Chapter 91 - Proof (2/2)

”Did you run into Katie and Alpheus?”

”Just Catherine,” he admitted begrudgingly. He was not fond of being teased.

Sigmund sighed. ”I must admit, I do not understand that girl at all. I gave her multiple opportunities to join us and yet she always ignores them. She spends hours each day visiting Mariela but I suspect she also has my brother's ear. He never leaves their chamber anymore out of paranoia.”

Charles couldn't help but think that Franz's paranoia was warranted. Sigmund had been trying to get poison into that pregnant princess's tea for months to no avail. At this rate he would have to wait until the child was born to act.

Personally he was against infanticide. He found it distasteful. The child had done nothing wrong. Sometimes he was grateful not to be a member of the royal family. Nobody tried to kill the son of a duke in order to inherit the dukedom.

This wouldn't even be an issue if Rosenia had done her duty as crown princess and borne Sigmund a son. She reaped all of the benefits of her title without doing much to earn it. Charles supposed she was helping back Sigmund through her brother, the king of Rowenhilde, but that wasn't enough.

Charles saw Rosenia about as often as her husband did. Which was almost entirely at royal affairs where any of the upper nobility could see her. Those were the only times she even bothered to pretend to be part of a happy couple.

”Can you really not find any proof of where they sneak off to when they leave the palace?” Charles asked somewhat desperately.

He needed proof that Alpheus was committing treason. That was all it would take for Catherine to be his. Sigmund had already promised to manipulate it so she would not be executed and would be quietly sent to his side instead.

Sigmund frowned. ”No. My people see them sneak out over a back wall and head into town but that is all. They vanish after a certain point. If I didn't know any better, I would say they are visiting commoners. When they come back there is always a certain amount of dirt and fur on them.”

”Fur?” he asked incredulously. What could a princess be doing that involved fur of any sort?

”Cat fur, I believe. Isn't that barbaric? Those pests are not good for anything but killing rats out in the stables. But Katie's sweaters are always covered in it upon her return according to my spies.”

How perplexing. Dirt and fur…are they spending time in someone's stables? Their contact on the outside must be passing messages somehow. Stables wouldn't be entirely out of the question if they were involved with a courier.

Charles voiced his thoughts and his friend gave off a sinister smile. He agreed with his analysis of the situation but had no proof. Accusing a prince of treason was treason in and of itself without concrete evidence.

He was of half a mind to go out and follow them personally the next time they left the palace, even if it was unsightly for a man of his rank. If a prince could sneak out, so could he.

Over the years he had become quite skilled at blending into the shadows. Most of the time his steward didn't know he was right behind him until Charles spoke up. If he wore a cloak made with the kind of materials commoners used it would be possible. He would do anything to get Alpheus out of the way.