Chapter 37

Amelia sighed in relief when her grandmother's property seemed to be normal and nothing felt out of place. Still, she was concerned by the fact Killian might come looking for her grandmother as he might view her as the only Blackwell royalty he could tell his demand to without wanting to kill them.

"If I send a letter back to the castle now they could send a lot more men in time to surround you home," Amelia said as she sat back down. She knew Margaret wouldn't want to turn the carriage around to go running back to the castle.

'This is a bit suspicious. Don't tell me she knew Killian would make his way here at some point and that is truly why she wanted me to be here,' Amelia thought to herself.

Amelia knew Margaret was crazy enough to do something like this but not in a time of war. She should be aware that Killian was not exactly in the mood to do any talking. He was here to spill blood. Specifically, her father's blood.

Amelia figured no matter where she tried to hide a second run-in with Killian would be inevitable. Instead of being afraid of him, she should use the second meeting to talk to him as the princess of this kingdom to find a way to stop him from killing more of her people.

However, she did not want her grandmother to be a part of that even if Margaret wouldn't what her son thought of it.

"Amelia, you must be forgetting that I have my own army of men surrounding my home. I would not purposely bring you into danger. However, I did inform my men that if Killian were to show up to peacefully speak with me, they would let only him come to me," said Margaret.

"You are aware Killian would be able to kill a lot of your men by himself? I think if we have the opportunity we should just kill him," Amelia stated. Why talk if there was a chance to kill Killian? It would certainly end the war.

"Amelia! In this fight we are wrong. Our men attacked innocent people from the north for no reason. We cannot be mad at Killian for killing our people when we started it. We must admit our faults and speak with Killian. I will not kill him if he shows up," Margaret wasn't going to play blind to her son starting this fight.

Margaret was much more reasonable than her son. She preferred to hear Killian's demands rather than sending out countless soldiers to fight the man when it was clear they would die.

"The court ministers will label you a traitor for talking to Killian without their knowledge," Amelia said as she knew the men were looking for any reason to get rid of the former queen and her influence in the castle.

"Then, they shall not know. Someone has to fix your father's mistakes before more families lose their sons. One action has led to so many mistakes. This is a lesson for you, Amelia. As queen, you will need to make tough decisions such as meeting with your enemy to talk when you really want to kill them."

"I wouldn't have started this ridiculous war in the first place. The two of us have gone back to talking about the castle," Amelia only now realized their mistake. "Who won?"

"Let the game start now," Margaret smiled, starting the game over as it was too early for it to have already ended. She knew she could be the one to win.

"Fine by me. I can't wait to rub it into your face that I've won. Allow me," Amelia opened her grandmother's door instead of waiting for the coachman or a servant to do it.

On her grandmother's property, she was just Amelia and got to do things without needing a servant or having someone judging her.

"Thank you. Your mother and I raised you well," Margaret stepped out of the carriage first with Amelia's help. It felt good to be back home and far away from the castle. Nowhere in this world felt as good as the home she built up from the ground.

"I missed this place so much," Amelia felt a sense of belonging just from looking at Margaret's home. It didn't scream danger like the castle did with countless high walls.

"See, I always know what you need most."

"You do. Is the stream behind your home still private enough for anyone to swim in their underwear? I remember the fun I used to have here with you and my mother. Those were truly the good old days," Amelia started reminiscing on the past.

It was bittersweet her mother was no longer here but she liked to believe she was in a much better place looking down on her.

Margaret held onto Amelia's hand for balance due to her knees starting to feel weak. "You are no longer a child to play out there in your underwear. Perhaps when you have your own home you can do that with your children."

"The days when I didn't have to worry about what anyone thought were always the best. If only I could go back to those days when I was just a child."

"Please find a way to take the entire world back there. My feet were much better in those days," Margaret patted her thigh.

"You need to sit down, grandmother. The others will be here soon," Amelia looked back at the other carriage with Cyrus and the others inside. She wanted Cyrus to scout the area to make sure none of the northerners were close by.

Even if they were to consider speaking with Killian civilly, Amelia preferred to know when the northerners were nearby instead of being unaware of their presence.

Her grandmother might think positively of Killian but Amelia did not. Even after he had spared her life, she still viewed him as their enemy. She did not want his men to surround her grandmother's home unexpectedly.

"I will sit just for a small moment and then we shall change to go out for fun. We can't waste any daylight when you'll be here only for a little while. Do not take the carriage too far," Margaret ordered the coachman.