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I peered at the gold text.Penna est potentior gladio, the Latin script read.The quill is mightier than the sword.
If only Cael believed that.
Forty green velvet chairs filled half the room, occupied by the forty Immortals of the Academy, the men and women who wore their laurels on their lapels and valued words and the Cambrian language above all else.
A rumble of hushed conversation filled my ears, and I knew I was the reason for it.
Violet velvet chairs filled the other half of the room where the Immovable families sat. I hadn’t expected so many of them to be here. Graham’s mother, Maeve, with her black and silver strands, sat in the front row, elegant and intimidating as always. Patrick Donovan sat beside her, his dark eyes gleaming.
I forced my face to stay neutral as the two of them looked back at me with undisguised contempt. Graham took a seat beside them, avoiding looking my way, though I knew he wanted to.
Behind them sat Dominic Dunn, his formerly soft jaw now sharp, his round, youthful face changed by what he’d gone through. He was neither an Immovable nor an Immortal, which led me to believe he’d been invited for another purpose. His eyes darkened as he saw me—understandably. If he believed Cael’s accusations, he thought I’d killed his grandfather.
I recognized Anton Byrne and his wife, two of the most extravagantly dressed people in the room. In his royal blue suit, Byrne looked more prepared for a ball than a hearing. His gray beard and hair were perfectly groomed, with sharp, waxed curls at his temples.
Lady Byrne looked stunning in a ruffled cream dress that perfectly contrasted with her flawless brown skin and darkglossy hair. Her bodice sparkled with iridescent fragments that looked like mother of pearl.
I looked past them to find Cael glowering at the Byrnes, but whether his look was loathing or ambition, I couldn’t tell.
His gaze shifted upward, locking eyes with me.
In that look, I found the purest, most undeniable hatred.
I returned it, ready to tear him apart if I could.
It was almost comforting knowing how mutually we detested the other without attempting to hide it. At my coronation, I’d had to publicly pretend I didn’t despise him. Now, even in front of the Immortals and Immovables, I could unapologetically stare daggers at him and he could do the same—a taste of freedom, in its own way.
He stood up, taking the podium between the two halves of the Hall, overlooking it all. “Escort the prisoner to the stage.” His voice was clear and resonant. With him leading this assembly, my hope was even lower that I would get a chance to say what I wanted to. He could silence me at any moment.
The guards pulled me through an aisle that separated the green and purple chairs from each other, leaving me standing alone on a flat, circular platform in the center, with every angry face in the room facing me.
I felt so exposed I thought I’d be sick, but now was not the time to disgust anyone. I needed to be sharp, sympathetic, and eloquent.
I would especially try to appeal to the green half of the room—the Immortals who were the true Academics, the scholars, and the lawmakers. While the Immovables were prominent and admired, they held a fraction of the power. In the past, I’d spent more time trying to win over nobles like Graham and Cael. But today, I needed the Academy to listen to and trust my every declaration. There wasn’t room for a single misspoken word.
Cael addressed the room from the podium. “Before us stands Mara Stroud, principal suspect of the crimes which hitherto have been designated, and which I will recapitulate. Of chief importance in this inquiry is the treason directed at Sir Brennin, the murders of Sir Pearce, as well as Enforcer Wallace, and the destruction of Academy property, including several unfortunate hostages.”
Every eye I could see was fixed on me, and even the brutal stares I couldn’t see burned through my back. I wished I could run or hide, but I stood tall.
“Lady Stroud, inform the Assembly so that all might hear, about your involvement pertaining to the disappearance of Sir Brennin,” said Cael, his words as irritatingly ceremonious as I’d ever heard. He sounded like Pearce, which I suspected was his intention. “And do bear in mind, whilst you stand upon this stage, you are under oath and, therefore, compelled to speak the truth, lest your charges be heightened.”
I pivoted my body, turning so I could see Graham. His face was cool and impassable, but his hands gripped each other so tightly in his lap that I could see the vessels bulging.
I took a deep breath and addressed the Hall, hoping I could bear the truth to an audience who wished me dead. “As to the murders stated, I maintain innocence,” I said, “but when it comes to the matter of Sir Brennin’s abduction, I confess that I was the primary perpetrator and I accept accountability for it.”
The room filled with an angry buzz.
“However,” I added, raising my voice, “I never desired to bring harm upon Sir Brennin, and once the scheme was set in motion, I fervently desired to halt it at every juncture.”
Cael’s face darkened. “Nevertheless, it seems you failed to halt your pursuit of the throne.”
“I would have, were it not for the violence that would befall Sir Brennin had I dared alter my scheme.”
Cael went silent, his jaw clenched. It was clear why, considering he was the threat I referred to. Any follow-up questions from him would beg me to say more. But as the one questioning me, he had to say something.
“And yet, the heir remained a victim of your schemes as you enthusiastically accepted the crown; thus, any purported concern you profess for him seems dubious at best. And,” Cael looked down on me, daring me to disagree with him, “at no point did you alert me, your elected Immortal who should have been your closest confidant, that you had carried out such a crime. You left us all in the dark—most notably, Sir Brennin himself.” He turned to the Immovables, softening his voice in false emotion. “A pit in the ground.” He pointed at Graham dramatically. “That’s where she abandoned our beloved heir, bleeding and wounded. Apitin theground. Pray tell, does this bear any semblance to compassion?”
The nobles eagerly shook their heads.
