Dear gods, how could she have been so stupid as to miss that? Of all the people she’d suspected of being behind this, the most obvious had eluded her until now. Panic consumed her at the thought.
Unable to stand it, she started pacing as the horror of it all raced through her mind. That was why the Guard was backing her sister and helping to assassinate her mother. If her mother was murdered, Narcissa, as their next queen, would have the power to pardon them and spare their lives.
Suddenly, it all made sense. It was insidious and cold, and it came hard on the heels of her being promoted to adult status. That made her the heir apparent over her older sister. Yes, she’d have to fight for it, but she would be the one challenged. If she survived the fight, she’d be queen.
Narcissa wouldn’t even be eligible to try for the crown. But if both Desideria and her mother died, Narcissa would rise to heir status even as a minor and could fight to be queen…
And why was her mother’s Guard backing her sister? Because they all thought Desideria was the dirt under their feet. A crossbred mongrel that the Guard resented breathing their air. Of course they’d back her purebred sister over her.
And cheer when she died.
Suddenly, Caillen was beside her, pulling her into his arms. “Shh… it’s all right. I know it’s a shock. You’ll get used to it.”
She would push him away, but honestly it felt good to be held while her world unraveled itself and she was faced with a harsh reality she didn’t even want to contemplate. She was alone in the universe with no one to rely on. No one to turn to.
Her own family was trying to end her life. And no one knew the truth except her.
“How can you cope with the thought of your uncle trying to kill you?”
He shrugged. “I’m only surprised when people don’t try to kill me.”
“Well, I can understand that. You are annoying.”
He smiled at her and that expression made her feel a little better for reasons she couldn’t even guess at. “If you don’t like the thought of your sister coming for you, is there anyone else you can think of?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
She nodded. No one else made any sense. “My mother has two sisters, but one married an offworlder, so she can’t rule so long as she has a foreign husband, and my other aunt was removed from succession when my mother defeated her in combat for the throne. Kara could rule as a regent, but never as a full queen and she would be replaced as soon as one of us was skilled enough to challenge her.”
“Then it is what it is. Your sister’s a self-serving bitch out to collect your heads—sorry. My father keeps telling me it’s an enemy after him, but I don’t believe it. An enemy would gain nothing other than personal satisfaction. And while I can understand that motivation, it wouldn’t lead them to me. If both my father and I die, his brother takes the throne and right now, his brother is his chief advisor which means none of the laws would be changed. If it is one of his enemies after him, no reason to risk prison or execution for something that wouldn’t affect them at all. They’d be trying to take out his brother too so that they could change things. I’ve run through a thousand scenarios, but all of them lead straight back to my uncle with no side roads.”
Just like all of hers led back to Narcissa… “My mother will never believe me.”
No one would believe them.
“I know. We have to find evidence. It’s the only way to save their lives.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but Caillen motioned her to be silent. He stepped back and drifted toward the front of the cave while hugging the wall.
At first she thought it was more of his paranoia until she heard the soft whir of a motor. Her heart stopped beating as a shadow fell over the entrance.
It was a military prober and it was scanning for life forms…
13
Probers were small, electronic scanning devices that checked for living organisms and reported back to a search force. Desideria had no doubt that she and Caillen were the target of this one. If that thing picked up even the smallest trace of their presence, the Andarions would swarm all over them.
Move slowly, Caillen mouthed to her. Get against the wall.
She did exactly what he told her to. She focused on her heartbeats to keep from panicking. Any little sound might be detected…
Even her breathing.
Time stretched out like an arthritic snail before the prober finally pulled back.
She started to move, but Caillen motioned subtly for her not to.
Sure enough, another prober popped up from the ground and scanned for several minutes more. Only after it left did Caillen inch his way back to her. He stood between her and the door, shielding her. He was so close that she could feel his body heat.