Inside, Henry remained frozen. The moment the door snapped shut, something in Henry went mad.
He swept the nearest table clean with one violent arm. Cups shattered. Papers flew. The wine jug struck the floor and split open, red spilling across the floor. He tore at the curtains until the rings screamed against the rod. He drove his fist into the wall again and again, barely feeling the pain.
Stephen burst into the room. "Your Highness!"
The crown sat on a side table. The thing everyone had worshipped. The thing that had made him untouchable.
He snatched it up. Stephen stopped dead in the doorway. Henry hurled the crown at the wall.
"Your Highness!" Stephen's voice cracked through the chamber. He rushed forward with both arms out as if he could catch the king. The crown had struck the wall and fallen hard against the floorboards, rolling once before settling on its side.
"Your Highness," he tried again.
