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I came to an abrupt stop, spearing him with my seething gaze. Their feud had, for the most part, been a harmless annoyance. But to hear Sebastian insinuate that Marco may have some involvement turned my blood molten. “I’ll remind you that Marco shares the royal line, and flippant accusations could be considered treasonous if received by the wrong ears.” I held his stare, warning flashing in my eyes for him to navigate carefully.

“A simple question, Your Highness. No accusations being made.” He backed down, but his question simmered in my mind. Where was Marco? He’d missed the first luncheon, though I can’t quite say I blamed him. If I hadn’t been required to attend, I would have filled my time with something else—anything else. As much as it pained me to admit, it sparked a flicker of questioning. After all, he said he’d attend.

“Send me the guardsmen who collected the man accused of murder in the dungeons,” I ordered.

“Sire? Should we not focus on the abduction?”

“At once,” I restated my command. “I wish to speak with them before the luncheon starts.” Ladies from Sunvale had their luncheon today. Another eight hours of repetitive conversation and introductions. Ricks would assuredly have a full and total conniption if I made any attempts to bail or reschedule. Not to mention the whispers and rumors that would emerge. Such a public abandonment would surely draw attention, and the last thing I needed was to tip off the kidnappers that I was on their tail.

Despite thinking the luncheon a frivolous waste of time compared to pressing matters in my kingdom, fulfilling my duties was a necessity. At the very least, I hoped someone entertaining would attend today, such as Nora yesterday. Interacting with hundreds who put on masks of formality couldn’t compare to one honest to gods conversation. The way she’d reacted in horror to her own genuine responses almost pulled my lips in amusement from the memory, but Commander Druller still stood in front of me.

“And get me the dock reports for the day,” I added.

“Yes, Your Highness.” He bowed and took his leave.

Within the hour, Druller entered my official office with two guardsmen in tow. “Your Highness, this is Reynolds and Juri, the guardsmen who retrieved the suspect.” He stepped back, leaving his men to report.

Reynolds looked every part a stoic warrior, even hosting a scar along his face. Juri seemed a bit more inexperienced. His nerves were apparent, judging by the way he shifted on his feet and looked over me instead of at me.

“Give me a full report on your suspicion and collection of the man in the cell.” I clasped my hands together on my desk, ready to hear and analyze every detail in their response.

Reynolds spoke with no hesitation. “We followed up with vendors around the docks, asking if they’d had any interaction with the deceased man. From the scant information they shared, we were able to trace his movements from earlier in the day. There’d been an altercation at a butcher shop between the deceased and the man in the dungeon. When we went to question him, he attacked.”

Juri’s throat bobbed continually.

“I want to hear from you.” I leaned back in my seat, watching Juri’s eyes finally travel to mine. “What happened next?”

“Y-Your Highness, we apprehended the man.”

“How?”

“I beg your pardon?” His dark eyebrows stitched together in confusion.

“How did you apprehend the man?” I elaborated no further, letting the silence grow louder.

“Like Reynolds said, he started resisting when we questioned him. He threw multiple objects at us, and when we approached, he grabbed his fire poker and started swinging.”

My suspicions went out as effectively as a candle snuffer to a flame. I’d wanted to see if they’d declared the man threw punches, because then I’d know they were lying. But, if Heathson had used a fire poker, he could do serious damage without marking up his knuckles.

But these men seemed to bear no damage. “What injuries did you sustain?” I asked Juri specifically.

He went to glance at Reynolds, but stopped short, returning his attention to me. “Shoulder, sire.”

I held back a response, letting seconds tick by to see what else he’d offer. Nothing came. I shifted to Reynolds. “You?”

“Your armor is effective, Your Highness, and the Commander trained us well.” The soldier held an air of confidence that bordered on cocky.

“Would you consider the force you used excessive?” I challenged, not leashing the anger that bubbled at the memory of Heathson’s injuries against this obviously well-trained man.

“We did what was necessary to bring him in for questioning, Your Highness,” Reynolds said.

Juri developed a thin sheen along his forehead, partly masked by his chin length black hair.

“Do you claim the same, Juri?”

“Yes, Your Highness.” He returned to staring past me rather than looking me in the eye.

I rapped my finger on the desk, feeling a sense of frustration. “Bring me your healer’s report, Juri. Dismissed.” They bowed and retreated immediately. Commander Druller stepped forward with a pile of papers secured under his arm.