Late Eclipses
Page 52

“You could try.”
“That seems too much like work.”
Etienne smiled a little, looking relieved to have me back on what he viewed as familiar ground. “Still lazy, I see. I’ll never know how you survived your training.”
“The Puck looks out for the lazy and suicidal?” I suggested.
“Possibly the only explanation,” he agreed.
I was trying to figure out how to say “by the way, I’ve been poisoned” without freaking either Etienne or Quentin out when a door opened in the wall across from us, cutting off any further conversation. We turned, almost in unison, to see Dugan—the Queen’s messenger—step through. He was closely followed by Rayseline, Manuel, and five men in the Queen’s livery. All of them stopped when Dugan did.
I straightened, wishing I’d thought to drop my human disguise when I came in.
“My lady—” Etienne began.
Raysel cut him off with a sharp gesture of her hand. There was a strange, bright triumph in her eyes. “I told you she was here,” she said. “Do your duty.”
“With pleasure,” said Dugan, stepping forward. “October Daye, you stand accused of murder and attempted murder. Will you come quietly?”
“Don’t I even get a title when I’m being arrested?” I asked wearily.
“His Grace—” began Quentin.
“This isn’t his concern,” said Dugan.
“Yes, it is,” I said. “He’s my liege. He has a right to be here.”
“No, he’s not,” said Raysel, the triumph in her eyes bleeding into her voice. “You may be my father’s knight, Daye, but you’re the Queen’s Countess.”
I froze. “You’re kidding.”
“No, she’s not,” said Dugan. “When you took that title, your fealty changed.”
I wanted to protest. I couldn’t. Fealty is a tricky thing; it’s a debt, of a sort, one you pay with loyalty, duty, and action. Goldengreen was in the Queen’s own lands. Oberon help me, but I was hers.
“Will you come quietly?”
“Tell me what I’m accused of,” I countered. “You owe me that much.”
“We owe you nothing,” Raysel said sharply.
Too sharply; Etienne’s eyes narrowed. “My lady, she is sworn to your father. You overstep your authority.”
“Fine,” said Raysel. “Dugan, read the charges.”
Dugan looked at her sharply, clearly displeased by her casual orders. Then he cleared his throat, and said, “You stand accused of the murder of the Lady of the Tea Gardens and the attempted murder of the Duchess of Shadowed Hills.”
“What makes you accuse me?” I asked, fighting to keep my temper in check. Getting mad wouldn’t do me any good. Etienne looked like he was fighting the same battle; he was glaring daggers at Raysel. “It could have been anyone.”
“I saw you run out to the terrace just before the Duchess collapsed,” said Manuel, with unconcealed malice. “You went out and spoke with her, and then she fell.”
“You know I’d never hurt Luna.”
“Like you didn’t hurt my sister?” he hissed.
“You were a captive in the Tea Gardens, and now their Lady is dead.” Raysel ignored Manuel’s outburst. “You became a captive because of my mother, and now she’s dying. An interesting coincidence, don’t you think?”
“That isn’t all we have against you,” said Dugan. “Manuel?”
Manuel pulled a leather pouch from his pocket, handing it to Dugan. Dugan held it toward me, asking, “Do you recognize this?”
“No. What is it?”
“Open it and see.”
I took the pouch, feeling the weight of it. My heart sank, and kept sinking as I untied the strings and looked inside, seeing the contents for the first time.
Lily’s pearl looked like some strange, half-rotten fruit. It was the size of my fist, and glossy white, except for the black streaks marring its lower half. I reached into the pouch and scooped the pearl into my hand, turning it until the blackness was all that showed. Gouges scored the enamel at the center of the decay.
“That was found at the edge of the Tea Gardens,” said Dugan, taking the pearl from my unresisting hand. “An uncorked vial was driven into the mud a few inches away. It was empty when we found it, but had it held poison—”
“—the current would have carried it over the pearl and into the scrapes. Oh, root and branch, how could we have been so stupid?” Of course Walther’s samples tested pure. The poison was so diffuse by the time it reached the main water system that it registered as normal contamination of the groundwater. “When was this found?”
“Yesterday morning. The Undine guard such treasures fiercely. How many people knew that fiefdom well enough to know its location?”
“You found this before Lily died?” Fury rose hot in the back of my throat. I tamped it down, demanding, “Why didn’t you save her? Why didn’t you try? The Queen—”
“Has no jurisdiction in the park,” said Dugan.
“So why is she trying to prosecute me for a crime committed outside her jurisdiction?” I snapped.
“It was in her Kingdom. She could not prevent, but she can punish. Now will you come quietly?”
“I don’t think she has to,” said Etienne.
“Stay out of this,” snapped Raysel. “It’s not your concern.”
“Actually, it is. She’s your father’s knight, Rayseline, just as I am. Would you turn me over so easily?” Etienne shook his head. “This isn’t right. The Duke must be told before we allow them to take her.”
Dugan was opening his mouth to answer when a tired, familiar voice said, “The Duke must be told what?” We all turned, even the Queen’s men, to watch Sylvester step into the room. “Have I missed something, Rayseline?” he asked. “Hello, October.”
“Hello, Your Grace.” I bowed. The Queen’s men hastened to do the same. “These nice men were just arresting me.”
Rayseline shot me a look dripping with hatred. “They’re taking Countess Daye for questioning, Father. They think she might help them answer some questions about Mother’s illness.”