A Crowned King (Complete)

Chapter 10

Dana Proof strode through the halls of her family home, her boots clicking on the fine marble of the floors. She held her head high as be fit one of the Legion ranks. She had many aspirations, but she doubted that her mother would like them. If they didn't have anything to do with ruling and improving the family name of Proof Serana Proof didn't want to hear about it. That was how she was, how her mother had been, and how her mother had been before her.

Dana couldn't blame her family for their obsession though. It was written down in their histories that the Proof family was descended from a bastard girl born from a noble man and a whore. When the highborn noble had refused to acknowledge his daughter as his the whore mother had decided to get her revenge. Sneaking into the noble's house with stilleto in hand she moved from one room to another cutting the throats of each and every member of the noble family. No one was spared, not even the trueborn children of the noble.

After that the whore had stolen money from the coffers and bought herself noble status. From there she married a weak willed noble who owned a vineyard. Instead of her taking his name though she convinced him to take their invented surname: Proof. He would be ruled by her, all the decisions falling to her hand and word. Even his business fell to her thumb and she kept him in their home to care for it. She then trained her daughter to do the same, to manipulate and use men for the only thing they were good for: reproduction and money.

Over the generations other Proofs had done the same. Even the boys who had been born to their line were taught that they were there to service. They would never rule and thus were never named heirs to the noble family. Serana was the ideal Proof Matriarch, but her daughter not so much.

Dana didn't care much for ruling the family despite being the eldest and thus the heir. As a matter of fact she wanted nothing to do with it. She was one of two children and her mother's only other child was her elder brother, David.

David was no weakling like many of the males of their line though. He was quite different. He had left at the age of fifteen and wasn't seen again for five years. Then he returned with armor and weapons. When questioned by his mother he informed her that he was serving in a small Mercenary Company called the Stormlords.

Serana was unhappy with that, but being that there was no law against him living his own life and his being very willful and stubborn, there was nothing the Matriarch could do to stop him. Dana could only smile at the thought. It wasn't very often that her mother was thwarted in any way and it had to rub her wrong that a mere male had done so.

It was because of her brother that Dana understood and respected men. If it weren't for him and being so close in age she might've been just like her mother and other women in her family. She thanked Magnus every day for her brother and the love that she bore for him was equaled to no one else. And he loved her too as a big brother would his younger sister.

Dana held her helm under her arm as she walked the halls, insistent on reaching her mother. Her mother had called on her in the barracks and after getting leave from her commander she'd left to come to the estate. There was little doubt in her mind that no matter how swiftly she had come it wouldn't be fast enough for her mother. She always treated her daughter like an unruly child despite her being a grown woman.

The Soldier stepped into the far hallway that would lead hwr to her mother's office. As she walked she passed by several members of the family, but not a single one of them spoke to her. The males didn't speak because they were weak and timid; the women didn't speak out of fear. They knew her and knew that the daughter of Serana could cut any one of them down if that was what she chose. They had no cause for worry though. Despite rumors about her ill temper she was no kinslayer.