Suri fusses in my arms. She could do for another feeding, but I’ll have to wait until the king is gone.
He sighs, his steps slow and deliberate as he wanders through our room. “My tributary was discovered to have tainted blood tonight.”
I gasp. “Sabrina?”
“Yes. You know her?”
“Of course. I see her every day. Sometimes she minds Lilou and Mika for me.”
“A guard died. A terrible death.” Strolling over to where the woven bassinet lays upside down, he bends over and rights it, then fixes the blankets. Or attempts to. He hasn’t the first clue how to make a bed. It’s … endearing. “I don’t think she knowingly took it—”
“No, she wouldn’t have. She—” I cut myself off before I say what I was going to, that Sabrina is madly in love with him. And then I realize I interrupted the king midsentence. A fresh flare of anxiety hits me. “I mean, she never once complained about her duties where they involved you, Your Highness.”
“I imagine she did not.” His full lips curve with a secret, and I can only imagine the thoughts flowing through his mind. Sabrina practically floats around the castle the morning after she’s called to him. According to her, he’s generous with his tributaries.
I smiled and nodded when she confided that, not understanding what she meant. My experiences with males have never been for my benefit, and the only thing they were generous with was pain and humiliation.
The king’s eyes graze our scattered clothes. “She has not left the castle walls since she last visited my rooms, which means someone within the castle dosed her. Likely someone in the kitchen.”
My forehead furrows as I rifle through all the faces and names that pass through each day. “I haven’t seen anything suspicious.”
“And yet it happened, which is why the guards now search everyone’s room. We felt it prudent to do so before anyone had a chance to hear about the death and hide evidence.”
“And you came to join the search, Your Highness?”
“I came down here because I could not sit in my rooms, waiting. I was hoping to find the culprit myself.” He stretches our blanket out over the bed. “I didn’t know the guard’s name.” Remorse fills his voice.
“You’re a king. You can’t be expected to remember names.”
“My brother would have.” He glares at the low stone ceiling, but I sense his thoughts far away. Does he regret what he did to King Zander? Does he feel justified?
I hesitate. “What will you do to Sabrina?”
“I don’t know yet.” But his jaw tenses, as if the options are limited and all unpleasant.
I have yet to hear of a tainted mortal allowed to live since King Atticus took the throne.
My heart aches for the young woman.
“Come, this can be done quickly, and then you can go back to sleep. Or whatever needs you must tend to.” He gestures toward the bed, but his focus is on Suri, rooting for a nipple to clamp onto. The top buttons on my nightdress are unfastened for easy access, leaving the collar plunging to near indecency. In all the turmoil, I hadn’t fixed myself.
“Yes, Your Highness.” I lay her down and unravel the blanket that swaddles her little body until she’s in only her diaper. Unfastening the pins, I peel cloth away, leaving her naked to the cool night air. “Nothing hidden there. Though I wouldn’t even know what to look for.”
“A tiny glass vial of liquid.” He watches her as she kicks her legs, her face growing red with her wails. “I can’t remember the last time we had an infant living within the castle. Decades, at least.”
“They bring great joy and even greater worry.” Especially in this evolving world.
He sighs. “You can put her out of her misery now.”
I bundle her up, giving her my fingertip to calm her, while my other hand covertly tugs the sides of my gown together, so I’m less exposed. Is there any point, though?
“Everyone must be searched,” the king confirms, answering my unspoken question.
“Yes, of course.” But I remain frozen where I stand as dread takes over. This feels so much more intimate than having the guards jostle me and then move on.
“Gracen.”
My eyes flash to his. He remembered my name?
He towers over me, examining my face. “Would you rather I call the guards back in?”
I shake my head.
His head is cocked as he studies me. “How would you prefer this done, then?”