Page 10 of Sword of Desire
She nodded and resumed eating, ignoring him.
“How long?” he asked as he headed toward the exit.
“Until what?”
“You bleed.”
It felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head. She struggled for what to say. If there was a way to postpone having to share a bed with him, she would. She was about to lie and say she was bleeding. It would buy her a week.
“I need to know that you’re not with Ledger’s child before we can resume relations. I don’t want to question whether my heir is really mine.”
She blinked, understanding the gift she’d been given. Since Lyle had been gone for two weeks, she couldn’t stretch it out too long. “Next week I should bleed,” she lied.
“Good. I want proof.” He exited the room.
She slouched in the chair, relieved. She’d just bought herself two weeks until she had to share a bed with her husband.
* * *
Harley paced inside the queen’s bedchamber. With Lyle’s return, so much had already changed. She eyed the door leading to what she presumed to be his room. Of course, it could be another closet, but she didn’t think so. After hesitating a moment, she finally summoned her courage and went over to the door. Her hand shook as she pushed it open, peering inside. Instead of the king’s personal bedchamber as she’d expected, she found a smaller room containing a gigantic bed with dark blue curtains. No other furniture adorned the area. The only purpose of this place was to perform one’s marital duties.
A small part of her considered that she might have been conceived there. She shook her head. Only royalty used this bed. If the king took a mistress, he’d entertain her in a suite established solely for that purpose. The mere thought made her stomach sour, especially the idea that her own mother had been intimate with the king. She couldn’t help but contemplate if it had been a mutual relationship where they enjoyed one another’s company. Or, if the king had simply wanted Lady Mayle and she’d had no choice but to give her body to him. Harley backed up a step, wanting to get away from this room.
She closed the door, wondering if the king had taken many lovers through the years. When Harley stayed at the royal castle, he often threw parties filled with nobility. She’d never paid attention to whether he spent any time with other women or not. Her aunt had never hinted at being unhappy with the king. However, Harley had never really asked or talked with her aunt about such things. Her mother had taught her conversations like that weren’t polite. So, as it stood, Harley felt as if she didn’t truly know those closest to her.
Harley took the chair from the queen’s writing desk and placed it under the door handle to the adjoining suite. Then she went over and locked the door leading from the antechamber to her room. Satisfied no one could come in, she grabbed Ledger’s bag which had been placed on the chest in her room.
Sitting on the floor, she untied the straps and opened it. Inside, she found a pair of pants and a tunic. At the bottom, there were two pouches. She carefully pulled both out, setting them on the floor next to her. After wiping her sweaty hands on her dress, she opened the first pouch, careful not to touch its contents.
A tangy smell greeted her. Peering inside, she saw a handful of bright green leaves. She set the pouch aside. Opening the second one, she found what looked like several light brown roots, though she couldn’t be certain. Perhaps Ledger had used these items to make the poison he put on the horse’s reins to paralyze her hands. Or it could be what he put in her mouth to knock her out. Regardless, she needed to discover what these items were. Maybe she could take the leaves and roots to the library and do some investigating. There had to be at least one book on poisons. Closing the pouches, she picked them up and scanned the room, searching for a place to hide them. Somewhere no one would accidentally find them. She thought about all the places Ackley had shown her.
On a hunch, she reached down and pulled back the corner of the area rug. One of the wood planks appeared more worn than the others. Smiling, she knelt and tried prying it up. When it wouldn’t move, she pushed on the end, and it flipped upward. Inside, she found a handful of trinkets, a few sketches of flowers, and some money. Tears welled in her eyes, and she had to stifle a gasp. It felt as if her heart were being squeezed. These precious items belonged to her dear aunt. They weren’t meant for her to see, so she left them there undisturbed.
Harley put the pouches inside. She was about to close the wood plank when she remembered the piece of paper she’d received in the stables. She pulled the paper out from the neckline of her dress.
Harley—
If you need immediate extraction, light the candle on the queen’s dresser and place it in the north window. If you need to communicate, light the candle on the queen’s vanity table and place it in the south window. We have a common friend, and he asked me to watch out for you. Best of luck.
It wasn’t signed. Harley hoped the mutual friend this person referred to was Ackley. If so, then this changed things. No longer was she isolated and alone in her endeavor to kill the false king. Not that she needed help, but knowing she had some sort of support emboldened her. She placed the letter in with the pouches and closed the wood plank. Standing, she settled the rug back in place.
Glancing over at the dresser, she eyed the six-inch tall candle sitting in a glass holder. It had three wicks and was the width of a hand. On the vanity, she spotted a long skinny candle about a foot high with a single wick. It, too, was encased in a glass jar. On either side of the queen’s bed, two narrow windows were situated. The windows on the right had to be the north windows, the other ones, the south.
Things started falling into place.
Somehow, some way, she was no longer alone.
After changing into nightclothes, she climbed into bed. Sleep didn’t come. The stillness around her brought up thoughts she wasn’t ready to face.
Thoughts of Ackley.
Had Ackley planned on sending her to the royal castle this entire time? Since he had one of his men here to help her, she had to consider the possibility. As far as she knew, the last time he had contact with his men had been before the two of them traveled to Penlar together. That was before they could tolerate one another.
Harley didn’t think Owen knew Ackley’s suspicions. Surely her cousin wouldn’t approve of Ackley’s endeavors either. If Ackley had surmised way back then that Lyle was on the throne, why hadn’t he said something to her?
His actions left her wondering if he even cared for her, let alone loved her.
But she knew Ackley. He would not have incorporated her into his plans if he didn’t think her capable. Which meant regardless of what he felt for her, she had a job to do. Ever since her brother was murdered, she’d wanted retribution. This could be her one shot to get it. She needed a plan, and she needed to set it into motion tomorrow morning.
