His Highness's Second Wife
His Highness’s Second Wife Chapter 42

“Are you alright?” Davin asked as he turned to look at her. Raena had stopped to catch her breath, and her chest was burning from the relentless pace he had set for them. After leaving the restaurant, they rushed home dressed in their servants’ clothes. Now that they were almost at the North Palace, she could feel her knees shaking just at the thought of resting. She seriously had to reconsider training her body some more.

“I’m fine!” she said in a choked voice. “We’re almost there.”

She pushed herself back up and followed him down the main path that they had used when they were going out to meet the Empress. A few minutes later, Davin led her away from it and toward the uneven ground that marked the border of the North Palace lands. They hadn’t made more than twenty steps when a figure appeared from behind one of the tall trees that were lining the path, making both of them jump. Raena covered her mouth to stop a startled scream, then her shoulders dropped in relief when she recognized Zen’s taut face.

She was just opening her mouth to ask what he was doing there when he put a finger on his lips to tell them to be quiet. He strode to her and grabbed her hand, then gave Davin a sign to follow.

Leaving the main road again, Zen guided them through the labyrinth of narrow paths that led to different parts in and out of the North Palace.

Raena remembered some of them, but most looked so alike that she got disoriented soon enough. Zen held her hand tightly, squeezing it to tell her to stop and move again, his eyes darting left and right.

Davin seemed just as tense and she wasn’t sure if it was the thumping of her heart in her ears or her labored breathing, but she couldn’t hear his steps either.

Soon, the North Palace came into view, but Zen didn’t lead them toward the front entrance. Instead, they found themselves next to a small wooden door, half-hidden by a tall evergreen tree and a blackberry bush. He let go of Raena’s hand and took a big rusty key out of his pocket. After unlocking and opening the door, he stepped through and looked around before giving them a sign to follow.

Two big trees and a shed hid them from view on this side, which explained why Raena didn’t even know about this door. She stared at Zen with suspicion as he put the key back in his pocket.

Sensing her eyes, he looked at her, then down at his pocket.

“Kara showed me this place and told me to bring you in unnoticed,” he whispered. “The North Palace is in uproar. Everybody thinks you were the one that got poisoned and since you are not here to show your face, rumors are spreading that you’re dead. If someone recognizes you like this, there will be trouble.”

“Alright.” Raena nodded. “Sneak us in.”

He kept his eyes on her for a moment longer, then offered her his hand. Zen whispered for Davin to get himself back inside from the servant’s entrance, then he broke into a run toward the manor, pulling Raena after. They sneaked inside through one of the side entrances and she let him drag her along the way as he avoided whispering maids or panicking servants.

“Put your head down and walk quickly.” Zen whispered as they reached the corridor leading to her room. He let go of her hand and strode forward, with Raena in tow. There was no one in the corridor itself, but there were voices coming from some of the rooms they passed, and a few of the doors leading to them were cracked open.

Zen stopped in front of her room and knocked. A few seconds later, the door opened and Raena followed him in. Kara stared at her with a pale face, biting on her lower l*p.

The moment the door closed behind her, Raena pulled her itching wig off. She was just about to ask for a report on what exactly had happened when her eyes landed on the body. The blonde girl was lying on her back between the bed and the table, her face gray and covered with bright red blotches that spread to her neck and shoulders and disappeared underneath the dress. Her bloodshot eyes were wide with fear even now, their white almost gone underneath the red veins running over it. There was still some foam around her mouth and deep, red scratches running over her neck as if she had clawed at herself.

Bile rose in Raena’s throat. She tried to run for the bathroom, but gave up after just a couple of steps and vomited on the floor. A hand gathered her hair away from her face as she retched helplessly.

She closed her eyes when her insides finally settled, wiping her mouth with her sleeve. Her knees felt even weaker than before, and if it wasn’t for Kara keeping a steady hand around her waist, she probably would have slumped to the ground as she got up.

When Davin told her the girl was dead, she felt momentary panic and pity, then her mind quickly jumped to devise a plan for them to deal with this unforeseen development. She didn’t even realize the severity of the situation until she saw the body.

In the real world, she had never seen a dead body – if she didn’t count the movies she had watched, of course so hearing about it felt just like that. Like something fictional that happened in a movie or a book.

Yet it felt so real now. That girl, she was dead. Really dead. Somebody had died because of her.

What was worse, it should have been Raena that was lying there right now.

If she died here as well, what was going to happen to her? Going back to her own world suddenly felt even scarier than death itself – back to an uneventful life full of work, debt and repeating days, where she had achieved nothing, didn’t have any friends, any lovers, any future. Her father was already dead and her relationship with her mother was strained at best. She had been here only a few months, but she had never felt happier.

Still, if she didn’t go back, then she would be..

“Do you want to sit?” Kara’s voice took her out of her dark thoughts and the maid guided her to one of the chairs while Zen covered the body with the top sheet of the bed. “We didn’t want to move her since we were looking for some clues, but apart from finding out what kind of poison it was, there were no other traces. The maid who brought the tea to the room has been imprisoned, but I don’t think she did it. She will be held in the dungeon until His Highness returns and decides what to do with her.”

“Alright,” Raena said with a weak voice, clearing her throat as she tried to compose herself.

“What.. what are we going to do now?” she asked, looking at Kara. The maid’s eyes widened for a second, as if surprised by the question, then her face turned serious.

“We’ll wait until dark to take care of the body,” she said, glancing at Zen, who nodded. “I’ll find something to keep everyone busy, so it would be easier for Zen to get her out. I’ll find her family and make sure they are properly compensated.”

“Wait, don’t we have to show the body to everyone or at least to those who would investigate the poisoning?” Raena frowned. “Everybody knows somebody was poisoned, we can’t cover that up.”

“If they see her, they will start asking questions, Kara said in a strained voice. “Questions like, why do you have a girl that looks so much like you, staying in your room and wearing your clothes?

Once they start asking questions, they won’t stop.

Raena swallowed the lump in her throat, nodding.

This shouldn’t have happened. She knew that she had made some enemies, of course, but it was too early for them to go after her like that. It couldn’t have been the Empress she still didn’t know all of Raena’s cards and she couldn’t be sure she wouldn’t leak the information even after dying. It couldn’t have been the first wife either- apart from her obvious dislike for Raena, she had nothing to gain from her death. or maybe it was Lara? Judging by their last few encounters, she sure held no love for Raena, but she didn’t look so stupid to do it so obviously. Besides, she still had Kassian in the palm of her hand, so killing Raena now, right before the prince’s birthday party no less, was only going to make him suspicious of his own people. Who knew what he would have done if she had died?

Or maybe it was not about her, but about him? Was someone trying to get to him by getting rid of her? Raena’s death would surely put him in a tough spot with the Prime Minister and without his support and backing, all of Kassian’s business endeavors would likely fail.

“We’ll just bury her and let the guards know we did. I doubt they would insist on digging her up,” Kara continued. “We’ll say that she drank the tea that was brought for you while you were sleeping and got poisoned.”

Raena nodded, not sure if she could count on her voice.

“From now on, you drink and eat only things you have made yourself or I have brought for you,” Kara said, crouching in front of her. “if you’re in the restaurant, cook for yourself or have someone else taste it before you. I’ll request a tester from the prince, we should have done that a long time ago, but you didn’t want to increase the number of people watching you.”

“I think you should move her to another room,” Zen suddenly spoke, standing in front of the sheet covering the body as if to hide it from view. “She can’t stay here until I clear the room. Is this your first time seeing a dead body, Miss Raena?” Raena nodded and felt Kara’s hands squeeze hers.

“You should have someone stay with her too,” Zen added.

“I know how to do my job!” Kara snapped at him before pulling Raena to her feet. “We need to change your dress first, then we’ll put you in another room. This way, the servants can see you’re alive and well. Can you stand?” Raena nodded again, getting up only to realize her legs were shaking. “Hey, keep your eyes on me. Let’s go to the bathroom. Zen, bring one of the dresses from the wardrobe.”