The Duke's Unwanted Second Wife

King Nyxen was in the middle of a crucial council meeting with his ministers when the valet burst in, breathless, to announce August’s arrival.

The pale, troubled expression on the servant’s face made it instantly clear to the King that the Prince was causing chaos on the palace grounds.

”What has Prince August done this time?” one of the senior ministers demanded, frowning.

”Prince August has returned... and he has brought Sir Xavier, the Queen’s brother, with him,” the valet stammered. ”The nobleman does not appear to be in a good state, Your Majesty. It seems Prince August was the one who abducted him.”

Crown Prince Ciaran bolted from the hall the moment he realized his maternal uncle’s kidnapper was none other than August.

King Nyxen dismissed the council with a grim wave of his hand and followed tightly behind, heading out to the palace grounds where a bizarre scene unfolded.

”August! Have you entirely lost your mind?” Ciaran shouted, stepping aggressively into the courtyard.

”Stay exactly where you are, Crown Prince!” August commanded coldly, dragging a barely conscious Xavier up by his collar and pressing the edge of his dagger firmly against the nobleman’s throat.

August looked past Ciaran, his eyes locking onto the King before turning his fierce glare back to the man in his grip. ”Tell them what you told me, Xavier. Tell the Crown Prince that the Queen murdered my mother, and that Alistair Spencer who discovered the truth had to lose his life, and his entire family’s too!”

Xavier, realizing that his confession would utterly ruin his sister and dismantle the royal family, fell dead silent. He swallowed hard and looked toward his nephew. ”Crown Prince, please save me! I have no idea why Prince August is doing this to me. He is mad!”

”Do not lie to them, Xavier! You are the one who set fire to Alistair Spencer’s estate,” August bellowed, his voice carrying across the entire courtyard. ”And the one who commanded you to commit that slaughter is the Queen herself!”

At the escalation, a tight perimeter of royal soldiers advanced, their rifles raised and aimed squarely at August.

”August, lower that dagger this instant,” Ciaran ordered, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. ”You cannot stand in the palace courtyard and accuse my uncle and the Queen of treason without a single shred of evidence.”

”I am not accusing them blindly,” August spat back, tightening his grip on the nobleman’s collar. ”He is the living proof of what truly happened in Varos years ago.”

King Nyxen finally stepped forward, his commanding voice cutting through the tension of the courtyard.

”August, you do not want your blood spilled on these grounds,” Nyxen stated, his expression hardened with royal authority. ”Lower that weapon from Xavier’s throat this instant. You are standing in direct violation of the law.”

Before August could counter, Queen Victoria hurried out onto the palace grounds, her breath catching as her eyes widened at the horrifying scene. For the past two days, she had been worried to death over her brother’s sudden disappearance, and seeing him held at knifepoint shattered her composure.

”Fire upon him!” Victoria ordered frantically from across the courtyard, pointing a trembling finger at August. ”He is going to kill my brother. Shoot him down!”

”No!” Nyxen roared, his voice echoing off the stone walls. ”No one will shoot. That is a direct command from your King!”

The soldiers instantly faltered, lowering their rifles back to their sides.

”August, drop the dagger,” Nyxen commanded, his posture rigid. ”You cannot harm Xavier.”

The King’s mind raced; he needed his son safe. One wrong move, one impulsive twitch of August’s wrist, and everything would be irreparably ruined.

”Your Majesty, please save me! I swear I have no inkling why Prince August is doing this to me,” Xavier cried out, forcing crocodile tears to well in his eyes. He knew August possessed no tangible evidence; playing the innocent victim of a madman’s delusion was his easiest escape.

From the shadows behind the grand palace pillars, August’s confidant watched the standoff unfold, a sickening realization settling in, things were spinning entirely out of their control.

”They murdered my mother! Why refuse to see it, Father?” August said frantically, his composure fracturing as he tightened his grip. ”Xavier needs a proper beating before he will open his mouth and speak the truth!”

”I will interrogate him myself. But first, throw that dagger away,” Nyxen commanded.

Sensing the shift in attention, Victoria subtly caught the eye of a marksman among the guards. The moment August lowered the dagger by a fraction, she gave a nod. The soldier raised his rifle and fired.

The crack of gunfire echoed through the courtyard. August spun at the sound, but the bullet tore directly into his upper chest.

”No!” King Nyxen roared.

August felt the world tilt violently, his head spinning as the sky rushed upward. His hand flew to his chest, dark blood spilling from his lips as his knees buckled, sending him crashing onto the cobblestones.

Ciaran rushed forward, bellowing for the immediate arrest of the rogue marksman, and dropped to his knees to pull August’s head onto his lap.

August’s vision began to blur, his eyes burning with years of suppressed torment and unavenged grief. ”She killed my mother... She killed innocents...” he choked out, his voice fading into a whisper as the palace grounds erupted into chaos around them.

”Take him inside. Now! He needs immediate treatment!” Nyxen barked, ignoring the surrounding bedlam as he ordered the servants to fetch a stretcher.

”Your Majesty, he deserves to die! He committed treason against my house!” Queen Victoria shrieked in unbridled fury, her face contorted with rage as she gestured toward her gasping brother.

”That will be decided only when August wakes up,” King Nyxen snapped as he turned his back on her, his eyes fixed solely on his bleeding son.

August’s confidant slipped away from the chaotic courtyard unnoticed, sprinting toward the stables.

Mounting his horse, he spurred the horse into a frantic gallop, heading straight for Varos to inform Damian of the disaster. Only Damian possessed the power and the proof to save August from the impending trap of a treason charge now.