Hunted Queen

Chapter 4 • Bad Advise

*Very long chapter*

How about another long chapter? ;)

-Jade- 

"So... Your husband just found you? In that inn...?" Brother Richard looked baffled. Jade shrugged her shoulders. "... and decided that he wanted to marry you, there and then?" He was extremely enticed but also confused by the beginning of Jade's and William's story. 

It had taken her the entire day to tell it. The sun was about to set and they had not yet eaten dinner. Mostly because Brother Richard had not been keen on missing any details. He had asked countless amounts questions about things Jade had not thought much of herself. Things like Loren's absolute lack of a personal life. Did the guard truly not have a girl of his own? If he was such a brave young man, would they not swoon for him? That question had made Jade smile. She had indeed asked Loren about this before they left the castle many weeks ago, or was it months? She was not sure. The proud guard had waved her questions away, not letting her close for anything in the world. He deemed it inappropriate. 

Brother Richard had also made up a little theory about King Uldard and Elizabeth. That they might have been in love at some point. This was so absurd, that Jade had almost hit the monk's arm as he spoke the words. Why else would this Elizabeth have taken such great care of the prince? He had wondered aloud. Jade had rolled her eyes at him. Elizabeth loved William - as if he was her own, yes - but the King would never have been able to have another woman without it reaching his wife. This Jade was very sure of, because if they had been in love, there was not a doubt in her soul that William's mother would have found out and executed Elizabeth on the spot. It was also unthinkable that William's father would be unfaithful. He was not that sort of man, which was also why she had become so upset when Brother Richard had suggested the romance with Elizabeth. 

"Well?" Brother Richard urged her when she had disappeared into her thoughts. 

"Yes, he did." Jade smiled at the memory of seeing William for the very first time. Apparently, he had decided that she was the one for him the night of Marie's wedding. Right then and there. William had looked so cold and unsympathetic the day she had opened the door to find him on the other side of it. The memory of how she had slammed the door in his face caused her to laugh quietly to herself. He must have been so shocked. Jade smiled as she recalled how easy it had been to offend him back then. 

Brother Richard did not seem to notice how she drifted off again. Instead, he seemed to be thinking very hard about how Jade and William had become the couple they were today. After a moment he gave up and gave her an amused look followed by a short chuckle.

"Well... The young man must have been very sure that you were meant for him. Especially since he managed to convince your father to give him your hand without ever having spoken to you." The monk said with a warm smile on his lips. He seemed to like William, despite never having met him, although it had first shown when Jade had gotten to the part of their story when William had started to open up to her. Before that, Brother Richard had not been all too impressed about the young prince. At one point he had mumbled the words 'spoiled royals doing whatever pleases them...' without thinking that Jade could hear him. "God works in mysterious ways." He stated, as if William and Jade's trials had been up to some God. 

It sure as hell was not your God who made me William's. Jade thought, offended. She bit back a snarling comment. That man did all he could on his own to make me his... with some help from his father... Liz... and Loren. She thought and felt her eyebrows rise in awe of the realization of how much the people around William loved him. Aiding him in getting Jade to stay.