Lydia had just finished the meeting with the new chairwoman of Feili. She was thoroughly pleased at how smoothly everything went.

There wasn't a language barrier either, for the chairwoman was eloquent in five languages, much like Lydia. They had bonded over their new position and similar background, but their friendship only ran on the surface level for now.

"Any other meetings, William?" Lydia tiredly asked, leaning back in her leather chair.

Her office overlooked the entire city, like a god staring at the mortal realm. It was a reminder that Claymore Conglomerate was better than everyone else, and how hard she worked to climb the ladder to where she currently stood.

"That will be all for the day," William said, glancing at her.

William checked the time and softly frowned to himself. He was going to get off work very soon, but the work of a secretary never ended by the stated time. Even so, he promised his girlfriend that they'd have dinner every night together.

"Next, you have to attend a dinner with your mother. She scheduled it at your favorite restaurant," William nonchalantly stated.

Lydia groaned. It wasn't that she disliked her mother, it was the fact that she was too strict. Madam Claymore always had something to nitpick and criticize. She closed her eyes and sunk into the chair.

"Can't we reschedule?" Lydia mumbled. "I'm tired from the meeting. It was over two hours long, and we barely got any work done. I still have to meet with Feili's President tomorrow to finalize the contract. I need a break."

William stared her down with disapproval. Sometimes, he felt like he was a babysitter and not a secretary. Though, he found it strange, for she was always stern and strict in front of the employees.

Lydia Claymore seldom smiled. It was a known fact in the company. When she did, it was only for the people that actually mattered. Whether Lydia realized it or not, she was a lot like her mother.

"You already had a break, Chairwoman," William lectured. "We had to rearrange your entire schedule just to visit the Queen. You promised that was the last break of the day."

"I'm not a workaholic," Lydia grumbled.

"No, but your brother Linden is. When you're resting, he's working to overthrow you."

Lydia's eyes snapped open. She glared at him, a fire burning in her heart. She refused to give this seat to her brother. She hated that William knew her weakness. He was an efficient secretary, the best she had ever seen. He was quiet but observant.

"Alright, alright, I will go see my mother," Lydia said, standing up. Just then, her phone rang. She blinked and fetched it out of her pocket. Her heart skipped at the contact name.

Weston was calling her."Who is it—"

"No one!" Lydia snapped at him, quickly picking up the phone call. She cleared her throat and adjusted her hair, even though he couldn't see her.

"Hello?" A smooth voice caressed her ear.

"Who's this?" Lydia asked, feigning ignorance.

There was a silence. "Wrong number," Weston said.

Lydia panicked. He hung up. She gasped at the phone, glaring at it as if the device was her arch nemesis. Why that bastard! She instantly called back. He didn't pick up.

Lydia scoffed. The audacity of this man.

"Is there a problem?" William asked, wondering what could've riled her up to this extent. Usually, she was great at composing her emotions.

William had heard a lot of rumors about how cutthroat she was. He heard of her underhand tactics like destroying her enemy's reputation by revealing their dirty secrets, or spreading news that caused drastic drop of stocks, resulting in loss of investment. All of this without even moving her small pinky.

Suddenly, she gasped. Lydia's eyes were glued to her phone, her hands shaky when she read Weston's message.

[The Queen fainted. She may or may not know of your plan.]

Lydia's heart raced. Did that mean… Adeline discovered Lydia's intent on also killing the child, just to keep Adeline alive longer? She swallowed hard. No, no. That couldn't be. In exchange for the plan, Lydia specifically told Weston to keep her identity unknown.

"That bastard!" Lydia screamed, shooting out of her chair.

Lydia ground her teeth and decided she won't let that man live tonight. First he played with her heart, and now, he ruined her trust. She would not forgive him for this.

"To the castle," Lydia demanded.

"But Linden—"

"Can dream on!" Lydia growled, sliding her phone into her pocket.

Lydia stormed out of her office, William following heavily behind her. Her heels clicked like firecrackers, the sound echoing down the quiet hallways. She stomped past the bowing employees, through the private elevator, and into the car where a driver was already waiting for her.

William got into the passenger seat just as Lydia began talking to herself.

"I am going to murder that man today," Lydia hissed under her breath."It would be wise to not speak out about committing a crime before committing it, Chairwoman," William muttered. "Or else it'd look like premeditated murder and it'd be a problem for our legal team to help you."

Lydia rolled her eyes.

Seeing as she was now quiet, William smiled to himself. He always found her nature to be childish. Truthfully, he liked that she showed this rare side of her to him. But he also hated the fact that he knew this side, for now, she was too comfortable, thus, lazy.

"To the Castle," William instructed the driver.

The driver's brows shot up in surprise, but he said nothing. He started the car and they drove in silence. Soon, they arrived and as always, the security was incredibly tight. Armed guards were lined around the entire castle, with people hidden throughout the area.

Once they cleared through the security gates, there were even more intels disguised on the long path leading up to the castle.

"Chairwoman, wait!" William stressed, but she didn't listen.

Lydia flung the car doors open and stepped out. She rushed past the guards in the front entrance of the castle, and before they could stop her, William was already showing their identification. The guards only let her pass because they weren't stupid. They saw the news and saw her frequent presence in the castle.

"Where is that damn Weston," Lydia hissed under her breath. As Lydia walked down a familiar set of staircase and hallways that lead to Adeline's bedroom, an uncomfortable feeling settled in her stomach.

Lydia suddenly realized something—she knew nothing about Weston. She didn't know his role in the palace, didn't know what he did for a living except being a politician, didn't know his hobbies, his interests, and the list went on.

Lydia only knew Weston on a surface level.

Before Lydia even realized it, she was standing in front of Adeline's bedroom. She had walked past a group of men in black who stared at her the entire way, but said nothing, for she was an extremely familiar face and had been frequently seen smiling with the Queen.

"This should be it," Lydia muttered to herself, but when she opened the door, found no one inside.

Lydia blinked in surprise and opened another door. This time, it was the correct one, evident by the tense atmosphere and frightening presence.

"—fainting from stress is not a bad thing," Weston murmured. "Who knows? It might even induce a miscarriage that can save the Queen."

Elias head snapped to Weston. He said nothing, but his eyes were a rant in itself.

Weston flinched and looked away, apologetic, but also a bit frightened by the King's calm demeanor. He always hated how well the King composed himself.

No one could really tell what the King was thinking or feeling. He smiled when he was angry and smirked when he was happy. How could people ever distinguish his emotions?magic

"I need to speka to Weston," Lydia sharply said, stepping into the room.

Their heads whiplashed to her. She ignored how Weston looked at her, with displeasure on his face, but passion in his eyes. The way he looked at her made her feel naked.

"Well?" she pressed on.

"Deal with her outside," Elias commanded Weston.

"I want both of you to come outside and talk to me," Lydia said. "Let's not disturb the Queen's beauty sleep, not that she needs it."

Elias narrowed his eyes. The sight of her still infuriated him. He felt a burning jealousy whenever Lydia spoke to or touched Adeline. He didn't like people coveting what belonged to him. He especially hated the fact that Lydia was so difficult to harm. Was it wrong of Elias to want Adeline to rely solely on him?