The Tyrant's Pet

<strong>Meanwhile…</strong>

Violet was humming a tune while putting her children to sleep. Her eyes were filled with joy and gentleness, staring at her children as they finally fell asleep.

"Have a good night," she whispered, standing from the chair beside the bed, only to bend over to plant a kiss on her boy's forehead. When she straightened her back, she looked down at them with a smile.

Unlike their life in the royal palace in the Maganti Empire, her children had to share the bed. However, she couldn't even see this as a downgrade in their life. Her children enjoyed sharing the bed as they preferred having each other's company.

"May the Lord guide us longer," she whispered, brushing her boy's hair with her fingertips.

Violet looked at her children for minutes, a habit she would usually do to appreciate their life now. There might be things her children missed, and she was also used to, but they were adjusting pretty well. More than those, there were more things she was thankful for with their current life.

When she finally thanked the gods, Violet marched towards the stands around and blew the candelabras. She blew all of them since the fireplace was enough to bring light for her children in case they woke up in the middle of the night. Once she was finished, she glanced in the bed's direction once again and smiled.

But unlike the previous nights, Violet didn't leave the room immediately. Instead, she trudged towards the window where the moonlight was filtering through. Standing in the light and in front of the window, she hugged herself as she felt the slight chill slip through the little gap between the window and the jamb.

"I hope he is also safe," she whispered, eyes at the moon that a cloud would frequently block. "Your Highness… may God protect you."

Violet smiled shortly, worry filling her eyes. Roman had never left her mind ever since he left after his brief visit to them. She asked him to stay and just run away from the palace, but alas, the seventh prince had no choice.

Roman was the crown prince's henchman and disappearing suddenly was never an option for him. Although the seventh prince kept his explanation vague and used his people as an excuse, Violet was smart enough to understand the real reason behind Roman's refusal.

If Roman run away and stayed with them, their life would never be at peace. The fear of how long their peace would last would always be there for them, and they would always sleep with one eye open. Joaquin would hunt down the seventh prince and chase him to the ends of the world.

The seventh prince couldn't do that to Violet and her children. He couldn't risk their lives. And so, he had to return to the devil's den.

That was why Violet had been worried. If Joaquin found out about Roman's real agenda, she could only think of the worst. Death wasn't what scared her, but the things that the seventh prince would have to endure before that. Violet had lived in the royal palace of the Maganti Empire to know how things work there.

"Rome…" she held her hand together and closed her eyes to pray. "Don't let him get hurt. He is a good man… please… keep him safe."

Violet remained silent as she prayed sincerely in her heart. However, just as silence enveloped her with the crackling of woods in the fireplace suspending it, she heard a faint noise outside.

She reopened her eyes and turned her head to the door. Her brows knitted as she cocked her head to the side. For some reason, her heart thudded nervously, as her gut feeling was telling her danger had arrived.

"Impossible," she whispered, clutching her chest, eyes fixed on the shut doors. "Belle?" she called quietly, assuming it was their servant who was with them.

Violet advanced towards the door carefully; her steps almost didn't make a sound until she reached the door. She called her servant's name once more as she held the door handle, but she heard nothing.

"It's fine… it's fine. This place is protected by the third prince," she told herself, trusting that the knights, who were also disguised as workers in the vineyard, would've gone to her if someone infiltrated the farm. When she successfully convinced herself and mustered enough courage, she opened the door slightly.

Violet peeked at the inch gap. Seeing no one was outside, she carefully opened it wider. She looked from left to right before she left the room, closing the door behind her. She heaved a sigh of relief as the hallway seemed normal, yet the restlessness in her heart remained.

"Belle?" she called, marching through the dim and quiet short hallway leading to the stairs on the ground floor. She picked up the candelabra on the stand on her way before stopping at the railing of the stairs, seeing that there were no lights lit on the ground floor.

"Belle?" she called once again, furrowing her brows. "Did she forget to light up the candles? Or had we ran out of candle again and gone to get some?"

As much as possible, Violet wanted to ignore the alarm bells in her head. There were so many times she locked herself in the room with her children out of fear someone intruded. She couldn't live in fear anymore and had to move on.

They were safe. They were not in the royal palace anymore, and everyone knew they had died.

With that thought in mind, Violet took the steps down carefully. She used the candelabra to light up her path until she successfully reached the entrance hall. Using the candle, she extended her arm to see further. Her brows furrowed when she saw no one in this darkness.

"Be —" her breath hitched when her eyes fell on the carpet. At that moment, she held her breath while her eyes dilated at the specks of blood on it.

'No…' she screamed internally, taking a careful step back. However, just as she was about to run back to her children's room, a figure in the corner and was just right behind her, camouflaging in the dark, suddenly lurched forward, covering her mouth instantly with a dagger pressed on her throat.