. And what did he have to say? Did you learn anything useful?"

"I did indeed." He looked straight ahead, his expression tired, strained, desperate. He appeared to have lost weight over the last week. "Godfrey confirmed that Barthelemy was his co-conspirator in my mother's assassination, as we had come to suspect. He procured the chemicals, the goblet, and planned the occasion. Godfrey might have been the one who pulled the metaphorical trigger by presenting my mother with the tainted goblet, but Barthelemy effectively loaded the gun."