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Cindy privately mentioned Heather to Dominic, and he frowned upon hearing the news.
*I heard she came the other day, but didn’t ask to come in and see me,” Dominic said. “She’s both callous and weak. She doesn’t even resemble a daughter of the Sullivan family.”
“I planned to visit Hartstone Estate today, but upon thinking it over, with all that’s going on right now, it wouldn’t be appropriate to go and scold her. She’s a grown woman, so whatever she’s done, she must face the consequences, I don’t intend to get involved,” said Cindy.
Dominic nodded. “You don’t need to seek her out, but if she comes to see you, you should say what needs to be said.”
“Yes. I understand, Father,” Cindy replied.
The three of them stayed at Sullivan Estate and had a meal with Dominic before leaving.
Rafael had spent most of the day at the Ministry of Justice. They had already interrogated Freya using torture, but she stubbornly refused to stop blaming Dominic.
Zeke and several others had testified that Dominic hadn’t given orders to massacre the villages. They explained that Freya had discovered that a group of Westhaven soldiers were hiding in a nearby village and had ordered the massacre on impulse to find them.
Still, she refused to change her testimony.
Rafael didn’t personally interrogate her, but after reviewing her confession, he immediately tore it up and ordered,” Continue the interrogation.”
The Minister of Justice, Patrick, had once received great help from Sebastian and was cooperating with Rafael. But after days of questioning, Freya’s confession had remained unchanged. He believed that continuing the interrogation would lead to the same result.
“Your Highness, I must have something to present to His Majesty,” Patrick said with a troubled look. “We’ve been interrogating her for days, but no new testimony has come forward. It’s becoming difficult for me to continue without results.
“What’s the point of presenting a false or incomplete confession to His Majesty?” Rafael shot back. “He’ll just tear it up himself.”
Patrick sighed. “But we’ve already interrogated her for so many days. We’ve used torture, yet she hasn’t budged. We can’t use any harsher methods for fear of harming her. I believe another round of questioning will yield the same result.”
Rafael’s gaze turned cold. “Then, continue the interrogation. You know as well as I do, Mr. Lloyd. She must change her testimony. General Sullivan is not the one truly responsible-she is. If she refuses to cooperate, then we’ll have to bring in Commander Jaffe and interrogate him.”
Patrick’s eyes widened in shock. “Your Highness, His Majesty has not authorized the interrogation of Commander Jaffe. He has no intention of involving him in this matter.”
Rafael scoffed. “If General Sullivan is already implicated, then why not Commander Jaffe? Has His Majesty issued an order forbidding you from questioning him?”
Patrick hesitated. “While there’s no explicit order saying we cannot question him, there was no order to arrest him either.”
Rafael fixed Patrick with a piercing stare. “I didn’t say anything about arresting him. I said to bring him in. He was in charge of the Fawnrun City operation. Bring him in and ask him some questions. What’s the problem? If His Majesty questions you later, just say it was my instruction.”
Patrick was puzzled. In the past, Rafael and the people from his household avoided drawing attention to matters involving them, as they were always fearful of arousing the king’s suspicions.
Now, Rafael was pushing for an interrogation without Salvador’s authorization-even asking for Blake by name. Wasn’t this directly inviting trouble? Why wasn’t Rafael concerned about provoking Salvador now?
After thinking it over, Patrick said carefully, “Your Highness, I would advise against getting too involved. If the interrogation brings out any new confessions, I’ll let you know immediately.”
Rafael’s expression hardened, his voice unwavering, “Didn’t you hear me clearly, Mr. Lloyd? What I said was, if Freya does not change her confession, bring Commander Jaffe in for questioning.”
Patrick looked at him, confused. “But what good will questioning him do? His Majesty clearly wants to protect him. Why provoke him now? Why upset His Majesty at this time?”
“Because Commander Jaffe was the one in charge of the Fawnrun City operation,” Rafael replied with firm resolve. “His testimony can prove that General Sullivan didn’t authorize Freya’s actions. It’ll corroborate the testimonies of General Sullivan, Zeke, and the others, and reveal the truth.”
Patrick chuckled, understanding at last. Even then, he thought it was all a bit unnecessary.
“Actually, whether we bring Commander Jaffe in for questioning or not, the current testimony already proves that Freya is lying. Her confession can’t be trusted. His Majesty should be aware of this, and I believe he will handle it impartially. Westhaven should accept the truth as well,” he said.
Rafael shook his head. “Your ‘shoulds’ and ‘believes’ are filled with uncertainty. What I want is the truth laid out clearly before His Majesty and the Westhaven envoys.”
Patrick paused to think, then understood what Rafael meant. They hadn’t questioned Dominic yet, so Freya’s confession was still the key. While Zeke and the others’ testimonies contradicted Freya’s, they hadn’t had direct contact with Dominic, so their statements couldn’t completely disprove hers.
Only Blake’s testimony, if aligned with theirs, could counteract Freya’s. At the very least, it would make the truth more believable.
However, it was clear that Salvador didn’t want Blake involved in the matter. Even though Blake should be questioned and held accountable, Salvador seemed intent on protecting him. What could Patrick do? As Minister of Justice, opposing the king could only bring trouble.
Rafael saw through his hesitation, and said plainly, “Enough. I’ll send someone to fetch him. You just need to handle the questioning.”
Having heard that, Patrick could only comply. “Understood. In that case, will you also be speaking to His Majesty, Your Highness?”
Rafael nodded, rising from his seat. “I’ll report to His Majesty now to spare you the trouble.”
Patrick exhaled in relief. As long as he wasn’t left to take the blame, he was more than willing to help. After all, he agreed that Blake shouldn’t be allowed to sit this one out.
Since Freya had been taken away, Blake had been a bundle of nerves. He was afraid Sophie or Alistair might go to Salvador and accuse him of trying to help Freya escape.
There was another reason for his unease. He couldn’t see a way out of the Fawnrun City mess. He couldn’t figure out why Salvador was protecting him, but with Dominic already summoned back to the capital to answer for his actions, what chance did he have to escape blame?
After days of anxiety, Blake’s worst fear was realized when someone from Hell Monarch Estate came to inform him that the Ministry of Justice had called him in for questioning.
His heart sank.
What he feared was finally happening.
In the royal study, Salvador took a sip of his coffee and looked up at Rafael.
“I wasn’t aware the Supreme Court was investigating this case along with the Ministry of Justice. Did I issue such an order? Or is it that after your investigation into Eleanor’s rebellion went nowhere, you’re now trying to help the Ministry of Justice with their case out of the kindness of your heart?”
Salvador’s words carried a note of questioning, tinged with displeasure.
With the usual “understanding” between them, Rafael would normally be expected to confess to a fault, kneel, and then withdraw to maintain the appearance of harmony between the king and his brother.
So, Salvador resumed drinking his coffee slowly after he spoke, waiting for Rafael to kneel and make an apology. Deep down, he was accustomed to his brother’s silent endurance and deferential nature.
But this time, Rafael didn’t kneel to apologize. Instead, he stood tall and replied, “Your Majesty, Commander Jaffe was the commanding general of the Fawnrun City operation back then. He can’t possibly be uninvolved in everything that happened there.”
Salvador froze for a moment, then slammed his cup down heavily onto the desk. Derek, standing nearby, hastily dropped to his knees in alarm.
Salvador’s voice darkened with more anger as he spoke, “You were once the marshal who recaptured the Southern Frontier. I ask you after such a massive catastrophe, if Commander Jaffe is held accountable, will General Sullivan be allowed to escape punishment? After all, he is a Grand General and leader of the troops at Victory Pass.”
Meeting the king’s gaze with a calm but firm expression, Rafael responded curtly, “No, he can’t.”
Salvador’s voice grew sharp, saying, “Then, why drag another person into this? You must understand that before Westhaven’s envoy inquired into this matter, I had no intention of bringing it up, let alone punishing General Sullivan and Freya.
“Everything we’re doing now is just to appease Westhaven. I know you don’t like Commander Jaffe. He was once married to your wife, so I can understand your resentment. But as a prince and an official of Starhaven, you should be thinking about the greater good. You shouldn’t be using this as an opportunity to step on someone you hate, even to the point of confronting me. You’ve truly disappointed me.”
Rafael stood his ground, not bowing or shrinking back.