Stalemate | A Rise To Power

𝘑𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘢

⋘ ──── ∗ ⋅ ◈ ⋅ ∗ ──── ⋙

It was late at night when Junia snuck out to find Lucrezia, Cloud following at her heels. Lady Lucrezia, King Filip's sister, had a guest chamber on the lower floors, lit by two sconces on either side of the door, and Junia reached a hand to knock, rapping at the solid wood.

There was the sound of scuffling before a weary Lucrezia answered the door. She was in her early thirties and plain-looking, bronze-skinned, with dark ringlets and brown eyes rimmed red with sleep deprivation. She looked surprised to see Junia and opened the door to let her in, shutting it behind her.

"Why do you seek me at this hour, Your Highness?" Lucrezia asked, not unkindly.

She was short, but still walked with long strides as she stepped back to give Junia some space. When Junia looked at Lucrezia's face, she was put off by the calmness that showed. There was nothing to see but weariness and a sense of tranquillity. She had the feeling that Lucrezia was a woman who observed and learnt much, but kept her opinions to herself.

"Do you know where my twin is?" Junia asked, getting to the point. She was uncomfortable near the Westerner, but knew that they were a lot more honest than Southerners. Maybe direct questions would get her direct answers.

"Take a seat." Lucrezia nodded over to a settee.

Her room was small but comfortable with a flickering fireplace, the mantel held up by two statues. What surprised Junia the most were the religious relics placed around the room; a statue of the goddess Euandra, candles and incense, and a rug thrown in a corner to allow kneeling for long periods of time. Junia took a seat on the settee, folding over her legs, and Cloud jumped next to her, curling up by her side.

"What has Edward told you?" Lucrezia asked.

"Nothing." Junia frowned at the name.

"I see." Lucrezia nodded. "Very well. How much do you know? Or think you do, anyway."

"Enough to know that you have her," Junia replied firmly. Her heart pounded as she made accusations that she hardly believed herself.

Lucrezia remained relaxed, despite Junia's hostility, which only made Junia more frustrated.

"Alright. Let us start from the beginning," Lucrezia said, sitting down opposite Junia. Her voice was level. "We saved your sister. That's the truth—"

"You can't have!" Junia protested, interrupting. Her cheeks flushed red as she realised that there was some truth in what Ulysses had said.

Lucrezia held up a hand. "Patience, Your Highness. Please. Let me finish before you believe ill of us. One of our spies found her in the hands of slavers, and they helped her out because, as you probably are aware, slavery is illegal. She would have been sold in the Upperland States otherwise, and the spy had recognised her as Lachlan's daughter. Annalee said herself that she had not strayed far from the castle when slavers took her hostage. We didn't want the South to know since we were unsure of where your loyalties lay, so we hid her in plain sight as a maid. Edward seemed particularly intrigued with her, whereas Lynne wanted to send her back here. When we received the invitation, we decided to come and visit. If we decided if it was worth it, we were going to offer Annalee to you as a sign of peace but, if you turned against us, Filip considered using her as a hostage against you. She became insurance." Words seemed to come to Lucrezia naturally, and she never faltered once.

"And what are you planning to do at the moment with her?" Junia asked. Lucrezia assessed her coolly and Junia quickly added: "If you do anything, we have enough guards to kill all of you."