Happiness did not leave Astor Castle, after the birth of the heir, the Royal House dressed up again, the marriage of Samantha and Marcus could not wait any longer and only three months later they were swearing eternal love to each other before God, before the kings and before the people.Samantha looked radiant in her beautiful white dress, fit for the princess she was, her eyes sparkling with excitement every time she met the gaze of her now husband. The desire was latent in them and none of them could deny it. It was so much, that they were looking forward to being able to sneak away from people to be alone for a moment, but it wasn't until too late that they were able to do so.Marcus looked at his wife, she was without a doubt one of the most beautiful women he had ever had the joy of knowing, he was happy to share his life and his future with Samantha."Why do you look at me that way?" The young woman asked, feeling a lump in her throat. His hands were sweating with nervousness.
The crying of a child echoed throughout the room, as his mother held him tightly against her chest and clenched her jaw, never taking her eyes off the king."You can't do this! You can't do this to your grandson!" the woman finally shouted, earning a cold and piercing stare from the king."Anabel, your husband…my son! He has attempted to take my life and I will not allow it!" he responded firmly. "Hector has been sentenced to public beheading for treason, his title of "prince" has been revoked, and you…" he turned to the woman and her grandson, "after the beheading, you will no longer live or belong in the palace. But Henry will stay here, as I will not allow my grandson to have a corrupted heart like his parents, because don't think I don't know that you encouraged my son to betray me.""Then kill me too!" the woman challenged, but the king refused."Your punishment will be to lose everything…all the luxury you've always dreamed of will remain just that, dreams…"Knocks on the door o
The wind blew strongly against the beautiful face of the young woman riding through the open field, which belonged to her parents. If her parents saw her wearing the dress they had given her in the morning, she would be in great trouble, as she shouldn't be wearing it yet, but temptation got the best of her, and she wanted to look beautiful in that moment. Selene spurred her horse and rode across the terrain until she reached one of the rocky areas she visited every week. Every time he came to see her."Henry?!" she half-shouted, half-asked, anxiously searching for the man.Selene got off her horse and walked until she reached the shade of a leafy tree, where she tied her mount to one of the branches and sat on a round rock, making sure not to ruin her dress."Henry!" she called again after a few minutes without receiving any response from the man.Selene sighed and waited a few more minutes, growing more impatient and worried at the same time."Henry!" she shouted insistently. It was
Selene opened her eyes, resembling two bright stars. She couldn't understand anything that was happening, but the truth was that her parents were addressing a man different from Henry… Her Henry.Someone coughed, grabbing everyone's attention. It was Henry, who briefly choked upon hearing those words, but managed to recover and, at least, no one suspected how much the news had affected him.Many thoughts crossed his mind, including the fact that if he hadn't given up his claim to the throne, it would have been Selene who would be announced as his future wife, instead of his cousin's. He arrived at this conclusion because tradition dictated that when the woman destined to be queen was born, the pact was made between the parents of the future king and the parents of the girl. This meant that when he was six years old, Selene could have been chosen as his future wife, but everything had changed.Could it be true or had Selene been chosen for his cousin? This question momentarily stole hi
"It's impossible!" shouted the queen in response to her son's words."See for yourself and then you'll see how impossible it is. I've told you, mom, not everything that glitters is gold. While you consider her a good candidate to become your queen consort, to me she's nothing more than a prostitute.""Frederick!" exclaimed the queen, astonished at the way her son referred to the young girl in the middle of the dance floor."I don't know what we'll do, but I won't stay without knowing the truth," he warned, and his mother simply nodded, giving an uncomfortable smile to the guests who were curiously watching the scene.The Queen Mother cleared her throat and gracefully approached one of the castle servants. She whispered something in his ear and swiftly returned to her position next to her annoyed son, who couldn't stop glaring at his cousin Henry, who seemed to enjoy the discomfort on Frederick's face.Indeed, Henry not only displayed the brooch in a visible area for Selene to see, but
"You must be the only husband Selene should have."Those words took root in Henry's heart and mind, and his desire to make Selene his own was stronger than any other longing, but to have her, he first had to reclaim his reign. The crown belonged to him by right, just as Selene Russell did.Henry looked at his mother, a strange smile forming on his face, as various possibilities crossed his mind on how to make his cousin's engagement to Selene last less than the announcement. The first thing he had to do was find out the agreement reached between the royal family and the Russell family, that would be the beginning of everything."Mother.""Listen carefully, Henry, you cannot allow them to continue trampling over you. You, my precious boy, should be the one seated on the throne, not the grandson of a whore. A mere concubine!" she shouted angrily.Henry thought the same, he couldn't comprehend how everything had been stolen from him and given to Frederick, when he was the queen's grandso
Selene waited for her mother to leave the room and collapsed to the floor, as it never crossed her mind that an innocent gift, like the one she had given to Henry, could now be something that could get her into more trouble than she already had. Not only her, but also Henry, if the king or the queen were to discover who had the other brooch, she would be completely lost and condemn Henry in the eyes of His Majesty.Selene covered her face with her hands, she had no idea of the punishment they could be condemned to because of their imprudence. She had no choice but to try to retrieve the piece and apologize to Henry.That truth only increased her distress, tears overflowed from her cheeks and she made no effort to stop them when they started flowing from her eyes again, because she had no way out. Selene dreamt that one day women like her would not have to submit to forced and arranged marriages behind their backs, but that they would have the voice she did not have. Now she only had t
"The queen is injured!" Fredrick did not descend from the carriage, he leapt from where he was and ran to check what his man had just shouted. His heart hammered hard against his chest, he was afraid, but also deeply angry. An anger that threatened to become a cyclone ready to sweep away everything in its path. Meanwhile, Selene disembarked with the help of a maid. For a moment, she had the desire to run in the opposite direction of the queen's carriage and escape, leave everything behind and start anew in a distant village where no one knew who she was or her relationship with the Royal House. However, her noble, or rather foolish, heart guided her towards the carriage, while the doctor and nurse rushed to help the queen, as they had been in the carriage borrowed from the Russells a few meters behind theirs. Selene held her breath upon seeing the powerful queen, wounded and bloodstained. Her eyes were closed, Frederick carried her in his arms, and for a moment, Selene thought she