Page 118 of The Forgotten Queen
“King Adler made me do it,” he burst out, dabbing his sweaty forehead with his handkerchief. “Heforcedme to do it.”
Bryant didn’t need to know that Von had been given a substantial amount of money—enough money that he could continue his research on the Isolated Amnesia project. Besides the cash, Adler had promised him that his drug would change the world, that he would bring it forward to the Council of Essentials.
That’s all Von had ever wanted.
It was his life’s work.
His baby.
His drugcouldchange the world.
“King Adler was the one who had my daughter shot. Why would he want you to save her?” Bryant asked.
“The shooting at the wedding was staged. Seran was never supposed to die. The bullet was supposed to inflict a minor flesh wound. But when King Ezra pushed her out of the way, the bullet landed in the wrong spot. The wound was severe, but nothing I couldn’t handle,” he told Bryant matter-of-factly. “Once she was stable, I administered the medicine that made her appear dead. There were small hints and signs that a trained eye would’ve been able to pick up on, but you and your family were grieving. You missed all the signs.”
The color drained from Bryant’s face. “But I closed the casket. I watched them load it into a transporter in Albion and bring it to New Hope.”
“King Adler had the transporters switched during your first stop along the journey.”
Bryant stood and began pacing back and forth, shaking his head. “Switched the transporters?”
“Yes,” Von confirmed. “The transporter with Seran’s body drove to Tolsten with me in it, watching over the patient. And the decoy transporter and casket went to New Hope.” He held his hand up, remembering another detail. “I should also mention that we had a special casket designed for her body that circulated air, so there was no chance of suffocation while she was away from us. My job was to keep her alive.”
He paused pacing, shooting a glare back at him. “If what you’re saying is true, where is she?”
“That’s why I’m here,” Von said. “After King Adler died, Commander Stoddard and I escaped Tolsten House with your daughter.”
Bryant’s chest heaved up and down. “I remember the reports—a doctor, a nurse, and a mystery woman. That wasSeran?”
“That’s correct.”
His breath faltered. “But the reports said the woman was immobile. Is Seran…okay?”
“Since the wedding, Seran has been kept in a drug-induced coma.”
Bryant gasped, covering his mouth with his hand.
“It wasn’t the initial plan, but Adler’s illness and death changed things.”
The king’s hand drifted from his mouth to his chest. “Where is she?” he demanded again.
“Three months ago—” Von said, inclining his head, “I guess it is four months now—I brought your daughter out of her coma, under the direction of Commander Stoddard.”
“What does the commander have to do with any of this?”
“When the weapons were destroyed, the princess was the only thing Stoddard had left to bargain with against the Council of Essentials.”
“So, where is she? Does Stoddard have her locked up somewhere?”
“No. On the contrary. She’s at Cristole Castle. She’s the queen.”
“What?” Bryant’s voice rose. “What do you mean she’s the queen?”
“Commander Stoddard sold the princess to the King of Cristole. He married her, and now she’s the queen.”
Bryant slammed his fist into his desk, making Von jump in his chair. “He sold her…like a prisoner?”
“She’s not a prisoner.” Von pushed his glasses back up his nose.
