The Princess and the Guard (Book 1)

Seventeen

By the time dinner rolled around, Juliette's stomach was in knots, and she wasn't hungry. The House Leaders were still there, and she didn't want to skip out. Odette would probably think something was wrong and send her to the infirmary for no reason again. Juliette's head had been hurting all day, even after taking some pain relievers; the last thing she wanted was to go back to Dr. Violet.

Taking her seat beside Odette, Juliette looked around the room at the faces in front of her. Noah's shift had ended, so it was Luis who walked her to the dining room and was standing at the door. She hardly ever spoke to Luis, since he mostly worked the night shift, and she felt bad.

Juliette sipped at her water. She knew each of the Lords, and single Lady, by name, their Houses, and what they contributed to the capital city of Anadia. She knew from the hours of listening in to their conferences hundreds of miles away. She knew about Lady Luxe having an affair. She knew Lord Apatite's daughter had just moved to live on a farm with her husband. She knew the former Lord Canyons just passed away in a car accident that seemed a little too convenient to be a true accident. She knew far too much about their personal lives and made her squirm with the knowledge.

All through dinner, as much as she tried to pay attention to the conversation around her, the only thing she could think about was Noah leaving. She would have plenty to do in his absence, but him not being there made her nervous. At least with two of them, they could watch each other's backs. Thankfully she'd still be able to nex't him and keep him updated.

As the first course was brought out, Juliette's eyes wandered to the window. She thought about looking up at the sky and being able to see stars. Or feeling sand on her bare toes. She'd never been swimming before, but if she and Noah learned, she could see the two of them spending hours on the beach.

As the hours ticked by and there seemed to be no end to dinner in sight, the headache in the back of her head grew. She wanted to learn more about Dr. Violet and why she was here at the palace, but she also needed to pay attention to what Odette and her House Leaders were talking about so she could write up a report in case Odette sprung it on her. She'd done it before, and not that she needed an excuse now that she was queen, Juliette thought it better safe than sorry.

She was also supposed to have another doctor's appointment tomorrow, and already she was trying to think of a way to get out of it. Dr. Violet and the mystery of her being brought to the palace had lit a spark of curiosity that she couldn't ignore.

"Are we boring you, Your Highness?" Lord Canyons asked, smiling politely as he turned toward Juliette.

Juliette shook her head, calling up a smile. "No, I just have a lot on my mind."

"Pay her no mind, Lord Canyons, she tires easily. Juliette, you may go upstairs," Odette said, waving a hand toward the door.

"Thank the seas," she replied with a sweet smile, eliciting a series of polite laughs from around the table. Juliette stood up, and then stepped through the opened door, ignoring the glare Odette cast her. With a relieved sigh, she happily retreated to the safety of her room and kicked off her shoes.

Juliette curled up beneath her blankets and stuffing one of the pillows behind her, reaching for one of her computers. She pulled up the saved tabs she had on Dr. Violet, but she'd read the same pages so many times she had them memorized. There was nothing new hidden anywhere.

She would see Dr. Violet tomorrow, and while she wasn't looking forward to it in any way, she held onto the hope that she would be able to learn something else about her. Either about why she came to the palace, or what she's doing now that she is here.

Juliette switched tablets, doing some more setup for the ship's computer. It would be fairly simple, but she wanted to be able to have Nexus access through the ship itself, which would help her better block their signals.