Chapter 19
Nineteen
The paper slapped against Matherson’s desk as Jade presented it to him the following day at their debrief. Though it had gotten soft tucked against Jade’s skin the rest of the evening at the dinner party, it had dried again overnight and was now more wrinkled and crinklier than before.
Matherson took the note and studied it before setting it back down and returning his gaze to Jade where she sat opposite him. “And you said you found the poison?”
“Yes, likely the whole amount based on eyesight. Then Grannam and another man came into the room, and I hid outside the window and listened to their exchange.”
Jade filled Matherson in on the details of her encounter the previous night, and in her peripheral vision, she noticed Theo’s white knuckles as he wrung his hands tightly together.
He had seen a man come to a back entrance of the palace after dinner had begun, but he hadn’t noticed him leave, likely because Theo was at the palace by that time.
In the darkness, Theo hadn’t been able to determine much about the man’s features.
Jade knew he was upset at himself for not being in a position to see the man when he left.
By the end of Jade’s recount of the night, Matherson had leaned in with his arms peaked on the desk and his hands clasped, his chin resting against his joined hands.
“The poison was still in the box in the drawer when you left? All still accounted for?”
Jade nodded with raised brows. “All of it.”
“So he gave this man something else.”
Another nod from Jade. “It could have been rienevoir. I didn’t find any in my investigation of the room, but that’s not to say it wasn’t there.”
“It also may not have been,” Theo suggested, shifting in his chair. “You don’t know what else was in the war room.”
“No, but it makes sense.” Jade held up a hand, raising fingers as she counted off points.
“Two of the victims killed with rienevoir were supporters of Arabella’s.
Arabella and Grannam had a conversation at the masquerade.
They were off somewhere before the dinner, and whatever happened was good for Grannam but not Arabella.
And then there was the letter that Arabella sent Grannam clearly in a response to one he sent her.
” She paused and sucked in a breath, keeping her hand aloft for emphasis.
“I think Arabella found out Grannam is behind the murders and they tried to make a deal to keep it from happening again, but Arabella didn’t have enough to sway Grannam. Hurting her is too beneficial for him.”
Matherson tapped a finger against his lips. “How does that explain the encounter you witnessed with the unidentified man?”
“Maybe it doesn’t have to do with Arabella,” Jade answered with a shrug. “Maybe it’s just the next part of his plan.”
After a brief pause, Commander Matherson leaned back in his chair and locked eyes with Jade.
“It’s a good theory, but we don’t have anything to back it up.
There’s still no evidence connecting Lord Grannam to rienevoir, even if you do have this receipt for the purchase of a different poison.
” Matherson grabbed the paper and raised it with a little shake.
“We will keep watch for the use of parathen in some way. It wouldn’t be the best choice for slipping into food or drink, but perhaps Grannam has a particular use in mind that we are unaware of.
If a crime is committed with parathen, we have a way to connect it to him. ”
Matherson opened a drawer in his desk and placed the paper inside.
Jade’s heart dropped to her toes. There went the evidence she had agreed to bring back to Nicolas.
Though she had made her decision to bring it to Matherson and expected him to keep it, her gut now squirmed with unease.
Without the evidence to give to Nicolas, what would he say? What would he do?
She swallowed hard, preparing to ask for it back even though it was highly irregular and would be suspicious. But she never got the words out. Theo spoke first and took away her chance.
“Is there nothing else we can do in the meantime? I don’t like the idea of sitting back waiting for the assassin to hurt or kill more people.”
“I have my orders, Captain, just like you have yours.” Matherson sighed.
“Grand General Devereaux is keeping us on a tight leash. She’s given permission for us to investigate, but we aren’t supposed to take action until we find something concrete.
With the king’s health declining rapidly, it won’t be long before Prince Reynauld takes his place.
But in the meantime, she doesn’t want anyone else under the impression that anything has changed.
The quieter we can keep things, the better. ”
Again, Nicolas rose to the forefront of Jade’s mind.
How much did he know about the king’s condition?
He always had the best, most relevant insider information, though Jade still didn’t understand how, so she assumed he must know about the quickly approaching death of the king.
Maybe she would ask him the next time she saw him.
The next time. So had she decided to go back?
In her head, she’d never fully committed to the idea of working with him, but something deep inside her told her she always would.
What would she do if she went back without the evidence now tucked away in Matherson’s desk, the exact thing Nicolas had asked her to retrieve?
“Until Captain Ni’ihm receives a new invitation of some kind, we’re on a pause for this assignment,” Commander Matherson continued.
“Hopefully, she is getting close enough to the royal family to be asked to another event with them. But if we don’t hear from one of them soon, we’ll go back to our typical espionage missions.
Surveil for information. Stay out of sight.
That should be ‘doing something’ enough for you, Captain Redman. ”
Matherson stood, so Jade and Theo rose as well.
He dismissed both of them, but Jade’s feet didn’t move as her eyes landed on where she had last seen the paper disappear, wishing she could come up with some excuse to ask for it back.
Instead, she raised her arm in a salute as she watched Theo do so out of the corner of her eye and forced herself to leave the evidence behind.
Jade and Theo left Matherson’s office and then Command without speaking. Jade was too lost in her own mind. Was giving the evidence to Matherson the right decision?
She could use Theo’s help. What would be the harm in telling Theo—only Theo, not Matherson—about Nicolas?
The thought swirled and grew, and she held back from glancing up at Theo beside her as she considered her next steps.
He wanted to act. He wanted to stop the murderer instead of investigating another mysterious death.
If Jade told him about Nicolas and the kind of information she had been receiving from him, Theo would surely help her if it meant bringing this conflict to an end without any more bloodshed. He would keep her secret. Wouldn’t he?
But Nicolas had warned her not to tell anyone. He’d even threatened Theo. Somehow, Nicolas would know if she told him.
The heels of their boots clacked on the stone walk, cutting through the silence on base as most everyone else was occupied in meetings, courses, training, or something of that nature.
It wouldn’t have surprised Jade if Theo heard her own heart beating, the rush of the blood pounding in her ears almost deafening to her.
She inhaled deeply and held the breath for a moment, trying to find some courage to bring up her secret dealings, then let it out in a huff.
“Theo—”
“I know, and I want to apologize.”
She snapped her mouth shut. That wasn’t what she expected. Halted by curiosity, she swallowed her words and let Theo continue.
“Could we go over to the garden to talk for a minute?”
Jade nodded, changing course and walking in step with Theo to the base’s garden.
The garden was specifically set up to be a peaceful retreat for the soldiers on base.
Walled in by tall hedges, the garden easily gave the impression of being separate from base, transporting the soldiers and officers to a tranquil escape in the midst of their demanding lives.
A fountain sat in its center, as tall as Theo and cascading water down from upward pointing spouts into the pool below.
Gravel pathways lined with stones wound around trees, shrubs, and flowers, with benches interspersed along the way.
Theo led Jade to a bench a little way in, positioned under the wide shade of a tall oak tree. When he sat, he leaned forward with elbows on his knees and clasped hands, squinting as he stared straight ahead. Jade sat beside him and angled her face to him, waiting with bated breath.
“I wanted to apologize for last night,” Theo said after a beat, his eyes still focused on the garden beyond.
“I should have trusted you enough to handle it. You’re capable of taking care of yourself; I know you are.
I just got—” He sighed and dropped his head.
When he spoke again, his voice barely carried over the sound of the fountain. “I got scared.”
An involuntary flutter rippled through Jade’s middle, and her breath hitched.
There it was again—another glimpse of affection he might have for her.
Was he about to say as much? Jade’s pulse pounded, though she tried to appear cool and collected.
They’d had so little time to themselves with the assignment going on that she hadn’t had a good chance to bring it up with him herself. Now, maybe she didn’t have to.
Theo straightened a little and continued speaking, apparently unaware of Jade’s raging heart.
“It was foolish and reckless, and I put you in even more danger by showing up at the palace’s front door.
I didn’t think enough about what I was doing, I’ll admit it.
Something just took over inside me.” He finally faced her, his eyes warm and steady, with a fierceness she’d never seen before.
“You deserve more from your backup, from your partner. I swear to you that I will do a better job from here on out. My first priority is your safety, Jade, and I let you down in that regard last night.”
Jade took in Theo’s face, his sincerity mingled with something else she couldn’t quite place.
Worry creased his brow and distress lined his eyes, his mouth pulled into a tight line.
The care radiating from his magnificent ocean eyes tugged at something deep within Jade, pulling her to him.
She stopped herself from leaning in to him, instead laying a gentle hand on his forearm.
“I’m always safe with you,” she said, her eyes never leaving his. “I know that. I hope you know that too.”
Theo wrapped his free hand around Jade’s fingers where they rested on his arm. He nodded, the movement slight, and murmured, “I’d do anything to protect you. The thought of something happening to you . . . terrifies me. I’d be lost. You’re . . . You’re home to me, Jade. You’re home.”
Warmth radiated from Jade’s middle, and she wanted nothing more than to close the remaining little distance between them.
She longed for his arms to wrap around her, to melt in the comfort of his embrace.
The sudden thought of what his lips might feel like brushed against her mind, and she had to force her eyes from dropping to his mouth.
Jade squeezed the hand that curled around her fingers. “Likewise, Theo. There’s no one in the world who knows me like you.” A small smile curved her lips, and she nearly held her breath as she anticipated his next words.
He smiled in return as his eyes scanned her face as though he was looking for something.
He must not have found it, pressing his smile into another line and giving her fingers one last squeeze.
“I’ll see you at dinner, then.” Theo stood and took a step away, but he stopped and turned back, gravel crunching under his heel.
He paused for a moment, seeming to carefully choose his words before finally saying, “I’m sure we’ll hear from one of the royals soon.
You’ve done such an exceptional job getting them to fall in love with you. ”
Jade barely had time to stand before he turned again and walked away, his long strides taking him farther and farther away from her.