Chapter 7: The Queen’s Forgotten Promise
The queen stood above us.
Motionless.
Silent.
The woman who had held my hand.
The woman who had given me the key.
The woman who had told me not to trust crowns.
Now stood in the shadows, watching everything unfold.
Nobody spoke.
Even Shadow froze.
That was what frightened me most.
The horse had trusted her before.
But now he was warning us.
Prince Adrian looked up.
“Mother?””
The queen’s face was impossible to read.
Pain.
Regret.
Fear.
All hidden behind the expression of a woman who had spent years learning how to survive inside a palace.
The king slowly turned toward her.
“Elara.””
She closed her eyes.
For a moment, she looked exhausted.
Not like a queen.
Like someone who had finally reached the end of a very long road.
“I was hoping you would never find that letter.””
My fingers tightened around my father’s message.
“Why?””
My voice echoed through the hall.
“Why would my father write that about you?””
The queen looked at me.
And the sadness in her eyes almost made me believe she was innocent.
Almost.
But I had learned something in the palace.
The truth was never hidden behind one person’s lies.
It was buried under layers.
And every layer had to be pulled away.
“I did not betray your father,” she said.
The king looked at her sharply.
“Then explain.””
The queen descended the stairs slowly.
Every person in the room watched her.
When she reached the floor, she stopped in front of Shadow.
The stallion did not move.
She looked at him.
“You remember too.””
Shadow lowered his head slightly.
The queen touched his face.
A tear slipped down her cheek.
“I wish you didn’t.””
I stepped forward.
“Your Majesty.””
She looked at me.
“Tell me the truth.””
The queen was silent.
Then she said:
“The truth is that your father died because he trusted the wrong people.””
My chest tightened.
“Who?””
She looked at the king.
Then at Elias.
Then finally at me.
“Myself.””
The room went completely still.
Adrian stared.
“Mother.””
The queen shook her head.
“No, Adrian. She deserves the truth.””
The king’s voice became sharp.
“Elara, stop.””
The queen ignored him.
“Your father came to me five years ago with evidence against Marcus.””
I nodded.
“The emblem.””
“Yes.””
“He believed I could help him.””
Her voice broke slightly.
“And he was right.””
I frowned.
“Then why did he die?””
“Because I failed.””
The answer was quiet.
But it carried more weight than any excuse.
She walked toward the window.
“Your father asked me to protect Elias.””
Everyone looked at the prince.
“I promised him I would.””
Elias lowered his eyes.
The queen continued.
“But before I could act, Marcus discovered the investigation.””
“What happened?””
The queen looked at her hands.
“Your father disappeared.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
“And you?””
“I searched.””
“Did you find him?””
The queen did not answer immediately.
That was answer enough.
“You knew.””
The words came out before I could stop them.
“You knew what happened to my father.””
The queen looked at me.
“No.””
A pause.
“I knew who caused it.””
The room became silent.
“Who?””
Her eyes moved to the king.
And everyone understood.
The king stepped back.
“Elara.””
The queen whispered:
“Your husband.””
My heart stopped.
The king looked furious.
“Careful.””
“I have been careful for five years.””
Her voice became stronger.
“Too careful.””
The guards shifted nervously.
Nobody knew who to protect anymore.
The king.
The queen.
The prince.
The truth.
Elias stepped forward.
“Father.””
The king looked at him.
“I know what you think.””
“No.””
Elias’s voice was calm.
“I know what happened.””
The king looked away.
“You were young.””
“I was your son.””
That sentence broke something in the room.
The king said nothing.
I looked between them.
The pain was obvious.
But pain did not erase choices.
The queen turned to me.
“The king did not order Marcus to kill Elias.””
Everyone looked surprised.
“Then what?””
“He knew Marcus was dangerous.””
She looked at the king.
“And he chose silence.””
The king closed his eyes.
“Because if I exposed Marcus…”
“You would lose your throne.””
The queen finished.
The silence afterward was unbearable.
The king did not deny it.
That was the answer.
Prince Adrian looked at his father.
“You let my brother disappear because you were afraid.””
The king’s face changed.
“I was trying to prevent a civil war.””
“And what did you think losing him would cause?””
The king looked at the floor.
Nothing.
Because there was nothing he could say.
Then Shadow suddenly moved.
The horse walked toward the center of the hall.
Everyone watched.
He stopped beside the broken letter.
Then he looked at Elias.
The prince understood.
“He wants us to follow him.””
“To the forest?”” I asked.
Elias nodded.
“The place where everything started.””
The king immediately spoke.
“No.””
Everyone turned.
The king stepped forward.
“You will not go there.””
Elias stared at him.
“Why?””
The king hesitated.
Only a second.
But it was enough.
“Because it is dangerous.””
Elias smiled sadly.
“That has never stopped me before.””
The king looked at him.
“Elias.””
For the first time, his voice sounded like a father.
Not a king.
“Please.””
Everyone froze.
The king had never sounded afraid before.
Elias looked at him.
Then looked away.
“We have spent five years pretending nothing happened.””
He walked toward Shadow.
“I am done pretending.””
I followed.
Prince Adrian followed me.
The queen remained still.
I stopped beside her.
“Are you coming?””
She looked surprised.
“You still want me there?””
I thought about everything she had hidden.
The secrets.
The pain.
The betrayal.
Then I thought about the way she had protected me.
The way she had given me the key.
“I want the truth.””
The queen nodded.
“So do I.””
We left the palace before sunset.
Shadow led the way.
The forest waited beyond the kingdom walls.
The same forest where Prince Elias vanished.
The same place where my father discovered the secret that killed him.
The journey was quiet.
Too quiet.
No one knew what to say.
Finally, Adrian spoke.
“Elias.””
His brother looked back.
“Yes?””
“Did you really think we would stop searching?””
Elias smiled sadly.
“I hoped you would.””
“Why?””
“Because I was afraid you would get hurt.””
Adrian shook his head.
“You always did that.””
“Did what?””
“Protected everyone by disappearing.””
Elias looked away.
“I learned from our father.””
The words hurt everyone.
Including the queen.
Hours later, we reached the forest.
Shadow stopped beside an old tree.
The tree had deep marks carved into its trunk.
Symbols.
The silver wolf emblem.
My father’s symbol.
I touched the carving.
“He was here.””
Elias nodded.
“Yes.””
He walked toward the tree roots.
“There is something beneath this place.””
Together, we cleared away the dirt.
After several minutes, we found a small metal box buried underground.
My hands trembled as I opened it.
Inside were documents.
Names.
Orders.
Payments.
Evidence.
Enough to destroy everyone involved.
Prince Adrian picked up one paper.
His face changed.
“What?””
He looked at his brother.
“These signatures…”
I stepped closer.
And my heart stopped.
Because among the names of the traitors…
Was one name I never expected.
Not Marcus.
Not a guard.
Not a noble.
A name written in the king’s own handwriting.
The final document contained a single sentence.
*“If Elias discovers the truth, remove him immediately.””*
Nobody spoke.
The forest became silent.
Then Shadow suddenly turned.
His ears lifted.
Someone was nearby.
A branch snapped behind us.
Elias reached for his sword.
Adrian moved in front of me.
And from the darkness came a voice.
A voice I recognized.
“You should have left the past buried.””
The figure stepped into the moonlight.
The king.
But he was not alone.
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Behind him stood dozens of royal guards.
And every single one of them carried the silver wolf emblem.
