THE ITALIAN ROSE 🌹 KING HENRY VIII

15: Blood of my blood

Mid-January 1535

Queen Julianna

"Is everything alright my lady?" Lady Abigail Reddington asked setting down the hairbrush as her mistress sat, gazing unhappily into the mirror.

Julianna sighed and nodded, Henry had called an emergency council meeting and whatever was to be discussed made her nervous. Their child wasn't due for another two months but Henry saw threats to their child's life everywhere. The most dangerous threat was Andreas, he was getting far too close for comfort.

knock knock knock

"Come in!" Julianna called out, the door opened to reveal one of her most trusted ladies, Victoria Shelton. She bowed for her queen and placed a letter in her possession with an almost nervous look on her face. Lady Victoria had been her spy, acting as an innocent party she would gather information for her queen. Julianna broke the wax seal on the letter and began to read.

My dearest cousins,

It is with great disdain that I write to you having made little progress with the woman you so affectionately call "The Roman Whore". The king seems most enamored with her though it isn't hard to see why sadly she is not the same girl I once knew back home. Now it seems since becoming a mother I have found her one weakness. Her children will prove useful tools, she will do anything for them and it can easily be used against her. The elder of the twins will have protection on him night and day and with recent events disposing of him will be harder than hoped. The younger of the twins Charles will have a lighter guard with him, I can arrange to have them sent to Rome or disposed of here in England. With the deaths of his children, the king will have no choice but to legitimize Edward.

Edward is being well taken care of here and once he has been named his father's heir he will be the prince he should have been all along and Jane will be queen as she desired.

The queen herself will soon be dealt with as well 

Your loving cousin,

Andreas

Just the sight of the letter made Julianna ill, she stood abruptly startling her ladies and stormed from the room. This was the final straw she thought as anger boiled inside of her, plotting against her was one thing but her children crossed a line. She gave him a chance, she believed in him Julianna desperately wanted to believe that he was the same man she loved when she was a girl. He was a good man Julianna desperately repeated to herself he wouldn't stoop so low as to threaten a child, much less, children of the woman he claimed he loved so deeply.

She stopped to reread the letter and her blood ran cold, no matter what hope she held for him he was plotting against her children. For this betrayal and pain, he would suffer Julianna would be sure of it.

She was no longer Julianna Borgia the young and innocent naive girl who trusted anyone and everyone. 

She was Julianna Tudor, a queen, and mother who would do anything to protect her children and knew the weak were used and abused.

Julianna took a breath to gather her thoughts, bile threatened to rise up in her throat. She barged into her husband's study interrupting a meeting with Henry's council, looking rather distressed Charles got to her first just before she stumbled. One of the lords came with a chair for her to sit.