Chapter 5 | Interrogating the innocence

"Officers wait!," Queen Maria quickly called after them as they were about leaving the palace, they stopped and turned to face the queen, "Yes your majesty" they bowed.

"Lawrence did you see Martha with my baby?" Queen Maria questioned Lawrence and he bent his head lowered, "No your majesty, I only saw her with a bucket, mopping stick.and after that, with a trash bin.." Lawrence replied as he tried remembering what he had seen Martha with.

"Trash bin?!" Queen Maria screamed, "You mean Martha brought a trash bin into my chambers and you allowed her in?" She questioned the guard and the rest of the crowd stared in horror.

"Am sorry her majesty, but I had thought you requested of her to bring them into your room, so I allowed her in."

"What!" Queen Maria staggered backward letting go of Lawrence and fainted, falling backward to the ground.

King Richard rushed to her side to help her up and he called on the other guards assistance. The officers took Lawrence and Victor away as they still had to interrogate them properly before they could be released.

The whole palace went into chaos as Queen Maria was rushed back upstairs into her chamber while the palace stationed doctor and nurses rushed upstairs to her room to check up on her and to stabilize her condition.

King Richard kept on walking up and down inside his wife chamber as he waited for the doctors to finish their check up on her and give him report as they were attending to her in her inner chamber.

"How's she doctor?," King Richard questioned as soon as the doctor stepped out together with his nurse. He had seen the crowd gathered and he wondered what was happening so early in the palace even with the police that left, handcuffing two palace guards.

"Your majesty, her highness will be fine, I have stabilize her and given her some injection, she just fainted and will soon recover from the shock, just don't deliver anymore shocking news to her for her and allow her to regain her full consciousness first before you discuss anything with her, Nurse Dami here will be coming up to check up on her from time to time," Dr Douglass said.

"Hmph" King Richard sighed, "Thank you doctor, you can leave," he dismissed them.

"Thank you your majesty." Dr Douglass bowed together with Nurse Dami that had accompanied him, and they both turned and exited the queen's chamber.

Going down the stairs Nurse Dami asked, "What do you think is going on so early here in this palace causing all these commotion?."

"Shush Nurse Dami, You women like to poke nose. Whatever that's going on isn't in anyway in our concerns," Dr Douglass rebuked her.

"Really?" questioned Nurse Dami.

"Yes and please don't ask me about this again, let's just focus on our jobs here in the palace," Dr Douglass said and he turned and left, exiting the palace hall downstairs. Nurse Dami frowned and followed him from behind, the previous noise and commotion had calmed as they both stepped out of the mansion and went back to their department in the Royal palace.

King Richard walked about in his wife room, he couldn't just believe all that had happened so early in the palace, in a twinkling in his palace, how did the maid smuggle out his child without any of the guards noticing or querying her, and princess Mary, oh she doesn't cry much or flinch whenever anyone touches her in the palace, oh! he frowned and finally went to take a seat, waiting for the head guard feedback, he was losing it, yes he was.

King Richard stood up and walked over to check his wife, she had calmed and look more relaxed than when she was rushed into her room, he turned and exited the room while going downstairs to see the report, he assigned a maid to look after Princess Miranda that had woken up, while Prince Mike had his own personal maid that took care of his needs since his mother hadn't woken up

King Richard ordered the guards to bring the reports to him and he asked about Martha,

"Have you seen Martha yet?."

"No your majesty, she left the palace last night" replied the head guard, whom bowed his head lower in front of the king.

"I see, so you did not ask or search her to know where she was going too?" King Richard questioned as he stared calmly at the guard. He was fond of hiding his true emotions and even though he was enraged no one would notice by just staring at him. And the guards nor maids didn't dare to stare at him either nor his wife whenever they are been questioned or spoken too.

"No your majesty," The head guard shook his head.

"I see, you can return back to your duty post, and ensure no one leave these palace from now on."

"Okay your majesty," The head guard turned and left.

The palace had already relaxed and calmed as everyone had returned to their duty post, soon the officers came back to give King Richard feedback.

"Any good result?" King Richard asked as the inspector came in to greet him.

"Greetings your majesty, it seemed we will like to declare a search hunt and need a warrant for the little princess whether dead or alive, as the two suspect claimed to never have gotten into the Queen's room for once, ever since they've been working here in this palace, so I think we should declare a search hunt, so every other checkpoint will take notice of the little princess missing, incase her adopters hadn't gone far from this palace or kingdom precisely."

King Richard nodded in agreement, "Fine do all you can to get my daughter back alive, I will appreciate it in tenfold."

"We are only doing our job your majesty as publicizing her wanted as missing princess will help us track whomever that is with her, Thank you your majesty," The officer officer bowed.

"Thank you too," King Richard replied and sat back on his throne while the officer left. He summoned two of his guards to go find Martha where she lived outside the palace with her mother, since Lawrence had told him she was the only one that was seen going in and out of his wife's chamber, then she will have answers for him as to why she left the palace since last night and why his daughter was missing too from the palace too.

The palace guards left and went to Martha's mother house, the elderly woman was sleeping when the guards barged into her home and dragged her out, holding there weapon of attack, "Where's your daughter woman?! Where's Martha?!" The guards questioned as they ransacked the elderly woman's house.

Mrs Julie Davis was so shock to see the palace guards and she hadn't even seen her own daughter since five months ago as it wasn't easy to get access into the palace.

"Can't you speak woman?!" Thundered one of the guards whom returned back to her side after searching the whole small house that was only two rooms, a kitchen, and a toilet.

"I don't know, I haven't seen her too," replied Mrs Davis.

"Then you will have to come with us to the palace for questioning," They told her and quickly bundled her before she could ask them why?. They dragged her and carried her out to the palace not minding she was an elderly woman.

"What's going on, please put me down I haven't seen Martha, what has she done?," Questioned Mrs Davis but none of them replied her as they pushed her into their car and drove out to the palace.

She feared she had been kidnapped but as they arrived at the Ubi royal palace, the guards dragged her down and dragged her into the palace hall.

King Richard sat on his throne watching them as they roughly dragged the elderly woman into his view, reaching his front they stopped and pushed her forward.

"Your majesty, here's her mother" Spoked one of the guards whom had gone on the errand. King Richard raised his head and wave his fingers forward signalling them to let the elderly woman be and stand properly, as it wasn't in their custom to disrespect an elder, he frowned as he watched the elderly woman whom looked like a saint.

"Where's your daughter?," He finally asked her as she was thru smoothing her clothes that had rumpled and roughly folded upwards as the guards didn't even let her regain her balance before dragging her into the palace.

"Greetings your highness, I haven't seen Martha for a long time now, your majesty" She replied him and he frowned.

"Did you know you daughter is missing from this palace and we are also looking for her to ask her some questions, so tell me, where do you think she might have gone too or else you would face same punishment as hers."

"Pardon me your majesty, but I do not know where Martha might have gone too, I haven't been with her for years since she started working here in this palace and I don't know where she is, believe me your majesty," Mrs Davis pleaded.

King Richard stood up from his throne seat, and thought for a while. He finally ordered, "Guards!, Throw her into the dungeon," and Mrs Davis stiffened.

"But your majesty, I do not know where Martha is, I truly haven't seen her in a while, please.." Mrs Davis pleaded.

"Quite woman or else I will double your punishment, if you want to save yourself then you must tell us where your daughter might have gone too. Guards! take her away," King Richard ordered as he stared away from her and left going upstairs to his wife's chamber.

Mrs Davis pleaded with the guards and cried begging she was innocent but none of the guards listened to her as they dragged her and towards the dungeon before locking her up.