The Outcast

Chapter 51

Abel's POV

I walked through the well kept corridors of the Palace with the same feeling of awe as I did twice before, but this time was a bit different. I walked with a sense of reverence. As I stared at the many different family portraits that lined the wall of the stairwell, centuries of the generations of Rodomir's, I felt a sense of pride swell inside my chest. I'll be mounted onto these same walls one day, a family portrait of Elizabeth, Valerie and I, I could feel it.

Sophia had always told me to follow my gut feeling, and that's exactly what I was doing right now..

"Please wait here, Emperor Radomir will be with you shortly." The butler instructed, bowing slightly before leaving me by the unfamiliar doors. We had gone to a much different part of the palace.

After a minute of looking around idly, the doors finally opened. Emperor Rodomir smiled widely at me.

"Sir Abel, such a pleasure to see you again. Please, come in." The Emperor ushered me into the room. It was large, but nowhere compared the size of the meeting room.

I glanced around the walls as I stepped farther into the room. On the left, above the ouch hung a painting of a blonde woman and a little girl. Was that his wife?

"Please, have a seat."

I glanced back at the Emperor to see that he had already sat around his desk. I nodded and followed suit.

"This is my private office, I like to come here and whenever I need to take some time to myself. I see you're interested in that painting, that's my daughter, Olivia." He said, nodding over at the painting.

"And is that your wife?" I asked. The Emperor let out a small chuckle.

"Ahh yes, that is my wife Catherine. Unfortunately she isn't with us anymore, she passed away two years ago." He said, staring up at the painting.

"I'm sorry to have brought it up." I apologized.

The Emperor cleared his throat and shook his head. "Nonsense, you're bound to know sooner or later." He smiled. I squinted at him.

I watched as he pulled out a drawer from his desk then he placed an envelope on the table, the word 'RESULTS ' written in caps. I swallowed as I stared down at it.

"I believe I speak for both of us when I say this is very nerve wracking." He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. I nodded absentmindedly. "Let's open this shall we?"

I nodded once more and watched closely as he gently lifted the seal from the envelope. It was as if time had suddenly started moving slowly, and my senses heightened. It was as if I could hear everything, the pitter patter of my shoes against the wooden floor, the tear of the envelope paper, the ticking of the clock on the wall above his chair. It was almost like defusing a bomb, slow and steady.

Then he finally pulled the paper from the envelope. I watched as his eyes scanned over the words, quickly at first, then once again, much slower as if trying to make sure that he missed nothing.

Then a smile pulled onto his face, turning into a chuckle. He ran a hand through his hair then finally looked up at me. He slid the piece of paper across the table and I snatched it up with haste.

My eyes scanned over every single word but what really caught my attention were the figures written in bold.

Probability of paternity 99.99999999%

My fingers gripped the edge of the paper as I read it over again. I slowly raised my head to look back at the Emperor, who stared back at me with an expression that I couldn't quite place.