Punishment
Connor Astley strode down the palace’s grand carpeted corridor. His annoyed expression had the servants and footmen making quick work of him so as not to face his fury.
With a dashing and aristocratic bearing due to years of training and lessons with multiple tutors in various areas of knowledge and etiquette, he looked like a sculpture worthy of admiration. Dark hair and a determined expression, coupled with a body toned by horse riding and sports, made many young girls sigh at his presence at court balls or at social events.
As the second prince of England, he was expected to have exemplary and dignified behavior, but he was impatient and had a volatile temperament as he was the youngest of the brothers and the most spoiled.
" Your Highness!” exclaimed a footman guarding the door to the audience chamber.
-I need to talk to my father...- he said without stopping, pushing open the doors.
When the young prince entered the audience chamber, his father, Joseph I, was sitting on the throne talking to his eldest son, George, the Crown Prince.
- Father! - he shouted, approaching them furiously - Are you really going to send me to do this?
Joseph looked at George and sighed as he turned to look at his youngest son. The king adored his sons, each with different personalities, but infinitely capable and strong despite having been raised without their mother. The queen had died when Connor turned two during the winter from pneumonia from which he could not recover.
George, the eldest, aged 27, was serious and responsible. He had been dedicated to his studies and activities as the first prince since he was a child. He made a great effort in all areas of learning and discipline. More diplomatic and reserved, his knowledge of European geopolitics and his ability to read people made him an excellent crown prince. From the age of 15 he took on administrative tasks to help his father in government matters, excelling in foreign relations and trade. He had a fiancée, a young 16-year-old princess of the Hohenzollern lineage whose rulers had territories in Prussia, the German Empire and Romania. Due to her education in a boarding school dependent on a monastery, George had waited until she was 17 to marry her.
Connor, 22, was more impulsive, enjoying outdoor activities such as horse riding, polo and swimming. He enjoyed dancing and the freedom his father gave him and, although he was involved with a few women, he could never be credited with a serious lover. The young man himself was careful to quickly escape from their affectionate arms when they tried to pressure him or demand his time. Not to mention that he was especially careful to use all kinds of strategies to avoid falling into traps to produce an heir. He had already had several attempts by ambitious women to drug him, capture him and tie him up and he was always on the alert. That’s what he thought.
In addition, he had a knight escort who accompanied him everywhere and watched his back from the Royal Military Academy located in Woolwich , where he had to spend 3 years according to the training given to male members of the royal family. Ethan Sanders. Two years older than the prince, but Connor was grateful that, although he was a thorn in his backside, he had saved him on several occasions.
-Good morning, Connor- his father greeted, emphasizing the words- Do you forget who you’re talking to?
The young man stopped, taken aback, and bowed formally to his father.
-Good morning, Your Majesty- he said formally, somewhat embarrassed- I’m sorry.
“Just because you’re a prince doesn’t give you permission to be rude, Connor,” his father scolded. “I was in a meeting with your brother. I asked not to be interrupted.” The king looked past his son to where the chamberlain and guards were sighing in embarrassment.
-Your assistant just gave me the mission to go to France in a diplomatic capacity...- he said anxiously - I guess she chose the wrong prince, George is the most suitable for the task.
“You were not mistaken,” said the frustrated king. “The assignment is for you.”
-Father, I have no diplomatic skills. You yourself say that I get into trouble at every ball or with foreign delegations. Are you sending me because you want to start another war with France? We’ve just come out of the last one. Don’t we have the Treaty of Amiens?
-That’s exactly why I’m sending you, Connor...- said his father, indicating George. - Your brother is already well-known in diplomatic circles, diplomats know how he moves and what topics interest him. They don’t know you... You’ll have the advantage.
-Father, you are sending an elephant into a glass shop - the young man said, trying to reason with him - I am a danger in a task of that magnitude.
“I trust you, brother,” George said, intervening in his argument. “We’ve already discussed this matter with Father and we believe that you are the right person to bring it to a successful conclusion.”
- Have you been drinking? - he asked incredulously - Aren’t you the same one who scolded me two days ago for escaping the Earl of Jersey’s mansion because he found me in bed with his wife?
Connor didn’t understand what was happening to his father and brother. Had they gone crazy and he was the only sane one analyzing this crazy situation? With his reputation and impulsiveness, he was a time bomb on a diplomatic table.
-The reason why he assigned you the task and pleaded with Father on your behalf is for that reason - said his brother - The Count has sent his wife to the country house and has requested a large compensation from the crown for having tarnished the honour of his young wife.
- Excuse me? His failure to fulfill his bedroom duties is not my problem. He is 60 years old and the Countess is 18 - Connor argued.
-What happens inside each couple is none of our business... - warned Joseph in a harsh voice - You are not the one to judge about that. The woman told him that she was pregnant with your child...
Connor’s expression twisted, then he went pale. Shit, he thought. He’d always been careful, of that he was sure.
- Are you pregnant? - he asked slowly, afraid of the answer.
-No, it was a trick by the Countess to catch you - said his brother angrily - A prince is worth more than a count. With the situation of two days ago, we have already taken precautions and she is locked in her room with two female royal guards at the door and a doctor of ours is monitoring her until her period arrives. She is forbidden to return to London or appear at court or the Palace.
Joseph massaged his temples, tired.
-While you are playing like a child, your brother has been cleaning up your messes behind your back. This is not the first time we have received these threats - the father told him dejectedly - I was young too, but you have become careless and people will take advantage of that to bring you down even though you are the second prince. Every time there is a scandal, the court and the House of Lords go all out against us. The revolution in France a few years ago has shaken the royal houses of all Europe. If Louis fell being an intelligent king, all the ruling houses could do so too if we do not show ourselves firm and with appropriate behavior. We are public figures, the people expect a lot from us.
-The English crown is strong - Connor argued - The King of France and his wife were careless... The excesses... - he began to say, but remained silent. He himself was the one who made disasters and committed excesses at court, in the royal properties, in the shops and businesses where he ordered expensive dresses and jewels for his lovers or extravagant meals or parties and then left asking that the payments be sent to the Palace to be paid from the royal coffers.
His family watched in silence as he processed the information, embarrassed.
-The commission is ready to leave in 5 days - the king said finally - You will take only Ethan and you will go as an ambassador with your title of Duke of York.
-Just Ethan. Shouldn’t I have more bodyguards?
-We don’t want to stir up too much dust. Remember that the French Directory is inexperienced and there are still Jacobin supporters who are pursuing nobles who went into hiding so as not to suffer the same fate as Louis and his family.
" And if they are being pursued, wouldn’t it be dangerous for me as an English prince? I would make a good hostage,” his youngest son argued.
-You will stay at the English consul ’s mansion . You will accompany him to the social activities for the anniversary of the Revolution. I will send you to observe and learn about the status of the nobles who are supporting the republicans or the monarchists who remain in the shadows.
-With your reputation, you will be able to move among social circles under the pretext of meeting ladies...- said his brother - No one will notice that you are observing the political situation.
-Aren’t I supposed to stay out of trouble? - he asked confused.
-Meet their families... Your visit has already been announced and many nobles and wealthy bourgeois will try to get closer.
-Am I being sent as bait?
-No, just as a distraction to learn the situation first hand. Our spies send a lot of information, but it is vague or not very specific. With Napoleon in Italy, our troops...
-Also, if the court believes that you are traveling to find a wife in another European country, the dissemination of the latest scandals at home will decrease.
-What am I going to find a wife for?!- he exclaimed - Is that the reason for the others?! Father! You are crazy! I don’t want to get married! Why don’t you take care of your fiancée and stop messing with what I do or don’t do with my cock?! - he shouted at his unhinged brother.
“My fiancée will be here in a few months,” George clarified, ignoring his brother’s outburst as if it were a child’s tantrum. “I’m not the problem. You are. We were almost unable to get away from you this time.”
-But forcing me to marry isn’t fair!
-I never said you were going to get married, did I ? - said the king angrily - I just want you to pretend to be looking for a wife so you can move in social circles and get information. I am more than aware that your perception of women is not that of a companion but just someone to vent your impulses on. That was my mistake. After losing their mother, I spoiled them.
Connor looked at him in surprise. Was that his father’s perception of him? He felt uncomfortable. He always believed that his father held him in higher esteem. He didn’t remember his mother. He was two years old when she died and the nannies became his female role models. All of them doing what he wanted, even if it was stupid, for fear of being accused to his father. Formally, he never had the image of a woman who made her own decisions or set limits for him. With his lovers it was no different, they all opened their legs for him if he ordered them to and they didn’t oppose what he asked or did.
“It’s decided, Connor,” his brother told him. “Prepare your luggage. The ship is ready to depart from the port of Dover for Calais, where the English consulate’s carriage will be waiting for you. Lumley has already been informed.”
-This is a punishment...- he said quietly, but his father heard him.
-Take it as you wish, Connor - he said seriously - It’s your decision to do things right or screw up. This is your chance. Now, get out of here.
The young man bowed and turned to leave, upset by what he had heard, but he had also been challenged and he loved challenges.
I was going to prove them wrong.
