“I wish I had been able to come sooner,” Cyra said, shaking her head. “It took far too long to convince my parents to let me travel, though I can’t blame them in these times of unrest.”
“I have no doubt in my mind that Dareena is acting out against her will,” Gilma said firmly. “Dareena was the only person in Hallowdale who cared for me—she came to see me almost every day, and made sure that I had enough food and water and my clothes were washed. She even took me on walks every week to ensure I got enough exercise. That woman has a heart of gold.”
“And the patience of a saint,” Tildy added. “I remember all too well how the men at the tavern liked to paw at her. She was always firm with them, but never rude. Of course, the innkeeper had designs on her, so she never truly had to worry about any of them, but still. I don’t think she would have taken a knife to anyone unless she felt she had no choice. She is far too nice.”
Alistair smiled. “We know that very well. That is why we love her so much.”
“She is very lucky to have all three of you as her mates,” Cyra said. “I must admit I was a bit shocked when I first heard of it, but I noticed the way all three of you looked at her at the ball. It is obvious the four of you belong together.”
Drystan felt a pang of guilt as he listened to Alistair and the women talking. Their words brought his own memories of Dareena to the forefront, and he felt ashamed for letting his anger get the better of him. Of course Dareena couldn’t mean any of the things she’d done and said recently. She needed his help, not his scorn.
Another knock came at the door, and this time it was Lyria. “My princes—” she said, and then stopped short at the sight of Cyra. “Oh, it’s you. Have you come to take my place, then?”
“Are you saying you deserve to be let go?” Cyra asked harshly. She rose from her chair, her eyes hard as she pinned Lyria with a fierce look. “The princes were just telling me all about Dareena’s strange behavior. What have you done to her?”
“I’ve done nothing,” Lyria protested, putting her hands up in a gesture of peace. “It is not my fault that the Dragon’s Gift has developed an unusually sharp tongue and a taste for murder. Besides, I may not get along with Lady Dareena, but she is the Dragon’s Gift and carries the heir to the throne. I would never harm her.” She glared at everyone in the room. “In fact, I came in here to speak to you about that. If Dareena truly is not in her right mind, it is unreasonable to expect her ladies to attend to her alone. What if she tries to murder one of us next? I can defend myself just fine, but Soldian would not be able to withstand a fly if it had murderous designs on her.”
“That is a good point,” Drystan said.
“It doesn’t seem that Soldian is very worried,” Alistair said. “She was sleeping next to Dareena when I came to visit her last night.”
Lyria scoffed. “She is a nitwit, and far too trusting.”
“Why don’t we bring Dareena in here,” Cyra suggested, “and see how she reacts to seeing us? If she is truly still in control, she will be happy that I have answered her summons.”
“Excellent idea,” Drystan said. He sent Lyria off with a pair of guards to fetch Dareena.
While they waited, Alistair told the women of his suspicions, and that he had gone to visit the oracle for guidance. Dareena’s friends agreed vehemently with Alistair that Dareena must be under the influence of some spell—it was the only thing that explained her actions.
Twenty minutes later, the door opened, and Dareena came in, Soldian at her side. “What is the meaning of this?” she demanded. “This is an ungodly hour to have guards come to my door and drag me out of my bed. Don’t you two dolts know that I am pregnant? I need my rest!”
“Dareena!” Cyra exclaimed, sounding absolutely scandalized. “How can you talk to the princes like that?”
“And not even say so much as a hello to us,” Tildy added, her cheeks coloring as she rose. “After we’ve come all this way to see you? Even poor Gilma made the journey!”
Dareena raked them all with a scathing look. “I do not know who the three of you are, but I have no time to deal with commoners,” she said. “I demand you leave at once.”
A dead silence filled the room. “That does it,” Alistair said as the others exchanged knowing glances. “She is definitely under a spell.”
“Or she is an imposter,” Cyra said, coming closer to Dareena. “The real Dareena would have never failed to recognize her friends.” She grabbed Dareena by the shoulders. “Come clean now. Who are you, and what have you done with my friend?”
32
“Get your hands off me!” Dareena shouted, shoving Cyra back. She felt terrible that Soldian forced her to lash out at her friend, but at the same time, joy sang through her heart. They were finally figuring it out! Even Drystan no longer seemed angry at her—he just looked at her with sympathy, as if he finally understood how tortured she was by all of this.
She was even more relieved when the door banged open again and Lucyan came in. “What is all this shouting about?” he demanded, his gaze sweeping the room. “And who are all these people?”
“These are friends of Dareena’s from Hallowdale,” Alistair explained hastily as he grabbed Dareena to keep her from striking Cyra again. “We believe that Dareena has been afflicted by some sort of spell. She has been spewing hateful lies at us the past few days, and she killed one of her ladies-in-waiting.”
The blood drained from Lucyan’s face. “That definitely sounds like she is under someone’s influence,” he said. “Have you checked her for any warlock charms or amulets?”
“I did so last night,” Alistair confirmed.
“Let me try,” Lucyan said. He swept the contents of Drystan’s desk on the floor, then had him lay Dareena on the desk. Dareena’s heart pounded as they stripped her down to her underthings, and Lucyan ran his hands all over her body, doing a thorough inspection.
“Get off me!” Dareena screamed as Soldian forced her to resist, thrashing her arms and legs. The other two princes held her down while Lucyan searched her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Soldian slowly inching toward the door.
Please, please don’t let her escape.
“Found it!” Lucyan cried, his hand clamping around the bracelet. He pulled it off, and Dareena immediately sprang to her feet. She summoned her light whip and flung it at Soldian, who cried out as the whip burned through her clothing, leaving a trail of burning red flesh through the front of her dress.
“Dareena!” Alistair cried in alarm, grabbing her arm before she could strike again. “What are you doing?”
“It’s been her all along,” Dareena said in a trembling voice, yanking her arm from Alistair’s. “She put that bracelet on me and forced me to do and say all those terrible things.”