What did you say?" Ernest's voice was cold. He had not been in a good mood since the news of the king taking a mistress became public. He had overheard a few people mocking the queen, saying that although she was newly married, she was already forgotten.
He didn't need to think hard to realize that someone was controlling the narrative. After all, it was the king who had done wrong. There were no written rules, but it was customary for a man to take a mistress at least two years after marriage—usually after the main wife had produced an heir. Yet here was King Edward, taking a mistress barely a year into his reign, and somehow, the people blamed the queen.
Especially now that rumors had begun to circulate—that the queen had been poisoned and might not be able to bear children. Ernest's mood grew darker, though he wasn't sure how to help Anastasia. Causing trouble for the king might also hurt her, so he had refrained.
