Betrayed By The Hero, Loved By The Lord
Chapter 87: Friends and enemies (1)

Chapter 87: Friends and enemies (1)

Selene exited the carriage with Lucas’s help and led the way inside. Her confidence didn’t change since she expected the queen to be here. The queen would likely use the women present to do her bidding and Selene was ready for it.

Selene had already guessed what these women would want to say about her. They would make jokes about her getting replaced by a human, the fall of her family, or speak about her possibly having an affair. They would need something new to get under her skin.

Lucas remained vigilant, searching for the king. He didn’t feel like anything was off at the moment so there was a chance the day would go well but knowing how these women could be, Lucas knew this wouldn’t last long.

Selene was soon met by a maid who escorted her outside to where all the women had gathered in a cool spot near the garden. It was easy to spot the queen since she placed herself at the head of the table where the host should be.

’She’s not hiding it,’ Selene thought.

The queen was making it very obvious that she was the host in someone else’s home.

Vivienne looked to her right as the conversations ended now that their last guest had arrived. The one they had gathered here for was the last to arrive and Vivienne wondered if it was intentional.

Vivienne inspected the woman said to be Xavier’s wife. How could it be that this woman had not only married Xavier but had Darius acting a fool?

Selene was beautiful but she had nothing more to offer. Was that what got her current position? Her beauty? Vivienne wasn’t a stranger to women using their looks to get ahead. Someone in Selene’s position would have to use this scheme to survive.

Selene approached the end of the table where Vivienne sat and curtsied to greet the queen. Despite the coming drama Vivienne might spark today Selene knew how to be well-mannered to greet the queen.

"Queen Vivienne," Selene said, her gaze to the ground to not meet Vivienne’s eyes.

"You must be Selene Blackthorn. It is wonderful to see you but don’t you think you should greet the host first? I do not want it to be as though I am stealing the attention from the host," Vivienne said.

Selene knew if that was the case then Vivienne wouldn’t be sitting right there when the host was sitting further down the table amongst the guests. "I was taught to greet royals first when they are present. I will greet the host now."

"Your parents raised you well," Vivienne commented.

"They did," Selene replied with a smile.

Selene left Vivienne’s side and went to greet the host. The snickering when she walked down the table didn’t bother her as she was able to point out who were the queen’s followers. It was those women that Selene did not have any interest in making friendships with.

The other end of the table where the host sat seemed to be more manageable.

"Lady Francesca. Thank you for the invitation," Selene greeted the host.

Francesca glanced at where Vivienne sat watching the interaction. It was mostly the queen who put together this gathering in her home. It was by some luck Francesca got to invite one of her friends to help her.

"Thank you for coming, Lady Blackthorn. You should take your seat beside me," Francesca replied, helping Selene with her chair.

Selene sat down beside Francesca. She vaguely remembered the pureblood women since Francesca resided in another town during their youth. They never clashed in the past but since Vivienne might be close friends with Francesca, Selene knew to be cautious.

"Lady Blackthorn, we have not seen you around the town much since your wedding and even before that, you didn’t mingle with us. Are you a lady who likes to stay at home?" Natalie, a close friend of Vivienne, asked.

"I have been busy as of late but now I have time to move around. I am recently married so it is expected you would not see me often," Selene replied.

Vivienne took Selene’s answer as her showing off she had been spending all her time with Xavier. "It is expected that we wouldn’t see her. This is the time for a new wife to be with her husband. Selene has been so busy that she turned down my invitation to the palace. It is good to see you are so focused on your duties."

Vivienne continued, "These are the times we must pay close attention to our husbands so they don’t grow bored of us. I have seen many marriages end because many ignore their duties."

"I see. Then Selene it was right for Selene to turn away invitations. She is doing well at being a wife. I guess that comes with being married for a second time. You have the experience from what went wrong the first time to be better for the second. Should I try that?" Juliana, another close friend of Vivienne, asked.

"Juliana," Vivienne playfully tapped her friend’s hand. "You might upset Selene."

"It is fine since it is true that I learned from the mistakes of my first marriage. Wouldn’t I be a fool if I repeated those mistakes? I can offer you advice for when you marry," Selene said to Juliana.

Selene noticed the woman didn’t have a ring on her finger and while she normally wouldn’t shame anyone about it, these women started the judging. If they weren’t going to hold their tongues and be careful of what they said then Selene wouldn’t do the same.

"We can all offer each other advice," Francesca spoke up. She was yet to understand why the queen wanted the women to gather today after what was said before Selene arrived.

It was apparent that the queen and her ladies did not like Selene so why was she here? Was it to insult Selene to her face or play nice with Lord Blackthorn’s wife?

"We have the finest blood and wines you could get around the kingdom. If there is something else you would like, please ask my maids. I see that you have brought a maid and guard," Francesca said, looking at the pair.

"I understand why the queen has her servants but do tell us why you have come with a guard, Selene. What did you think you were walking into?" Natalie asked.

"My husband decided to have a guard at my side. There is danger all around the town even for purebloods so we must be safe. I did not think any of you would attack me today," Selene replied.

Juliana leaned forward, having something new to question Selene on. "Speaking of attacks, I hear the mother of your former husband was attacked. Have you heard of it? I hope no one assumes you had anything to do with it."

"It has reached my ears and I had nothing to do with it. I think you’re being a little bit rude to be questioning me so much instead of giving attention to the host who invited us here. At least let me have something to drink before your curious minds throw questions at me," Selene said, pointing out their obvious plans.

Juliana leaned back on her chair.

Natalie could not have it end like this. "It is because we are all curious about you. Before your marriage to Lord Blackthorn, you weren’t anyone we knew well. Well, aside from the horrible things your parents did. We want to get to know you. You should be grateful."

"Perhaps it is too soon to question her. Francesca, why don’t you start what you had prepared for us?" Vivienne asked.

Selene appreciated the conversation had changed but she saw right through Vivienne. The queen spoke up at times to act like she was the voice of reason to get rid of trouble at the table.

Vivienne should have instructed her ladies not to glance at her for approval after each question they had.