His Highness's Second Wife
His Highness’s Second Wife Chapter 93

Raena took a deep breath, turning the handle and pushing the door open. She forced a calm expression on her face, stepping into the gloomy, windowless room with a slow, unhurried step. There was a torch hanging from the wall by door, which was the only source of light in the small space, but it only seemed to make the atmosphere more morbid.

The room was almost entirely empty save for the person sitting in a metal chair attached to the floor in the middle of it, manacles pinning his feet to the ground and his hands to the chair while a thick rope encircled his chest. His black clothes were tattered and torn, and the smell of sweat and b***d coming from him was strong enough to make her gag.

She made sure not to react as she closed the door and turned to face him. He raised his head, leaning it on the back of the chair while his eyes followed her every movement. His face was a mess of bruises and cuts, but he looked like he barely noticed or felt any of it. His eyes seemed tired and blurry and he wore a foredoomed look, like he was waiting to be executed any second.

“I see they went easy on you, I’m? No doubt hoping you’ll talk, am I right?” Raena said, crossing her arms and leaning on the door. His eyes focused as soon as she said those words, shoulders tensing as he studied her from head to toe. “What’s your name?”

He continued to stare at her, saying nothing, so Raena pushed herself off the door and stopped in front of him, leaning her hands on her knees so she could look him in the eyes. Up close where she could see beyond the dirt, b***d, and wounds, she realized he was much younger than she thought, maybe even younger than her body.

But he held onto his composure with an impressive will and his mouth remained firmly shut. Raena stared at him for a minute, trying to keep her smile on despite knowing what she was supposed to do next.

“That’s a good boy,” Raena smile, patting him on the head and slowly circling his chair. He kept his eyes forward, but she noticed he tensed when she disappeared from his sight. She took out the pocket knife Yulien had given her, releasing the blade and turning towards the chair.

She took a deep breath and stepped behind it, grabbing the man by the hair and yanking his head back while pressing the blade against his exposed throat. He winced as if preparing himself for what’s to come, eyes firmly shut. Raena stood like that for a while, trying her best to keep her hand still.

“Mistakes are paid in b***d and failure is paid in death.” She whispered in his ear and watched him as he squeezed his eyes harder, jaw tightening. “Do you think you made a mistake or failed?” The man’s eyes opened abruptly, and he looked up at her. Raena held onto her cold expression, moving the edge of the knife up to his chin and then across his cheek.

“Answer me.” She said, pressing the blade to his cheek. The skin broke and a small cut appeared under his cheekbone, a few droplets of b***d slipping down his dirty face.

“.. I failed” He said with a trembling voice, swallowing hard.

“So you’re saying you want to die?” She asked, raising an eyebrow.

“.. n-n-no. But I- failed. I deserve my punishment.” He said, licking his lips nervously. Raena continued to stare at him without saying anything, letting him battle with his thoughts.

Finally, she let go of his head, slowly circling the chair to stand in front of him again.

“So what if I tell you your failure could be considered a mistake- one which you can atone for by helping me do what you failed to do?” She asked, giving him a bright smile. “You do know who l am, don’t you?” The guy nodded slowly. “And you do know how important I am to your leader?” He nodded again.

“Did you also know that the reason he was able to execute his plans so easily is because of me? The weak, feeble girl everyone was looking down upon did more for your rebellion than you could ever hope to do. And last night, you were supposed to get me out of here.” Raena stepped towards him, grabbing his chin and forcing it up so he had to look her in the eyes. “The group that was supposed to ‘kidnap’ me, failed. Now they are dead and I am stuck here, being watched day in and day out, and any minute now my dear husband or his brother might fiqure out what I am up to, and then I’m dead. And because of your group’s failure, I now have to finish your job too, or all this effort would have been for naught. Do you know how annoying is that?”

“I… didn’t know.” He said hesitantly. “I thought.. You…”

“Do you know how hard it was getting me this time with you? Do you realize what kind of risk I am taking? It would have been so much easier to just kill you. But then I will still be suspected and killing the crown prince would be impossible.”

Raena snarled angrily. He licked his lips as if contemplating what to say next and Raena prayed that this charade would work. She prayed that Zen didn’t tell them she was just a toy he had grown fascinated with since none of what he did could have been called love; she prayed that they knew all of the things they were framing her for so she could use that against them. She prayed this gamble would work. It had to.

“I-I will help you if l can. I will make up for my mistake.” He said hesitantly at first, but his confidence quickly built up. He straightened up in his seat, straining against the ropes.

“I hope so.” Raena smiled, squeezing his chin. “Because I am tired of cleaning after you people.” The guy nodded again, his eyes gleaming with renewed determination.

“What is your plan? What do you need me to do?” He asked and Raena tensed, trying to hold back her smile. She frowned instead, giving him a long, thoughtful look. “If you release me, I…”

“You will be dead before you could even leave this floor.” Raena interrupted him. “l can’t do anything for you now, not before eliminating the crown prince and my husband.” She sighed in what should look like annoyance, striding back to his chair and looking down at him with her most superior expression. “The first thing you need to do is tell me what went wrong last night. And then, you need to help me win their trust again.”

“How?” He asked, frowning.

“By talking.” She said, and a shadow of suspicion crossed his face. “Not about Zen’s plans or the rebels. I would never ask you to betray Zen. But I need you to tell them something else. I need to tell them..”

Yulien stood with his hands crossed, back against the wall next to the door leading to the room where they kept the fake shadow. The voices inside were low, but he could still hear them clearly if he focused hard enough.

Vyn was leaning on the wall opposite from him, silent as the dead and just as pale. It turned out the dart was not dipped in poison, but some substance that caused muscle paralysis, so after a while he had been able to get up. He still looked stiff and his movements were slow and awkward, but he refused to go and rest.

Distant voices filled the quiet corridor and Yulien turned to look at the group of soldiers at the end of it that were looking at him. The biggest two moved to the side to reveal Blaine standing behind them. Yulien gave them a sign to let him in and Blaine headed towards him with long, hurried strides. His eyes stopped on Vyn and then searched the rest of the corridor as if looking for Raena. As he drew near, he opened his mouth to say something, but Yulien raised his index finger to his lips, pointing at the wall next to Vyn. Blaine took the assigned place with a perplexed expression, glancing at the guard with a frown. Vyn continued to scowl at the floor, scratching his neck where the dart had pierced and occasionally shaking his hands or legs as if to wake them up.

Yulien leaned his head back to the wall, focusing his full attention on the conversation inside.

He had fiqured long ago that Raena smarter than she pretended to be. He had figured she was an excellent liar and could fool people into doing her bidding, sometimes even making them believe it was their idea. And she had her looks on top of that, making her a scary adversary. But what made him nervous to be in her presence was her adaptability. Coming up with military plans or convoluted plots that could control trade, politics or even people was hard. But drastically adjusting your plans according to the situation was not something anyone could do.

Such a shame, he thought, smiling lightly.

Such a shame I married her to my brother, of all people. But who would have known she’d turn to be a figure that would hold the power of a queen instead of a pawn? In any case, she was going to be valuable to have close, especially after taking the throne. He had never doubted his brother’s loyalty. but now it was going to be even more important to keep him happy and by his side. Because if Kassian ever turned against him with his influence among the military and the loyalty of so many soldiers, and Raena to whisper in his ear, he could be a real threat to Yulien. Much bigger one than the Empress and Rissen ever could be.

There was a pause inside, then Raena spoke with her voice so cold and commanding, Yulien smiled. She truly was an amusing Woman.

Yulien slid a step away from the door, making both Blaine and Vyn look at him expectantly. He said nothing, just waited until the door opened and Raena walked out, her eyes stopping on each of them before she slowly, unhurriedly, closed the door. The moment the mechanism clicked in place, she let out a long sigh, leaning her back on the door.

When she finally opened her eyes, Yulien nodded towards the other end of the corridor and she pushed herself to catch up with Blaine and Vyn following close behind.

“Did you hear?” She asked quietly, giving him a look full of caution. She had been doing that a lot – it was like she was afraid of him and trying to figure out what was going on in his mind. He had thought that smiling and looking pleasant would put her at ease, but she stared at him like she expected him to pull a knife and stab her with it. He was getting more and more curious about just what made her so wary of him when all he had ever been to her was amiable.

“That was better than I expected,” Yulien said with a smile, stopping when they were too, for anyone else to hear. “Do you think he’ll do it? He might say he will now, but if he changes his mind tomorrow…”

“We’ll find out tomorrow,” Raena said, throwing her hands in the air. “I did all l could to convince him I am on Zen’s side and my goal is to kill you.”

“Yes, I heard” Yulien chuckled. “l almost believed you myself. You do have a way with words. Her smile dropped again and Yulien had to hold back a sigh. She had asked him to listen in to the conversation so he knew exactly what she was saying, as if she still thought he didn’t trust her. She wasn’t leaving any chances. She really was trying hard to make herself look trustworthy. He wondered if this was because of Kassian or her survival instinct was making her do it. Either way, she was leaving little space for doubt.

“So we’re doing it?” She asked, biting her lower l*p.

“We’re doing it.” Yulien nodded, glancing towards the other two men who were watching them with confused expressions. “Blaine, take her back home and make sure she is thoroughly protected. I don’t care if you have to put every guard around the North Palace or move her to the Main Palace. She must arrive safely tomorrow for the trial. Is this clear?”

“Yes, Your Highness.” Blaine nodded readily. “I would have done it even if you didn’t say it”

Yulien chuckled. She had to have done something to get Blaine on her side too. Smart girl. She probably helped him with his work or gave him a few extra days off. Even Yulien could tell Kassian was overworking him in the past few weeks.

“Prepare yourself for the show of your life, dear sister-in-law.” Yulien smiled at her. “A great deal of our plan will lie on your shoulders tomorrow.” Raena nodded, freezing when Yulien reached out and patted her head. “Watch your backs, both of you. Now go.”

Raena and Blaine shared a quick look, then both excused themselves and left down the corridor, their heads gathered together in a hushed conversation. Yulien stared after them for a bit, then turned to Vyn, his smile dropping.

“Let’s go. We have work to do to make sure tomorrow goes smoothly, starting with silencing a few birds that know too much.”