Page 80 of A Touch of Poison
The scent of my queen’s magic.
“Well, look who it is darkening my door.” She slammed her cutlery into the table. “The little snake who keeps secrets.”
I held my ground and kept my shadows close. Head cocking in question, I raised my eyebrows.
“Don’t play the fucking innocent with me, Bastian.” She stood, chair shrieking across the floor. “First, it’s not telling me about your little friend waking up, then it’s this.” Every movement clipped and sharp, she approached, black eyes burning into me. “I’m starting to question where your loyalties lie.”
Myloyalties? I’d killed my own father for her. The man who’d fed and clothed me. The man who’d shown me how to fight, how to beat the bigger children when I’d been so small. The man who’d stood by me even when my unseelie blood had woken and I’d struggled to control my shadows.
I’d killed him.
For her.
And she questioned my loyalty?
Muscles tight, I swallowed the sting of her doubt. “They lie with you, as you well know, Braea.”
“Don’t you use my name now, boy. I may be fond of you, but even my indulgence has a limit.” Her finger thrust into my face, pointed nail half an inch from my chin. “I could understand you keeping quiet about your little indiscretion with the human girl, but this?This?”
I worked my tongue around my mouth and drew a deep breath, praying to any gods that were listening that I looked calmer than I felt. “Perhaps if you told me whatthiswas, I could explain.” Somehow my voice came out level.
“The Sleep.” Her nostrils flared and she paced away as though her anger made standing still impossible. “You have discovered there is an object that will end the Sleepandthat Dawn is after it, yet the first I hear of it is from your assistant.”
The air flew out of me like she’d jabbed me in the stomach when I wasn’t prepared. Brynan. I’d left him to report to her in my absence. He must have mentioned it, not realising I was waiting for confirmation before informing her.
“Until today, I knew nothing but a faint whisper. I didn’t want to say anything until I had details.”
She turned, one sharp eyebrow rising. “Today? What happenedtoday?”
“We decoded the message I intercepted in Albion.” I explained the note’s contents, and her shoulders inched down until finally she looked like she wasn’t about to putmein the dungeons.
When I was done, she leant back on the table, gaze on the window and the dark sky outside. “Find it.”
“What?”
“This Circle of Ash. Find it. I want all your resources on this.”
“But Hydra Asc—”
“All of them.” Her gaze shot to me. “I’m not afraid of some children with a pot of red paint. If my cursed Sleep can be ended, I want it done.Do you understand?”
I blinked at her, understanding all too well.
She wanted the relic to end her own Sleep, not just to keep it out of Dawn’s hands. What about the balance between us and them?
No, she was just angry. This information was still fresh. Once she took the time to think about it, she’d realise this Circle shouldn’t be used by either side.
As for Hydra Ascendant…
It wasn’t just vandalism. They weren’t just a few kids with a stylish insignia. They were recruiting, spreading. And they hadn’t only reached the city—if my hunch proved right, they were coming for the palace.
Meanwhile,withinthe palace we had Dawn—close enough to attack Gael. Connected enough to plant a changeling in the human court.
All of these things needed the Serpent’s resources. Any one of them could rise up and bite us in the arse.
But my queen lifted her chin, imperious and unwavering. “Bastian?”
I swallowed and found an answer that wasn’t a lie. “I understand.”
