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Trinity

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I was currently standing in the middle of the courtyard in front of the castle. My hands were in chains. There were three dead bodies lying in front of me covered with white cloths. There was a pile of injured guards laying all heaped together next to the platform that I was currently chained to. The magic cage filled with the guards that we had incapacitated was shimmering next to me to further showcase my crimes against the Fae.

Beside me, Reece, Vincent, Trevor, Landon, and all the rest of the members of the council were kneeling as if they too were being punished. There was a slew of guards behind them, holding them all in place.

There was already a sea of people that had arrived following the announcement that the crimes against the Fae had been solved. Despite the fact that there were so many people in the open space, there was still more coming with each passing minute.

In the distance I saw a group of guards that were approaching us as the protective guard for Hibiscus. She was giving us all a look of utter confusion as she walked to the very front of the group.

"Thank you all for responding so quickly to my summons." Athair mòr's voice boomed out across the group of gathered spectators. "I have summoned you all here for a very grave issue. It has recently been discovered that there was a plot against Queen Gloriana's life alongside the threats that have been plaguing the city. There have been three more lives lost this day. Three more senseless murders that needn't have occurred."

Athair mòr paused for a moment to let his words sink in as the people looked on and the whispers started to spread among the crowd as they saw all of us 'outsiders' being treated as criminals.

"The first murders that were brought to my attention today were those of my childhood friends." At those words, a guard pulled the white sheet-like cloths from the bodies of Sterling and Alloy, both of them covered in blood and deep, black tinged wounds. "These men were dear friends to both me and Queen Gloriana. I was heartbroken when I learned of their deaths." I could hear the way Athair mòr choked up when he spoke, tears filling his eyes as he thought about how he would never again be able to see the men that he grew up with. "I will miss these two friends so much." It sounded like he was crying for real now, but I couldn't see his face, so I didn't know for sure.

"Who killed them? How did they die?" I heard Hibiscus's voice call out, not a shred of worry or fear in the way that she spoke.

"I will get to that, Bissy." Athair mòr tilted his head at her and sniffled. "There is another murder I need to inform you all about." I listened on as Athair mòr cleared his throat and continued. "Please remove the last cloth."

At Athair mòr's orders a guard walked over to the last dead body. When the sheet was pulled back there was a gasp that ran through the crowd.

"HUH!"

"NO!"

"MY QUEEN!"

"WHAT HAS HAPPENED?!"

So many frightened responses spread throughout the gathered people.

"Valerian, what on earth has happened?" Hibiscus asked, once again her voice was calm and not at all concerned.

"My sister, Queen Gloriana, has been murdered." His words shook again as he spoke.

I could see Aunt Glory's body. She was laying there, blood still seeping from the wounds that covered her body. There was a slash that ran down her cheek, stab wounds and punctures all over her chest and arms. It looked like someone had pelted her with sharp, pointy objects that all pierced her body before they were removed. Worst of all though, was the large gaping hole that was in her chest where her heart used to be. It was clear that it had been removed viciously.

"NOOOO!" I screamed when I saw her body. "AUNT GLORY!"

"Silence." Athair mòr snapped at me when I screamed. There was clear anger in his voice.

"I didn't do this. Please, believe me." I pleaded with him, tears beginning to stream down my cheeks. "Please, Athair mòr, you have to know that I didn't do this." I felt every eye in the place on me. Well, every eye aside from one. Hibiscus was looking at Aunt Glory with a smirk on her face.

"This truly is unfortunate." She shook her head. "I tried to tell the Queen recently that these outsiders were not safe for us. These people should not have been allowed to come here. They were going to be the death of us all. I told her that and now look at what has happened."

"She was murdered by her own niece, as well as the man that called himself her mate."

"That is a lie." I called out to them all, but Trevor remained silent. "This is not what it looks like. I was only defending myself. Had I not done so Aunt Glory would have killed me."

"And why would she have done that?" Hibiscus asked as she climbed the platform and stood in front of me. "You murdered her friends and her people. She had every right to kill you." She almost sounded like she was laughing when she spoke to me. "And of all of you that stand accused, you are the only one denying the charges against you. They have obviously already admitted your guilt."

At that moment, Hibiscus turned to face the gathered Fae. She looked at them all as she moved in a slow semi circle.

"Friends, family, fellow Fae, I urge you to listen to me. The Queen had been tricked by these criminals. But as time went on, she told me that she was no longer able to trust her supposed niece. When I spoke to her just this morning, she told me that if anything were to happen to her, she wanted me to take her place. I guess she knew that this false Fae, this Queen Trinity, was going to attempt to harm her. I am just flabbergasted that the Queen was bested by someone like her."

Her words were seemingly trying to boost their support of her.

"No, I never meant to harm her. I never hurt anyone. I swear." I cried to them all.

"Silence, you dog." I saw Reece tense when he heard those words, but he didn't say anything, he was staying silent and wouldn't say anything for the time being. "I say we sentence these criminals to death, right here and now. I say we end this nightmare plaguing our people and attempt to move on to a brighter future with me as your queen."

"As queen?" I heard some people echo that, not sure what to think of those words.

"Hibiscus?" Athair mòr gasped her name when he heard what she had to say. "You plan to take the role in the absence of my sister?" It was like he was not even going to protest her declaration.

"It is what Queen Gloriana wanted." She placed a hand over her heart and faked her sadness as she spoke. "I just want to honor her last wishes." She turned away from the crowd and looked at me with glee filled eyes.

The moment that Hibiscus started to lean in toward me with that evil look in her eyes and the wicked set to her lips, I just knew that she was about to incriminate herself. Thankfully I was ready for this moment.

"I am so glad that I bespelled Gloriana this morning. All of this worked out so much better than I could have hoped for."

The moment that her words stopped echoing throughout the clearing, the evil look in her eyes had changed to shock and fear. She had just heard her words repeated back to her as if it was on a speaker, loud enough for everyone gathered to hear her.

"What did she just say?"

"Bespelled the Queen?"

"Is Queen Trinity the culprit or is it Hibiscus?"

"She lied to us!"

So many people were now starting to figure out what had truly happened. They had heard the admission of guilt from Hibiscus herself.

"You just couldn't resist the urge to brag, could you?" I grinned at her as I stood up, shaking the chains off of my wrists. Likewise, Reece and the others stood up as well as the guards stepped away from them.

"How could you do this to me, Bissy?" Aunt Glory asked as she stood, all signs of her injuries and blood now gone. Even Sterling and Alloy were standing, still in their blood stained clothes but completely healed and without injuries.

Once again there were several confused gasps and questions coming from the crowd. But there was one thing that everyone watching on had in common, they were all relieved to see Aunt Glory alive and well.

"This isn't possible. You're dead." Hibiscus looked at the three no longer dead bodies that were standing before her.

"No, we're not." Aunt Glory frowned at her before turning to look at the crowd. "I am sorry, my friends, I did not want to deceive you, but it was the only way to get the true culprit to come to us willingly and admit her crimes to us all. I know that we have all been living in fear of the attacks and murders that have taken place, but you may all rest assured that the mystery has been solved."

"NO!" Hibiscus screamed in rage as she jumped toward Aunt Glory, a lethal looking sword materializing in her hand and pointed right at Aunt Glory's throat.