Court Of Shadows and Lies

40. A Secret in the Womb

"Cessalie, behave!" my father’s booming voice rang behind me, but I didn’t care. Not this time.

High Lunarch, on the other hand, seemed entirely unbothered, as if none of the chaos affected him in the slightest. His smile widened, and he casually placed his hand behind his head, leaning in closer to me.

"Do you want to slap me, Lady Cessalie?" he asked, his tone playful, mocking even.

I clenched my fists, my body trembling with the urge to strike him. "You don’t know how much," I hissed, standing just inches away from him, refusing to back down.

The room had fallen into a thick silence, all eyes on us, but none of it mattered. All I saw was the prince’s infuriatingly smug face, daring me to take the next step.

"Cessalie, you're getting too insolent," Cyrion warned, his voice sharp with barely-contained anger.

Tiberius, however, lifted his hand casually, as if he was deflecting Cyrion’s disapproval with ease. "It’s okay, Duke Cyrion," he said, a teasing smile spreading across his lips. "Women like Lady Cessalie remind me that this world can be female-dominated too." His words dripped with playful provocation, clearly enjoying the tension.

Cyrion remained silent, his eyes dark with frustration, but his fists clenched on the table, a telltale sign of his brewing rage.

I refused to back down. "Why did you lie that I’m pregnant, huh? How can you decide something like that?" My voice was firm, my anger rising, but I knew it wasn’t enough to sway him easily.

Tiberius' smile didn’t falter. "I didn’t lie," he replied smoothly, his tone as infuriating as his calm demeanor.

I could hear Meliora scoffing from her seat, a smug sound that only fueled the fire within me. The heat of humiliation rushed to my face, my teeth grinding together as I struggled to maintain composure.

"Do you know you’re playing with my reputation, High Lunarch!?" I spat the words out, my patience thinning.

"I know, Lady Cessalie. I wouldn’t dare ruin the image of a lady." His eyes twinkled with a hint of something unreadable. "But I didn’t tell everything last night."

I narrowed my eyes at him, confused but unwilling to show it.

"I wanted you to wake up first." He said the words casually as if they explained everything, then walked toward the dining table with a swagger in his step. Without so much as a glance toward Cyrion, he seated himself in his chair, the ultimate display of arrogance. He picked up Cyrion's fork, calmly taking a bite of the meat from his plate.

"Let’s start, shall we?" Tiberius' voice was light, almost cheerful, as if he were hosting a casual meal with friends rather than facing the storm of tension in the room.

Cyrion’s jaw tightened, his fists clenched so hard his knuckles turned white, but he said nothing. He moved to sit across from Tiberius. two of them locking eyes in a silent battle of wills.

Everyone else watched, waiting for the next move, while I stood there, heart pounding in my chest, wondering what game he was playing at.

Rylan soon took his seat, the tension still thick in the air, and on Tiberius' command, an extra chair was brought for Serene. He sat beside me, and though the room was filled with prying eyes, Evalise’s, in particular, lingered on Serene’s face. I ignored her, focusing on the small comfort of Serene’s hand slipping into mine under the table, making the chaos around me feel a bit more bearable.

Tiberius began, his voice slicing through the heavy silence, "It's not a lie that Lady Cessalie is pregnant. But there's a twist."

Cyrion’s eyes sharpened, his voice low and demanding, "What twist?"