Suspicious

"I only hope to make the kingdom prosper where people will live without fear, hunger or sadness, Fraser."

A blurry image of his brother standing at the Downhill while seeing the capital's scenery turned chaotic. The clear blue sky turned bloody. The cool spring breeze twisted to a stinky place where bodies lay. Fear struck his heart, and he looked for his brother around the mess.

He found him, sitting on his white horse, yielding his sword right and left. Suddenly, an arrow pierced through his body, falling from the stallion. Fraser's heart stopped for a moment. He hurried to his brother's side. Red liquid oozed from Estevan's chest and his red eyes appeared lifeless.

The surroundings became deadly dark. Fraser shouted, but the darkness swallowed his voice.

Fraser opened his eyes and sat on his bed. His breath staggered. Sweats fell from his forehead. Throwing the red quilt covering his body, he sat on his bed and drank a mouthful of water.

'Another nightmare,' he thought, glancing at the healing incense, he scoffed.

For years, nightmares accompanied him like his sword, as though replacing his great dark eagle sword. The only solace he could find in those nightmares was his ability to see his big brother.

Getting up, he walked to open the long window. Staring at the sky, the moon and the stars shone fighting the dark.

When he saw the peaceful scenery, a question rang in his head. 'Brother, am I doing well?' Fraser sighed. He knew no one would answer him. Jabbing his hand on the hard wall, 'It's my fault. I failed to protect you.' He took a deep breath and lay on his bed.

Fraser closed his eyes despite knowing he would never fall asleep. With many prescriptions from many physicians, his sleeping problems stayed.

The death of his brother left a scar deep in his heart. Estevan was supposed to be the next king, not him. He found solace on the battlefield, but what he could do? He must do what his brother wished and fulfil Estevan's dream of creating a powerful and peaceful kingdom.

Time went by. A faint sound came from his bath space. Soon, a knock on the door killed the silence in his room. He got up as Lucas, the steward of the palace, went in.

"Your Majesty, your bath is ready," he stated. Fraser nodded. "Did you sleep well?" he asked.

Fraser got tired of the same question every day. He frowned and went inside his bathroom directly. His sleeping disorder was known as his closest one. Lucas, as the head servant, had to ensure his health and notify the physician of any misshape somehow.

Halfway his reviewing the kingdom's assignments, Trent, his right-hand man burst in. "Your Majesty, bad news."

"What happened?" Fraser raised his head and asked. By his helper's expression, he knew the situation would be worse.

"Our plan to raise a riot in the Valian Kingdom had failed."

Fraser stood up from his seat, causing the chair to fall with a loud bang. "How could this happen?" he asked, not believing what he heard. They made up a flawless plan and it would by any means fail in the worst case.

He took a chance that the Valian kingdom was weakening as time went by. The king never cared about his people and ruled with an iron fist. Many nobles expressed their dissatisfaction, so he sent his men and agreed with most of the nobles to remove the king. After that, he would destroy that kingdom easily.

His aid stepped back and lowered his head. "Three days ago, King Kalian ordered his men to arrest all the nobles we contacted. They were put in prison or killed and some of them turned against us, including Count Livy as he pledged his loyalty to King Kalian. Our spies sent those reports this morning," he reported.

Fraser jabbed his hand over the desk. His knuckles turned red. How could this happen? Rage rose upon him. His red eyes looked like sending flames everywhere.

The last spring, he turned Count Livy to his side. Although, the person he sent didn't reveal his identity. The Count was convinced, and he led the revolution. To find out at last that he betrayed them?

Something was wrong in the whole situation. The man, running from them last week, was a traitor who dared to work as a stableman for a year. His knight, Hank, discovered him but they arrived late as he died before they could catch him. They checked everything related to that man but found nothing. It was as if someone burned all the evidence behind the traitor.

Thinking about that day, the traitor died before they arrived at him. He was poisoned before going out of the palace and the poison used in killing him was an original poison from the Valian Kingdom.

His eyes dimmed. 'There must be another traitor or more in the palace,' he thought, furious about the thought. "Bring me the maid's information," he ordered coldly.

"I will bring it right away," Trent said as he walked outside.

Fraser patted his fingers on his desk. The filthy Valian Kingdom was the source of his heartache. His brother died in their hands. He lost the only person who cared for him since his childhood. Worst of all, he married one of them. He tightened his hands and sat on his chair.

He would never forget the pain and would return it to that kingdom ten times what he felt.

This time, his plan had failed but once he cleared his palace from weeds, he would aim at the Valian kingdom and try his best to destroy it forever.

Staring at the maid's report, he frowned as nothing unusual was said, concerning her information, but he knew those statements defined nothing. Most of the traitors appeared normal people until they removed their disguise.

And the worst part was that she was working under the queen. He trusted no one from that filthy kingdom and the royal family was at the top list.

'The queen!' Fraser pursed his lips. She was the person he could never look into the eyes. When he saw her, his anger would rose higher. He would remember his father's dislike, his mother's obsession, and his failure to protect his brother.

If he could, he would wipe her from this palace once and only. Later, when he succeeded in destroying that kingdom, he would…

For now, he accepted she was one of his punishments added to many others.

Fraser closed the file determined to find the mastermind, hiding in his palace. And to find him or her, he would start with the maid.

"Bring that maid," he ordered.