Right to the Night

Chapter Thirty-Eight

As the weeks went by, Loki did his best to contain the rumors, but once people had a reason to stop supporting him, there was no use. His councillors were not even of any help to him and he knew things were going to start to go downhill fast. He was enraged to know that the Warrior's Three had fled the palace, which made his image look even worse. Once he learned of that, he found out the next day from one his army men that they were going around trying to solicit men from the villages to fight with them against his own army to try and take him down. Now, he had to have his army training every day and getting ready for any attack or ambush that might come his way. Each night, he could not sleep in fear that Thor would return. He had to be on high alert for him because he was going to be his undoing.

Elisabete always waited patiently for news of her family from Loki or Iona to know if they were okay. It pained her that she couldn't see them but she knew it was for the best. Some days, Loki would have Ugo visit her to keep her up with her lessons knowing he was a friend to her.

"Ugo, what do you think will happen to us?" Elisabete asked.

"I don't know. But this is serious now, you know that. Men are coming together to get Loki off the throne. They want him dead because they believe he's lied to them." Ugo explained.

"But he hasn't! Why can't they see that?" Elisabete exclaimed, her voice breaking.

"You weren't here when his reputation was ruined. He lied his way through everything. He lost the people's trust and once you lose trust in someone, it is difficult to get it back. Everyone here can act like they like him, but they all hate him and would give anything to see him get what they think he deserves. And now that that moment has come, they are seizing their opportunity." Ugo told her.

"That's ridiculous. He's a good man and I don't get why people can't see him the way I do." Elisabete scoffed.

"Because he doesn't allow people to see that side of him. Yes, he has to be vulnerable but he has to be strong for his people to show that he is capable of ruling. He can be compassionate in his rulings and decisions, but he cannot reveal his true self to them because they minute they see him crack, they will get to him." Ugo explained.

"I'm scared about this. I don't want them to hurt Adelina, my family, or Loki. I love being the queen and I don't want them to take that away from me. I don't want to go back to the lifestyle back in the village. I had no prospects and I had no future. But here...I have one. I can be the best queen Asgard's had. I want Adelina to have a better life than I ever could if I were still in the village. I like it here. I have everything I could have ever wanted." Elisabete explained to him.

"Is that all you care about? Luxury?" Ugo scoffed.

Elisabete was taken back by his tone of voice and furrowed her brow as she thought about his question.

"I thought you were better than that." Ugo stated.

"That's not all I care about. I care about my family and my daughter...and especially Loki. I care more for him more than anything or anyone. Yes, I do like the luxuries that come with being queen but it's not all I care about." Elisabete told him.

"I shall see then if that's true." Ugo spoke as he stood from the table.

Elisabete furrowed her brow as she watched him leave the room as she processed what he had said. I shall see then if that's true. She had no idea what he could mean by that. Nonetheless, she pushed it to the back of her mind since she had other things to worry about but still went to go after him to question him further. Yet when she stood from the table, a wave of nausea fell over her and she collapsed onto the ground. As Ugo walked down the hallway, he soon heard the distressed cries of Adelina. When they didn't stop and they just got louder and pierced through his ears, he knew something was wrong. He rushed back into the room and his eyes widened as he saw Elisabete flat on the floor, not moving. He quickly examined her and when he saw that she was still breathing, rushed out and called for the healers.