El Impostor Espanol

Chapter 9 - The Accused

"You exposed me." She breathed as she met his eyes. "So what makes you think I won't tell the King everything I know?"

"Which is?"

"You love the Queen."

"Not after this." He gestured to his still covered eye; the cloth doing little to ease it. "Try again."

"You're working with the Spanish." He chuckled at her last string of hope.

"Last time you threatened to go running around with that one, you got suspended." He reminded her. "And who exactly do you think will believe that I; the King's right-hand man, was not loyal to his monarch?"

"I'll make them believe."

"Or you could just play along." He suggested, letting his hand stray from her hair to glide along her jaw. "You and I could do so much together." He whispered as he reached her chin and forced her to meet his stare. "I can give you everything you've ever wanted."

She was silent as his whispered words washed over her and he watched as an internal battle raged in her eyes before her shoulders straightened and leant in slightly, letting his thumb rub along her jaw in a tentative hold.

"Everything?"

He cupped her chin and pulled her forward, their lips barely brushing.

"Everything, Comtesse."

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Athos hadn't been able to think straight for the entire rushed ride to the palace. His mind was swirling around two facts: the Queen has been accused of treason and Anna has been arrested for the same charge.

He kept seeing the clearly written word on the paper handed to him by the Red Guards: spy. The more he thought about it, the more ludicrous it became: Anna was more patriotic than anyone he knew – she adored the King and Queen and though she often believed Louis to be a little...childish, the Queen and her were as close as could be. Spy. He sneered at the word and knew he could trace it directly back to the same man responsible for the detention of the Queen: Rochefort.

"Rochefort attacked the Queen." He shook himself from his thoughts and forced his mind on the task at hand; Anna would have to fend for herself until this matter with the Queen was sorted but then, mark his words he was going to make the Comte pay. "He tried to force himself on her." Constance told them as she led them to the Queen's chambers. "She fought him off though: wounded him."

She gave them a last look back before opening the doors to the chambers and ushering them inside.

The Queen was visibly shaking as she waved away her ladies-in-waiting and simply stared at the imposing quartet of Musketeers. She waited until the women were completely absent from the room before nodding for them to speak.

"He dared to lay hands on you?" It was no surprise to him that Aramis was the first to speak, though he noted the looks Porthos and D'Artagnan were shooting their friend for speaking so casually to Her Majesty.

"I trusted him." She told them. "I thought he was my friend."

"The King has been informed?" D'Artagnan asked as they took in the woman's paled face and nervous wringing of her hands. She took a breath before meeting their eyes each in turn before settling on his own as the unofficial leader of the foursome.

"My loyal Musketeers will escort me." She told him and with a nod he turned and gestured for Porthos and D'Artagnan to lead the Queen away, hanging back to shoot the lingering Constance a questioning glance.