Fated Eclipse: The Illegitimate Princess And Her Alpha Suitors

Chapter 109: The Breath Held Too Long

Lyria’s POV

Silence followed after the baron’s words.

It sat in the hall like something alive now—something watching, something waiting for the smallest wrong movement to justify what came next.

And I—I was at the center of it.

I could feel it in the way they looked at me.

Like the court itself could not decide what I was supposed to be anymore, and so it kept looking until something gave them permission to understand.

I wanted to tell the baron he had spoken the truth; I wanted to say something sharp, something immediate, something that would cut through this entire absurd performance and return me to the obscurity I had always known.

But I did not move.

Because movement was dangerous now.

Even breath felt like a decision I could not afford to make lightly.

The Queen’s hand remained on mine.

A quiet reminder that I was not alone in this silence.

Or rather—that I was not allowed to be.

Around us, the court remained still and waiting.

The Queen finally moved. She turned slightly toward Baron Redwick.

”My lord,” she said softly, ”you seem to be placing great weight upon a single encounter.”

Her voice was calm as she spoke. If only she knew I had not just met the baron once but thrice now.

The baron inclined his head slightly.

I expected him to correct the notion, but he did not.

”Rather than that,” he said calmly, ”I am more focused on the inconsistency that I observed.”

My chest tightened slightly.

The Queen exhaled slowly through her nose.

It was a controlled breath—the kind that meant she was choosing her next words very carefully.

”I am certain,” she said at last, ”that whatever impression you may have formed was influenced by circumstance.”

She tilted her head slightly.

”As it so often is.”

”True, but with due respect, Your Majesty, I would rather appreciate it if the lady herself spoke. Like I said, I wish to understand the inconsistencies I have observed between that encounter and this one,” he said calmly.

There were nods too from the others gathered, as if they wanted to understand what was happening. I did too, but I was not going to say that outright.

I had to make a decision.

If I spoke now, if I contradicted the Royal Family, then perhaps I could be rid of them and their hold over me.

But that in itself was not enough, was it? I had to think of the repercussions. My mother was firmly in the hands of the Royal Family. One gesture from the Queen, and I knew they could dispose of her.

And there was Patricia too. The King would waste no time in disposing of her.

And if they survived, would there be the certainty I needed that we would not be hunted down? Surely there would still be people in court who favoured the Royal Family. Jacinta, for one, had followers. Kyia was one of them. Could I risk my loved ones knowing that?

The Queen’s grip tightened.

”Is anything the matter, love?” she asked me. ”You have been quiet for quite a while.”

There is a story my mother told me when I was little. About a girl who was treated poorly by her stepfamily.

She was wolfless like me in the story, and no one even gave her the time of day. But then there was a ball that was taking place to welcome the prince, and though wolfless, the girl wanted to attend too. Her family had refused her attendance and even stripped away the clothes she had put together.

I thought she was quite foolish for even attempting to go against a family that obviously disliked her. And I remember my mother telling me the sweetest part of the story wasn’t the happily ever after, but the fact that the girl had a fairy godmother. People said the fairy godmother was the goddess, and she granted every wish of the girl.

At this point, I wished I had a fairy godmother too—to take me away. Or perhaps to make the Queen look exactly like her heart... ugly.

Alas, I did not have one.

I exhaled. It was time to make a decision.

Every gaze settled on me. Every suitor candidate stared directly at me.

”I...” I began.

My throat tightened immediately.

I paused.

I hated that pause more than anything, because pauses gave people room to assume.

And I had already been turned into too many assumptions today.

I tried again.

”I am not particularly accustomed to attention.”

My words came out soft, and perhaps strange to the ears of those listening. I was trying my very best not to stutter, after all.

The Queen’s grip loosened just slightly. It was obvious she was pleased with my answer.

I continued.

”I find it... overwhelming,” I said carefully. ”That day... I was only able to speak freely because of circumstance.”

It was not entirely a lie, but it also was not really the truth.

Acceptance began to settle where doubt had been.

Baron Redwick did not look like he believed me at all. And I was not surprised, because I found the words that had slipped from my mouth hard to believe too—but it seemed to be working on the others.

Duke Thorncrest, who had now gone to join the other candidates, standing next to Duke Valenridge, just stared at me. It was quite obvious to me that he did not believe a word of what I had said.

I could not say the same for Duke Valenridge, who just stared at me with an unreadable expression on his face.

Lucian had a small smile on his face, but he was quick to hide it. I frowned. Did he find the situation entertaining?

”Really?” Earl Hawthorne asked me.

I nodded. ”Yes, my lord.”

He looked like he had something more to say, but then someone spoke up.

”Permit me to say a few words, Your Majesty,” Marquess Hale spoke up.