Chapter 129

When Kit opened her eyes again, the sun was high in the sky, and her head felt as if it had caught the blunt end of Merek’s ax. She squinted at the open window and rolled over in her bed, trying to remember what it was she was hoping not to forget.

The night before came back to her in tiny moments at first. She remembered the play, the dinner, meeting Pierce in her room. Once she’d gotten that far, the rest flooded in in a rush. An image of a bloodstained floor was followed closely by the realization that two of her favorite guards were dead. Eli had slain Merek; her mother had thought it was Pierce. There had been a sword in the room for some reason. Sometimes Eli called Avinia Vinny. Her mother was sending him away with a woman he’d previously pleasured.

Kit’s hand immediately went to her forehead as the weight of it all pressed its way through a mind not yet ready to receive it.

“Are you awake then?” Isla asked. “It’s nearly time for the noonday meal.”

“I am not fully awake,” Kit replied, “though I am doing my best to come back to reality.” She let out a loud groan and pushed herself up to halfway sitting. “Do we have any of that tea Armant suggests for when one’s head feels as if it’s closed in a vice?”

“I can make you some,” Isla replied. “Do you require anything else? You must be hungry.”

“Just some bread for now, please. I’ve too much going on in my head to allow my stomach much to eat.”

For some reason, Kit’s explanation seemed to make sense to Isla, and she headed out of the room just as Avinia was coming in.

“Ah, glad to see you’re awake. The Representatives have been asking about you.”

Brushing her tangled hair out of her face, Kit tried to decide what she should say about the overheard conversation of the night before. She hadn’t put all of it together yet, but she did remember it had seemed as if Avinia and Eli were up to something, and whatever it was, it involved Katrinetta, though she wasn’t sure why.

Kit had always trusted her cousins. Both of them had been extremely loyal to her even in times when they could’ve easily taken up for the queen. Likewise, Kit had no reason to suspect Eli wouldn’t be on her side in a situation that called for him to choose between crown and Kit. Yet, whatever they had been talking about, Kit wasn’t included in the plan. The idea made her nervous. Until she’d had more time to think about it, she decided to play ignorant, at least when it came to what she’d gathered in her sleep induced stupor.

“Did I dream it, or did Eli sleep on the sofa last night?” she asked, watching Avinia carefully for a reaction.

There was one, a slight raise of the eyebrow. “Yes, he did. He was concerned about your safety. I didn’t think you would mind if he stayed out there, despite the fact that there were six other guards outside of the door all night. You aren’t that cross with him, are you?”

“No, not at all,” Kit replied. “In fact, I should like to speak with him before he goes. We do have some sorting out to do.”

“I’m afraid that’s not possible.” Avinia crossed to the armoire and drew out one of Kit’s simpler day dresses. “He and Seph left hours ago.”

“He’s gone? Already? But the whole purpose was for me to be able to give my condolences to Lok’s mother. I was going to write her a letter.” Kit could hardly believe her ears.

“The queen sent out her standard letter. It has your name and seal at the bottom. She said that would do. Besides, you told them to be back by nightfall. As long of a ride as it is to Nola, they needed to leave fairly early in order to make it back here on time.”

Kit pressed her palm to her forehead. Avinia was right, of course. Eli wouldn’t want to be put in a position where he was alone with Seph, not if he had any hope at all of lasting in the Choosing. “I wish someone would’ve woken me.”

“We all thought you needed your rest.”

“He couldn’t have gotten more than a few hours’ sleep.”

“How did you know he was here?” Avinia set the dress on the back of a chair and studied Kit for a moment, her head cocked slightly to one side.

Kit did her own inspection. “I heard his voice in the middle of the night, though I have no idea what he was saying. Was he talking to you? Did you get up? I thought perhaps I’d dreamt it.”

“I did. I went to offer him a blanket. We spoke for a few moments, mostly about you. He wanted to make sure you were well.”

“I am as well as one can be, I suppose,” Kit replied, noting nothing her cousin said was a lie, from what Kit could remember, though she had omitted a lot.

Isla came back into the room then with a tea service. “Still in bed, sleepyhead?” she teased. “I thought you’d be dressed by now.”

“We were just chatting about Eli. Avinia tells me he’s already gone.” She gratefully took the cup of steaming tea her cousin offered and blew on it for a moment before taking a sip. It tasted awful, but she knew it would make her head stop hurting, and she needed to be able to think clearly.

“Yes. Seph seemed apprehensive this morning. Perhaps she didn’t envision herself traveling again so soon.” Isla offered a small smile.

“Perhaps.” Kit had some other ideas as to why Seph wouldn’t want to be put in that position. Fragments of the conversation she’d overheard the night before came back. Eli seemed to think Seph might be willing to show her loyalty to Kit—if Rona didn’t frighten her into submission. It was more than obvious that her mother had selected Seph to be her lady only because of her history with Eli, an underhanded move but certainly not out of Queen Rona’s wheelhouse.

Isla handed Kit a plate with a piece of buttered bread on it. Though her stomach was rumbling with hunger, Kit nibbled at it slowly as she sipped her tea, not wanting to stress her internal organs. Part of her wanted to hurry down to speak to her men, to get on with her visit to Tem’s family, and then come back here and rest for a while. But she also didn’t want to rush herself. A lot had happened in a short amount of time.

“If you’re going into the village, you should wear boots. The ground is likely a bit wet. I’m certain Galter will send a small force with you to keep you safe, but it wouldn’t hurt to consider taking a Representative with you as well.” Avinia pulled a pair of Kit’s more practical boots out of the armoire.

“That is a good idea, though I have no idea who to ask.” She took one last sip of her tea and set the cup aside.

“Perhaps it will come to you while you’re visiting with them.” Isla took the cup as well as the discarded saucer and set them on the service while Kit worked on moving to the edge of the bed. Her body was sore, as if she’d done something extraneous the night before, and she wondered if she’d worked previously dormant muscles while trying to secure the door. The thought that Pierce had purposely left it unbarred entered her mind and made steam form between her ears.

“Are you all right?” Avinia asked, coming over with her underclothing. “You look a bit cross.”

“I am,” Kit admitted. “Do you think Pierce intended to let Merek in, to use that sword to fight him? Was this some sort of diabolical scheme to make Pierce look like a hero? And if so, whose idea was it?”

“The thought had entered my mind,” Avinia admitted as Kit’s chemise came over her head. “I should hope that was not the case. Why wouldn’t Merek yield to Eli if he knew he was supposed to fight Pierce?”

“And why would Merek agree to any such arrangement when he knew he would be going home this morning?”

“None of it makes any sense.” Kit worked her arms into the thin sleeves of the mint green gown. This one was not a favorite, but that might be for the best if the roads were muddy. At least she wouldn’t ruin a good one.

“I don’t think any of it will make sense unless we can guess what Queen Rona was thinking, something not likely to happen.” Avinia moved around back of her to fasten her hooks.

“I would suggest we start writing down some notes of these sort of oddities, but at the risk of discovery, we should probably store them in our minds,” Isla said, smoothing out Kit’s skirt.

“You’re right; it’s probably best not to record anything,” Avinia agreed, clasping the last hook and smoothing the shoulders of Kit’s dress. “There. Let us work through your hair, and then you can be off.”

“All right. Nothing elaborate.” Kit took a seat on the stool in front of the mirror, astonished to see how much of a mess her hair was. It had definitely been a difficult night.

Once her cousins had it sorted out and pinned up enough that her mother wouldn’t have too much to complain about should she send for her daughter, Kit decided it was time to visit her gentlemen. While she was looking forward to seeing quite a few of them, she hoped Pierce would have the good sense to leave her be. She needed some time to compose herself before she attempted to speak to him again after their parting words the night before, and while it occurred to her that he might have vital information, especially since he had to be aware that there was a scheme unfolding around her the evening before, Kit would have to be careful not to show her hand—a skill she had never been particularly talented at.