Killian moved forward and rested his hands upon Taryn’s shoulders, heedless of the Queen’s glare. He wanted her to know that she need not listen to any of this. In silent answer, she reached up and clasped his hand.
“It is true,” the Queen insisted. “Those scars happened because of your father.” Her face was bone white, and when she met Killian’s stare, there was anguish within it.
“What do you mean?” Taryn’s voice held the coolness of a woman who didn’t believe the Queen’s words.
“After your brother died, Devlin went into a fury. You know how he doted upon Christopher. He blamed you for the accident. When you ran toward your brother, the horse reared up.”
Taryn’s hand tightened upon his, but she said nothing.
“He was furious,” she said quietly. “I had never seen him so angry. He held on to Christopher’s body, grieving...and then a...a sort of madness came over Devlin. He set his dogs upon you,” Maeve continued. “They ripped your face apart and would have killed you, had I not stopped them.”
A violent anger roared through him when Killian heard this. If it was true, then the Queen was right—Devlin deserved to die.
Tears were streaming down the Queen’s face. “Every day that I see you, I blame Devlin. I was devastated when Christopherdied, but I would never have punished you. You were only four years old.”
Taryn’s voice was cool. “Then why did you stay with him? Why didn’t you tell me what happened?” The tone of her voice suggested that she didn’t believe Maeve.
The woman’s shoulders were trembling, and she added, “I had nowhere else to go. And I was afraid of what else he might do to both of us if I tried to take you away.” Her face whitened. “He spent a great deal of time with you. At first I thought it was his remorse for what he did. But I never stopped worrying that he might lose his temper again. I promised myself I would help you find a husband quickly to get away from Devlin.” The Queen pressed her fist to her mouth, as if trying to keep herself from saying too much.
A hardness formed in Killian’s gut at Devlin’s actions. But Taryn was shaking her head in disbelief. “No. I cannot believe my father caused these scars. He would never have hurt me.”
Killian kept an arm around her, intending to guide her back. He couldn’t be certain what was true, but there was no questioning Maeve’s desire to protect Taryn.
The Queen straightened her shoulders. “I swore that I would never let anything happen to you again. And I will keep that promise.”
Taryn didn’t reply, and Killian saw the doubts upon her face. She had gone motionless, and without a word, she began walking back toward the horses. His instinct was to follow, but instead, he faced Maeve. He wanted to judge whether or not she was telling lies.
“I won’t let my daughter go to Tara,” the Queen said. “She can’t endanger herself like that. But more than that, Devlin should not be freed.”
If her words were true, then he agreed with Maeve. But the Queen had not yet finished. “Know this. I will take my daughterback to Ossoria by force if I must. I care not if she hates her imprisonment. Her well-being means more to me than her feelings.”
“If you take her by force, she will despise you,” Killian countered. “She will blame you for his death.”
“Devlin deserves to die,” she shot back.
“Maybe. But let her learn that for herself. Or she’ll be hating you forever.” He crossed his arms and stared at the Queen. This was not her decision to make.
“Better for her to hate me than to die at the High King’s hands.” In her eyes, he saw the cold resolution. Maeve was never going to let Taryn go. “He will use her. And I cannot allow Rory to hurt my daughter.”
“I will not let any harm come to her,” he countered. “I am the High King’s son. And that gives me a means of protecting her.”
“I will protect my daughter. And you will not interfere with that.”
He faced her and saw the underlying fear in her eyes. She might be insistent upon keeping Taryn away from the High King, but there was more to this. He sensed that she was hiding more secrets, and there were strong reasons why she had kept all of this from her daughter.
Or if she was indeed lying—to rid herself of an unwanted husband and claim the kingdom for herself—then he would only learn the truth by confronting Devlin.
“The choice is Taryn’s,” he said. “If your daughter wants to continue her journey, you will not stop us.” He sent her a hard stare, letting her know that he would not yield in this. Then he turned and strode back towards Taryn.
She was standing alone, staring off at the silvery lake. Her face had gone pale, and the dark strands of her hair hung against her cheeks, barely disguising the scars. Her hands were gripped together, and he came to stand beside her.
“You believe her, don’t you?” Her words were tinged with ice. “You’re not going to let me save him.”
“Isshe telling the truth? Do you remember what happened to you?”
Taryn shook her head slowly. “I don’t, no. I remember falling hard and—” she closed her eyes against the memory “—the terrible pain of my face being torn open. Someone pulled me away from the dogs, but I never saw who it was.”
She reached up to touch the scars, turning her eyes toward him. “I always believed it was my father who got me out. I never thought he would hurt me.” She shook her head. “I still can’t believe it. But I don’t know why Maeve would try to turn me against him. Is it because she wants to rule Ossoria alone?” Frustrated tears welled up in her eyes, but she would not let them fall.
