Paying the Price (Book 5 of The Empire of Bones Saga) (29 page)

The guards raised their weapons and she realized she’d clenched her fists and stepped forward. It took an act of will to stop herself from taking another as her combat computer calculated the optimal attack plan to take them all out.

Ethan gestured toward her. “As the heir during a time of crisis, I’m assuming the mantle of the Throne. Guards, take both of these traitors into custody. If my sister resists, shoot the Bastard. That might break his control.”

The emperor’s physician dodged into the middle of the confrontation and plucked the vial of poison from Ethan’s fingers. “I’ll take this, Highness. It might save your father’s life.”

Kelsey saw that her brother didn’t want to give up the vial, but he really couldn’t object. He was framing them and he wanted ultimate power. It tore at her heart to see that Jared had been right all along.

Ethan was a monster.

And there was no way he’d allow Lily to examine the drug on his own. She needed to distract them while the doctors worked.

“You’ve gone mad,” she said as she stepped between the guards and Jared. “I don’t know what has taken hold in you, but I’m not just letting you imprison us. You’re the usurper in this story. You killed Carlo Vega. You tried to kill Jared. You poisoned our father and put the drugs into my room. And I can prove it.”

That diverted his attention. “If this involves those cursed things in your head, that’s no proof at all. You’re a slave to the Bastard’s will.”

She smiled. “You call him the Bastard, but the joke is on you. It seems Mother was a little free with her affection, too. And before anyone knew about Jared. Awkward. Now he’s the only one of us that has any Imperial blood in his veins at all.”

Ethan gaped at her and turned a bright red. “Liar! Get her out of my sight. And get their minion out of here before she does something to my father.”

Lily pinged Kelsey’s implants.
I just sent the analysis of the pure poison up. Good work on distracting him, but you’ve let the genie out of the bottle.

I’m sorry I had to spring it on Jared that way. Get the cure for my father. Save him, no matter the cost.

She held up her hands when the guards came for her. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, Jared.”

“We’ll talk later.”

They took her weapons and cuffed her with heavy manacles. Since they had guns trained on Jared, she had no intention of resisting. That would come later.

They hustled them out of the medical center and down to the security wing. Jared gave her half a smile and pinged her.

I’m partly convinced that was a play, but you sounded so convincing. Is it true?

She shrugged.
Lilly found out during that first exam she gave me. I thought about telling you, but decided it would only add to our complicated relationship.

Don’t fret on my account. It doesn’t bother me one bit. Well, it does, kind of. Now we’re not related at all.

She gave him a reproving stare.
Family isn’t just blood. It’s those closest to your heart. You’re my brother in every important way. If Father survives, he’ll tell you so, too.

They put her in a lift by herself. The chief guard gave her an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, Highness. We have men waiting below. Don’t cause trouble or Admiral Mertz will suffer for it.”

“This is a lie,” she said intently. “Keep investigating. Ethan did this and you can’t just let him take the Throne over our father’s dead body.”

“I promise there will be a full and thorough investigation,” he said with a thoughtful frown. He pressed the button and the lift doors slid closed. It dropped deep into the ground and opened to an array of armed guards. One hardy soul came in to escort her to her cell.

A squad of female guards escorted them into her cell. The solid metal hatch slid closed. A camera high on the wall had a red light, indicating it was watching them.

The guard raised her wrist to her mouth. “Camera off.” The red light winked out.

“My apologies for the indignity, Highness,” the woman said. “But I need you to strip for a search. You’ll be given a jumpsuit.” One of the other guards held up a folded garment in garish orange.

Kelsey stripped down. The woman gave Kelsey the most thorough search she’d ever imagined.

“Food comes on a regular schedule, Highness. The camera doesn’t cover the toilet. The lights dim at night, but not enough to hide any shenanigans. Behave and we won’t have any trouble.”

They left her alone in the cell after she dressed. The camera light came back on, so they were watching. Good. Let them think she was beaten.

She lay back on the cot and let her built in equipment examine the cell walls. The scanners were rudimentary, but more than capable of seeing the construction details.

Her implants also let her know that Jared was in the cell beside hers. She pinged him.

Don’t show any sign you can hear me, but I’m next door.

She heard his silent sigh.
Things went so bad so quickly. But don’t worry. Lily will sort this out. We will stop him.

Kelsey hoped that were true, but worry ate at her. Her father was dying and her twin brother had done it.

Somehow, they had to turn this around. She had to save her father. She had to stop Ethan.

We’ll get out of this, Jared. We’ll fix this.

I know we will. Our people will be working hard to stop him. For now, it might be best if we get a little sleep. Things are going to happen fast when they start.

Kelsey took the hint and said goodbye. She stared at the ceiling. There was no way she’d sleep. None.

Didn’t he feel anything for their father? How could Ethan try to kill him? It was incomprehensible.

How had she missed it? He must’ve been going mad for years. Becoming a monster that killed those around him because of paranoid delusions.

While she couldn’t escape this prison right now, hopefully, her bombshell was making Ethan miserable. No matter how he tried to suppress it, there’d been plenty of witnesses to pass on the juicy rumors. By dawn, their parentage would be the talk of the town.

Maybe that would distract him enough to make a mistake. One they or their friends could capitalize on to take him down.

* * * * *

Once Ethan had thrown the Fleet doctor out of the Palace, he demanded the physician give him a sample of Father’s blood. With that in hand, he went to his own doctor and had the woman test his DNA against the old man’s.

And damned if the little bitch hadn’t been telling the truth. He didn’t have any Imperial blood.

He smashed the doctor’s tablet on the floor and stormed out. His temper held until he made it to his room and he gave in to the rage boiling inside him.

That bitch! He grabbed the first breakable thing he could find and crushed it under his heel. That’s what he’d do to Kelsey!

He picked up his chair and started shattering everything around him. He didn’t stop until the red haze was gone and he’d destroyed his belongings.

They’d all pay for what they’d done to him. Every single one of them.

She’d had smeared his reputation in front of all those guards. By now, they’d have told their friends. It was far too late to silence them.

What would the Senate do? Try to take the Throne away from him? He’d have to stop them and he knew just the man to help him. And he needed to act right now before his enemies had a chance to plot against him.

And he needed to eliminate the other contenders for the Throne as quickly as possible. If they didn’t have any other potential candidates, he’d have a stronger hand with the Senate.

First though, he needed an inside man. He knew just who to call.

* * * * *

The buzzer on Nathaniel’s nightstand woke him. It was late. He touched the control as he sat up. “Yes?”

“I’m sorry to wake you, Senator,” his assistant said. “His Highness is on the line and won’t take no for an answer. Your automated system shunted him to me. He insists on speaking to you this very moment.”

“My apologies for the disruption of your time off. Go back to sleep and I’ll deal with him”

Once his man was off the line, Nathaniel picked up the heir’s call. “Highness, it’s late. Couldn’t this wait until morning?”

“My father has been poisoned, Senator.”

That drew Nathaniel to his feet. “My God. Is he alive? Will he recover?”

“It’s touch and go. They’ve identified the poison. I’m hoping for the best, but we must plan for the worst.”

Nathaniel rubbed his face. “This is horrible. Who did this?”

“My sister and the Bastard. They found the poison in her rooms. I’m sure he has her under some kind of compulsion. This is his play for the Throne, but it won’t work. We have them in custody. They will pay for their crimes.”

As a lifelong politician, Nathaniel had been lied to by the best. He could tell when an amateur was trying to play him. The heir didn’t sound betrayed. He sounded smug. Something smelled rotten.

“What can I do to help, Highness?”

“I need to know that I have your complete and unwavering support. I don’t believe any of the slanders about your nephew. I’ll work tirelessly to exonerate his good name. And yours, by association. I have many enemies in Fleet. I think he would make a terrific commander to oversee the purge of disloyal officers.”

That would be an unmitigated disaster. The more Nathaniel had reviewed his nephew’s record, the worse the idiot’s judgement appeared. Now that they were in a shooting war, he’d get them all killed. Particularly after he oversaw a Fleet-wide purge of officers he suspected were disloyal. The very last thing they needed at this point was a witch-hunt.

“My nephew escaped confinement yesterday, Highness. The people that freed him murdered a number of Fleet personnel. He’s a wanted fugitive.”

“That problem can be solved. I’m certain the attackers took him against his will. Probably by Mertz’s people. They wanted to see him executed, but the courts would speedily find the evidence against him to be false. Rest assured, Senator. I have this under control.”

Yes, he probably did. Nathaniel was now convinced that the heir was behind all the attacks. Most likely even against his father. He was a dangerous lunatic. One who had to be stopped for the good of the Empire.

Well, he knew how to handle crazed men. Talk calmly and reassure them. Then call someone to lock them up.

“I’ll back your play, Highness. Family and honor mean everything to me. What do you need first?”

The heir sighed. “One of my sister’s slanders seems to be true. My mother had an affair. I’m not related to my father at all. I have no idea who sired me, but I need to be sure that the succession is protected in this time of chaos. I want you to look at the Charter and see what it says in regards to the succession. The Senate has already confirmed me. That needs to stick.”

Nathaniel staggered as though someone had punched him in the gut. The news was a complete and total shock. Like a bus dropping out of the traffic control net and smashing into his grav car with no warning.

He struggled to find his voice. “I don’t believe that will hinder you, Highness. The Senate has already confirmed you. There won’t be enough votes to change that.”

“Be certain, Senator. I’ll call you again tomorrow. I want this matter settled before it bites me on the ass.”

Once the heir had disconnected, Nathaniel sat heavily on his bed. Holy God, what a mess. Everything made sense now. And it had just become even more complicated than the heir knew.

Justine Bandar, the empress in exile, as she preferred to call herself, had kept a secret from him. From them all. Nathaniel had once been her paramour. The affair hadn’t lasted long, but the timing was about right.

She’d had a number of discreet affairs during her marriage. They usually lasted a few months and then she ended them when she grew bored. The empress was a powerful and sensual woman. Few declined her advances.

Lord knows he’d certainly fallen into her arms speedily enough. Their torrid affair had blazed like the sun and then ended abruptly when she told him it was over. He’d known that day must come, but it was still devastating. He’d thought it was going so well.

When news came out that the empress was with child, he’d assumed that was the reason she’d broken off their relationship. And, he supposed that was true. Just not for the reasons he’d thought.

The woman had always taken pains to be sure no hint of her behavior ever leaked out, but he knew he hadn’t been the first. Nor had he been the last. The irony of the empress divorcing her husband for infidelity was so powerful it turned even his stomach.

What the hell did he do now? His unwitting son was poised to assume the Imperial Throne, but Nathaniel was certain the man was an aspiring regicide. And he wanted to pin the murder on Nathaniel’s daughter, though she would be ignorant, too.

Nathaniel hadn’t lied about family and honor being important to him. He just had to figure out what that meant in this context. And he needed to do it fast.

* * * * *

Yeats looked up when his chief of staff opened the door to his office. “Yes?”

“I’m sorry to disturb you,” the man said, “but you have a call from the Palace. I don’t know the man, but he’s identifying himself as an officer with the Imperial Guard.”

It must be about the emperor’s illness. Good news, perhaps. “Then I’d best take his call. Put it through.”

The man slipped back out and Yeats’s com chimed a moment later.

The image of a roughly hewn man in Imperial whites appeared. He inclined his head. “Admiral Yeats, I’m Captain Paul Danvers, Imperial Guard. A appreciate you taking the time to speak with me.”

“I always have time for the Imperial Guard. What can I do for you, Captain? Is it about the emperor?”

The man shifted a bit uncomfortably. “Yes and no. I’m stepping a bit outside normal protocol, but there’s a situation you need to be aware of.

“His Highness has assumed the Throne during his father’s incapacitation and certain accusations have been made. He’s produced what certainly appears to be damning evidence that Her Highness poisoned her father.”