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“Yes, she does. It is quite beneficial for maintaining lovely gardens around our home.” Edmund lifted his glass of brandy to his mouth but hesitated before taking a sip. Jalissa wasn’t here to check if the brandy was safe to drink. He lowered his glass without drinking.
“I’m sure the elven magic is useful. But it hardly compares to economic power.” King Solan sipped his brandy, then faced Edmund. “You’ve toured Landri and seen the riches of trade that Mongavaria has to offer. For years, trade has flourished between our kingdoms. Both of our kingdoms are suffering under the trade restrictions your brother has imposed. Why would we continue these hostilities when loosening the trade restrictions would benefit both of our kingdoms so much?”
Maybe because Mongavaria was the one to start the hostilities. Better to ally themselves with honorable kings like Rharreth and Weylind than a tenuous alliance with a power-hungry empire like Mongavaria. Sure, trade was suffering now. But eventually, overseas trade would reroute through ports in Tarenhiel and Kostaria, then flow down into Escarland. As long as the Hydalla River remained open, riverboats from Escarland could traverse that seaway all the way to the coast to meet trade ships. In the long run, Escarland didn’t need Mongavaria.
If Escarland joined with Mongavaria, how long would it be before Mongavaria wanted to unite to wipe out Tarenhiel and Kostaria? King Solan wanted an empire of humans. He would end the age of the elves, even if he had to do it through war and genocide. Crown Prince Jimson had shown through his poisoning of Kostaria that he was willing to do just that.
Edmund shrugged and struggled with his placid expression. “I’m afraid my brother is set on this course. The fact that one of your assassins shot my sister might have something to do with that.”
Crown Prince Jimson’s gaze snapped to Edmund, his look sharpening.
Edmund kept his smile neutral. That probably had been a little too pointed. But even the most bland and empty-headed of men would hold a grudge over his sister getting shot.
“That was a little bit of a misunderstanding.” King Solan sent a glare in Crown Prince Jimson’s direction. “I can assure you that such aggression against Escarland won’t happen again.”
Another instance of Crown Prince Jimson taking initiative and King Solan approving of it as long as it pleased him to use his son’s ambitions to expand his empire.
King Solan tossed back the rest of his brandy, then strolled over to the sideboard and refilled his glass. “Does anyone else need theirs topped off?”
“No, thank you.” Edmund raised his glass, swirling it a bit to hide that he hadn’t taken so much as a sip.
“I’m all set, Father.” Crown Prince Jimson also raised his glass.
A cold sensation filled Edmund’s chest, and it was all he could do not to let his smile slip.
Crown Prince Jimson hadn’t drunk any of his brandy either.
The brandy was poisoned, and Crown Prince Jimson knew it. And that meant…he was the one who had poisoned it.
King Solan was already poisoned. He’d had a whole glass of the brandy and was starting on his second. He would be dead in a day or two, even if he didn’t know it yet.
Crown Prince Jimson had done it with Edmund in the room. He was going to pin the blame on Edmund.
“Prince Edmund.” Crown Prince Jimson met Edmund’s gaze. “You haven’t touched your brandy. Is it not to your liking?”
Edmund forced an easy grin, even as all his instincts screamed in his head. “I rarely drink. I get tipsy so easily. Sadly, I can’t hold my alcohol.”
“Hmm.” Crown Prince Jimson gave him a thin smile. “You’ve had no problem drinking the wine at the meals all week.”
Crown Prince Jimson suspected that Edmund was more than what he seemed, and now the crown prince was trying to poison Edmund. The story would probably be that Edmund poisoned King Solan but accidentally took a sip and poisoned himself along with his victim. Case closed, and Crown Prince Jimson would both cast the blame for the poisoning on Escarland and kill off Edmund in a manner that didn’t appear to be Mongavaria’s fault.
“Jimson, really, what has gotten into you?” King Solan shook his head. “I apologize, Prince Edmund. I raised him to be more polite than this.”
“Think nothing of it. I’m sure this is excellent brandy. I would be impolite if I refused your hospitality.” Edmund grinned and flourished his hand, accidentally-on-purpose sloshing half his brandy onto his sleeve. He jumped back, spilling even more brandy onto the floor. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”
King Solan grimaced, then waved him away. “I’ll have one of the maids clean it up. Here, let me refill your glass. Perhaps there is something else that you would prefer more?”
There was nothing in that sideboard that he would dare drink. Perhaps the crown prince had only poisoned the brandy, knowing that it was his father’s favorite. But he seemed like the type to be generous with his poisons. He had probably poisoned everything in there, and he’d swap it all out once his father went to bed. After all, he’d have a few hours before the king began to show symptoms. He would have plenty of time to cover his tracks and plant evidence that Edmund was behind it.
“If you’d like, the wine is also excellent.” Crown Prince Jimson gestured toward the sideboard, that sharp look glittering in his gaze.
Yep, he’d poisoned all of it. Better to stick with the poison he knew—and had evidence of soaking into his sleeve—than risk the poison he didn’t.
“The brandy is fine.” Edmund handed over his glass. His skin crawled with the feeling of the brandy causing his sleeve to cling to his arm. But he tried to tell himself not to freak out. As long as he washed his hand and arm thoroughly, he wasn’t likely to get poisoned simply from the skin contact.
King Solan poured more brandy into Edmund’s glass, then held it out to him. “The brandy is made locally just south of Landri and shipped all over the kingdom.”
As he took the glass, Edmund could feel the weight of Crown Prince Jimson’s gaze on him. Edmund’s stunt of spilling the brandy had only made the crown prince more suspicious. If Edmund didn’t allay his suspicions in some way, then Crown Prince Jimson would never relax his guard enough to allow Edmund, Jalissa, and the guards to sneak out of the castle.
