"Your Highness…" Lord Agrival began, his voice quivering, but the royal guards seized him and forced him to his knees, pressing his head against the marble floor.
"Behead him," the Emperor commanded coldly, his voice slicing through the courtyard like a blade.
A wail rose from Lady Alethea as she fell to her knees, clasping her hands in desperate supplication. "Mercy, Your Majesty! Please, spare him! My children cannot be fatherless, I beg of you! I cannot bear to be a widow!"
Lola's heart twisted at the sight of the weeping woman. Yet she knew that Lord Agrival's foul insolence could not go unpunished. Justice demanded a response.
The Emperor turned to her then, his expression dark yet tender as he rested a steady hand on her shoulder. The crowd watched in breathless silence.
"What would you have me do?" he asked, voice low but firm.
Lola exhaled slowly, feeling the weight of the moment. "Perhaps... beheading is too grave a punishment," she said at last. "But he must not go unpunished. Let him be flogged two hundred lashes."
The Emperor nodded once, imperious and without hesitation. "Carry out the sentence," he ordered.
At once, the guards moved to obey. Lady Alethea shrieked anew, her sobs cutting through the heavy air.
"My lady, he will not survive two hundred lashes!" she cried, clawing at the hem of Lola's gown in desperation.
But the Emperor's face remained as hard as iron.
"Then let him die," Xander declared, his voice ringing across the courtyard. "For he has dishonoured a lady and not merely any lady, but my woman."
A collective gasp rippled through the assembly.
The Emperor tightened his grip on Lola's hand and raised their entwined fingers high for all to see.
"Let this serve as a warning," he said, his voice thunderous. "Any who dares to insult or harm Lady Cavendish, whether she bears the title of Empress or otherwise, shall answer to me."
Still in shock, Lola allowed him to draw her away, his strides long and furious. Her heart raced wildly, scarcely able to comprehend what had just occurred.
He led her into the royal gardens, the scent of blooming roses and fresh lilac hanging heavily in the air. There, amid the secluded beauty of the labyrinth paths, he finally stopped, his breathing ragged with rage and something deeper, something she dared not name.
Lola huffed and, gathering her wits, swatted him lightly on the shoulder. "Who is your woman, Your Majesty?" she demanded, cheeks burning. "You dare claim me without my consent?"
The Emperor turned to her sharply, his stormy gaze pinning her in place. For a moment, she thought he might shout but instead, he crossed the short distance between them, seized her shoulders, and pulled her flush against his chest.
"As long as you remain in my court," he growled, his voice thick with emotion, "you are mine. And I shall allow no man, no soul, to touch what belongs to me."
His gaze dropped to her lips, lingering with raw intensity. Lola barely had a chance to draw breath before he claimed her mouth in a searing kiss, fierce and possessive.
From the path beyond, a pair of passing maids gasped and dissolved into a fit of giggles, but neither the Emperor nor Lola paid them heed.
When he finally released her, Lola's head spun. Without a word, she turned on her heel and fled, her heart pounding in her ears, unable to face him or the treacherous feelings stirring within her.
Left alone among the blooms, Xander cursed under his breath, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.
He had crossed a line. And there would be no turning back.