Chapter 4
JOHANNA WAS SO taken aback by his outburst that she didn’t even think of berating him for having spoken to her like that. When he was still the accountant Master Willems, he had always ruled in Father’s office. He was a couple of years older than she was, so his authority seemed natural to her, never mind that she now ruled him. This whole concept of being queen unnerved her. It made her angry, too. She spent most of her life kicking against habits and “proper” behaviour, only to succumb to pressure by others when it really mattered. Even when she was younger, she might have protested, but in the end she did what Father wanted. She went and had a dress made, she went to the ball, she danced with the prince.
And now look at her.
She was a pawn of those men with their powerful f
