Chapter 187

[Third-Person’s POV]

Alexander first noticed something was wrong when he reached over to Evelyn’s side of the bed to find it empty. Immediately, his eyes snapped open and he searched the room but found no signs of her. He wasn’t even sure how long she’d been gone.

He felt it deep in his gut that something wasn’t right. It wasn’t until he heard a rather loud thud that he shot out of bed and raced to the door. A couple of the other staff members were already out of their rooms, wondering what was going on.

Alexander followed the commotion down the hall. The anxiety in his chest grew worse when he heard the distinctive sound of a woman grunting followed by a heavy noise of a body hitting the floor.

Oh God.

When he rushed through the doorway and turned on the lights, he was relieved to find that his wife wasn’t the one who’d been helplessly pinned to the floor. It didn’t come as any surprise that it happened to be Fiona.

It ignored the fact that her nose was currently gushing a small amount of blood from Evelyn’s mean punch. In fact, the only real thing that he concerned himself with was her well-being. He wrapped his hands around Evelyn’s waist and pulled her to her feet.

He looked her over from head to toe. The corner of his mouth pulled into a deep gratified smile.

“Well done, sweetheart,” he said proudly. “She didn’t seem to give you much trouble it seems.”

Evelyn peered down at the unconscious healer and sneered.

“My guess is that she’s lost whatever sanity she had left when she realized that she had to find a way to get the blade back,” she assessed. “She wasn’t necessarily an easy opponent but I felt as though I may have had an advantage in that aspect.”

Alexander snaked his arm around her waist and held her close. “Well, she’s certainly made things easy for us.”

He called out for Oliver who was quick to enter the room.

“Sir?”

“Send out the requests for the warrants on Isabella and Fiona now,” he said. “I know we spoke about waiting till the morning but there’s no reason to hold off any further.”

Oliver nodded his head in agreement.

“Also, Oliver, when you send out the requests, please make a note to the Royals about the unlawful break-in and to have Fiona taken into custody as soon as possible,” Evelyn added. “The longer I look at her the more I become tempted to drag her down to the cellar and repay the favor.”

Alexander grimaced at the grizzly thought but was not in a position to argue.

He ushered her back to their room with the hopes that the two of them could still catch up on a few hours of sleep before all hell would inevitably break loose. As soon as Evelyn was tucked back into his side, he let his eyes close.

Finally, that never-ending strain of worry was beginning to let up. Everything was ready to fall into place.

...

Sure enough, he was right. Hell had broken out when the warrants for Isabella and Fiona’s official arrests were released. The press was having an absolute field day the second they made the familial connection between Isabella and Evelyn.

Of course, it brought on a slew of questions as to why Evelyn was looking to convict her own Stepmother. But his wife was doing her best to take everything in stride. The court date was set and unlike Michael’s trial, they decided to hold a public hearing.

This caused Evelyn to be a bit hesitant.

“Why not keep it private?” she asked.

It wasn’t as though she were looking for the attention. Quite the opposite. Alexander had a faint idea of the kind of stress Evelyn was falling under. Unlike the last time they were standing in the courtroom, the story was primarily based around Alexander.

This time it all revolved around her. Evelyn would have to recount her side of the story. Everything. From the moment she confronted Isabella to the final second she blacked out from the mind-numbing pain of the blade.

And to make matters worse, she would have to do so in front of the actual people who committed the crimes. Alexander considered the mental repercussions it could all potentially have on her.

“I’ll be fine,” she concluded. “Let’s just get this whole thing over with.”

Alexander takes her cheek in his large hand while holding her close. “It’s all going to be over soon.”

The courtroom was packed to the brim with spectators of all backgrounds. The only blessing was that the press and all the photographers were waiting outside.

This time, Alexander walked Evelyn down the main aisle and over to the prosecutor’s table. The jury was already sitting in place along with the judge. And to no one’s great surprise, the King sat tall and proud right beside him.

Both Evelyn and Alexander tried to read Gregory’s expression. For the moment, the man seemed rather closed off. There was no smugness nor a look of disdain—he was simply present.

The judge brought down the head of his gavel and the entire room fell silent.

“The court is here to hear the testimony of Evelyn Kingston against Isabella Silverwood and Fiona Rizza,” the judge explained. “Guards, bring out the defendants.”

Alexander tightened his hold on Evelyn’s hand. The very air in the room had gone still as everyone turned their attention to the two side doors. Isabella, with the accompaniment of the soldier, was looking fairly well. Her composure was calm which was enough to cause a tightness in Evelyn’s chest.

Fiona, on the other hand, was looking a bit worse for wear. Her nose was distinctly broken and barely attended to since Evelyn had broken it. She was at least pleased to not have felt an ounce of regret for that.

Fiona glared venomously at Evelyn whereas Isabella was playing the peaceful game.

“Will the prosecution please step forward?” Evelyn and Alexander approached the bench. “We have all been summoned here for the warrants you have out on Mrs. Silverwood and Ms. Rizza on the grounds of attempted murder against you, Mrs. Kingston.”

Many of the people sitting on the far side of the courtroom had let out small gasps of shock.

“That is correct, Your Honor.”

The King chose this time to clear his throat and steal a good portion of the attention. “As I’m sure you’re aware, these are severe accusations.”

Evelyn nodded her head. “Yes. Granted the events have taken place no more than a few weeks ago, we’ve been spending that time gathering the right evidence to prove Isabella and Fiona’s involvement.”

“And I take it that you have said evidence?”

“Indeed, we do,” Alexander said darkly.

“Mrs. Kingston, perhaps, we ought to start this hearing with a recount of the events of that night,” the judge suggested.

Evelyn took in a deep breath and slowly nodded.

“The events took place on the fifteenth of February,” she began. “My initial intentions were to confront my Stepmother for her poor behavior toward my marriage. I was tired of her conniving behavior and wanted her to leave us alone...”