‘What is going on here?’King Hared asked with a tight smile, noting Torgrin’s drawn sword.
‘Just a misunderstanding, Your Majesty,’ Bethel gushed nervously.
‘I will report this incident to Lord Warwick,’ Torgrin ground out, his eyes moving from Merrick to Goodwin.
‘Incident?’The king’s eyes narrowed at Goodwin in question.Goodwin was busy glaring at me while rubbing his wrist.It seemed nobody wanted to be the one to enlighten the king.
‘Well, if Lady Bethel has declared that there has only been a misunderstanding, then let’s not bring such nonsense to Lord Warwick’s attention,’ the king said smoothly.‘Now Bethel, how is my dear queen?’the king asked.His tone was sad, but I noticed his expression remained unaffected.‘My advisor here will not let me visit because she could attempt to control my mind with her Curse.’
Control minds?Is that what Merrick told him?Something clicked as I listened to the king’s words.I couldn’t use my ability when mykidnappers put a hood over my head.Is that why they had burned out the queen’s eyes?
I looked at Torgrin to see if he was listening to the king, but he was watching Merrick exit the ballroom.
CHAPTER 30
‘Iwant to come too,’ I insisted, standing in my bedroom, about to change out of my gown.
‘No, Caris.You will stay here.I need to get these to Cillian and tell him which cell the queen is in.’Torgrin held up the ring of keys he had swiped from the king’s guard as the man lay semi-conscious in the queen’s cell.
‘I still can’t believe you took them.Won’t he report them missing?’Truth be told, it impressed me that Torgrin had stolen them right under my nose.
‘Not if he wants to keep his head.I’ll make sure he finds them again once Cillian makes copies.’
‘What about the soldiers guarding the entrance?’I wanted to be involved in the planning.I was afraid for Queen Yaris’s life.Leaving her behind in that appalling cell was weighing heavily on me.
‘That’s what I will discuss tonight with the others.Alone.’Ignoring my protests, Torgrin hid the keys in his boot and left without me.
I threw myself onto the bed, frustrated by how little I’d been able to do since arriving at this horrible castle.I’d always imagined that on the day I found my mother’s killer I would thrust my sword deep into his heart.Yet here he was, under a king’s protection.
King Hared was charming and extremely dangerous.He once convinced the beautiful golden-haired princess in the portrait above the mantel to marry him and make him king.In return, he kept her quiet and controlled all these years.Knowing what I knew now had convinced me King Hared should not be on the throne, and Goodwin shouldn’t either.
I rolled over on the bed, thumping the pillow beneath my head.I felt powerless to change anything.If we gathered an army vast enough to fight King Hared and the Order, the next male heir to the throne was an eight-year-old boy.Lord Warwick did not want Wolfe on the throne, but he might reconsider once he learned what King Hared had done to Queen Yaris.I don’t think he would want his eldest daughter to marry a snivelling, petty man like Goodwin.Would Pedion accept a reigning queen?The idea of Bethel being the sole sovereign was terrifying.
Four more nights until Bethel and Goodwin were married.Three nights until Lord Warwick would arrive in Capita.The queen’s escape had to happen tomorrow or the next day.
I tried to stay awake to see Torgrin and hear what Cillian and the others had planned, but I fell asleep before he returned.
Torgrin was still not back in the morning and had been gone all day.I felt anxious as the evening approached and there was still no news.
Bethel had been busy with a constant flow of visitors – dressmakers and jewellers in the morning, and well-wishers in the evening.
Torgrin still hadn’t shown himself by dinner, so I took Bethel and one of our soldiers to the dining hall for another tense night of eating, drinking and dancing.
The evening felt like it would never end.I watched Goodwin closely and saw him putting more effort into courting Bethel under his father’s watchful eye.Goodwin ignored me, but I knew he wasstill seething under his polite smiles and banal chatter because he couldn’t resist glowering at me when nobody was looking.
Merrick took his leave the moment the meal was over.Tormenting people sure kept him and the Order busy.
I was thankful when Bethel decided she’d had enough of Goodwin for the night.He bored her and didn’t allow her to dance or talk to other young men, so she had no reason to stay.
I knew someone was in my chamber the moment I entered.I reached into my boot for my knife.The fire was still alive, but no lanterns or candles had been lit.The flickering of the fire created shifting shadows on the walls.
‘Are you going to slit my throat before I get the chance to kiss you?’came a voice smooth like honey.
‘Cillian?’
I moved to the candle by the bed and fumbled to light it.The room brightened, and I saw Cillian’s large frame resting against the padded headboard of my bed.I threw myself at him, peppering his face with kisses.
‘Foolish girl!’He chuckled and caught my lips in a long kiss.
