“Talk?” Poppy laughed, but it reminded me of crackling flames.
“I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” I said, softening my voice as I saw her grip on the dagger tighten.
She flinched again.
I inhaled sharply through my nose.
“Where…？” Poppy tried again. “Where are the other two guards?”
“Dead,” I admitted, watching her closely. “It was an unfortunate necessity.”
Poppy went silent. I kept an eye on that dagger. Needing to get her out of here before she did something that provoked the others to react, I took a step toward her.
“No.” Poppy launched to her feet. “Tell me what’s going on here.”
I stopped, forcing my voice even lower. “You know what’s going on here.”
Poppy opened her mouth. Her gaze darted to where Elijah stood beside Magda behind me. Soft footsteps sounded, and I knew at least Magda had left. She had a good heart and soul. She didn’t want to see this.
“Phillips was right,” Poppy said, her voice trembling.
“He was?” I handed the crossbow to Naill as he came up behind me.
“I do believe Phillips had begun to figure things out,” Kieran answered. “They were coming out of the room when I went up to check on her. She didn’t seem to believe whatever it was he’d told her, though.”
I saw it again in Poppy’s face—another moment of realization. The way her face paled, causing the scars to stand out more. How her chest rose sharply. The tremor that went through her.
I pressed my lips together as I felt that wall I’d fortified, that mess inside me, begin to crack. Elijah was right, I reminded myself. No one here could see any of that, not even Poppy.
“Well, he’s not going to be figuring anything out again,” Jericho drawled, gripping the bolt that held Phillips. He tore it free, letting the mortal fall. He nudged the man. “That’s for sure.”
One of these days, I was going to kill that fucker.
“You’re a Descenter,” Poppy rasped.
“A Descenter?” Elijah laughed. Because, of course, he would find that funny.
Jericho frowned at Poppy. “And here I said you were smart.”
Poppy ignored him. “You’re working against the Ascended.”
I nodded.
The breath she took sounded broken. “You…you know this…this thing that killed Rylan?”
“Thing?” Jericho drew back. “I’m insulted.”
“That sounds like your problem, not mine,” Poppy snapped, and I had to fight back a grin. That wouldn’t help anything. She faced me. “I thought the wolven were extinct.”
“There are many things that you thought to be true that are not,” I said. “However, while the wolven aren’t extinct, there aren’t many left.”
Poppy’s nostrils flared. “Did you know he killed Rylan?”
“I thought I could speed this up and grab you, but we know how that turned out,” Jericho chimed in.
Her attention shot to him. “Yes, I clearly remember how that turned out for you.”
Jericho’s snarl came from deep within him.
I stepped closer. “I knew he was going to create an opening.”
“For you…to become my personal Royal Guard?”
“I needed to get close to you.”
Poppy shuddered. “Well, you succeeded at that, didn’t you?”
That wall inside me shook. “What you’re thinking…？” I knew she was thinking about earlier tonight. Us. “You could not be further from the truth.”
“You have no idea what I’m thinking.” Poppy’s grip on the dagger was a white-knuckled one. “And all of this was…what? A trick? You were sent here to get close to me?”
Kieran’s brows lifted. “Sent—”
I shut Kieran up with a look.
“You were sent by the Dark One,” Poppy stated.
She didn’t… Fuck. She had yet to realize that I was the so-called Dark One—or was, at the very least, refusing to acknowledge what was clearly in front of her. I couldn’t blame her for that, but I would do what I did best. I would exploit it. There was a good chance I could talk to her…sensibly if she didn’t let herself believe that the Dark One and I were one and the same.
“I came to Masadonia with one goal in mind,” I said. “And that was you.”
“How?” Poppy lifted her chin, swallowing. “Why?”
“You’d be surprised how many of those close to you support Atlantia, who want to see the kingdom restored,” I told her. “Many who paved the way for me.”
“Commander Jansen?” Poppy guessed.
“She is smart,” I said, smiling just a little because, godsdamn, she was fucking amazing. Even right now, faced with my betrayal. She held on to calm. She was figuring shit out. I was in awe of her. “Like I told you all.”
Poppy blinked rapidly. “Did you even work in the capital?” Her gaze flipped to Kieran. “The night at the…” She couldn’t finish, but I knew she was thinking about the Red Pearl. “You knew who I was from the beginning.”
“I was watching you as long as you were watching me,” I said quietly. “Even longer.”
A tremor, stronger than the ones before, ran through her. “You…you were planning this for a while.”
“For a very long time,” I confirmed.
“Hannes.” Her voice was thick, hoarse. “He didn’t die of a heart ailment, did he?”
“I do believe his heart did give out on him,” I said. “The poison he drank in his ale that night at the Red Pearl surely had something to do with it.”
“Did a certain woman there help him with his drink?” she demanded. “The same one that sent me upstairs?”
What woman was she speaking of? The one at the Red Pearl that she thought was a Seer?
“I feel like I’m missing vital pieces here,” Delano murmured under his breath.
“I’ll fill you in later,” Kieran commented.
Poppy’s trembling increased as she whispered, “Vikter?”
I shook my head. I was responsible, but I hadn’t ordered his death.
“Don’t lie to me!” Poppy screamed. “Did you know there’d be an attack on the Rite? Is that why you disappeared? Why you weren’t there when Vikter was killed?”
I could see the calm beginning to thin. I needed to get her out of here before it disappeared because if I knew anything about Poppy, she was like me when cornered. Dangerous. And too many were getting too close to her. Idiot Jericho. Rolf, who usually knew better. A half-Atlantian with a sword drawn. Delano.
“What I know is that you’re upset. I don’t blame you, but I’ve also seen what happens when you get really angry.” I lifted my hands, keeping them where she could see them. “There is a lot I need to tell—”
I saw it coming a second before she moved.
Poppy did what I feared. Cornered, she lashed out, and with that damn dagger, too. Her arm cocked back, and she hurled the blade right at my damn chest.
“Fuck,” I spat, spinning to the side as I reached out, catching the dagger before it found a new victim.