Page 25 - RotalTutor

Chapter 3 Alexander the Enemy l As the queen prepared for the day ahead, she smiled as she thought about the young captain attempting to tutor Marie. It wasn’t by chance she had chosen him. He reminded her so much of Alexander when he was a young man. In fact, she found herself having strange déjà vu experiences when Jacob was around. It was as if she was young again, and she was watching Alexander. She thought back about that summer her parents had sent her to live with Alexander’s family. She had been defiant and was talking back to her parents - a lot. Her father, the king, had always wanted a son, but instead, he got her. He had raised her much like a son: riding horses, learning much of war and defense, and even competing in predominantly men’s sports. And then, as she had grown older, and had ridiculed the pomp of the court, she found her mother and father frustrated and upset. They had clashed until her father had threatened to take a birch branch to her. Her mother had suggested that it might be best if she went away from them for a while. She had suggested that they send her up north to live with Duke Reginald and Lady Margaret at Denville Castle in Bernodia. Her father had, at first, said he wasn’t about to pawn his troubles off on someone else. That had angered Louise, to be referred to as ‘his trouble’, but her mother had 23