Of Whispers and Daggers ✓ [TLRQ #2]

Chapter 51.2 - Aster

He turns to face me now. "Milord, you've been taking it since the coronation."

My eyes burn with fear and frustration. "Ollem, I don't take a tonic!" I push to my feet. My head swims, and bile rises in my throat. I still myself against the desk. Hands on my shoulder guide me to sit again, and I swallow and try to pull in a steadying breath.

Silence reigns as I collect myself. The world is darkness and chaos, and then we die. I let my eyes open, forcing calm. Ollem hovers, an anxious look in his eyes. Finally, I manage, "So who, exactly, tricked you into poisoning me?"

He cringes. "The girl said the doctor asked her to send it to me when you forgot it in the infirmary."

"But who was she?" I snap.

"The Queen's maid. Maera."

Bitterness sets my face in stone. I knew she was the one to blame for Mother's death. Did the investigators I set on her case even question her, or did they shrink back from the truth at the Queen's disapproving frown? My jaw sets, and slowly, I push back up.

"Are you sur—"

I hold up my hand. He quiets. He stays only a pace behind as I walk to my old room. I move slowly to keep from feeling sick, but lethargy still dogs my bones. Some of my things are still in this room, so if someone sees me enter or leave it, they shouldn't think it so odd. But I'm not having this conversation where the Retrans can hear that their newly-acquired possession is damaged.

I sink into the couch. "Send a message to the Queen for me, asking to meet with her here. Come back when you're done."

"Yes, milord." He starts toward the door, then hesitates. He looks back at me.

I look away. "You didn't know."

He exhales. "Yes, milord."

The door shuts, and my head leans back against the cushion. As I wait, the pounding behind my temple intensifies. Ollem returns within ten minutes and stands quietly beside the hearth. We don't speak.

After another ten or so minutes, a knock sounds at the door. "Come in," I tell her.

Selenia enters, and the fire reflects in her glittering crown and dress. "What is the matter, brother?"

Too tired for obeisance, I gesture for her to sit. Her lips tighten, but she does, in the armchair across from me.

"I have news."

She frowns.

"But first, I'm tired of being argued with. I tell you, rather than taking the matter into my own hands, because you are my Queen and deserve this from me. I am not being unreasonable, I am not jumping to conclusions, and before the past month, I thought nothing of the girl. But I will not tolerate a traitor in our midst, and it is not my fault who the traitor proves to be."