It didn't take long for the order to be delivered by a palace guard with visible discomfort at having to carry it out. Lauriel, still trembling from the shock of her father's arrest, barely had time to process what was happening before she too was being escorted toward the palace's holding cells, Alastor's protests trailing uselessly behind the guards executing royal procedure.
"This is absurd," Alastor said, following them down the corridor, his composed, princely demeanor entirely abandoned now. "She's done nothing. She had no knowledge of any of this."
"Forgive me, Your Highness," the guard captain said, clearly uncomfortable but unwilling to bend on the matter. "The law is explicit in cases of treason against the crown. The immediate family of the accused must be held for questioning and formal review, regardless."
"Then review her quickly, and clear her, because I refuse to let her sit in a cell over her father's crimes."
"That decision isn't mine to make, my lord."
