“It would be better to hope the traitor will be found soon.”
Malik mirrored his sentiment. He said, “Tomorrow the interrogations will be harsher and faster. I want my wife back.”
Nimat asked, “Do you still think it wise not to seek help in the search from the other kingdoms?”
Malik shook his head. “No. Hollace’s spies are many—as I have found out over the last few days. The traitor will be revealed soon.”
“I only hope you are right, Majesty,” Mushira replied solemnly.
* * *
Hollace looked at Adele lying prone on the bed. He turned his gaze to his son. “What happened this time?” he asked in a clipped voice.
“She collapsed.”
“That’s it? She collapsed?” Hollace asked incredulously. “And you happened to be there to catch her?”
Both men looked up as Chandra entered the room with a crash. The door to the infirmary bounced off the wall and shook on its hinges. She had a look of horror on her face. Chandra’s eyes swept up from Adele to her father and her brother.
When her gaze rested on Oringo, a look of loathing crossed her face. Oringo shook his head at her and looked pointedly at Hollace. That was all the incentive Chandra needed to lose what little composure she had.
Tacita entered the room in time to hear her daughter scream, “You bastard.” Chandra launched herself at Oringo with her hands clawed. Oringo fended her off while he called for the guards. The guards seemed confused about what to do.
Hollace made the decision for them. He grabbed Chandra and held her in a bear hug. He put his mouth close to her ear and growled, “You will calm yourself, girl. Adele collapsed. That is all.”
Chandra pulled away from her father and looked at him. “Are you blind?”
“You will watch your tone with me, Lady Chandra,” Hollace warned.
Chandra sliced her hand through the air. “No. He,” she yelled, pointing at Oringo, “attacked her. That’s what brought on this fit.”
Tacita—ever one to try to keep peace between her daughter and husband—stepped forward to lay a hand on Chandra’s shoulder. “You don’t know that, Chandra,” she said in a soothing manner.
Before Chandra could insist that she did know it, Caradoc confirmed her suspicions. “Lady Chandra is telling the truth. Prince Oringo did attack Mistress Adele.” He’d planned to wait until Hollace was alone before revealing the true source of Adele’s seizure, but Chandra’s outburst rendered his tact unneeded.
“Liar,” Oringo yelled.
Hollace calmly asked, “You have proof?”
Caradoc held up the orb he’d used to examine Adele. “This orb replays recent events from within the last few hours.”
Hollace demanded, “If you’ve had such a thing, why did you not use it to find out where this girl belongs when she first arrived?”
“I could not, Your Majesty. The spell of erasure would not allow the re-enactment spell to do its job,” Caradoc answered quickly. “However, the erasure spell is not taking away Adele’s memories from the time she arrived until now. Adele cannot tell us herself what happened and I thought the attack might have triggered a buried memory which caused this faint. I could repeat it and gain some insight into how to break the erasure spell if I could see what caused the attack.” He beckoned Hollace forward and held the orb slightly up. “This is what I saw.”
The orb’s sound was muted and only loud enough for Caradoc and Hollace to hear. Hollace watched the tiny playback in stony silence. His expression betrayed nothing. When the playback finished, Hollace confronted his son.
“Stay away from Mistress Adele from now on.”
Oringo looked from his father to Caradoc and back again. “Father—”
Hollace backhanded Oringo for daring to talk back. He took a deep breath and said, “There are strong magicks at work here. Your attack could have made what is afflicting her spill onto yourself.” He glanced back at Adele and added, “I find I must protect you from yourself. If anyone reports that you were found even looking at Mistress Adele, I will be forced to punish you. Is that understood?”
Oringo held himself rigid. He managed a curt nod but nothing else.
Chandra gave Oringo a superior look. Tacita grabbed her daughter and pulled her out of the room before she angered Hollace more.
A moment passed before Hollace and Oringo followed. Caradoc stayed behind with an excuse that he wished to do more tests. And, like most excuses, it was a lie.
Caradoc had seen something in the playback of Adele’s memories. Something Hollace had missed or else he would have made mention of it.
Caradoc traded the orb he held for another. He held this orb to Adele’s head and pushed his power into it.
The air around Adele started to shimmer. A knowing smile creased Caradoc’s lips when he saw what he had only glimpsed before. He rescinded his power from the orb and the confusion spell fell back into place. He couldn’t break the confusion spell—it was too powerful and he didn’t want to try.
His question had an answer. Adele had caused her own amnesia. The only way to escape the pain of the confusion spell woven around her was to forget everything about herself.
Her spell was a work of art. It not only hid her memory, but changed itself to make sure she would never remember. If Caradoc had not seen Adele while in the throes of an attack, he would have never glimpsed the silver cord of marriage. And the scar on her left hand had intrigued him. A scar that had faded once he let the confusion spell fall back into place.
Caradoc knew what a marriage cord and that scar meant together—Ulan. Only the royal line of Ulan practiced such, because only the royal line of Ulan went out of their way to find their soul’s mate.
It would seem Caradoc had found King Malik’s bride. It would also seem that someone had tried to take her and failed. That same someone would pay handsomely to have her now.
Caradoc wasted no time with the information he uncovered. After he returned to his cottage, he started his search. He used every bit of power at his disposal to find out who had tried to kidnap Malik’s new bride. In the end, his search led the party in question straight to him.
An orb appeared with the rising of the sun. It floated before Caradoc’s face, shadows obscuring its occupant. Based on the voice, Caradoc knew the person talking to him was a woman. Not just any woman but a woman with power of magicks, and of station, as well.
“I have felt your magicks. I surmise you have something of mine,” the shadowed woman said confidently.
Caradoc nodded slowly. He answered, “Yes, my lady. I have found a girl. She has a confusion spell wrapped around her like a swaddling blanket—not easily broken.”
The woman chuckled. “That is as it should be. Since you have not returned her to her rightful location, I assume you wish to barter with me. Am I correct?”
“I presumed the maker of the spell shared her true home,” Caradoc lied, easily. It didn’t do to let the woman realize he knew too much. Too much knowledge often led to pain and death.
The shadowed woman was silent for the span of five breaths. She put her hand into the light on top of her desk and leaned forward. Not enough to illuminate her face but far enough to let Caradoc know what she said next was of vital importance. “I will send one of my people to retrieve my girl. You will make sure nothing happens to her in that time.”
Caradoc could barely speak around his pent-up breath. He managed, “Do you need my location?”
“Not necessary. You are in Kakra near Hollace’s palace,” she said. The shadowed woman leaned back in her chair once again. “I will send a reward and it will be handsome. Our conversation is at an end.”
The orb disappeared.
Caradoc cast out with his powers. He felt no trace of the orb or who sent it. If that was true, it meant the shadowed woman no longer watched him.
He sagged to the ground in fear. He had made a deal with a monster—a monster he knew all too well. And he had to confront a devil
to reveal the monster’s identity. He felt damned.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Nimat looked around before she ducked into an alcove. Sneaking away had become much easier since Mushira continued to fret about Adrienne’s safe return. Nimat missed her queen like most everyone else in the palace, but that didn’t stop her from wanting to meet with her lover.
She heard footsteps approaching and knew they belonged to her lover. She debated jumping out at him but decided against it. It was better to let the suspense build. That was part of the fun of these secret interludes—the ever present fear of being caught.
Being caught would mean Nimat might lose her post as the queen’s maid, and she would never find work again. No one would want a lady’s maid the queen cast off. Her lover, however, would have to deal with the wrath of his wife, as he hadn’t asked her permission to have a lover on the side.
Nimat held her breath as her lover passed the alcove she occupied for the next one. She frowned at his stupidity. They had met in the same spot for the last five months; it was ridiculous that he would get it wrong now.
She pushed back the tapestry and stepped softly out of the alcove to surprise him. Then she stopped cold. The man who spoke in the next alcove wasn’t her lover.
She hurried back behind the tapestry and listened.
“My lady, I barely had time to hide myself when you called. Is there something amiss?” the cloaked man asked shakily. He feared his mistress would be angered at his continued absence. It was true he hadn’t tried very hard—or at all—to get out of Malik’s binding spell but he couldn’t let his mistress know that.
“No thanks to you, I have found your missing queen. She is currently in Kakra under Hollace’s roof…of all places,” the shadowed woman said with no small amount of humor.
“How?”
“I don’t know how! I do know you will get her and bring her to me. You fail me again, Sabri, and I will personally hand you over to Malik.”
The orb disappeared before Sabri could say more. He closed his eyes and tried to think of what his next move would be. He pulled out an orb from his robe and waited for the person on the other end to acknowledge him.
When she did, he said, “Good. You’re in Kakra, correct?”
“Of course I’m in Kakra. After that bitch kicked me out, where was I to go? Thankfully, there is a lord in Kakra who recognizes my skills and pays me handsomely for them,” the woman boasted.
“I don’t care. Adrienne is found. She is in Hollace’s palace. Go there, get her, deliver her to Kontar. Fail me in this and I will drag you through Hell in my wake,” Sabri promised.
The woman nodded and the orb went blank. Sabri replaced it in his cloak and pushed aside the tapestry to leave the alcove. He looked around then hurried back to his chambers.
Thanks to a suggestion he had made, Malik decided to forestall the interrogation of the chancellors in favor of his generals. Sabri’s reasoning was simple—the generals leave the palace more frequently than the chancellors. If there was ever a suspicious party, it would be them.
That had bought him some time. Now that Adrienne was found and his mistress no longer wished to see him covered in pain, he needed to get out of the palace.
Nimat kept her hands clamped over her mouth. She couldn’t believe what she heard. Her breath came in shallow gasps and fear froze her limbs. Chancellor Sabri… But why?
The tapestry to the alcove ripped back and Nimat screamed.
Her lover rushed into the tiny space and covered her mouth with his hand. He hissed in her ear, “Are you mad? Why are you screaming, you little idiot?”
Adrenaline rushed through Nimat’s veins. She pushed past her lover and ran straight to Malik’s chambers. The Elite guards were not there to guard his door because they were still searching all over Bron for Adrienne, and he had appointed no others to take their place. No one barred her way. She didn’t even think of the consequences of waking her king so early in the morning.
Her fist pounded on the door until it went numb, and still she pounded.
Malik came to the door, his eyes blazing mad. He asked, “Why—”
Nimat rushed past him and slammed the door behind her. She looked around and then back at her king. She shook her head over and over.
“Nimat?” he asked in confusion. He ran a hand through his hair. Knots impeded his path and he gave up. His eyes were half-closed with sleep. It was hard-won sleep, as his worry for Adrienne remained ever-present.
“He did it,” she whispered frantically.
Malik came instantly awake. He asked slowly, “Did what? Who?”
Nimat stared at her king with disbelief as she answered, “Chancellor Sabri.”
Malik grabbed Nimat’s shoulders and shook her. “Is this a game to you?”
Tears rolled down her cheeks and she shook her head. She stammered out, “Heard him. I…I was meeting someone in the south corridor alcoves of the servants’ wing. I thought my lover had come. It was Chancellor Sabri. He spoke to someone.”
Malik released her. “Who?”
She shook her head again. “I don’t know. It was a woman. The woman said Queen Adrienne is in Hollace’s palace. Chancellor Sabri called another woman in Kakra. She is to find Queen Adrienne and deliver her to Kontar.”
“Kontar?” Perplexity showed on Malik’s face. “Why Kontar?”
“I don’t know, Majesty. I…” She stammered to a stop and fell to her knees. Tears overwhelmed her.
Malik shimmered. He went from naked to clothed in a single instant. He closed his eyes and opened five portals. The Elite guards used these portals to answer his call.
Footsteps running down the halls heralded Mushira and Hani’s arrival. Malik grabbed Nimat and deposited her in a chair.
He wasted no words in his explanation once everyone arrived.
Mushira dabbed at her happy tears with a tissue Hani handed her. She asked, “What shall we do, My King?”
Malik ignored her to speak to Nimat. “You said the second woman Sabri spoke to mentioned being kicked out of the palace by Adrienne?”
Nimat nodded.
“One of the concubines, perhaps, Majesty?” Hani suggested.
Malik nodded. “They are the only ones to have suffered any ill happening at Adrienne’s hands. It has to be one of them, but who? I had several.”
No one had an answer for him. Absently, Malik started to list off the names of his concubines. Before this moment, such a feat would be beyond him. He didn’t care what their names were, he only cared that they were good at their jobs. He forced himself to remember every one of the women in his harem and their demeanor while in his presence.
Hani interrupted his mumblings. “Did you say Juven, Majesty?”
Malik looked over to Hani. “You know her?” he asked with hope.
“I hope you do not mean the Juven I know, though.”
Khursid pointed out, “It is a unique name, Hani. The woman you are thinking of and the woman King Malik named might be the same.”
Hani looked down.
Malik yelled, “What? Speak already.”
Hani glanced at Indivar. He looked away from her. She turned her gaze to Malik and asked, “You remember my title, do you not, Majesty? The one that caused you to seek me out?”
“The assassin’s assassin,” Malik answered impatiently. “What of it?”
Hani sighed and explained, “In the history of the Assassin’s Guild, there have only been seventy-eight people granted such a title. Training to be an assassin is rigorous and deadly. Those who pass are excellent at the work. Then there are those who surpass excellence. Those who are hired to hunt the hunter. They are granted the title of Assassin’s Assassin. Two of them are alive today—myself and Juven.”
“No,” Malik gasped. He dropped to his knees.
Mushira hurried out, “It may not be the same woman.”
Malik held out an orb. In it, Juven stood wearing a floor-length orange loincloth and nothing else. Her ligh
t brown hair was swept up in her arms and she had a smile on her face that made her light brown eyes twinkle. The lights in the room made her honey-colored skin glow. She started to dance.
The scene depicted the past. A time when Malik needed distraction. A time before Adrienne.
Hani sighed. “That is her. I only met her once. We were not trained at the same time, she and I. But for two to be named Assassin’s Assassin within the same year, within the same generation, is unheard of. We met and were tested against one another to see if one deserved the title more than the other.”
“Who won?” Qamar asked.
“It was a draw.”
Malik’s head dropped into his hands.
Nimat reminded him, “Chancellor Sabri only told Juven—if that is the woman with whom he spoke—to retrieve Queen Adrienne and deliver her to Kontar, not to kill her.”
“Yes,” Mushira agreed quickly. “We are only guessing it is Juven. It may not be.”
Malik stood. He wiped his hand down his face then turned to his Primaries. Each man snapped to attention. He ordered, “Bring Sabri to my throne room. Make no indication that he is suspect.”
The Primaries nodded quickly and rushed out of the room.
Next, Malik turned to Khursid and Qamar. He held out the orb with Juven pictured in it and blanked it. He then shaped the orb into a portal. “This portal will put you in Hollace’s palace. See if you can get to Adrienne before Sabri’s hound.”
They ran through the portal after a quick bow. Hani made to follow. Malik stopped her and said, “I want you to track down Juven. And this time, I do not want it to end in a draw. Whether she is the woman who is after Adrienne or not, she still remains a threat.”
Hani nodded and pulled out an orb of her own. She didn’t shape a portal. Instead, she concentrated. With a tiny flash, she disappeared.
Malik opened another portal to his throne room. Feyr already waited for him.
Adrienne Page 27
