Page 45 of The Court of Secrets
I swallowed hard. “Cedric, you have to let me break those curses. You have to trust I’ll find a way to get them away from the mer king.”
He moved his hand from mine. “I can’t risk my family for you to save Blaise from a curse. Besides, without them cursed, it will be easier for mortals to use them against us. They’ll still have their original properties. The Dagger and Sword will still be able to kill us, the Crown can be used to compel, and the Amulet would give them unmatched strength, agility, and speed. Imagine all of that with the Ring offering immortality. In the wrong hands, we could have a war.”
I rubbed my fingers against my temples. “I won’t allow the mer king to hold them. I’ll have him hand over the Crown instead. I’ll force his hand, I don’t care.” I swallowed thickly. “I can’t do nothing, Cedric. The mer king will kill my people. Sink our ships.”
“I know.” He looked at his feet, his voice weak. “Now that you know, what are you going to do?”
My stomach dipped. “I don’t know. Blaise only knows you stole the Dagger, but not why.”
“Or for certain it was me.”
“Licia must have told the truth. How else? Faeries can’t lie.”
“Nope, which is why you have no choice but to believe me. When I told you how I felt, every kiss, every time I told you I cared… I couldn’t have been lying.”
I cast my eyes down at the stone floor. “I know, and that’s what’s going to make this so much harder.”
He flinched forward. “I know you. I wouldn’t have told you any of this if I thought you’d betray me back. You’re a good person. You care for me too. Blaise was a bad influence, holding you back from being who you truly are. I know you won’t hurt me.”
A tear crept down my cheek. “I think you’re the only person who’s ever overestimated me. I’m sorry.”
“Winter,” he warned.
“Guards!”
“Don’t.” He grabbed my hand. “I told you the truth.”
“I have to put my kingdom first.” I squeezed my eyes shut as they stormed through the opened door, and I pointed at Cedric. “Arrest him.” I paused, swallowing thickly. “For treason.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Bleary-eyed, I stared across the office. Blaise had been right. It was mine. I didn’t know why I hadn’t thought of taking it before. I stared down the chair where my father had sat for his many years as king. Behind the creased, brown leather chair, a matte-black fireplace held only a few forgotten charcoaled logs. Above it hung a wide mirror with ornate designs, knotted into a frame of silver.
The muscles in my neck ached as I turned my head. I thumbed my shoulder, attempting to ease some of the tension that had gathered. I’d drank more of the potion Morgana had given me that morning.
When I’d discovered why the ingredients had run out, I almost threw up. Bones of a dead anumi only found deep in the forest. The bones they had buried here, from the one my father had killed after he thought one had eaten me when I had gone missing, were gone. They had been ground into a powder and mixed with a variety of herbs for me to drink with a honey-flavored liquid to help it go down. The honey did little to mask the taste. I was sure there were more bones, but no one wanted to venture into the trees where the beasts lurked, out of fear of not returning. Still, if we were left with no option, I’d be forced to send men in there. I couldn’t lose control and wouldn’t lose Morgana.
Turning back toward the desk, I flexed my fingers, then extended them over the buffed mahogany. The smell of polish lingered in the air. I was going to have to redecorate. The head of the anumi’s bones I’d drank had been mounted onto the wall. Its unseeing eyes were redder than blood; it’s fur, blacker than coal. It served as a reminder of when I thought my father cared. It had been a rare, shining moment when I wanted to believe I was more to him than an heir; my heart wished for him to see me as a daughter—to protect me, love me… but neither had been true.
The dusty air caught in my throat, forcing me to cough. My eyes were drawn to the powered light seeping through the large three glass panes on the far wall to my left. It illuminated the white on the ground. I almost tripped on a corner of the green rug, which was curled at the end, as I walked toward the window ledge. I unlatched it and inhaled the crisp, cool air.
Rows of houses with slate roofs lined the distance, stopping where the land turned to sea. Boats docked at the largest port in Magaelor, the same port where I’d found my way to Berovia. I wondered about the men who’d taken me, who had fought for me in the battle. Would they keep my secret? I hoped my rule was incentive enough to hold their tongues. They had explained how Edgar’s taxes weren’t beneficial to their trade, and I doubted anyone wanted Louis on the throne, who would be next in line if I died without an heir. He had a lot of influence at court, but among working men and woman, he was known as pompous—an arrogant politician who often took advantage of lower classes so he could line his own pockets.
Rumors floated about how he mistreated the maids and lashed the men at his farms. There was no proof, however. He was good at covering his tracks. The only evidence was the word of people he knew he could squash. I wished it weren’t the case, but I reminded myself I could only reform one thing at a time. I had, what I hoped would be anyway, a long rule ahead of me to invoke the changes I wanted.
Still, although I doubted any of them would let the truth slip, I had to be careful. A few merchants knew I had been in Magaelor the day my father died, and that one little secret would cast doubt over everything I had said. To say I had been kidnapped by Xenos from Niferum was a half-truth. Ihadbeen locked away, but only after I’d already run to Berovia.
I turned the key in the lock, then blew out a long, shaky exhale before walking to the sunken chair. I didn’t want to be interrupted. My train of thoughts was scattered. From worrying about the truth of my father’s murder being uncovered to the necromancer and Morgana, to what my brother said about Vahaga and how he looked in pain, and mostly to what Cedric had unveiled had me unable to focus on one problem at a time. They all knotted my stomach, pushing tears into the corners of my eyes.
Pressing my fingers against my forehead, I rested my elbows on the paper-covered desk and let my tears fall. I could be alone here. It was the one place I felt safe. No one knew I’d taken the office as mine yet. As far as everyone, including the guards, considered, the office was as empty as it had been since the king’s death.
Cedric was alone, shackled in a cold room in the holding tower. It was where all treasonists went, and seldom came back after being taken through the wrought-iron gates. I’d ordered for him not to be sentenced or executed; it had been fear that pulled me into having him arrested. He knew where the Sword and Dagger were and had made it abundantly clear he wasn’t going to tell me where they were.
He couldn’t put me before his family, and I couldn’t put him before Magaelor. He presumed I’d done it for Blaise, but it wasn’t only him. Magaelor was at risk because of the mer king, Aqugar, and he’d surely drag the ships of my navy to the bottom of the ocean if I didn’t bring him the Objects of Kai. The mer always had been predators, but they were more dangerous than ever. It was an effort I understood now because the mercreatures took on traits of the king or queen, and Aqugar had worn the Crown of Discieti. Like Blaise, he could not feel love, but he’d lived with the curse far longer, without any want to hold back and not give in to his dark urges.
A light knock rapped on the door, and I jolted upright. I fought the urge to respond, praying whoever it was would think the office empty and leave.
The handle turned, but the door didn’t open. It shook, and I eyed the key hole on my side as a key was pressed into the other. “Winter?”
