The Hidden Prince (4 page)

WITH NORTH AND
Todd behind me—both of them guarding Hensley—I returned to Rayner Manor. We'd had to wait for replacements to arrive at the gate, as if there were truly a risk of someone breeching it. But that was fine; it gave me time to plan what I'd say to Father.

My speech died on my tongue as we approached the house. Everyone was in a frenzy. Lights shone in every room, while people in suits and ball gowns moved about the yard, clustered in groups. A few people were crying. Their reflections were sharp and bright and fragmented in the mirrors covering the front of the house.

It was in those mirrors I caught shattered glimpses of myself: long black tailcoat, breeches, and boots, with only a white shirt to make me visible in the dark. Guards came behind me, dressed in Indigo Order blue. Lord Hensley held his head high.

A few at a time, people began to notice us.

“There he is!” Lady Corcoran pointed and hugged her daughter, who just smiled stiffly at me.

“The prince is here!”

Within seconds, my four bodyguards—Short, Tall, Mad, and Sniffly—were racing toward me from points around the yard, their swords drawn and ready to cut down my captors. They slowed to a walk as they recognized North and Todd, but even then, they didn't relax, just sheathed their weapons as they moved into formation around me.

My pulse raced as all attention fell on me. Civilians kept at a short distance, clearly unwilling to incur the wrath of my guards.

I lifted my voice above the murmurs and speculation. “I need to see my father, the king.” As if people didn't know who my father was. But it didn't hurt to remind them. Not at this moment.

On cue, my parents emerged from the house, a unit of guards flanking them. They strode down the grand staircase, lights and scattered mirrors casting glorious illumination around them. They were resplendent.

“Tobiah.” Father approached, and people drifted aside to clear a path between us. They weren't conscious of their movements, it seemed, and my father didn't notice. That was just the sort of respect given to the king. “Everyone has been looking for you. Professor Knight was attacked, and you were gone. We feared you'd been kidnapped.”

Again.

And further unspoken words:
“How
dare
you embarrass us by disappearing in the middle of your party?”

My stomach dropped at the fury in his eyes. Others would see only concern and mild anger, but they didn't know King Terrell like I did.

“I know Professor Knight was attacked. I discovered him—and went after the perpetrator.”

Mother's eyes widened. She glanced beyond me to where Hensley stood with the pair of officers. A question shone in the way she lifted an eyebrow, but she didn't speak. No doubt she and I would have a talk later; for now, and for this audience, she would leave the questioning to Father.

Father lowered his voice to a growl. “You witnessed the attack?”

“Enough of it.” I kept my tone hard, like he did.

“Tell me exactly what you saw.”

Finally. I motioned North and Todd forward. Hensley came with them, wearing a bemused expression.

“I stepped out of the ballroom to get some air,” I said. “In Lord Roth's gallery, I heard raised voices. When I investigated, I saw Knight on the floor, unconscious, a burn on his forearm—one obviously made with magic.”

King Terrell nodded. “We saw the same.”

I wanted to ask how Professor Knight was—if he was awake and whether he would recover—but those were questions for later. “As I entered the anteroom, I witnessed Lord Hensley fleeing through the back door.”

Everyone's eyes swung toward Lord Hensley, and whispers slithered through the yard.

“So you followed?” Father didn't look away from me.

“I did.” It took everything in me to keep my voice steady. “I
wanted to be sure I had the right man before I accused anyone, so I followed Lord Hensley outside and caught him just as he was about to leave Hawksbill.”

“You took it upon yourself to apprehend him, rather than call for men trained for such things?”

I clenched my jaw. Wasn't that
obvious
?

Father turned his attention to Hensley, giving me a moment to take note of all the people staring at this display. Lady Meredith had her head tilted, listening to something Lady Chey was whispering in her ear. The rest of the Chuters were in a group near the stairs, while the Goldbergs stood close by. Professor Knight was nowhere to be seen, but I caught James prowling around the edges of the crowd, his ear turned toward conversations he'd later repeat to me.

Thank saints for James.

“Gerald.” My father's tone toward Lord Hensley was less annoyed. Less angry. Less everything. As if he didn't believe my accusations were true. “What do you have to say to these allegations?”

“I would never harm the good professor.” Again, there was that note of bemusement. “And I'm certainly no flasher.”

“So”—Father's eyes cut to me—“you're accusing my son of lying?”

Heat pressed through the crowd. Someone gasped.

“Of course not, Sire. But the prince must be mistaken. He said he saw someone leaving the room; perhaps he mistook the true attacker for me, if he saw them only from behind.”

“That sounds quite possible.” Father cleared his throat. “Officers, release Lord Hensley.”

As one, North and Todd moved to remove the cuffs and stepped away.

“Father!” Shock pitched my voice higher.

He glared at me. “Son?”

“You aren't going to ask if
he
happened to see who attacked the professor? Or why he was outside at the same time as the attacker was leaving the house? Or what he was doing, heading out of Hawksbill in the middle of the night?” Was I the
only
one with any common sense here?

“I don't have to ask. I know why Lord Hensley was leaving Hawksbill at this hour, and it's definitely not your business.” Father strode closer, fury darkening his face. “Hensley is working for
me
.”

My chest tightened until it ached.

“As for whether I saw an attacker fleeing the scene?” Hensley shook his head. “I'm afraid I didn't. I'm quite fond of your professor. I'd like to apprehend his assailant as much as you, Your Highness.”

That had to be a lie. “There's a way to be sure. Measure the burn on Knight's arm against Hensley's hand.”

“Professor Knight said his attacker was a stranger, someone he'd never seen before. The professor's word is good enough for me.” My father sighed and motioned for the crowd to disperse. “I'm afraid we must retire earlier than planned. But thank you, all, for celebrating my son's sixteenth birthday with us. We are ever grateful for your friendship. Good night.”

My guests seemed reluctant to go, but a few glares from guards got people moving toward their carriages. As more and more people began to leave, and Father sent North and Todd
back to their posts, my stomach sank deeper.

When Hensley was gone, too, after bowing and thanking Father for his trust, the yard grew quiet and tense. The day's heat had faded now, leaving sticky, uncomfortable humidity. Only my parents, several bodyguards, and James and his mother remained. At least I could trust James not to abandon me now.

Father's voice was quiet. “I can't begin to tell you how disappointed I am.”

“I think I can guess.”

“No. I doubt it.” He looked almost sad. “Perhaps when you have a son and he betrays your trust—when he behaves in a way that you've explicitly forbidden—then you will be able to guess the depths of my disappointment. Not only that, you've embarrassed me, yourself, and Lord Hensley. You've taken officers from their duty in order to satisfy whatever grudge you have against him.”

“I don't have a grudge. I saw him.”

“And what weight does your word hold? First, you slipped away from your guards, putting their careers in jeopardy. If I didn't believe this was
entirely
your fault, I might have had them all disgracefully dismissed. Second, you put Professor Knight's life in danger by not immediately calling for a physician. Luckily he was discovered soon enough that he will recover with proper treatment. The burn was not as serious as it appeared; only the top layer of tissue was damaged, which means he was very lucky, or the saints were watching over him. And third, you put your mother and me in a position of having to choose between humoring your arrest and humiliating Lord Hensley, and doing the right thing and freeing him, even if that meant humiliating
you instead.”

“I'm not humiliated.” That wasn't exactly true, but the weight of everyone's judgment hadn't quite settled. “I'm frustrated and angry that instead of taking me seriously, you're more upset that I sneaked away. You're more upset that I was out of your control for half an hour.”

“You're right I'm more upset about that.” Father's voice lowered to a growl. “You're given so much freedom. It
upsets
me that you'd cause this kind of panic and completely ruin the party your cousin worked so hard to arrange for you.” He motioned at James, who shot me a panicked look and shrug, which meant he didn't care what I'd done. No one was in a position to notice, except his mother, who was lost somewhere in her memories and grief.

That was all I could take. Using James to make me feel guilty, embarrassing me in front of everyone at my own birthday party, and—and—

The anger ripped out of me.

“For half my life, you've kept me on a leash that's strangling me. I'm sixteen years old. Old enough to join the Indigo Order. Old enough to go to war, if there were anyone left to go to war with. Old enough that I don't need
minders
at all hours.” I sucked in a hot, sharp breath. “You can't expect me to stay a child forever. You'll have to start trusting me if you expect me to become king after you're gone.”

“I do trust you.”

“If you trusted me, I'd be allowed to attend the Academy. I'd be permitted to leave Hawksbill. I'd have seen more of our kingdom than the road to Aecor eight years ago.” My neck and
face flamed with rage, and my tone laced with venom. “My kidnappers showed me more of the Indigo Kingdom than you ever have.”

Father's hands clenched at his sides, while Mother's eyes went wide and hurt. “Take that back, Tobiah.” Her soft voice was a lie; there was steel in her tone.

“I won't take back the truth.” My glare cut from Mother to Father. “You don't trust me. You don't believe me when I tell you what I heard and saw. You don't think I'm capable of doing anything worthwhile because you've never allowed me to take action. And now that I have, you're
disappointed
.”

He straightened himself and motioned to his bodyguards. “Fetch the carriage.” As though they were drivers as well. But they went. “Tobiah, since you're so confident of your ability to come and go on your own, you'll be walking back to Skyvale Palace tonight. Perhaps that will give you adequate time to consider the consequences of your actions.”

His carriage pulled around, and he and Mother climbed in.

I didn't move. Hardly breathed.

Mother flashed a quick, unhappy glance through the window, and then they pulled away, leaving my guards, James, and his mother alone with me standing in the yard lit for the birthday party I'd barely attended.

“I BELIEVE LORD
Hensley murdered your stepfather.”

James's face went ashen, all the humor washed from his expression. “What in the names of all nine saints makes you say that?”

We were walking back to the palace, just as my father had commanded. Aunt Kathleen had pulled herself from her grief just long enough to offer a carriage, but I wanted to walk. Needed to. Unfortunately for my guards, that meant they had to walk, too, but I resented their presence enough I didn't care if they were tired.

Now, they were several paces back, too far to hear my conversation with James.

“You know how strange the fire was—how the police said it burned hot enough to
melt
the paper and rugs, but didn't harm the layers underneath, how it was contained in the one room.”

James's eyes unfocused for a heartbeat as he lost himself in
a memory. “That's a big accusation.”

“Lord Hensley can control fire. He grabbed Professor Knight's forearm and I smelled cooking skin. There's a hand-shaped burn there now, but it doesn't go any deeper than the first layer. That's what Father said, right?”

James nodded. “So he can burn people without permanently maiming them. That doesn't mean he controls
fire
.” But James was arguing to argue, because he had to look at all sides fairly.

“It was Hensley. I know it. He burned Professor Knight. He was leaving the party for
something
urgent enough he didn't bother to say good-bye. And he set the fire in Lord Roth's pre-wraith gallery.”

“But why? Why would he hurt Professor Knight? Or Lord Roth?” His voice broke a little when he said his stepfather's name. James put on a brave, joking face most of the time, but I'd been the one to block him from view when he lost composure at Lord Roth's memorial. I'd been the one to let him scream and rant when he'd realized that part of his mother had died in that fire, too, and she was never going to be the same. Not even for him.

“I don't know.” That was probably not the right answer. “I'm going to find out why, and then I'm going to make sure he's arrested for it.”

“You already had him arrested.” James smirked, himself again. “Look how that turned out.”

I flicked my little finger at him, but he had a point. There was something more going on—something I didn't have enough information to piece together. The catch would be obtaining those missing bits and doing it without incurring further rage
and punishment, or Hensley's suspicion.

More suspicion, that was.

“Anyway,” James went on, “it's not as though he'll truly be punished for what he's done. He's nobility. That makes him untouchable, unless you can provide irrefutable proof.”

“I'll do it, then.” As we turned a corner and the palace came into view, my heart began to pound again. Father was never going to forgive me—unless he didn't have to know. “I'll find out where Hensley was going tonight. I'll find proof of his magic. I'll find proof that he set the fire. I'll make sure he can't use his power to harm anyone—or bring more wraith—ever again.”

“It isn't your duty. We have an army, the Indigo Order, and an entire police force.”

“Yet they aren't stopping him. I trust that they're trying, but they're neglecting the nobility. When one's blood is of a certain lineage, infractions tend to get overlooked. But with irrefutable proof of his magic, he's more likely to actually be punished for what he's done. Magic is unpardonable, after all.”

“All right.” James sounded resigned, but he never disagreed with me for long. Soon he'd see this mission was for the best. “You know if you're going to do this, you'll need a better exit strategy than what you did tonight.”

I nodded. “Tonight was sloppy. But unplanned. I don't think I did poorly for having no idea I'd be sneaking out of Rayner Manor in the middle of the night.”

James flicked his small finger at me. “You'd never have made it out if I hadn't covered for you. And what kind of thanks do I get?”

“None!” I grinned and lowered my voice; the guards behind
us would love to overhear our conversation. Now, more than ever, they were paranoid. I'd have to work to earn Father's trust again if I wanted to pursue Hensley and find out what he was up to. “That is,” I said as we climbed up the grand staircase and strode by the spraying fountain, “I appreciate your distraction. I doubt I'd have made it past those four if you hadn't started that toast.”

“If you'd have given me more warning you were going to be out for so long, not just lurking in the hall like I'd assumed, I wouldn't have started a chain of toasts that led to everyone trying to find you in the crowd.”

“I'll do better next time.” And there would be a next time. Hensley was up to something—something that involved magic—and I meant to uncover his secret no matter the cost.