Chapter 156 - Farewell Banquet

Elias' fourth birthday was a special occurrence. Theodora decided it was time to present him to the whole court.

A banquet was organised, and delegations from all over the world came to greet us.

Elias received various gifts, including a tiger, a singing box, and paintings from the far west where armies clashed against each other.

My Queen received a beautiful sapphire, among all the rest. If I had the power to spend money without regret, I would have bought her one too. Yet, it seemed wrong to buy a present with her money.

When a man in his early thirties made his entrance, my Queen's expression brightened. Most of the crowd didn't notice the change, but I knew her well.

That person was important to her.

«Ambassador!» she said when he bent a few degrees forward. «I wasn't expecting you. Has Asteria grown poor and sent her best delegation in a kingdom as small as Polis?»

«I was just curious to see the heir to the throne, my Queen,» he replied with a charming grin trained by years in diplomacy.

«Oh, please, stay for dinner!» she said and turned to her aide. «We'll add a seat for Ambassador Zolokis.»

«I don't want to intrude. The dinner is only for the most important of your guests, and I came uninvited.»

«It's a wonderful surprise. Also, who can be more important than family?»

Family. It meant he was her mother's brother, or at most a cousin.

«You can stay for a few days, can't you?»

«If that is what my Queen desires.»

His servile phrases combined with his arrogant attitude annoyed me, but I couldn't just express my feelings out loud. I had to bear in silence and wait for his departure.

Too bad he didn't look eager to go.

Ambassador Zolokis stayed for days. He often had tea with my wife, and they talked for hours.

The more he circled around my Queen, the more I was restless. There was something, in that whole situation, that made me uncomfortable.

«You're passing so much time with your uncle,» I said, once.

«He's the only member of my family I'm familiar with. When my mother died, he came here and comforted me. He was the only one that told me I was allowed to cry, when alone.»

She sipped the rest of her tea and got up.

«He was there for me when I was alone, in the middle of a siege against the most powerful empire of the continent. Wouldn't you welcome such a person if you were in my shoes?»

«Indeed,» I nodded.

There was no point in arguing when she was so sure in her impression. And I would have sounded jealous. She wasn't going to change her mind no matter what I said.

«We can have dinner alone, tomorrow night,» I whispered, changing the topic and looking for peace.

«My uncle will be leaving the day after tomorrow, so I've organised a dinner for him. We can eat together after,» she replied.

«All right. Elias is waiting for us. He's almost sleeping on the chair, but he wanted to eat with you now,» I tried.

«I'm not hungry. But I'll join you.»

«Not hungry?»

«My stomach is a bit turbulent these days...»

«Are you all right?»

«I just ate something bad, it will pass.»

Elias couldn't even finish dinner before placing his head on the table and snoring lightly. He had passed the whole time staring at Theodora, so much that she accepted to keep him on her lap and feeding him with the vegetables on the table.

My picky son ate everything his mother imposed that evening.

I carried him to his room and tucked the covers before going back to my chambers. I found Theodora on the bed, pale and tired.

«I have a bit of a headache,» she whispered.

«Do you want some chamomile?»

«No, I'll just sleep early tonight. I'll be as good as new in the morning.»

I pecked her forehead just like I did with Elias a few minutes before, and I lied down next to her.

The following day, the Palace was full of movement for the upcoming banquet.

If it had been a choice, I wouldn't have attended. Yet, my Queen smiled at me with her pale face. No matter how much she committed to hide it, her headache and stomach problems were still there.

I sat at her right side, like always, and I called Elias to me. No need to have him fed by a nanny when I was idle.

«This night, we greet Ambassador Zolokis. He's been a good friend for our city, ensuring transparent communication with Asteria and good advice for a young ruler like this Queen.»

Theodora got up and raised the cup to the sky.

«Cheers!» she shouted, and the court responded as noisily as always.

Everyone drank, most of them the whole cup at once. A toast from the Queen can't be ignored. I also raised my cup before bringing it to my lips.

Before drinking, though, I looked at Elias's shining eyes.

«I want that,» he said.

I chuckled while letting him taste the red wine from the cellars. He took a long sip and licked his lips once finished.

«This Prince likes it!» he exclaimed before digging in for another sip.

«Easy, easy,» I whispered and left the cup on the table before my wife could see what we were doing.

In the corner of my sight, I saw how she sipped as well. It was a first, she never drank alcohol.

That uncle of hers really was something else. He could convince her to drink, which had been hard even for me.

«Don't let the food cool down,» she ended and sat down.

The music started playing, and a couple of dancers performed their choreography in front of us.

The atmosphere was relaxed, and everyone was having fun. My wife was conversing with the Ambassador, sitting on her left. Next to him was her brother.

Everyone was so at ease that it took us a while to understand what was happening.

The Ambassador looked at his pocket clock and rummaged in his waistcoat. He took out a little cruet.

His left hand grabbed Theodora's brother's hair and pulled his head back. He emptied the cruet in his throat and then let go.

The guards immediately stepped in, alerted by that motion. Theodora stared at the Ambassador, dumbfounded.

I was the only one that understood what happened. And that I made a mistake that was costing me my son's life.

Elias started bleeding from his nose, and he looked at me, confused.

«Dad,» he said, while the hall grew silent. Some of the other diners started bleeding and fainting, the rest were already panicking.

«It's all right,» I whispered while cleaning the blood with a napkin. «I'm here...»

I fought with tears and cradled Elias with a reassuring smile.

«I'm here.»

He closed his eyes like everyone else in the room. His little body became motionless, and I understood that I wouldn't see those beautiful gems for the rest of my life.

Which was going to be short regardless.

I turned to Theodora, and I found her even paler than before.

«What does this mean?» she asked, while her tears framed her face and her arms clenched the armrests. «How did you do this?»

«I poisoned the wine,» Ambassador Zolokis admitted.

«I can't be killed with this little poison,» she said. «Your plan was just a mass murder without consequences. You slaughtered my court, but didn't get any advantage from that.»

«Oh, my Queen. Don't you think I haven't considered this little detail? I hope you enjoyed the tea I brought you from a far place. I bet you already tried it.»

Her pale face couldn't get paler, but her muscles stiffened. Not that she cared about it.

Her court was gone, her son died in my arms, and I was in part at fault for it. I made Elias try the wine.

«I couldn't be sure when you were going to drink it, and I needed to wait for today. Asteria's army will march in Polis in a few minutes. You can surrender and let your successor rule, or you can die slowly and obtain the same effect.»

Theodora got up and slammed the table.

«Arrest him! Now!»

«You don't want the antidote?» he asked, but it didn't help him get away from the arrest.

«This Queen isn't afraid to die. I hope it's the same for you.»

Ambassador Zolokis burst out laughing while the guards dragged him away.

«The Queen is dead, long live the King!» he declared before the doors of the hall blocked his voice.

«Thea, I didn't know anything about this,» her brother declared. «I didn't know...»

«It's all right,» she whispered and patted his head. «I know you're innocent.»

She looked at the hall, with her subjects lying dead in different positions.

«Bring the corpses away and block every entrance. We'll have seven days of siege, and then we'll let them come in.