Conquering His Cold Heart

318 Back in Trap

Lorenzo took a deep breath in before revealing the true intention of Romulus to Regulus.

“The late alpha had his own plans in place. I didn’t know much detail but I believe he wanted to see the downfall of the current King. And under his command, I had befriended the King before he was crowned. I spied on the King for our alpha. And I did everything that he asked me to do.”

Regulus didn’t suspect for once that Lorenzo was making this stuff up. Rather, he thought to himself, ‘That sounds very much like my brother.’

And he asked Lorenzo, “What was this disagreement that made you get those bruises and also the house arrest as the punishment? Was it something to do with the King?”

“Yes, Milord.” Lorenzo adjusted his legs a little now that both his legs were starting to feel numb from kneeling down for almost an hour.

And as Regulus was looking at him expectantly, he further elaborated, “The alpha had asked me to make the King drunk on the day of his coronation, but not that drunk that he would pass out. However, although I followed the alpha’s instruction regarding the amount of alcohol that I should have given to the King, he happened to pass out. And…”

Regulus rolled his eyes and completed Lorenzo’s sentence, “And he got furious with you. So much so, that he had you battered black and blue.”

Although that wasn’t the only reason why Romulus had punished Lorenzo, he didn’t elaborate further. He didn’t want to let Regulus know that Romulus was angry because the King had insulted him while protecting Lorenzo from his wrath.

And although he didn’t like how he got treated for the small mistake that he did, Lorenzo lied and said, “I got punished because I deserved it. I never harbored any kind of ill intention towards the late alpha. And I assure you that my loyalty always lied with him and not the King.”

.....

“And yet you were willing to take help from the King instead of seeking it from the brothers of your own clan?” Regulus raised one of his brows and asked. He wasn’t quite convinced about where Lorenzo’s loyalty lay.

Lorenzo, being the sweet talker as always, tried to convince Regulus otherwise. “Yes, milord. I agree that I couldn’t think properly because of the distress I was under after losing the person I have always looked up to. But I wanted to seek help from the King because even though I don’t consider him my true friend, he believes that I am a trustworthy friend of his.”

“Trustworthy friend, you say…” Regulus touched his chin and went into deep thought for a while.

Despite Jake and the elders of the clan advising him against it, Regulus hadn’t stopped keeping the King under the cloud of suspicion.

In fact, after making his men snoop around the castle, he found it even more suspicious that the King’s location at the time of his brother’s death was unknown. No one in the castle was able to confirm where the King was at that time.

And when Lorenzo mentioned how the King considered him to be a friend, Regulus got a brilliant idea. “If you were indeed loyal to my brother as you claim, then I want you to extend your loyalty to me as well. I want you to use your friendship and find where the King was at the time of Romulus’ death.”

Lorenzo looked a bit stunned to suddenly hear that Regulus now wanted him to act as a spy for him. ‘He was suspecting me to be the murderer just a few minutes ago. Now he suspects the King?’ he wondered.

“Are you willing to lend me a hand or not?” Romulus asked in a little harsh tone when Lorenzo didn’t immediately answer him.

Lorenzo hated the fact that just when he thought he had escaped from the claws of someone as dangerous and selfish as Romulus, he was caught right back in the trap by Regulus. He was going to be a puppet once more.

He lowered his head and thought to himself, ‘I don’t really want to betray King Everard’s trust again… I don’t want him to discover all the bad things I had done to him.’

His thought was disrupted when he heard Regulus’ passive-aggressive threat.

“If you deny working for me then I will assume that whatever you just told me about your loyalty and everything else was just a lie. Also, I want to let you know that I don’t like to let disloyal people walk around freely. So, choose your next words wisely.”

It was already apparent to Lorenzo that Regulus didn’t intend on letting him leave the manor. And considering how Romulus would turn into a completely different person in his rage, he didn’t want to test Regulus’ anger. They were brothers after all.

Thus, Lorenzo bowed his head to show his compliance and declared, “I will do as you say, Milord. I am at your service.”

“Good choice.” Regulus was happy with how things turned out.

When his men brought Lorenzo to him, he didn’t have much expectation since he was already aware that Lorenzo wasn’t a fighter. He was also aware that Lorenzo had only disappeared from his house after the death of his brother.

The only reason why he was interested in questioning Lorenzo was because of the fact that he had suddenly entered Romulus’ inner circle within a matter of a few months. So, he wanted to know if Lorenzo held any specific talent that made him earn Romulus’ trust.

Needless to say, he was not disappointed by the outcome of the interrogation.

Regulus finally got up from the rocking chair and held his arms behind his back. The creaking sound of the chair filled the awkward silence between the two of them.

Lorenzo lifted his head and took a glance at the lord who was standing in front of him and looking down at him. ‘What am I supposed to do now?’ he asked himself, not sure if he was allowed to get up yet.

Regulus kept on looking at the bruise marks on Lorenzo’s face and asked something that he had been wanting to ask for a while now. “Why the hell have your bruises not healed yet?”

Lorenzo subconsciously touched his swollen under-eye and answered, “Oh, um… I think I was given some kind of herb that slows the healing.”

“Before they beat you up?” Regulus asked while furrowing his brows.

Lorenzo simply gave a nod.

Regulus heaved a sigh and finally gestured for Lorenzo to get up on his feet. He patiently waited until Lorenzo got up after great difficulty. And he briefed, “I will have some men arrange a room for you in the guest quarter. From today on, you will work directly under me.”

“Yes, Milord.” Lorenzo’s voice barely came out when he agreed to do something that he didn’t want to.

Regulus narrowed his eyes and deliberately asked, “What was that? I didn’t quite hear you.”

“Yes, Milord.” Lorenzo looked at Regulus and loudly agreed to work for him.

Regulus nodded his head and gave out his first order to Lorenzo, “I want you to go to the castle first thing in the morning tomorrow and have an audience with the King.”

He hovered his finger over the bruises on Lorenzo’s face and further said, “Maybe gain his sympathy by showing your bruises and telling him how cruelly my brother treated you. Make him believe that you are on his side. And when the time is right, discreetly ask him about his whereabouts on the day we lost our alpha.”

“I will do that, Milord.” Lorenzo slightly drew his brows together when he agreed to Regulus’ order. He didn’t voice out his question but Regulus seemed to understand what was in his mind.

Thus, Regulus answered the unasked question, “Yes. I have some doubts that the King might have been the one who murdered Romulus. He also had some disputes with Romulus a few hours before he got killed. It wasn’t that big of an issue but still, I don’t want to leave any stones unturned.”

It appeared to Lorenzo that Regulus was simply being thorough in his investigation by doubting the King. It didn’t seem like Regulus had hard evidence against Everard.

Lorenzo also didn’t think that the King was the one who was responsible for Romulus’ death. And he was willing to help Regulus in clearing any subtle doubt that he had towards the King.

He straightened his back and held his arms behind his back. And he said in a confident voice, “I will help you uncover the truth, Milord.”

“I expect nothing less.” Regulus slightly leaned forward and said while glaring directly into Lorenzo’s scared soul, “And keep in mind that you will answer to no one but me.”