Daniela followed the guard down the hall to the east wing. Guards were blocking the door as servants crowded around. They parted as she approached.

"Your Majesty, you should not go in. It is not easy to see," Captain Phillips warned.

"Open the door, Captain."

He did so, and Daniela braced herself as they walked in. Her stomach churned when she saw the body. She wanted to throw up. Lord Sutton lay face up in his bed, throat cut from ear to ear. Everything-his clothes, the bed, the floor-everything was stained dark brown with blood. Daniela closed her eyes and prayed silently.

"It was murder, then?" she said when she caught her breath.

"Yes. Sometime in the night."

"Do you have any idea who is responsible?"

The captain shook his head. "A servant came to bring him his breakfast and discovered the body. He called for the guard, and I thought to send for you before we did anything else."

Daniela's mind raced. Of course they had come to her, she was the highest ranking person in the castle. But she had never dealt with such a situation. Her responsibilities as queen so far had been to attend events and to study. She ought to rely on the councilors, but she hardly knew them. Could she really trust them in this matter? She had to get her bearings, fast, and figure out what to do.

"That was good of you. Now, lock this door and keep the key yourself. Can you spare two guards at all times to watch this room?" Daniela asked, and Captain Phillips nodded. "Good, we will call a council meeting, and I would like you to attend."

"Would you like to speak to the servant who found him?" he asked.

"Um, yes, thank you Captain. I will speak with him first in the council chamber."

The servant was a young man, barely old enough to be working in the castle. He looked as disturbed as Daniela felt. Daniela asked him to recount all he had seen, but he could tell her nothing more than what Captain Phillips had reported.

Daniela addressed the council as soon as they were assembled. She had sat in on meetings before, but had never called one herself, let alone spoken at one. The room felt empty as chairs for Charles, Duke Pearson, and Lord Sutton were left unfilled.

"Thank you for meeting on such short notice," Daniela said weakly. Baron Lansing looked at her reassuringly. Other eyes were not so kind. "You may have heard that Lord Sutton was killed last night. I understand there is a standard procedure that should be followed at a time like this, but these circumstances are extraordinary. The king is away, and the councilor who ought to have been the lead investigator, Lord Sutton, is dead. So I have decided that I will lead the investigation myself with the assistance of Captain Phillips."

There was a general grumbling among the council. A broad man with a booming voice stood up. "This is ridiculous! You have been here, what, say, two months? How could you possibly conduct this investigation!"

"Lord Gotfrey, sit down!" Baron Lansing thundered. "You will respect your queen. You know as well as I that the king has granted Her Majesty regency for precisely situations such as this. His Majesty cannot handle this from where he is, and it falls under none of our jurisdictions."

"Thank you, Baron." Daniela tried to put as much resolve into her voice as Baron Lansing had. "Do any of you know of a reason why someone might have wanted to kill Lord Sutton?"

The room was silent.

"Then, does anyone know where he was last seen yesterday? Or what he did?"

At first they remained quiet, until young Viscount Milford piped up, "I saw him at supper. And then I think he went back to his room."

"Yes, he had rather a lot to drink," Lord Gotfrey said, "though not much more than was usual for him."

Some other councilors confirmed this, and none had seen him after that point.

"Thank you. Keep me apprised of anything that could be relevant to this matter." Daniela said, and concluded the meeting.

Daniela and Captain Phillips walked together back to Lord Sutton's room.

"We will search his room first. Then I will need a list of all the servants and residents of the castle. We will need to speak with every servant who would have been working in the east wing from supper until morning, and then anyone who they saw there."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Rounding the corner, they ran into three of Daniela's ladies, Nicole, Marie, and Paulina.

"What is going on, Your Majesty? Has someone really died?" Marie looked frightened.

"Yes, I am afraid that Lord Sutton was killed last night," Daniela answered in a low voice.

"How awful!" Nicole said. "Have they been caught? Do you think we are in any danger?"

"We do not know much yet, but no, I don't have reason to believe anyone else is in danger. Just to be safe, please stay in your quarters. Where is Lynette?"

"She went to her parent's manor yesterday. She should be back this afternoon," Marie said.

Daniela nodded. "Please tell her the same when she arrives. We can talk more later." She left them and went on to Sutton's room. The captain unlocked the door, and had the two guards follow them in to begin the search. Just standing in the room made Daniela queasy, but she had to put that aside. She had claimed this responsibility, and now she must follow through.

The four of them opened every drawer and searched every corner, but found nothing of interest.

"Captain, this window is closed, but it has no lock. Could someone have climbed down from here?" Daniela asked.

Captain Phillips swung the doors of the windows open. "It opens inwards, which would make it hard to close from the outside." He thought about it for a moment before climbing up and out the window sill. The stone walls of the castle had plenty of crevices for a fit climber to place their feet and hands, and the captain climbed down a few feet with little difficulty. When he was eye level with the window sill, he pulled on the window behind him. There was no handle, making it hard to get a grip, but he managed to slowly pull the window completely shut. Daniela reopened the window and a guard gave the captain a hand up. So escape through the window was possible.

The captain looked out the window at the outer wall beyond it. "There is no watchtower close to this part of the castle. Even if there were, the guard would have been looking out, not in. Still, I will add the names of the guards on watch last night to the list of those to interview."

"Thank you," Daniela said. "There is nothing here. I don't think you have to keep it locked and guarded now. Besides, his family will want the body as soon as possible."

Captain Phillips nodded his agreement, and they left to begin the interviews.

It was an exhausting process, and they barely made a dent in the list of people to question. One after the other, they pulled servants, nobles, and guards to sit in the council chamber and recount what they saw that evening. Each time, it was the same: After supper, Lord Sutton returned to his chambers and was not seen again. No one who did not belong in the east wing at that time was seen. Every story agreed.

Daniela sat in the bath for a long time when she got to her room that night. She wanted to scrub the feeling of seeing that horrific scene off of her skin. She pulled her knees up to her chest and thought of the battles being fought in the north. People were dying all the time, and she could not handle seeing it only once.

When the water was completely cold she got out to dry herself and put on her chemise. She sat at her desk. She needed to write to Charles about the murder, but she was loath to do it. When she sat down, his letter from this morning was still there, unopened. So much had happened today that she had completely forgotten. She tore off the seal.

Dear Daniela,

You do not know how much your letters have meant to me. Truly, your words are a comfort. I do not tell this to anyone but you; spirits here are low. We do our best to keep morale high, but the enemy is incessant. I am safe, I do not mean to alarm you. It is strange, the invaders seem to have altered tactics. They had no archers before. Now, when we try to advance, arrows rain down. I cannot understand where their endless supplies are coming from.

You asked me when I knew that I would someday be king. To be honest, I cannot remember. It was always treated as a given, so I did not question it, and in those days I was not afraid. I saw my father wear the crown with assuredness and conviction, and I thought that I would naturally be the same. That was, until the day my father died, and it became real. All of a sudden, I was terrified.

Of course, I did not have to face it all alone. The council of Aramdeau wields more power than in most kingdoms, in part to aid in the transition of power between rulers. Even so, I spent those first years as king doing all I could to act like I was capable, even when it felt like a lie. Tom says that I have not changed, and that I am as rigid and lifeless as ever when I am in the public eye. Perhaps you agree. You met me once back then, after all.

I wonder what you were thinking on the day we met ten years ago. And also what you thought when we met again.

Thank you for the ring, I will keep it close. I count the days until your next letter.

Your husband,

Charles

Daniela felt a tangle of emotions with each line she read. To learn how poorly things were going and how much danger he was in was dreadful. Then to see him write 'your husband' for the first time, and to hear how much he values hearing from her filled Daniela with a strange and lively warmth. But the pleasure it gave was made bitter by the knowledge that she would have to send him bad news in reply. The thought of him opening a letter expecting consolation and finding instead such awful news was heartbreaking.

When she could put it off no longer, she took out a paper.

Dear Charles,

It pains me to send you this letter. Reports from Baron Lansing and Captain Phillips should have reached you first, so hopefully this does not come as a surprise. In case it does, I will briefly recount today's events without equivocating.

Lord Sutton was murdered in his bed last night. In your absence, I have taken control of the investigation, and will continue until you send word otherwise. Captain Phillips is working with me. We do not know who is responsible. I am in the process of conducting interviews with anyone who could possibly have information. As of yet, we have learned nothing. Captain Phillips has increased the shifts of the Guard for the time being.

I wish with all my heart that I could send you good tidings. You certainly have enough to contend with as it is.

I pray for your safety and for the safety of your men. Write swiftly. I promise I will do all I can to send happier things in my next letter.

Sincerely,

Daniela

P.S. Captain Phillips is mistaken. You are not rigid, just regal and self-possessed. They are qualities I admire, and ones I wish now to emulate.

I remember when we met very well. I think if I had not been so focused on my own concerns at the time, I would have found you to be adorable.