Chapter 584 - Five Hundred And Eighty-Four: A Hostage Situation
The third point of view:
"No, no, no, it's us!" Reina lifted her hand in surrender as soon as the guards pointed the guns at them. The tension was high as the guards were taking extra caution not to let the enemies in guise into their haven.
"Come in now!" they urged all of them inside before closing the door. There was a makeshift peephole on the large wooden door the guards had curved to discern the outside.
As expected, most of the diplomats, guests, and palace staff were seated on the pew, anxiously awaiting their fate. There was fear written on their faces and their despair was suffocating.
Reina didn't like this feeling of helplessness at all. She was used to fighting her way out of every battle, but now, she has to consider her children - both born and unborn.
"Here, have a seat," she directed the kids over to one of the long benches.
"Take care of the kids," She said to Isabella.
Isabella grabbed her at once, "Where are you going?"
"I need to contact your father," Reina said, bringing out her cellphone.
At that, Isabelle let go of her, she had thought her dumb mother was going to jump into danger. At that rate, she would just have to tie her up. Nobody was dying, not in her watch.
Reina was prepared to call Niklaus when the door was opened and lo and behold, her husband and the others arrived - with the queen.
There was a collective gasp from the crowd just as everyone went on their knees, "Your majesty,"
"Please, be on your feet," the queen told them, "This is no time for formalities but our survival,"
"You obviously don't care about our survival!" Someone shouted from behind, causing everyone to turn.
The man stood up straight, "I heard those young kids...." he pointed to Allen, Ailee, and Neon, "Warned you about the impending treason yet you did nothing about it,"
At once, there was murmuring from the crowds. Just like the man, some of the people in the crowd shifted the blame to the queen.
"If you had taken the threat seriously, then we wouldn't have been in this predicament!" he accused her.
A great murmuring arose from the crowd as two factions were created instantly - those against the queen and those with the queen.
Reina and Emily stared at each other, this was not good. If the disagreement continued, it might turn into a riot and they couldn't risk this place - nor her children.
"Quiet!!! " Judy boomed and the hall quieted down. He stared them down; his jaw clenched and his gaze hardened, "Yes, my mother, the royal highness made a mistake, but aren't we all humans, bound to make mistakes?"
No one said a word. Some cleared their throat awkwardly while the others looked away in shame.
Judy went on, "We are trying our best to ensure your survival and to change the tide of this war. So unless you're grabbing a weapon to join us - not that we're forcing you - the best you can do for us is just your asses and stay still,"
Most of the citizens of Lincolnshire and diplomats amongst the crowd gasped in shock, this was the first time they have seen Judy bring foul-mouthed. They had always seen their Prince Kai as refined and graceful and prime - but that wasn't the case anymore - hence they were shocked - including the queen.
Reina and the others were the only ones slightly surprised that he used such language after a long time. Unlike the others, they knew Judy's history and the fact he grew up bad - you can never take away a habit learned over a lifetime.
Judy let out a breath of relief. Now, his citizens can know he was not their everyday proper king nor was he a pushover. Just like both sides of a coin, he could be kind when he wanted to and cruel when necessary.
"Does anyone have a problem with that?!" He asked one more time and when no one replied, knew his message had gotten across.
"We'd fight to the end, but when it seems the tide isn't in our favor, we'd surely find a way to get you out of here. That's a promise," He assured them, then turned to his mother.
"You'll be fine here,"
"Kai," the queen grabbed his hand just as he turned to leave. He looked at her questioningly.
However, the woman simply stood on her heels and kissed him on the forehead, "May the Lord be with you,"
He smiled at her knowing she was blessing him. In times of war, it was customary for the priest to bless their weapons, but since there wasn't one available, she was doing their job.
And just like that, the queen observed the same custom on all of the men with him. None of them refused the gesture knowing it was a huge privilege.
"Father!" Judy's attention was shifted to his son who had run over to him, Emily after him.
"I don't want you to go,"
"Hey, be a strong man - that's your responsibility as a prince. You have to be strong for your mother and your subjects,"
Akim wanted to cry but seeing the firm determination on his father's face, he made up his mind to be strong.
He turned to Emily, "How do you feel?"
"Better," Emily told him, then engulfed him in a hug, "Be safe,". She didn't want to let him go, but then, this was his job as a prince of this kingdom.
Just like Judy, the others spent one short moment with their family and loved ones.
"It's time," Emerald informed Judy and he gestured to the others as well. Slowly, they withdrew from the room one after the others, but not without one last long at their loved ones.
As soon as the guards shut the door, silence descended as the severity of the situation dawned on everyone. However, that was the beginning of their problem because one of the guards out of nowhere shot at the others before they could react.
It became a hostage situation.
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