The Princess of Elfhame

What is that girl up to these days?

Jude 

It's been days since I last saw Rhea, even though my spies say that Rhea is in the palace and as I'm walking by the library, I pause when I hear voices. 

The door is shut and locked as I place my ear to the door but the voices are muffled. 

However, I can hear Rhea, and it brings me relief to know that she's safe if not okay. 

Cardan's face is grim as he rounds the corner and I raise an eyebrow. 

"What's wrong?" I ask and he shakes his head. 

"Apparently, Rhea and Castien haven't left the library in three days except to go to the bathroom and grab other resources that Castien has messengers from Dorrenhid is receiving." 

"So why's that a problem?" I ask, confused as to why Cardan looks so upset about this project they're working on. 

It's been almost a week since I convinced Cardan and Rhea to not work on a cure to "cure" my age and I can see that it's breaking their hearts and they don't want to tell the boys yet, afraid that their reaction might send our family into a depressed depression or something like that. 

"Because they're working on solving what Lord Jasce of Clintendon wants and specifically why he's going after Rhea through her friends and family," Cardan says coldly and I close my eyes. 

That would explain the lock doors more than anything else. 

"Three days?" I ask in surprise after a few seconds of silence and Cardan nods. 

"I'm half tempted to ask a guard to break down the doors and carry them to their rooms so they get some rest if not sleep. The only other person in this castle who's seen Rhea was a maid who entered to bring them food. They look ghastly." 

"WE CAN HEAR YOU, AND YOU'RE NOT HELPING," Rhea hollers and we snicker as we walk away. 

"So... what happens when Rhea finds out the truth about Lord Jasce?" I ask worriedly and Cardan shakes his head. 

"I don't know and I dread to think of her reaction. Hopefully our daughter understands and doesn't cast us away from her life," Cardan says miserably and I pause in the hallway before I look at him. 

"You think she would over this?" I hiss and he nods. 

"I do. I think when Rhea finds out, she won't just feel betrayed, she's going to be angry. With us, not with Lord Jasce." 

We had told Rhea that he had been a conqueror and that had been true. 

We had put an end to his life in hopes of saving Elfhame from his rule, but there was a darker side to the tale.

 One that Rhea would never forgive us for. 

I wasn't sure if anyone could for what we'd done. 

As we walked, I felt rising shame within me, for what I'd done and what I'd have to do to calm my daughter when she found out. 

Not if. 

Rhea 

I can feel my parent's concern for me and Castien, because it's true. 

We haven't left this room in 3 days, pouring over texts, writing and discussing who Jasce was, what he was doing on the continent, what he wanted, what had happened to him, and why his son was after me. 

"Okay," I say, leaning back in my chair and rubbing my temples, "I know you shot this down a few days ago, but I really think that if we wrote to him and I told him I wanted to meet, it'd do us loads of good to understand instead of looking at these books incessantly-"