His Highness's Second Wife
His Highness’s Second Wife Chapter 26

“Everybody, leave!” Empress Tassia commanded, eyes locked on Raena, as if afraid she’d say something else if she so much as looked away. The soft rustling of clothes and the quiet steps announced the departure of her servants, including her lady-in-waiting.

“Kara, wait for me outside,” Raena ordered without turning to look at her maid. When she heard the click of the doors, Raena let her smile drop.

Standing in front of the Empress and keeping her cool was proving way more difficult than dealing with an angry customer demanding to speak with the manager because they found hair in their food.

Raena swallowed the lump in her throat, waiting for the Empress to speak.

“You seem to have a death wish,” Empress Tassia spat, strolling to her previous seat and dropping into it with an angry expression. “How do you know those names? Do you even know what they mean?”

“Those are some of the names of the foreign nobles that have agreed to provide support to the second prince’s claim to the throne in exchange for returning their land and titles once he succeeds the Emperor. Also, turning their conquered countries into vassal states with independent governments instead of being just regions in the Empire managed by imperial officials. Did I get that right?”

With every word, the Empress’s eyes grew larger and her body turned more and more rigid.

Even her skin looked less shiny than before.

“How do you know all of that?” She breathed, unable to hide her panic anymore.

I read it in a book I transmigrated into ‘ Raena thought, smiling. She couldn’t say that, of course.

“I’d rather not reveal my sources,” she replied instead.

“Who else knows?” the Empress asked briskly, glancing at the door behind Raena.

“Not a maid, that’s for sure.” Raena scoffed. “I can’t trust servants with such sensitive information now, can I? Who knows who would buy their loyalty or torture my secrets out of them? We are talking about high treason here, just as you said. However, I did share these details with a trusted associate of mine and prepared several letters with that same information and other interesting bits I found out. They will be delivered to my father as well as my husband, in case, you know, I get into an unfortunate accident. One can never be too careful.”

The Empress’s nostrils flared in anger and a few small wrinkles formed around her eyes as she glared at Raena. She took a minute to calm herself, her neutral expression returning.

“Then what do you plan to do with that information?”

“Nothing.” Raena shrugged. “l only shared a bit of what I know to show my sincerity. After all, knowing this much and not reporting it immediately to the Emperor is also treason. So this way, we are in the same boat. Your success is tied to my success and vice versa, which is why I want your support.”

Raena smiled. That part wasn’t entirely true. She could have aligned herself with any one member of the Imperial family; she knew enough about them to blackmail them. But since her husband was bound to die first, followed by the crown prince’s poisoning, she had to go with the safest choice. By the time the book had become too tedious and she dropped it, Prince Rissen was still alive, although he was in a tight spot. Either way, she didn’t plan to support him for long – just until she had the means to leave this place.

The Empress stared at her thoughtfully, weighing her options. She picked up another of the plates, staring down at the dessert on it before taking a small bite.

“So what you want from me is to use your restaurant to cater for my social gatherings? And you want my son to visit it on the day of its opening?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Why do you need my son, though? Notoriety?” the Empress asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Precisely, Your Majesty. If my establishment is good enough for a prince, then everyone else would want to come and see what the fuss is all about” Raena replied. She had gotten the idea from the book, of course. She had first considered waiting for the scene with Elene and the third prince, where they visited Ruby Street together, but seeing the complete lack of interest Elene showed in the third prince, Raena figured that it may not be their time yet. Still, she couldn’t wait. So she had to recreate the same conditions, but with someone easier to control. “I’d also appreciate it if you give me written permission to use ‘Her Highness’s Secret Palace’ for the name of the restaurant.”

Raena added, trying to make her racing heart settle.

The Empress looked like she was trying really hard not to roll her eyes, but then she let out a heavy sigh.

“Anything else?” Raena fought a smile.

“No, Your Majesty, you’ve been most generous. I really appreciate it.” Raena beamed. “I look forward to working together.

“Then what do you plan to do if your husband replaces out what you’re doing behind his back?” the Empress asked, leaving the empty plate on the table and pouring some tea for herself. She took a sip and grimaced, setting the cold drink down. “He will kill you if he replaces out you’re supporting my son instead of his brother. Not to mention he is especially sensitive toward the word treason.”

“I can handle my husband, don’t worry. As you said, he is just a disrespectful brute that only knows how to fight and glare,” Raena replied, fixing the skirts of her dress. The Empress snorted.” In fact, I..”

The door behind Raena opened without so much as a knock, and she trailed off, turning around in surprise when she noticed the Empress frown angrily. Raena’s eyes landed on the young man that strode inside like he owned the place, his eyes fixated on the two of them.

His likeness with the Empress was more than evident even at a first glance – the chocolate skin, the shiny hair, the brown eyes. Even the way they frowned was the same.

He strode inside the room with a confident gait, stopping by the Empress’s seat.

“Mother,” he said, leaning down and k!ssing her on the cheek. His eyes moved to Raena, narrowing as he inspected her from head to toe. Raena tried to hide her surprise- she didn’t expect to see them act so familiar with each other in front of her. Not that they weren’t close. In fact, according to the book, they were extremely close and they trusted each other completely, thinking everyone was against them. Still, keeping in mind their positions, Raena had expected the Empress to require a bow and a formal greeting, even from her son. At least in an unfamiliar company like Raena’s. “Who is that?”

“Rissen, meet Raena. She is your younger brother’s new wife and the Prime Minister’s daughter.” The Empress introduced her with a forced smile. Raena got up and curtsied. It didn’t hurt to have him not hate her from the start.

“Is that so?” Rissen said in a biting tone. She barely stopped herself from jumping when she raised her head and found him right in her face, staring down at her with calculating eyes. “At least this one is pretty.”

Raena forced another smile, trying not to be bothered by the way his eyes undressed her without a hint of shame.

“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Your Highness,” she said instead, turning then to look at his mother. “f you’ll excuse me, Your Majesty, I’ll take my leave now. Thank you for your warm welcome. I’ll send you our menu and invitations for our opening night. Have a good day.”

Raena bowed again, turning around and heading for the door. She kept her smile up just in case, counting the steps that separated her from her freedom. Nobody called for her to stop, so she opened the door with her heart in her throat and stepped outside. Kara was standing across from the door with the other servants, and when she saw Raena emerge from the chamber, she immediately moved toward her.

“This way, Your Highness,” Kara said, pointing to the corridor they had come from. Raena followed with a stiff nod and they left behind the palace servants, who threw them a few curious glances when they thought they weren’t looking.

When the two turned the first corner, Kara stopped and caught her shoulders, helping her lean against the wall. Raena hadn’t realized it until then,but she was shaking, cold sweat streaming down her back. She had thought she nailed the whole blackmailing thing, but now that she was out of that room, it felt more like she had survived being locked in a cage with a hungry lion.

She might have overestimated her power this time, but she couldn’t let Kara know that or she’d Just worry even more. Besides, it all ended like she wanted. She just had to be more careful now that she had made one more enemy.

“Are you okay? You are really pale!” Kara whispered, glancing around to make sure there were no other people that could see them. “Did she do something to you?”

“No, but she was really intense. I feel like I aged ten years today.” Raena forced a laugh, pushing herself off the wall. Kara’s eyebrows knitted together, but Raena just smiled at her:. “I’m fine, don’t worry so much. Let’s get out of here.”

“So what was all that about?” Rissen asked. “I ran into Miriam outside. She told me you chased everyone out to have a private conversation with that girl.”

Tassia rose from her seat, glaring at the door where Raena had disappeared. The Empress circled the sofa, picking up the little bell that stood on one of the tables. She rang it once and the door opened, letting in her servants with her lady-in-waiting leading them. Miriam bowed her head at the two of them, then took her place by Tassia’s side.

“Clean this up!” Tassia called to the servants, motioning toward the table. Rissen had just taken the seat Raena had occupied a few minutes ago, picking up one of the tube-like sweets that Raena had called cannoli. The servants hesitated as they saw him eating, but he motioned for them to carry the rest without even glancing at them.

Tassia turned toward Miriam once the rest of the servants had cleared the space.

“Find anything you can about her and report to me immediately. I want to know every little detail of her childhood, every friend and acquaintance. I want to know the nicknames her family gave her and even what the servants thought of her.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Miriam nodded.

“And have people watch that restaurant of hers. I want someone working inside of it as well, I want to know everything she does!” Tassia added, her hand balling into a fist.

“This is not bad!” Rissen’s voice made her turn just as he was finishing the cannoli. “You should tell your cook to make me some.”

Tassia let out an annoyed sigh, turning to look at Miriam. Her lady bowed down and quickly left to carry out her orders. Despite Miriam’s meek and forgettable character, she was really useful. People rarely noticed her, but she had a cunning side to her, which served Tassia perfectly.

“So what has got you all riled up like that, mother? What did she want?” Rissen asked, licking his fingers. “I haven’t seen you this unsettled since. I don’t know, before you became the Empress.”

“She knows about our plans.” Tassia turned to look at him just in time to see his smile freeze on his lips. “In detail. I don’t know how she found out, but what she knew only I and the other people involved knew.”

“So… what do you plan to do with her?” Rissen asked, straightening up.

“Nothing.. for now” the Empress replied, licking her lips. “I want to see what she will do next. She is just a little kitten that thinks itself a lion, but she doesn’t look ready to step into the wild yet. She might have taken me by surprise with her knowledge, but she is clearly in way over her head and she doesn’t even know it. Blackmailing me? That was her first mistake. Thinking she is safe in that brat’s mansion would be her second mistake”

“So you plan to kill her?” Rissen asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I said not yet” Tassia sighed, running her fingers over her dress. A crease had formed over her skirt and it was annoying her. “Once she serves her purpose and I replace what else she knows, I’ll have our dog in Kassian’s residence take care of her.”

She focused her attention back on him, just as he was studying his nails. “I’ll need you to do something.”

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow, indifference reigning over his face.

“What is it?”

“I want you to go to the opening of her restaurant. Go and replace what other secrets she is hiding there.”