All Chapters of The Heir's Secret Child: A Royal Scandal: Chapter 61 - Chapter 67

**DRAKONHELM**From the vantage point of the low rise, George could see the Jagged Pass, a narrow road between two shoulders of rock.Wagons crawled along it like beetles, tiny against the cliffs, their canvas tops pale in the winter light.“The pass is our spine,” Varos Dane was saying. “Without it, Drakonhelm would bend to every wind.”He sat his horse with the ease of a long habit, his dark cloak drawn close against the chill.Beside him, King Edward’s mount stamped impatiently at the thin grass.They had brought George to the Pass as part of his Drakonhelm tour.“And Eldoria has relied on it more than once,” Edward said, turning to George with a smile that might have been friendly if George hadn’t heard the way servants here whispered about “plans” and “missed chances.” “When your father pushed through that new grain treaty five years ago? Half of your shipments crossed this very stretch.”George let his gaze follow the road’s curve again. “I remember the negotiations,” he said. “

**ELDORIA**In the private chamber off their Majesties' apartments, the hour had slipped past most of the palace's business; the footsteps of their servants beyond their door had grown infrequent, the murmur of distant voices dulled.Charlotte sat curled sideways in one of the high-backed chairs near the hearth. A book lay open in her lap, thumb marking her place, though she hadn't turned a page in some time.Arthur stood at the window.The crown sat on a side table, a silent, gleaming presence that made its absence from his head feel more symbolic than practical."You're pacing without moving," Charlotte said softly.He turned his head slightly. "Am I?""Yes," she said. "I can hear it from here."He managed a faint smile. "That's a new trick."She closed the book and watched him. "You came up late," she said. "Later than you said you would. The council ran long?""It did," he said. He turned away from the window at last and crossed to the chairs. "They had much to say.""What did th

**DRAKONHELM**Back at the palace, Merren had already been through two of the supply courtyards, searching for more information on the real reason he was there.The problem was, in Drakonhelm, everything fit a little too well.Steady alliance. A new chapter. It was like listening to variants of the same script.He decided he needed someone less 'trained'.The opportunity came in the mid-afternoon, when he ducked into a narrow corridor off the main servants' passage to avoid a gaggle of Drakonhelm scribes.Inside, he spotted a young woman in Eldorian livery. She was one of the staff who had come with the Prince and Princess's entourage."A fellow Eldorian like me," Merren greeted casually.She blinked, then recognized his face from the press contingent. "You're one of the reporters?""Guilty," he said. "My name is Merren."She hugged the ledger tight to her chest."Dalia.""Tell me, Dalia," he said, as if in idle curiosity, "how are our people finding Drakonhelm? I've spoken to minister

**ELDORIA** "You're early today, Sir Henley," the guard at the door of the King's private record room greeted him. Sir Henley. His highest profile disguise so far. The real owner of the name was away. He tugged once at the stiff collar of the borrowed jacket he'd 'stolen.' He had spent yesterday memorizing Henley's gait, his mild stoop, the clipped way he spoke to juniors, and the deferential way he leaned toward superiors. He'd chosen him precisely because Henley was the sort of man who could slip in and out of rooms like this without being noticed. "Numbers don't wait," Seren said, pitching his voice into Henley's dry register. "Unless you have a problem with that." The guard shook his head and stepped aside. Inside, the shelves lined the walls, filled with neatly labeled ledgers. Against the far wall sat a bank of equipment, screens, and dials, the newest of Eldoria's "eyes," humming quietly. Only one clerk was present, a young man bent over a ledger at the corner table.