The World Cannot Know

Chapter 69

Matthew Wild

The royal chambers were a mess of ribbons, threads, and half-polished boots. Alice was hunched over a stack of fabric, muttering curses at a button that refused to stay sewn, while Elizabeth tried to wrangle the final adjustments to one of the ceremonial banners. Arney was doing his best to fold a doublet, which mostly meant crushing it into something vaguely square-shaped.

The scent of beeswax polish and ironed linen hung thick in the air, layered over the more permanent smells of stone and lavender. Every surface was covered—tunics draped over chairs, golden cords tangled with pearl pins, someone's cloak thrown haphazardly over the windowsill to air out. It was chaos with purpose, the kind that crackled with nervous energy.

But I couldn't focus on any of it.

Not the banners, not the press of silk against my hands, not even Alice's muttered threats to bodily harm the button that defied her. My mind was still in the city square, back with the crowd—those sneering mouths, those narrowed eyes, the bite of their suspicion like frost beneath my skin.

"You alright, Winny?" Arney asked without looking up, still attempting to square off the doublet like it owed him money.

I blinked. "Yeah. Fine."

Alice scoffed. "Liar. You've been chewing your lip so hard I'm surprised you've still got one."

Elizabeth stepped in, her tone gentler. "We heard what happened in the city. The shouting. The accusations."

Arney leaned back against the wall, arms crossed, the ever-present smudge of dust on his sleeve. "Once the people of Kinsley see what kind of man Sebastian really is, it'll settle. He doesn't hide. That counts for something."

"Exactly," Alice chimed in, finally triumphing over the rebellious button and snipping the thread with a sharp flick. "He won over Clive and his crew—and they were practically raised to hate the crown. Compared to that, the rest of this should be a piece of cake."

I didn't answer right away. The lump of dread in my chest hadn't moved since I stepped back inside the castle. No matter how much truth Sebastian and I stood in, it didn't erase the eyes that stared through us like we were something wrong.

"What if the crown doesn't survive this?" I asked, quieter than I meant to. "What if he doesn't?"

Silence.

Then Elizabeth, ever the calm tide, said, "Then he rebuilds it. You both do."

"You've been in hiding for years," Arney added. "Sebastian brought you home. And you brought him back to himself. That's not something the people can undo with a few insults and a scandal."

Alice smirked. "And if it gets that bad again, we've still got that goat cart from the escape plan. Bit drafty, but it'll do in a pinch."

I actually laughed at that, the kind that caught in my throat and pushed the fear back a few inches.

A knock sounded at the door.

"Lord Matthew?" a servant said, slipping in with a quick bow. "Her Majesty, the Queen, requests your presence. Alone."

The warmth in the room cooled like someone had opened a window to winter air.

Everyone looked at me.

"Want us to come with you and dramatically stand outside the door?" Arney asked, only half-joking.

"No," I said, rising, brushing down my sleeves even though they were spotless. "But save me a drink for after. Something strong."

"You got it," Alice said.