The Throne Is Mine
Chapter 47

Chapter 47: Chapter 47

"Are you alright, Amelia?" Margaret rushed to Amelia’s side when she spotted her near the entrance to the dining room. She had been waiting to speak with Amelia but Amelia did not allow visitors.

"Yes, grandmother. I had a lot of time to think I accepted everything that had happened while I was away. What do you think the cook will prepare for dinner?" Amelia began to walk ahead of Margaret.

Margaret was confused by Amelia’s calm behavior. Hours had passed since they learned her father had arranged for her to be married but it was not enough time for Amelia to have accepted leaving the castle. Something was fishy. "You can speak to me, Amelia. I won’t say anything. I can talk your father out of this."

"Nonsense," Amelia rejected Margaret’s offer. ’I’m sorry, grandmother but I cannot tell you anything. He’s still your son,’ she thought.

Amelia wanted to limit the plan to only her and Cyrus. Adding anyone else would only lead to the plan being exposed before it could happen. She trusted Gina and her grandmother but they would both try to talk her out of it and in the end spoil it somehow.

After conversing with Cyrus, Amelia came to the conclusion she would not create a loud fuss about the engagement but she would also not stay silent. She needed to be somewhere in the middle where suspicion could not be thrown on her and be named one of the culprits.

Amelia knew her father and Annabelle well enough to know they would mention the engagement to get a certain reaction out of her. She would act surprised and hurt as if they had won. Nothing more than that. She could not storm off or mention any plans to get out of the engagement.

"There is something going on and if I cannot know about it yet I will not push you to tell me. Come to me when you are ready, Amelia. I will always protect you," Margaret reminded Amelia. She would never be Amelia’s enemy.

Margaret did not want Amelia to be sent off far away and regardless of if Amelia wanted her to speak with Richard or not, Margaret had already planned to have a conversation with her son. It was time they discussed the relationship between her son and granddaughter. She would not only allow Richard to walk away again without giving her a proper reason why he never treated Amelia like his child.

’Is he foolish enough to think Anne had an affair? He is foolish,’ Margaret sighed as she realized this was Richard. No matter the resources she placed in front of Richard, he was still a big letdown. If only she had birthed another son who could have challenged Richard for the throne.

"We’re going to be late for dinner," Amelia hooked her arm around Margarets.

"A royal is never late, Amelia. They must wait on us to start," Margaret patted Amelia’s hand. "I hope for a peaceful dinner but the castle is never peaceful."

"We can always ignore the others and just converse with each other. It’s not like my father and his mistress have anything worth hearing. I suppose you might want to hear about your new grandchild," Amelia teased Margaret.

Margaret playfully pushed Amelia away from her side. She did not want to hear about Annabelle and her unborn child. She imagined the many stories her son’s whore would have to tell her as soon as she sat down.

"Mother! You are still in the castle. This is unlike you," Richard stood up from his seat at the dining table when Margaret and Amelia entered. "I’m happy to see you spending more time in the castle. I have missed you."

"Surely you are not blind Richard. I did not enter the room alone," Margaret pinched his hand when he came close enough. Not acknowledging his own daughter was wrong. He might not be in the best place with Amelia but he should still greet her. "Don’t make me hurt you, son."

Richard cleared his throat and snuck a look at his daughter. Amelia was also rude for not addressing the king when he entered the room. Yet, his own mother was on his daughter’s side. "Have you heard the news, Amelia? I didn’t expect to see you at dinner. Ow, mother," Richard whined after Margaret pinched him again.

His mother treated him more as a child than the king.

"She had to get married at some point. As her father, I could not allow her to remain in the castle, chasing after pointless queens. Had Amelia been more invested in marriage candidates than her hopeless dream to become queen, we could have worked together to find her a good husband. I had to work alone. It wasn’t an easy decision," Richard dragged out the conversation as he awaited a reaction from his daughter.

Annabelle who had been sitting silently at the table stared at Amelia in wonder. By now, there would be a smart or aggressive reply. ’Does she not think her father will marry her off? How delusional can she be? That’s why she should have kissed me,’ she grinned.

Margaret decided to take her seat while Richard continued to poke at Amelia for a response. He was nothing more than a child trapped in a grown man’s body.

"Please take your seat so that dinner can start," Amelia looked up at her father. "I’m hungry."

"What? Did you not hear a word of what I said?" Richard looked at Annabelle who was just as confused as he was. Where were her usual outbursts? He was ready to let her know her marriage would be final. She should be thankful he picked a good candidate. Now, there would a smooth pick for either Fraser or Annabelle’s child to be his heir.

"I’ve heard you loud and clear. What can say when you have already made up your mind for me to marry someone I do not know? Would my tears honestly change anything? Should I shed one?" Amelia replied with a lack of emotion on her face.

No one at the table, not even Margaret, could read what Amelia was thinking.