Chapter Six #2
Palmer told himself not to be an idiot. Killian was a good king.
He wouldn’t blame Palmer for something he had nothing to do with.
Now that Palmer suspected this wasn’t a virus or an illness, he could start researching the symptoms from another angle.
If someone was poisoning Killian’s siblings, Palmer would have to find out how they were doing it and what they were using.
And he would.
* * * *
RUNE WAS FREAKING OUT. Palmer was right when he said this couldn’t be a coincidence. If this was an illness, more people would be sick. Instead, it was only three of the siblings, and no one that wasn’t related to him and Killian.
Something was definitely happening.
Rune didn’t want to think that Pearl had anything to do with this.
There was no love lost between them and never had been, but they were still related.
Why would she hurt her siblings? Rune would understand if she’d been trying to hurt Killian, but Twig?
He’d never done anything to her. Rune wasn’t even sure they’d ever talked to each other.
Pearl didn’t actually care about any of her siblings. She cared about becoming queen, and to do that, she had to go through Killian. Twig had nothing to do with this, though. If she was hurting him, she was doing so to get to Killian.
“I’ll check on Twig quickly,” Palmer murmured. “I think we should talk to Killian once I’m done.”
“I agree,” Rune told him. “I’ll text him to see if he’s available.”
“He will be if you tell him we think we know what’s going on.”
Rune wanted to check in on Twig, too, but he trusted Palmer, so he didn’t hesitate to step away. Texting Killian didn’t take long, and after Killian confirmed that he’d be waiting for them, Rune had to wait for Palmer to be done. He did so as he tapped his foot, wondering who would be next.
He didn’t know how Pearl was doing this or even if it was actually her, although Rune couldn’t think of anyone else who would do it. If she’d poisoned Twig, how had she done it? How had she poisoned Yorga and Ash? Rune didn’t think they were close to Pearl. He’d never noticed them with her, anyway.
“All done,” Palmer suddenly said, startling Rune. Rune smiled at him, and Palmer smiled back, but it was obvious to both of them that they were nervous.
“Killian is waiting for us,” Rune explained.
“Good. The sooner we do this, the better. I don’t want to be away from the infirmary for too long.”
“How is he?”
Palmer glanced at Twig, who was now awake and sitting up in bed. He looked the way he had since he’d arrived here—too pale and a little shaky.
“He’s not getting any better,” Palmer said. “I’ve decided to stop the treatment I gave him. It’s not doing any good.”
“Hopefully, now that we know something more is happening, we’ll be able to find the right treatment.”
Palmer nodded, but he didn’t look convinced. Rune had faith in him, though. If there was someone who could help his siblings, it was Palmer. He wouldn’t give up until he found a way.
They exited the infirmary after Palmer left a list of instructions with the nurse. She would call him right away if anything happened, but Rune hoped that no one else would come to the infirmary because they were ill. Three was more than enough.
He and Palmer were silent as they walked.
Knowing Palmer, he was already thinking about several substances that could give the same symptoms he’d observed in Twig, Yorga, and Ash.
By the time they reached Killian’s office, he’d probably have a good list. It was one of the reasons Rune liked him so much.
Palmer was always ahead, his brain moving quicker than anyone else’s.
As promised, Killian was waiting for them.
Hedley was there, too, along with Birch and Marlin, who were never far from the king and his consort.
Rune settled in one of the chairs in front of Killian’s desk, but he couldn’t sit still, so he started bouncing his knee.
Luckily for him, no one said anything about it.
“Rune didn’t say much when he texted me,” Killian explained. “Can you tell me what’s going on?”
Palmer and Rune looked at each other. Rune nodded at Palmer to speak. They might agree on what was going on, but he wasn’t the healer here.
Palmer linked his fingers together in his lap and sucked in a breath.
“Another one of your siblings is ill,” he told Killian.
“Ash. He just came to the infirmary, and he has the same symptoms as Twig and Yorga. I sent him back to his rooms since he didn’t want to stay in the infirmary, and he’s not ill enough to have to, but that makes three of your siblings who are ill, and no one else.
There’s not one case of this illness in someone who’s not related to you. ”
Killian was frowning. “You think they’re being targeted.”
“It could’ve been a coincidence when it was only two of them, but three? And from what I know, they’re not exactly close enough to each other to be spreading this.”
“They’re not,” Rune confirmed. “I’m close to Twig, so I know that he doesn’t really have a lot of contact with our other siblings.”
“And even though you’ve been spending a lot of time with him, you haven’t fallen ill,” Palmer pointed out. “Which means this probably isn’t contagious. There’s still a chance it might be, but I’m starting to think that this isn’t an illness.”
“Someone is poisoning them,” Hedley declared.
For a moment, everyone was silent. It didn’t take long for Marlin to speak up, though. “We all agree it’s Pearl, right?”
“I don’t see who else it could be,” Rune offered. “I don’t like the thought of her hurting her siblings, but it wouldn’t be the first time she’s tried.”
“And she already knows that targeting Killian isn’t going to work,” Hedley said. “She’s tried that without success.”
“We need to investigate,” Killian declared.
He looked at Marlin and Birch. “It has to be you two. We can’t afford for this to get out.
I’m sure that if Pearl is behind this, she’s planned everything, including us finding out.
If we investigate her openly, she’s going to use that against us.
It needs to be kept a secret, at least until we have proof of what she’s doing. ”
Rune sighed in relief. He’d known that Killian would do everything he could to solve this problem, but he’d been scared.
It was nice to know that Killian wouldn’t just wait to see how this went.
They had a viable suspect, and the king had already assigned someone to investigate her.
Hopefully, it wouldn’t take Marlin long to find out what Pearl was up to and what she was using.
Rune had every faith in Palmer and was sure the doctor could find a way to counteract whatever poison Pearl was using, but it would be much easier if they could find out what it was quickly.
They were lucky that no one had been seriously hurt for now, but Twig wasn’t getting any better.
There was a chance that wasn’t going to change until they found out what the poison was, and that could take ages if Pearl didn’t tell them.
Somehow, Rune didn’t think she would.