The King's Lover-Chapter 292: Not Her Fault

Rose kept her head down as he spoke. There was no way she could look Prince Rylen in the eye. She was surprised he was even addressing her directly. He was also speaking so softly. Rose didn’t expect to be spoken to in such a manner. He was also showing consideration for her injuries.

"The crown prince is still unconscious, and the physicians from the castle are locked in the room with him. No one else is allowed in. They’ve been in there since they arrived, and I don’t think they’ll be stepping out anytime soon. There is no point being here, you should try to get some rest, instead." It is the only thing you can do. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Rylen didn’t add this last part aloud. He knew exactly what Thomas was trying to prevent Rose from saying, the same way he also knew that a harsh approach was not the way to go.

Rose was visibly distressed, and judging by the dark circles under her eyes, she hadn’t gotten any sleep at all. It was clear to anyone that she was exhausted and in pain, yet she had made her way here to inquire about His Highness’ health.

It was truly an unfortunate situation.

Prince Rylen feared for her. The castle would not be so lenient. If only the crown prince could wake up soon.

Rylen sighed. He hadn’t slept a wink. Didn’t even want to. Until he heard good news, he didn’t plan to move from this spot. Paul hadn’t stepped out of the room since he went in. A few physicians had run past on errands, but not one of them had stopped to tell him anything.

"Thank you, Prince Rylen," Rose said with another curtsy.

"Thomas," Prince Rylen called softly. "Make sure she gets to her room."

Rose didn’t like the finality in his tone. She suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to apologize. She had done something incredibly wrong, hadn’t she?

But not once had Prince Rylen asked her why she had tried to escape. Not even when she had told him what had transpired when she woke up. She did mention that her mother was sick but he neither scolded nor judged her about her actions.

The crown prince’s cousin was really kind. He didn’t have to treat her so well, but he had never treated or even spoken to her harshly. Rose lifted her head to look at him. She didn’t apologize. Instead, she thanked him.

"Thank you, Prince Rylen," she said with a sad smile.

Prince Rylen moved his head slightly so their gaze would meet, and Rose hurriedly turned around and started walking away. She didn’t understand what she had seen in his gaze, but she knew it made her gravely uncomfortable.

It wasn’t anger—he didn’t glare at her or anything like that. He had looked at her with what she would describe as pity, but this felt different.

"Eyes on the road," a stern voice said behind her as she reached the stairs—and that was when she remembered Lord Thomas was supposed to take her to her room.

Rose nodded but didn’t turn around to look at him. Holding the railing, she slowly headed down the stairs. She reached the bottom and kept walking, noticing that Thomas remained behind her, keeping the same distance with each step.

Thomas didn’t say a word. She could feel his stare on her back, and it wasn’t comfortable. Everyone was tense. The crown prince was likely dying. Rose couldn’t fault his actions.

He was still quietly behind her when she got to her room. She placed her hand on the door, a little hesitant to go in.

"Go in!" Thomas said coldly. "And you best not come out tonight. Don’t even think about trying to escape again. There aren’t guards in front of the room, but there are guards in the compound!"

Rose nodded. "I won’t. Thank you, Lord Thomas," she said and walked into the room, closing the door behind her.

Thomas nearly punched the wall. It had taken everything in him not to spill the orders from the castle or ramble about how he would make sure that didn’t happen.

This wasn’t her fault.

He had read the letter, and he had seen Rose cry. He had also heard her account of the incident, and she had mentioned she just wanted to go see her sick mother. She had said it in passing, but Thomas knew how much that meant to her.

He couldn’t tell her about the decree to have her charged with high treason, but he could certainly give her other warnings. Trying to escape right now was a terrible idea—it would only give them a reason to throw her in the dungeons here and then take her to the castle.

She also shouldn’t think she wasn’t under surveillance. There were guards outside to make sure no mishap happened. Thomas didn’t know exactly what the Lord and Lady of Futherfield’s plans were, but he was certain they would stand with the crown.

If the crown prince wasn’t conscious by the end of the day, they needed to come up with a plan. But right now, Rose absolutely couldn’t draw attention to herself.

Thomas didn’t think the crown prince would die. He couldn’t even imagine it. To him, the crown prince was the toughest person there was, and no one else was fit for the throne.

He had seen the crown prince fight in Redhill and push the enemy back with nothing but brute strength. He found it hard to believe that those pathetic bandits had gotten the better of His Highness—but of course, they had to use such a barbaric method as poison. That was the only way they could have won.

Unfortunately, the rest of the bandits had managed to escape, and even the men he had sent out came back empty. But they did return with dead bodies that matched Rose’s narrative.

Still, he knew that wasn’t going to mean anything to the council when they held a trial on the matter. They had to make sure it never got that far.