Page 61 of The King's Sword
Serilda nodded slowly. “I want to reiterate that there isn’t anything else that you know about the delegation I sent to Avoni?”
“I can’t think of anything.” Rainer hadn’t let her join in on any of the talks the two kingdoms had, so she hadn’t interacted with them much.
Serilda patted Sabine’s shoulder before sitting beside her on the bench. “You are not aware that King Rainer killed my entire delegation before they left Lynk?”
“What?” She must have heard the queen incorrectly.
“Everyone in the Avoni delegation, save Evander, was murdered.”
It felt as if Sabine had just been tossed off a cliff. She couldn’t breathe. She bent forward, resting her elbows on her thighs and gripping her head with her hands. “When did this happen?”
“The night of the masquerade.”
The night Evander had kidnapped Sabine. “How?” she asked, unable to believe that Rainer had managed to murder a dozen assassins on his own. He had to have used his army to accomplish such a feat. But perhaps it was a mistake. However, she couldn’t turn a blind eye to the facts. She’d seen with her own eyes Lynk soldiers escorting Bakley children north toward Lynk. She’d read Rainer’s mother’s journal revealing his father had abused and eventually killed his mother. When she saw Rainer fight, she’d seen brutality in him. Again, just because she didn’t want to believe it didn’t mean it wasn’t true.
“From what we’ve gathered, King Rainer had holes put in the bottom of the ship. When my people left, his soldiers on land shot fire tipped arrows at the vessel. There are also rumors he had some sort of poison on board, but I can’t verify that.”
Which meant the people in the Avoni delegation had either burned or drowned. What a horrible way to die. “Why would he do something so awful?” She couldn’t think of one rational reason for him to murder them.
“That is a very good question.” Tears filled the queen’s eyes. “Is there anything you haven’t told me?”
Sabine rubbed her face. The queen had to have known and been friends with the people who were killed. Her grief had to be immense. “There is one thing I haven’t told you,” she whispered. “One thing I promised Evander I wouldn’t reveal.”
Serilda’s shoulders sagged, as if she knew. As if Sabine’s words had confirmed her suspicions.
Panic gripped Sabine. “It can’t have anything to do with me being here in Avoni or with Evander.”
“Are you certain?” Serilda asked.
“Rainer’s plan had to have been in place long before I left Lynk.” She’d known he’d planned to do something with the Avoni ship—she just hadn’t thought he’d destroy it along with the delegation.
“The reports I’m receiving indicate Rainer retaliated against the delegation because one of its members took you.” Serilda stood.
“That’s not possible,” Sabine insisted. “Both events happened simultaneously.”
“Did my son kidnap you?” Serilda asked point blank.
Sabine nodded.
The queen sighed. “This complicates things,” she mumbled.
“Rainer never has to know,” Sabine insisted.
“Possibly. But what you should be asking yourself is if Rainer thought you were on board that ship he destroyed.”
A wave of dizziness came over Sabine, and she bent over. “He needs me. He’ll lose his throne if I don’t give him an heir by the time he turns twenty-five.” Her voice sounded lifeless, monotone. How she felt right now. But she knew there was more to it than that. Rainer had a backup. However, she was under the impression the backup child only worked if it was passed off as hers. But if Rainer had purposefully killed her and then didn’t tell anyone she was dead…Sabine rubbed her face then looked up at the queen. “I’m so sorry for your loss. I didn’t know any of this would happen.” And now that she’d written that letter to Rainer, if he thought he’d killed her—which she didn’t think he’d do—now he knew she was alive.
“Oftentimes our actions have consequences we don’t anticipate.” The queen leaned against the railing, observing Sabine.
“Are you going to retaliate?” she asked, wondering if there was more to this conversation than the queen trying to discover Sabine’s involvement in all of this.
“I haven’t decided what we’re going to do.” She folded her arms.
“Evander agreed to marry Princess Lottie,” Sabine said. “That might help relations between our kingdoms.”
“Possibly. Or when he agreed to marry her it only confirmed Rainer’s suspicions that Evander was the one who’d taken you. After all, Evander is the sole survivor—which I am grateful for.”
Sabine felt sick to her stomach at all the queen had revealed.
