Chapter 24
Sagan
Tuesday dinner was finally the last of the introduction meals. Loraviel—or Lori—was the second son of the Alpha of Sunborough. He was known as a flirt but for treating women well and loved to travel. He was a foodie and very popular on social media for knowing all the best spots around the world.
But he wasn’t a rich brat about it. He actually shined a lot of spotlights on issues not reported often in Thovudin and promoted tourism in good faith.
But also because Sunborough’s economy was tourism heavy as well. So it was self-serving… Just well done. He wasn’t the typical lazy Alpha’s kid.
It started fine with us talking about our time spent in Bodach since he was smart enough to play up to Treena being my best friend. Plus, I’d studied there.
I thanked him when he served me some salad and even poured me some iced tea. It seemed almost endearingly nervous that he wanted to keep busy.
Oh silly, foolish me.
I took a sip of my drink while he talked about the train system in Bodach and how impressed he was with it. Iris was instantly on alert and Eloise focused instead of being bored.
I licked my lips. “What flavor tea is this?”
He did a double take and stared at the carafe before reaching for his own glass… With a shaky hand. “I’m not sure.” He took a gulp. “Not peach. Not a berry either. Plum? Something mild like that. It’s good.”
I took another sip and chuckled darkly. “Well, I can definitely taste the drug slipped in here.”
“What?” he gasped, glancing at his own glass. “What are you talking about, Your Majesty?”
I set it down and studied him. “Smart that you had some too. Quickly had it, but your shaky hand gave you—”
“Your Majesty—Sagan, I would never drug you. It’s just iced tea,” he argued. “I don’t know what you think you taste, but—how would you even know what drugs taste like?”
“Oh, nice spin,” I purred. “Because I’ve been drugged like this before actually.
I remember the aftertaste.” I tilted my head when he froze.
“Do you not taste it? That almost olive oil aftertaste? I’ve had it before.
Once before. The night of my parents’ funeral feast. Did you pour my drink that night too, Lori? ”
“I wasn’t even near you that night, Your Majesty,” he whispered, swallowing loudly. “I don’t know what’s going on, but the food was all brought in by the staff and—”
I snorted. “You’re a shadow dragon. It would take you seconds to distort the view of cameras or anyone who wasn’t directly looking at you while you added something to the carafe. Not even—you’re old enough. Even a few years younger than me and that’s enough. Your education is—”
“You’re mistaken and there won’t be any proof of that,” he whispered as his cheeks flushed. “There’s no drug and—what you’re feeling is normal and—what we’re feeling is all about our dragons and—”
“Oh, you’re still going to try and go for it?
” I mocked as I tossed my napkin on the table.
“Bold. Stupid but bold. I’ll give you that.
” I chuckled as I pushed to my feet. “You were better off sticking with the line that you drank it too so it couldn’t be you.
Gaslighting me that I’m not really drugged and it’s our dragons when mine was bored with you—”
“I think you are confused from your heat, Sagan,” he pushed, annoyance in his eyes.
“No, I’m not, and you’re really stupid to keep pushing and interrupting me when I’m pissed.” I swallowed a snort when he gave me a look that I was dense.
That was actually fair. He could lose his head for drugging the queen like this—so who really fucking cared if he kept interrupting me?
Yeah, actually really fair and I was being silly.
Stress and having one of your mating prospects drug you would do that,
I opened my mouth to say… Something, but the doors flew open and guards came pouring in. Lori was immediately restrained and a magical cuff put on him so he couldn’t shift to get away.
He argued it was a misunderstanding and if we were drugged then it was someone in the castle, not him.
“Oh really? Then why do I have video of you messing with the drinks at the funeral feast from a camera you didn’t know about?
” Benson said as he walked in. “One you didn’t shadow properly like the others.
Then that drink was given to the queen. I have video of you going in search of her later and trying to track her down—asking people where she went. ”
“Really? Now you suddenly have it?” I bit out as heat raced up my sides and flushed my face. I didn’t hide my annoyance as I turned to him. “You couldn’t have had it like ten minutes ago?”
He winced. “It came out in one of the interviews with the dirty guards, but they didn’t know what candidate.
They just said they’d tried to delete certain videos for the elders from the funeral feast because one of the prospects messed with your drink.
” He sighed when I growled. “There are seventeen. What are the odds it’s this one—the last one and now? ”
“With my luck?” I snarked, glad when a few of the guards snorted. “Get the evidence to Fraser, Maple, and Darren. Lock Lori down and we need to figure out how to handle this.”
“Right, of course, but you need to see what—” he started to say.
“I drank the godsdamn drug, dumbass,” I bit out, picking up my glass and showing him it was half gone. “I’m not exactly in the headspace to handle this delicate situation—am I?”
He cleared his throat and took the evidence from me, studying the state I was in. “Of course. My mistake. I’m—what can—”
I groaned at the idiot and walked past him to get some air. The way he was acting I was worried he might offer to help me.
That wouldn’t start any problems or anything.
I fanned myself and then puffed my shirt so I got more air. I didn’t have the full thing, so it was best to just go rest.
Then again… How much had I had the night of my parents’ funeral? I didn’t remember finishing a full drink. It was the other time that I’d had the full potion to test with Thorn.
Fuck. Just… Fuck.
People must have been alerted of an issue or something because the foyer was full when I made my way there.
“We were in the gym when radios started going off,” Myriam explained, gesturing between herself and Velle… Then over her shoulder to most of the candidates.
And at the front of them?
Onyx.
Joris.
Thorn.
Of course, fucking Thorn had to be there to see me like this again.
I focused back on Myriam. “We got the answer of who spiked my drink.” I nodded when her eyes went bug wide. “Yeah, apparently he was desperate or stupid enough to do it at dinner thinking he could just blame the attraction between dragons and no one would…”
“Question it,” she muttered but then snorted. “Yeah, not that anyone would listen to you or care what you think in this sexist fucking country.”
People weren’t a fan of her saying that, but they also couldn’t deny it. Not reasonably, especially with everything I’d been dealing with. No one sane could argue it.
“What are you going to do?” she worried as she moved closer.
As I stared between Onxy, Joris, and Thorn, I realized that wasn’t the right question.
What was the real question?
Who am I going to do?
The End