Betrayed (The Secret World Of Atlantis 3)

Chapter 6 - The Day Of The Hearing

In the next couple of days, Elena and I spend all of our time in the library. We are still looking for a way to find Eros, but everything useful turns out to be too complicated. Either we’re lacking resources, powers, or the distance is too big. Nothing seems worth giving it a try.

Waking up that Tuesday makes me feel relieved and anxious at the same time. It’s the day of my stepmother’s trial, which means I won’t be searching for any tracker magic until the afternoon. At least that’s what I think. Who knows how long the trial is actually going to last?

That said, I am partially happy to be taking a break from all those books, but at the same time I feel guilty. Eros is out there somewhere, probably being tortured by Teivel and I’m doing nothing? I bolt up from my bed, deciding to still pay the library a visit before breakfast. Maybe I manage to find something, that I wouldn’t find otherwise.

But after brushing through page after page without finding anything, I realize what a mistake this has been. I was only wasting time. For what purpose? I’m not any closer to getting Eros’s location or stepping in contact with him. And it’s bothering me more, than I thought it would.

I put the books back into their place and head towards the terrace for breakfast. To my surprise, everyone is already gathered by the table, even Elena. Well, everyone except Zara. She still doesn’t come down from her room.

I’m surprised, actually. I thought she would at least join us on the day of her mother’s trial. For getting something to eat, at least. She’s going to need the strength, if she intends to come to the Courthouse with us. She won’t be able to witness her mother’s sentence on an empty stomach.

But as I ask father, whether Zara isn’t going to join us, he lets out a heavy sigh. Not even a moment later, he shakes his head, making me raise my eyebrows in surprise. “She’s requested breakfast to be brought to her room. But she will be coming to the trial with us later …” he trails off, before scratching his chin. “At least that’s what I think,” he adds after some time, making me just nod in understanding.

I know he wants to mend things with her, but I don’t think she’s going to get over what happens today so easily. Especially if her mother gets convicted to a death sentence. And I have enough knowledge about Atlantean laws to predict what is going to happen to the Queen.

I don’t know why, but I find myself glancing over the table to find Flora, who is watching me with newfound interest. I stare at her for a moment, soon making her squeeze her lips together and look away. I supress a sigh and turn my gaze back down to my plate. This is truly going to be a rough day.

Dressed in neutral colours, that are more than fitting for the occasion, I find myself riding towards the city a couple of hours later. We are all gathered inside one carriage. My father, grandparents, aunt, uncle, Flora, Nahuel, Zara, Elena and I. The atmosphere is grim, as expected, but it would be like this, even if my sister didn’t throw a tantrum beforehand.

She refused to ride in the carriage with us and kept repeating, that she wants to ride on her own, but father turned her down, because he wanted us all to arrive to the Courthouse together. And that’s when she lost it. She screamed so loudly, that she was probably heard all the way to Stenraan. But that wasn’t everything. When she started to cry, father tried to comfort her, but she started kicking and hitting everything around her. She kept repeating, that she doesn’t want his filthy hands on her, and it shocked all of us.

I glance at my father, who is staring out the window with a grim expression on his face. I don’t blame him. He’s been locked up, starved and only Gods know what else, as he doesn’t want to speak about the time he spent in the dungeons. Now that he is finally back and exposed the Queen as the traitor, Zara can’t stand him because of it.

I understand why she’s mad … She isn’t stupid. She is acting like this, because she knows her mother is going to be sentenced to death today. And honestly, my behaviour would be the same if I was in her shoes.

As I bring myself back to the present, my eyes begin to jump from one to the other, and I find myself torn between who to try to get alone to comfort them first. My tortured father? Or my broken sister?

Elena notices my dilemma, and gently squeezes my hand in comfort. I send her a grateful gaze, making her smile back up at me. We were so busy looking for a way to find Eros in the past couple of days, that I forgot to scold her about her hot and cold behaviour towards Demitri. I make a mental note to talk to her about it later, when all of this is behind us.

The carriage then slowly comes to a stop, and I find myself holding my breath in expectation. This is it. There’s no way back from here. And considering the accusations, that are going to be told, this is going to sting all of us in some way.

It’s an odd feeling, walking into the Courthouse through the front door, when I had to sneak in the last time. One of the many things I have to thank Teivel and the Queen for. After rising up the stairs, I realize we’re headed in the exact same hall, where Eros’s hearing took place. I find my pace slowing down suddenly, like my body is trying to prevent me from going in there. Like it doesn’t want the space to stir up memories.

I suddenly feel two comforting hands on my shoulders, one from my best friend and one from my father. They know how hard going inside is for me. I don’t need to say anything, they both know me well enough to realize this is about Eros. I send them both grateful gazes, before putting a determined expression on my face. I need to face this. I must be there to see justice for the Queen’s actions.

I force my legs to move a little faster, and we soon catch up with the rest of our family. There is already quite the crowd inside the Courtroom, as we enter it. But there is still plenty of space in the first row. No one dares to sit there, giving off the feeling, like it’s reserved for us.

As we take our seats, my eyes fall upon the curtain behind the judge’s chair. I can’t help but remember the anxiety inside my chest, as I listened in on what was happening on the other side. Everything is jumping out at me now, all the signs that I overlooked. If only I knew, that Teivel was hiding behind my father’s face, I would expose him immediately. I could find something to make him reveal himself, just like I managed to do with the Queen.

If I did … We would still be standing here, but Teivel would be facing his justice right next to his lover. And Eros would be seating beside me, watching the trial with that crease between his eyebrows, that always appears when he’s frustrated.

I bite my lip, forcing myself to focus on the pain, so I prevent the tears from forming in my eyes. This is harder, than I thought it would be. And the moment I look at the accused’s empty chair, it gets even worse.

I find myself looking down at my lap, suddenly sensing a metal taste in my mouth. I lick the blood of my lips and close my eyes. I need a moment for myself, but I’m not going to get it anytime soon. I need to fight this. Fight back the memories, the tears and the worries. I can’t do anything about them now.

As I hear the sudden murmurs rising in the Courtroom, I know immediately what is happening. I look up to see the Queen being brought onto her place. Her eyes scan us all, stopping on me and my father for a moment longer. But when she spots Zara, she turns pale, making it very clear, that she doesn’t want her daughter to be there.

I can’t help but glance at my sister, whose expression is petrified, like she can’t believe her mother is chained up. There is no sign of tears in her eyes, but that might just be the shock. Who knows what is going to happen when the final judgment is going to be revealed?

As the judge enters the Courtroom, a deafening silence falls upon the crowd. It’s the same man, who declared Eros free those few months ago. Judge Erinoma. It feels like a lifetime has passed since that day.

His eyes hold a stern gaze, as he takes in the people gathered. He doesn’t waste any more time and soon checks the presence of the accused, the prosecutor and the defender. I feel like his words are floating in the air around me, I can hear then, but I’m not really able to process them. I just can’t focus.

“Prosecutor, please come forward,” the judge invites my uncle, who offered himself to the role, as my father is going to testify as a witness.

His eyes hold a stern gaze as he walks to the front and begins to speak. “Queen Sophia Io is hereby accused of betraying the Crown in the worst way possible. She helped a criminal take the King and they kept him locked up for almost a year. She is also accused of maltreating her stepdaughter, using her function to help a criminal rule over the Kingdom, and keeping quiet about the crimes, that were committed by Teivel Carme.”

I watch the Queen’s reaction, but she sits there calmly, like none of this is her concern. It makes me feel uneasy and reminds me of the craziness I saw in Teivel’s eyes. This doesn’t seem like a good sign.

As no one wanted or dared to step up for the Queen, she is her own defender, just like Eros was. The thought of him makes me lose focus for a moment and I miss a few words, that are exchanged between the parties. But when I look up again, turning my gaze towards the Queen again, I notice she’s already watching me. I stiffen, chills running down my spine as I see her lips curling up into a wicked smile.