Hunted Queen

Chapter Fourteen • Fearing a King's Wrath

*Long Chapter*

-Jade- 

The first day of their journey, Jade spent trying to keep the contents of her stomach down. The rocking motion of the moving carriage made the ordeal that was their journey a lot worse and harder to handle. But she managed, barely. It irritated her immensely that this part of being pregnant had to come at this moment. Couldn't it had come sooner, or later?

"You look pale, child." Elizabeth kept mumbling. She was not shy with all of the disapproving, but slightly concerned, looks she was sending Jade's way either. "You should have stayed in the castle. We should have stayed..." Was also words frequently leaving her. Jade ignored Elizabeth each time. 

She swallowed to prevent another gag, even though there were nothing to swallow. She had not eaten properly due to the nausea. This also aggravated her governess.

It took them a week and a half before Loren finally slammed the roof of the carriage encouragingly, signaling their arrival. 

"Have we truly arrived?!" Jade breathed in relief and threw herself at the door of the carriage.

"Jade! Calm down!" Elizabeth cried after her and hurried after her out of the carriage. "It is not good for the baby!"

"The baby is barely a month." Jade replied, a bit snarky. I think. Perhaps a little more than a month...? 

It was a habit from her old self, not wanting to be told this or that and to retort immediately. However, even if she was slightly better at controlling her moods and tongue nowadays, her old inability to hold her tongue showed itself. Although, now she could partly blame it on the pregnancy. However, she did feel more easily... provoked. Her mother had always been extremely moody every time she had been pregnant with her younger siblings. Especially the boys. Which caught Jade's heart for a second. It was then she realized that Elizabeth's suspicions that whomever was growing inside of her, would most definitely be a little prince. If there was any kwowning... She smiled at the thought. 

"I heard that!" Elizabeth called out as she exited.

"You hear everything!" Jade countered.

When her right foot landed in the wet muddy ground she inhaled deeply. The smell of bonfires swirled together with the scent of roasted meat and the slobbering wet mud. It might not have been what she was expecting - or preferred -  but it was not the insides of the carriage which she had been spending far too much time in; so she reveled every part of this change of environment. 

The camp they had arrived in was full of life. It was not grave and gloomy as she had imagined it. The soldiers who passed her was in high spirits and the sound of swords clashing together as some of them sparred filled the air together with the occasional laughter. Jade felt her face slowly contort into a frown. Why were there laughter? Why were there soldiers with smiles on their faces? 

"Jade." She stopped at the sound of Loren's voice. A curse left him when he realized his mistake. "Do not wander off, your grace." He told her. "For your own safety." 

"What could possibly happen in our own camp?" She called out. 

The weather was a little bit warmer and the skies were only slightly covered in clouds. But the sun was - as Loren had pointed out - not spreading its warm rays anywhere near the camp. It was hidden by clouds. Perhaps the sun never shone down on a battlefield... 

Jade scolded herself in her mind for almost taking Loren's words for truth when Elizabeth almost fell out of out of the carriage by the sound of it. Jade studied the thousands of tents which had been erected in what she could only assume was an old field. What had doubtlessly been a sea of green was now a war camp. It probably belonged to some poor farmer around the corner. She told herself to remind her husband that the farmer needed to be compensated properly for ruining his land in this way. The mess the land was in now would remain as such until next spring when the farmer could plant his crops.