Page 54 of A Queen This Fierce and Deadly

“Surely you saw the condition Jamic was in when you took him. Regner allowed me to see him regularly. To check if the amulet was still leaking power into him. When the guards weren’t paying attention, I would use oceartus stones to siphon some of that power away. Otherwise, he would have slowly lost his mind.”

“And what did you do with the power?” Rythos asked from near the window, his eyes narrowed.

She met his gaze coolly. “I walked through the slums and deposited it where it would do the most good. Healers, usually.”

I wanted to think that at least one of Regner’s priestesses was truly good. But from the sneer on Rythos’s face, he was in no danger of believing her.

“As Regner’s pet priestess, you would know just how to use those stones,” he said. “Since you and every witch like you have gladly served him for so long.”

The room went silent. It wasn’t like Rythos to use his words to cut. But Lorian had once told me Rythos hated two creatures more than any other—priestesses and stone hags.

To her credit, the priestess didn’t flush. She merely returned her gaze to me as if he didn’t exist.

I wasn’t surprised by her ability to suppress any emotions she might feel. Working for Regner would have quickly taught her such a skill.

“What is your name?”

“Mona.”

“And how did you end up here? In Gromalia?”

Mona gestured to the table, and I sat with Lorian and Galon. Lorian was guarded but quiet, and I knew he was willing to hear her out. Rythos roamed the room, while Daharak continued leaning against the wall. “Now that is a long story,” Mona said. “And I have a far more important story to tell. But I was born in Eprotha. My mother was a priestess, and her mother before her. My mother was almost shockingly intelligent. She struggled with people— with understanding their emotions and the nuances in their tones. When she couldn’t see the logic in their actions, she was baffled by them.

“And while my mother had been raised to be an incredibly devout woman, she saw…flaws in what wewere told.” Mona’s eyes shuttered, and for the first time, she lost some of her cool confidence. “Her mind was so sharp, she could find a way to solve almost any problem. And yet, even with her devotion to the gods, and her commitment to the king she knew as Sabium, she couldn’t make her mind stop unraveling his lies. Slowly, she lost her ability to push the truth aside for the sake of Sabium’s religion. And it began to make her crazed.”

I couldn’t imagine what that must have been like. The confusion turning to realization as she understood what was happening. “I’m sorry,” I said.

Mona met my gaze. “Thank you. As you can imagine, her fury was endless. The thought that she had been used to cause so much harm to others was intolerable. And she turned that sharp mind to revenge. Slowly, she began to help other priestesses question our teachings. She had to be careful. So, so careful. But she learned of those who were fighting back, and she joined them. They gave her a task. Assassinate Regner.”

I sucked in a breath so quickly I choked. “She attempted such a thing?”

She nodded. “Her power was one of sickness. An attack power that would rot an enemy from the inside out. Unfortunately, my mother did not know of Regner’s ward. She did not know of the mirror or the grimoire. Her attempt failed. And she was slaughtered. I was arrested.”

I flinched. “The truth-seekers…”

She gave me a faint smile. “My power allows me to evade the truth-seekers. I lie. I manipulate. I can hide my power from the assessors. I am everything my mother should have been. With her mind, she might have savedour continent.”

“Then how do we know you are not lying to us?” Rythos demanded. I gave him a look, but…he had a point.

Mona sighed. “You don’t. But if you believe one thing, believe this—I would never betray my mother. Before she attempted to kill Regner, she told me everything. And she asked of me only one thing. That I undo the evil Regner had forced his priestesses to commit in his name. I promised her I would succeed where she had not.”

“How did you end up in Regner’s castle?” Galon asked. He was studying her intently, but unlike Rythos, he didn’t radiate suspicion.

“Regner found it amusing to put me in my mother’s place. As far as he knew, I was the most pious. The most loyal. A woman ashamed of her mother’s actions. And so he used me as an example to others. An example…and a warning.”

It sounded like Regner.

“And yet you escaped the castle.”

She nodded. “I escaped the day you attacked. But not before I caught a glimpse of what you did to that sanctuary.” She smiled, and it was as if the sun had appeared from behind a dark cloud. “I knew I couldn’t complete my task from within the castle. By then, I had learned of Regner’s ward. While my mother had never been trusted to know the truth of what happened to the oceartus stones, Regner decided he needed my help. And he likely found it amusing to prove my mother right, all while making it clear that I could never avenge her. But I watched him. And I studied everything. I slipped aroundthe castle and read the books he kept hidden. I overheard secret conversations, and when I realized you were finally going to wage war, I came to King Rekja.”

Rythos pulled out a chair and sat, folding his arms as he watched her. “And what is it you have to tell us?”

To her credit, Mona answered his question as if it hadn’t been dripping with sarcasm.

“You need to kill Regner, this is true. But when you kill him, you will have a task that is just as important.”

Rythos opened his mouth, and she held up a hand. “By now, Jamic has told you of the dark god—and his siblings who planned to strip him of power. You know of the three grimoires he poured his knowledge and power into.”

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