Chapter 30
I summoned Clermont to take care of Murvo’s body. My mind kept sifting through Murvo’s last words to me, trying to make sense of them.
Find the original script of the curse.
There is more that you must do.
With her dead, there is another… Someone else…
Another what? What had he been about to tell me?
As for the original script, I had no idea where to find it.
Journals had been passed down through the years, but all accounts of the sorceress’s curse were from my bloodline.
There was no way to know if the words documented had been an exact transcription of the curse or not.
Even the alteration of one word could make a monumental difference.
I sat in the library, running a hand down my face for the hundredth time as I stared into the fire. No matter how many times I mentally ran over my interrogation with Murvo, it still didn’t make any sense.
I needed to speak with Tislora. She knew ancient magic like this and might be able to shed some light on it.
But I didn’t move from my chair. I couldn’t bring myself to just yet.
Tislora knew everything about the curse. There had been a time when we had shared everything together. When my father had been king, I had held nothing back.
But then, once he’d died, everything had changed. I had inherited the curse, and, from there, my life was not my own.
Tislora was clever and intelligent, and her resources were invaluable. I knew she could be of assistance.
But… she cared little for Sybelle. If I told her about Warwick, I knew exactly what she would say: Who cares if the little human gets attacked?
I gritted my teeth as I glared at the flames in the hearth. Much to my surprise and irritation, I cared what happened to Sybelle. I didn’t want to. Hell, I had tried my damnedest not to.
But I couldn’t stand by and allow her to be hurt, especially by a bastard like Warwick. She was my wife. Regardless of where she came from or how despicable her people were, she did not deserve to be left at the mercy of a fae like Warwick.
“Your Highness?”
I jolted, then turned in my chair to see Clermont standing at an open door, back rigid and hands clasped in front of him. Ever the waiting servant.
Only the cold detachment of his gaze indicated his displeasure with me.
I sighed. “Yes?”
“The task you requested of me is finished.”
So Murvo’s body was gone. A hollow feeling settled in my chest. “Thank you, Clermont.”
He didn’t move. He just continued to stare at me.
I did not have the energy for this. But my friend deserved an apology. “I’m sorry, Clermont. For putting you in this position. And for overreacting at the revel. I understand if you are irate with me.”
Clermont remained perfectly poised and rigid, unresponsive to my apology. I watched him, waiting, unsure if I had the energy for anything more than that. But I waited for the inevitable lecture that was to come.
After a long moment, Clermont exhaled loudly, his frame drooping. He rubbed the back of his neck. “Varius, I am more concerned about your behavior and what our enemies can learn from it.”
I frowned. “I do not know what you mean.”
“I know what Warwick said to you. And what he implied about his loyalties.”
I nodded, urging him to go on.
“When you reacted like that to him… it told him all he needed to know about how to manipulate you.”
My head throbbed as I tried to understand what Clermont was insinuating. “Please speak plainly, Clermont.”
He let his arms fall against his thighs in exasperation. “He threatened the human. And you practically skewered him with your claws. That kind of reaction is more telling than anything else. Now he knows he can use Sybelle to get to you.”
My blood chilled, and a roaring sound filled my ears. Mother of Shade, how had I not considered this? With Murvo’s death and Warwick’s threat ringing in my mind, I hadn’t considered…
“Shit,” I hissed, rising to my feet. My shadows pooled around me, spilling over the carpet.
Clermont only gave me a somber look in response.
Damn it, I had been so foolish. I should have sought out my steward immediately. He was always better at thinking critically in these situations than I was.
And here I was, dreading a lecture .
Warwick was in the dungeons, but he hadn’t been acting alone. Murvo had been proof of that.
There could be others.
I lunged for the door. Before I could reach it, a figure appeared on the threshold, gasping for breath.
It took me a moment to see through the haze of my panic.
Alarm coursed through me when I recognized Enzira.
She clutched the doorframe, breathless, as if she had sprinted here.
I wondered how many doors she’d had to step through before the castle had brought her here.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, my voice sharp.
“It’s my lady—Sybelle. She—She isn’t in her rooms. I can’t find her anywhere.”
I stepped forward, but Clermont gripped my elbow, his jaw tight. His eyes were fixed on Enzira.
“What else?” Clermont said. “There’s more, isn’t there?”
I glanced at Enzira, noting the terror in her eyes. She nodded, then swallowed. “Her room has been ransacked. I—I don’t know who was in there, but someone tore the place apart, searching for something.”
I sprinted for the door, and this time, no one stopped me. Enzira darted out of the way as I barreled through, my shadows swirling around me like gusts of wind.
The open door led me to the hall of the queen’s chambers. Several other doors were open along the wall, indicating Enzira had searched them all before finding me. I peered into each one, thinking perhaps Sybelle might have shown up after Enzira left.
But each door only revealed the same location: the training yard.
I stilled, staring at the fourth door that opened to that same location. The same place where Warwick had first noticed Sybelle.
My mouth fell open. Mother of Shade, the castle had been trying to warn us. Why else would it have led us there? Why else was it showing me this place right now?
The castle hadn’t been toying with us at all. And, once again, I was a bloody fool.
I grabbed the door handle and slammed it shut, then took a deep breath. “Please show me Sybelle’s room. I need to search for clues. Please.”
I threw open the door, and blinked as Sybelle’s chambers greeted me.
But they were almost unrecognizable. Bookshelves had been toppled over, leaving the tomes strewn all over the floor.
Some had pages torn clean off. The armoire sat open, and several silk dresses were crumpled on the floor.
The vanity’s drawer had been removed and its contents scattered.
My arms shook, the room darkening as my shadows thickened.
Rage clouded my mind, roaring and screaming.
I blinked through the haze, and my eyes shifted to Sybelle’s bed.
Pillows had been shredded, their feathers spread across the room like snow.
And someone had dragged a thick blade straight through the mattress, slicing it in half as if it were made of butter.
This place hadn’t just been ransacked. Someone had left a message.
For me.
My breaths came hard and fast. Red crept into my vision, mingling with the dark mist of my shadows. A roar built in my throat, and it took all my restraint not to unleash it.
Think, Varius, I told myself. Take a breath and think.
In this moment, I needed to be like Clermont. I needed to think about this critically.
I inhaled deeply through my nose, then forced myself to exhale slowly. Three breaths later, I could see clearly again. The violent rage simmering in my blood had dulled, but it was still there, ready to be loosed.
I turned to find Enzira and Clermont standing at the door. Enzira was watching me, her face stricken with terror. Clermont surveyed the room, his lowered brows the only indication of his concern.
“When did you last see her?” I demanded, my gaze fixed on Enzira.
“I walked her to her chambers after we left the revel,” Enzira said quickly. “I—she was upset. I tried to console her, but she—she wanted to be left alone.” Her cheeks flushed, and her eyes shifted away from me. I sensed there was more she wasn’t telling me, but I didn’t press her.
“So, you left?” I asked.
“Yes. It seemed like she needed her privacy, and I assumed she would be going to sleep soon.” Her voice trembled.
“I—I did not know, Your Highness! Mother of Shade forgive me for my negligence.” She fell to her knees, burying her face in her hands as she sobbed.
“It is all my fault. I should not have left her.”
My chest tightened at the sight of the maid so distraught over Sybelle’s disappearance. “Please,” I said in a strained voice. “Enzira, this is not your fault. I need your help to find her. You are the closest to her. Is there any place she might have gone?”
Enzira sniffed and wiped her nose, then looked up at me through tear-filled eyes. “I am not the closest to her. Ramia is.”
Ramia. It took me a moment to place the name. Then I recalled the severe-looking human female who had accompanied Sybelle here. Her own personal maid.
Of course. Why hadn’t I thought of it?
“Where is her room?” I asked, my voice full of urgency.
“I will show you.” Enzira climbed to her feet and disappeared through the door. Clermont and I followed her down the hall, past half a dozen doors. At the end was one that was open, still beckoning me to the training yard. Enzira gestured to it with a helpless expression on her face.
I slammed this door shut, too, and took a deep breath. “Please,” I begged the castle. “Please show me Ramia’s room.”
The handle underneath my fingers hummed in response, as if taunting me. Gritting my teeth, I said, “I just need to see Ramia. Just for a moment, and then I will go to the training yard. I swear I will heed your warnings. Please. ”
I opened the door, and a darkened room awaited me on the other side. Soft snores filled the space .
I suddenly felt uncomfortable intruding on the maid’s privacy. I cleared my throat and knocked loudly against the open door.
A grunt sounded, followed by a shrill shriek. A loud thump echoed, and a female swore loudly.
I frowned. That did not sound like Ramia.
I sent a tendril of my Lumen into the bedchamber to illuminate the space. The moon-like orb hovered high in the air, casting a soft glow on the room.
From the bed, Ramia was sitting up, clutching the sheets to her shoulders. Her face was paler than death.
And by the sofa, a figure lay sprawled on the floor, a blanket tangled around her legs. It only took me a moment to recognize her.
It was Sybelle.
She jumped to her feet, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders. Her eyes blazed as she stared at me, fury etched on her face.
“What the hell are you doing here?”