The king's first wife

You

She squealed when she felt warm hands wrap around her waist. Was busy tucking her child to sleep into his crib when familiar hands grabbed her waist and a sturdy chest touched her back. And for a moment, she just let him hug her behind her back before turning around and holding one of his hands in her hands.

She wasn't happy.
Nor was she worried.

" Pari," he had love in his eyes
" You have blood on your hands. Go wash that off first," but she had anger in her eyes.

Yes. She was angry. Angry at him. Mad at him for killing innocent people. She was disgusted by him because she believed that he was using his power for the wrong reasons. She was in disbelief because that wasn't the man she knew for all her life and she was distraught because she still believed that he had good intentions in his mind. Yet, she loathed how he had smiled while having those officials killed in court...

" There was no other way-" he tried speaking after understanding what the issue was and why she was behaving like she was
" There were plenty of ways!" she shouted, " You know what is going to happen now!? They are going to call you the ruthless king of the century!"
" Let them call me that!"
" Do you have even a little bit of shame left!?!" she pushed him away, " 11 people! YOU HAVE 11 INNOCENT PEOPLE'S BLOOD ON YOUR HANDS!" now, she walked over to him and held one of his hands up in her own hands, " You taught me Sohit. Kill the guilty. But never harm anyone innocent. And you just... Killed 11-"
" None of them were innocent!"
" WHAT WERE THEY GUILTY OF!? GOING AGAINST YOU!?"
" NO! THEY WERE GUILTY OF KILLING MY FATHER!" he screamed in frustration and threw the crown off his head, leaving her in a state of shock.

It was a heavy thing, yes... But did he need to throw it like that and disregard it completely?

" Sohit?"
" My baba. They all conspired against him with that old woman! AND THEY KILLED HIM! ALL OF THEM! AND I WILL NOT STOP TILL I PUNISH ALL OF THEM!" their son had already begun crying in the background
" I don't understand... Baba had some rare disease. He wasn't killed by someone-"
" You won't understand. Forget it,"
" No. You have to explain this to me. Sohit!" he just looked at his crying son and sighed before moving towards him and keeping one of his hands over his head
" Sohit!" she pushed and he sighed once again after his son stopped crying the moment he felt his father's embrace
" Someone was poisoning him. It was covered up as a disease... But it was some rare poison that I couldn't get a cure of. I even thought of asking the other world for help but baba was against it,"
" What? He... Baba was poisoned? Wh-what are you saying? Who would do such a thing!?"
" WHO DO YOU THINK CAN DO SUCH A THING!?" they both knew the answer to that question as they stared into each other's eyes.

Who did she think could poison a king and cry at his death?

" She couldn't have..."
" But she did. And they all helped her! All of them! 4 are left. But they will soon lose everything. I swear. I will make all of them regret everything they ever did to baba!"
" Sohit..."
" I just..." he pursed his lips as he tried to calm himself down. He was getting too emotional for a king. He needed to control his emotions... " I just need you to be with me. I can't do this without you. Pari," his eyes were begging her as he pulled her closer to himself
" I am always with you Sohit," she kept her hands on his chest, " but can you not try to take a less... Ruthless path? I don't want the world calling my husband 'The Cruel King'. He's so smart... He can easily find another way out of this. Please... Sohit,"
" I can't Pari... I can't," he held her hands tightly and pulled her closer to himself, " If I could. I would have already proved them guilty of all their crimes in court and ordered them a fit punishment. If I could... I would have found an antidote to the poison and saved baba. If I could, I would have never let you go to that place. I would have never let Pratik be born there. If I could Pari... We would be living with your parents, living as normal peasants and just enjoying life with each other. But that's something I can't do," she had tears in her eyes by the time he was done. How could he have thought so much about them? She was at a loss for words at that moment
" Sohit..."
" That's why I'm giving that land in Lajpat to Shaurya. So that he can live there with Rukmini and Samarth happily... Once he's there... Then he won't have to worry about these court matters... He'll be able to live happily and-"
" What about your happiness Sohit?"

His answer filled her heart that day and stripped all her doubts apart.

" You are my happiness...
Wherever you are... I'll be happy.
You. That's all I need,"