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The Confession
Heavy footsteps echoed throughout the dark, damp chamber. The maid’s arms were strung up in sturdy chains, her legs bound together with metal cuffs with sharp spikes poking into her ankles, blood running down her feet.
The door swung open and four guards followed by the prime minister himself entered. The maid lifted her head, and shuddered at the sight of the cold, deadly right hand man of the Emperor.
“You are the maid that tried to poison His Majesty, are you not?” the maid couldn’t help but gulp, even though that was getting increasingly harder. The pain in her ankles made it harder to even breathe.
“I- I am, my lord.” Orlov nodded.
“And who is it you work for?” The maid shuddered. Her mother was at st
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Where Loyalties Lie The Beginning of Her End
When her maid never returned, Tatya felt a weird sensation in her heart, one she had never felt before. It was as if her stomach was flipping over inside her, turning the rest of her organs inside and out.She waited for Fate to come and catch up with her, but He never did.Her father came home from court, but he only mentioned the situation with the Emperor in passing, and not at all in a concerned manner.“Father,” she couldn’t help saying at dinner, “What of the Emperor? And the Empress?” Lord Poplov looked a bit irritated, but hid it well.“The Empress was cleared of all charges, Apparently it was just some maid, though I think there’s something more to it. That cunning Orlov is hiding something.&rdquo
Where Loyalties Lie Another Dinner Alone
“When was the last time you dined with His Majesty?” asked Cecily. The three of them were eating in a small side room in Ursa’s wing of the palace. It had become their new norm since the Emperor continuously cancelled Ursa’s dinners with him. Something inside her felt twisted every time she heard the palace maids whisper about Lady Tatya Poplova’s visits.She was their enemy, so why was her husband having dinner with her every night?“My Lady, you’re grinding your teeth again,” Emery pointed out. Ursa relaxed her jaw and sat back, throwing the piece of bread she was chewing on on her plate.“Apologies,” she murmured.“Does it bother you that much?”
Where Loyalties Lie A Dirty Scheme I
It was the first time that he had visited her on his own volition since he was poisoned. He looked as healthy as he did before, with a bit of an extra energy to him that he didn’t seem to have before.“What can I do for you, Your Majesty?”“I want to throw a banquet.” Ursa didn’t look up from the papers she was perusing. If she did, she would see his face and his expression. She was curious to see what kind of expression he had on while making that kind of request to her. A banquet? To celebrate what? His mistress, the noble lady Tatya of House Poplova?“What for? Money’s tight. The people won’t stand for wanton spending,” she reasoned.“It’s the annual celebration of my… com
Where Loyalties Lie A Dirty Scheme II
Ivan sat in the dining room waiting for his guest to arrive. He had just been given clearance by the physician to leave the Med Wing, and he already began putting his and Orlov’s plan in place. He made sure the dining room looked as exquisite as it did when his step-mother entertained foreign dignitaries. Although Ivan always loathed the woman, he was excited to see that effervescence return with Ursa at the helm.But that would have to wait. Ivan didn’t want to ruin Orlov’s show before it even began! A servant opened the grand doors, and in a loud voice announced, “Lady Tatya Poplova has arrived.” The lady herself entered moments later, wearing the latest fashions and a fan in clutch.“Your Majesty,” she greeted, curtsying low, as if her knees were about to hit the ground. Ivan reluctantly stood up to
Where Loyalties Lie A Dirty Scheme III
TW: r*peIvan felt excitement course through his veins, a familiar high he hadn’t been able to feel since coming home from the battlefield. This feeling- the feeling you get when you take a life. The banquet was the perfect place to thoroughly humiliate and ruin the witch that had hurt his wife too many times.What better way than to out her for her crimes against the Crown? But why did it seem his entire plan was derailed by that one maid? How could one of the palace maids be so foolish as to spill crap all over the Poplov witch?But then Ursa called over one of her handmaidens, the shorter one and ordered, “Go bring Lady Tatya a new dress.” Then the shorter handmaiden, Emery, Ivan thought, nodded enthusiastically and went to go perform her duty. The taller one, Cecily, leaned over as
Where Loyalties Lie A Dirty Scheme IV
TW: r*pe“It’s been quite some time. Why has Lady Tatya not returned?” asked Orlov. Although it sounded like the question was up in the air, it was truly directed at Ursa.“Perhaps something is wrong. I’ll go check on her,” offered Ivan. If Lady Tatya didn’t return to everyone, his plan could not continue.“No need. As a lady, I should go,” said Ursa.Her quick interjection was not missed by the suspicious Orlov. “Why don’t we all go?”Ursa liked Lord Orlov quite a bit. He was a good man with a good head on his shoulders. But at that moment, she wanted to chop off that good head.
Where Loyalties Lie The Verdict
“Kassio, can we talk?” whispered Ivan.“What is it?”“You’re not seriously thinking of brokering a deal with them, are you?” Ivan had pulled Orlov to the side, leaving the two Poplovs in his study alone.“I think you should be open to it,” replied Orlov. “Lord Poplov still wields significant influence in court. There will definitely be some backlash if we harm his family status now, especially with his claims. This may go to trial, or we’ll have to back down.”“That witch tried to kill me and my wife! How can we back down?” Ivan argued.“And you’re not exactly very popular, Ivan.”
Where Loyalties Lie Romanov Reminiscing
The office was dead silent, save for the sound of rustling papers as Ursa cleared them out of her way to make room for a new stack. The work was tedious; all she did was write a few amendments and stamp things. Ursa was glad she was able to make progress with her Five Year plan considering the hard time the court had given her in the past, but now it was smooth sailing. Hopefully she could begin to implement some of these policies by the beginning of the New Year.Ursa looked out the window, suddenly reminded of the time of year. The Vasil country tended to have a warmer climate compared to her own country, but it was getting noticeably chiller.‘It’s almost that time of year…’ she thought as she put her stamp in the drawer. That was enough work for today, especially since dinner would be ready soon. It seemed as though the
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